Pave vs. Channel Set

[blueyes157]

Which do you prefer? Which gives the most sparkle on the setting of an engagment ring? I have always felt that channel set seem to sparkle more because they allow light behind them (even though you have it on your hand).

 

[mrssalvo]

they just have very different looks. the sparkle comes from the cut of the stones. my sister has a channel set e-ring and wedding band and really wants to change it to a pave set. she just prefers it but is only 3 years into her marriage and a way from any upgrade. I personally prefer the look of pave as well. I''m just not a fan of the small gaps between the stones that you see in a channel setting with round stones..

 

[InlovewithJHK]

I personally don''t like channel set. I rarely see a channel set ring that I like... I think they just look dated to me. My pave wedding band sparkles soooo much!

 

[belle]

the sparkle comes from the diamond cut. well cut stones will sparkle like crazy no matter what setting they're in. the performance of poorer cuts are setting dependent. that said, i'm not a fan of channel set stones either. i just don't like the look, especially with rounds.

 

[sugarplum]

Date: 8/3/2007 10:38:45 AM
Author: mrssalvo
they just have very different looks. the sparkle comes from the cut of the stones. my sister has a channel set e-ring and wedding band and really wants to change it to a pave set. she just prefers it but is only 3 years into her marriage and a way from any upgrade. I personally prefer the look of pave as well. I''m just not a fan of the small gaps between the stones that you see in a channel setting with round stones..

ditto! i love pave and do not like the gaps between round stones in a channel set. IMO, pricesses in a channel look better than rounds but i still don''t prefer channel sets. pave all the way!

 

[Pandora II]

I''m a channel set fan!

I like clean lines and find that the beads on pave bother me. I like shared prong setting as well.

I think it''s a personal choice - and depends on the piece. Some styles I would definitely go pave.

 

[april diamonds]

Pave for me! (but i''m biased...i have a pave ring) ^_^

Most of the channels i''ve seen have "thick" metal on the sides and I don''t like that. Pave bands I think are more delicate and mine does sparkly plenty. I have seen some fantastic channel sets, but I definitely lean towards pave!

 

[kcoursolle]

I love pave set better. It''s more maintanence, but it''s a beautiful look that is more delicate. Forgive me, but I think that channel set is a bit masculine and not as "pretty".

 

[february2003bride]

Hey, WHAT is with all of the channel bashing lately here on PS?

I''ve seen gorgeous channel set rings (Woobug''s comes to mind) and pave rings (a gazillon on PS) and I''ve seen crappy crappy channel set rings/settings and pave rings. When DH and I were e-ring shopping when we got engaged, we hit Kay''s to get our fet wet (this was in 2002 and way before I knew of PS) and they had a pave setting that was actually missing stones from the setting. THAT''S bad.

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 8/3/2007 2:36:06 PM
Author: kcoursolle
I love pave set better. It''s more maintanence, but it''s a beautiful look that is more delicate. Forgive me, but I think that channel set is a bit masculine and not as ''pretty''.

I agree...

 

[Nicki]

Date: 8/3/2007 12:22:26 PM
Author: Pandora II
I''m a channel set fan!

I like clean lines and find that the beads on pave bother me. I like shared prong setting as well.

I think it''s a personal choice - and depends on the piece. Some styles I would definitely go pave.

Well, I''m with Pandora on this. I don''t really like the beads on pave, either. I have seen a few pave rings I like, but they''re in the minority.

I prefer channel sets, although I''m not a big fan of channel rounds. I love any of the channel set square/rectangular stones, though.

 

[DMBsGirl]

Another pave fan here! I also love shared prong settings, which you should also consider. Channel set is not my thing.

 

[TaraLeigh]

Pave for me... channel for his ring (I also see the channel set as being a little more masculine).

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I have both. Pave on my e-ring and a channel set princess wedding band (no gaps!). I think the channel set is VERY comfortable to wear and I have more piece of mind since I have lost a melee in my e-ring. I would never get a pave eternity band. Seems too risky for my lifestyle. I think both sparkle nicely.

 

[Mr. Eric]

Pave for me. I just bought me lady a tacori with pave setting. (ht 225 Like the look better, but thats just my preference.

 

[bschai]

Sorry for the ignorance. My knowledge is limited to only 4,6 prongs and channel.

Do you have a link or picture of what a pave setting looks like?

Thanks.

 

[Lynn B]

Date: 8/3/2007 5:51:35 PM
Author: bschai
Sorry for the ignorance. My knowledge is limited to only 4,6 prongs and channel.

Do you have a link or picture of what a pave setting looks like?

Thanks.

There's certainly no shortage of pave around these parts!

Do a "search" and you'll have enough reading for a week!

But, in the meantime, here's a photo of my rings. They are a typical example of fishtail pave; custom made by WF. Made with <2 pointers, finished band is 2mm wide.

(If you want to see more pictures of it, I have a thread with a gizillion photos; I'll give you the link!)

 

[Haven]

I prefer pave to channel set, but it is definitely a matter of personal taste. I have seen some gorgeous channel set rings, but for some reason they just don''t do it for me. Well, I did see one band with channel set RAs that I fell for, so maybe it''s just that I don''t like channel set RBs. Regardless, they''re all beautiful, different tastes just prefer different things.

After trying a gazillion bands on in person during this search for the right ering, I must say I have fallen in love with shared prong settings. I love how pave sparkles and you don''t see much metal, but shared prongs show even LESS metal, so I think I''m now a shared prong kinda girl.

Get what you love, it''s hard to go wrong when you''re encrusting a band with diamonds!

 

[Lynn B]

Date: 8/3/2007 6:20:51 PM
Author: Haven
I prefer pave to channel set, but it is definitely a matter of personal taste. I have seen some gorgeous channel set rings, but for some reason they just don''t do it for me. Well, I did see one band with channel set RAs that I fell for, so maybe it''s just that I don''t like channel set RBs. Regardless, they''re all beautiful, different tastes just prefer different things.

After trying a gazillion bands on in person during this search for the right ering, I must say I have fallen in love with shared prong settings. I love how pave sparkles and you don''t see much metal, but shared prongs show even LESS metal, so I think I''m now a shared prong kinda girl.

Get what you love, it''s hard to go wrong when you''re encrusting a band with diamonds!

Shared prong can be lovely. My first set was shared prong, made with .05 and .03 pointers, and I really did like it. It is a very *sparkly* look, for sure. Bead set pave is (IMHO) a different look, more of a *shimmer* than a sparkle... but gorgeous!

 

[bae7]

I''m mostly a lurker - not sure why - I guess I figure everyone else is more knowledgeable than I am! But anyway, I have a pave setting from Hearts on Fire and I LOVE it - it sparkles as much as my diamond!

 

[sera]

I prefer pave also... it''s just personal preference (And as far as I know, holes in the band under the diamonds are to make cleaning easier and doesn''t sparkle since your finger blocks the light anyway and the sparkle comes from the light entering the top of the diamond).

I actually saw a gorgeous pave band today on someone... it must have been like 1.5mm it was so thin but beautiful. It sparkled SO much... even a guy commented on the sparkle! I keep flipflopping between going with shared prong or pave or even a bezel set eternity (I was worried pave wouldn''t have enough sparkle but after seeing the ring today, I know with well cut diamonds pave will sparkle beautifully).

 

[Skippy123]

I like channel.

 

[surfnrg]

How about a channel set with, say princess cut? Flush, no Gaps. Elegant, classic. Depends on what look you''re going for .

 

[angeline]

I used to think I didn''t like channel because on all the pics you can see the gaps between the round stones. But when I looked in real life all I could see was sparkle! I was surprised. The reaaaallly big photos on the internet show the gaps but not the sparkle. I like how channel is so comfortable and safe.

 

[surfgirl]

I love the look of prong set eternity bands but the size I''d want isn''t comfy on my hand. I prefer channel set for smaller stones and if one wants more of a vintage look a little millegrain or engraving around the edges of a delicate channel set are very Art Deco, which I love. However, a plain channel set - particularly in larger stones - looks quite modern and clean lines to my eye. So if you have a clean, modern setting that''s a good match. But if you have a more vintagy setting, I think I prefer either shared prong or channel set with millegrain and/or engraved sides. My sister has my grandmother''s eternity band as her wedding band and its like that and beautiful. The only think I dont like about pave and prong set bands is that for me, I''d catch them constantly on sweaters, etc. and it would drive me crazy. With a channel set its a smoother setting so no catching on things. One last thing on channel settings...prong settings have the same "gaps" as channels (IMO), your eye just doesn''t notice it as much because there are prongs where the gaps are. In a nice channel set, with smaller stones, all I see is sparkle, which is as it should be! I think sometimes we make a big deal out of gaps but we''re looking at photos here that are magnified way beyond what our eye can see in real life. To me, the "gaps" only show when you get into a larger stone that''s channel set, say .20 pointers. I dont care for that look at that size.

 

[risingsun]

I love my shared prong set, although that wasn''t one of the choices. It sparkles like crazy!!

 

[blueyes157]

Can someone show me an example of a shared prong setting or direct me to a thread with them? I am trying to get a visual! Thanks everyone for their feedback! I think I am leaning towards channel set, but we will see. I let everyone know (and see!) when it comes... I think it is going to happen before the end of the year!

 

[sera]

Date: 8/4/2007 11:22:32 PM
Author: blueyes157
Can someone show me an example of a shared prong setting or direct me to a thread with them? I am trying to get a visual! Thanks everyone for their feedback! I think I am leaning towards channel set, but we will see. I let everyone know (and see!) when it comes... I think it is going to happen before the end of the year!

I''m not able to upload the pic, so here is the link:
Whiteflash shared prong

 

[sera]

Here is a Ritani shared single prong... I like this look better than the shared double prong because it seems smoother and gives more of a scalloped edge:

 

[orangemonster]

I recently had my invisible set princess engagement ring redone with channel set for security.

My center stone is 2.02 and the 30 side princess stones are a bit over 2 cts total. The channel setting with the princess stones is BEAUTIFUL and very feminine in a more modern look. There are no gold bars between the stones and I have three rows of them with the middle row slightly higher. All you see is sheer SPARKLE and it''s difficult to see where one stone ends and the next begins... very smooth look.

I think pave settings are lovely too... they are a bit more romantic to me and the channel settings a bit more clean and modern. I don''t think one is better than the other, just different. If someone would like to donate a pave set ring to me for ''contemplation'' I would not say NO! LOL!