What would your perfect engagement ring be? A shining band of platinum crested with a marquise cut diamond? How about one in rose or yellow gold set with a sapphire or perhaps a ruby?

For most people, the engagement ring is an incredibly important and symbolic piece of jewellery. As a singular token of affection and devotion, the engagement ring has become an embodiment of love, and it’s for this reason that so many of us are keen to choose the right ring for our partners. Proposals can be nerve racking at the best of times and making sure you have a ring your partner will appreciate and, more importantly, want, is high on the agenda for many.

Over a third of men in the UK admit that the engagement ring is the most difficult piece of jewellery they will ever purchase for their partner, with even more emphasis placed on choosing it than on wedding rings. With all the difficulties and nuances surrounding style, color, material and shape when selecting the right engagement ring for your loved one, coupled with the sheer variety of tastes and styles available, we thought it was about time somebody answered the question: what is the perfect engagement ring for women?

Finding the One

Having spent almost 200 years within the jewellery industry, William May are heavily invested in finding the most exquisite and exceptionally high-quality pieces of jewellery in the world, and engagement rings are no exception. Due to this piece of jewellery’s importance and difficulty in selection, we thought we would run a survey to ask what is perceived as the perfect engagement ring by the Great British public.

Reaching out to 2000 women across the UK, we proposed the question, asking for every detail they could give us about their idea of a perfect engagement ring. From the design to the colour, the metal used and any precious stones incorporated into the ring, we received a definitive definition of what women in the UK would want their perfect engagement ring to look like.

The results:

  • Over a quarter of those surveyed said they would prefer a white gold band over any other precious metal (25.4%).
  • Nearly a third preferred a traditional round cut to the ring’s design (27%).
  • When it came to the jewel, nearly a quarter stated that a singular, half-carat diamond would be their choice of precious stone (24.6%).
  • Finally, over 36% of those surveyed said they would like their engagement ring’s jewel to be placed in the classic solitaire setting.

 

Envisaging Perfection

With the results from our survey, we thought it would be a brilliant idea to visualise the UK’s perfect engagement ring. Combining our knowledge in jewellery and engagement ring design with the survey’s results, we shared the statistics and our own expertise with an experienced CAD artist to see if we could create the perfect engagement ring and bring it to life.

 

Starting with a concept for the piece, the artist drew up the dimensions and design for the ring:

 

Afterwards, the design was moved into CAD and then modified onto a pre-rendered version of the image:

Finally, the CAD files were sent to the Render Farm for the final flourishes, recreating the nation’s perfect engagement ring in all its splendour and beauty:

 

So there we have it! The perfect engagement ring as chosen by the women of the UK, a white gold, round cut band set with a solitaire, half-carat diamond. We’re sure you’ll agree that the results are simply stunning, and the images above present a glimmering example of minimalist beauty at its best.

‘Proposals are joyous occasions for all parties involved,’ says Nick Withington of William May. ‘At least now those in doubt have some guidance when it comes to making the right decision for their significant other’.

Although the ring is still a concept and yet to become a reality, perhaps one day William May will recreate this splendid piece of jewellery for all those wanting to make the perfect proposal to their loved one. In the meantime, William May has a superb collection of new and second-hand engagement rings to choose from with plenty of stunning white gold and solitaire set diamond designs across the range:

You can browse our collection of high-quality engagement rings here.