Collection: Our Top Ten Engagement Rings

You can't beat a classic! The round brilliant cut solitaire engagement ring has maintained its status as the most popular style of engagement ring for decades.

The round cut centre stone has consistently been a favourite engagement ring style, perhaps because of its timeless, versatile, and brilliantly sparkly appearance which comes from the way the diamond has been cut to maximise the light refracted and reflected from the stone. A round brilliant diamond also looks stunning in any setting!

So, it is no wonder this style is continuously chosen over any other. However, in recent years, despite remaining the most popular style, the round brilliant solitaire engagement ring's lead over other stone shapes has begun to decline.

Who knows, maybe there will be a new contender for most popular engagement ring style before long!

It is important to consider what materials such as metal and stone type you want to have in a ring for your engagement.

The most popular choice of materials for an engagement ring in the last year have included white gold and diamond for a classic and sophisticated look. However, there are a variety of other materials that are also popular to meet your every desire when it comes to an engagement ring.

A well as white gold, an engagement ring can be made using yellow gold, and rose gold, both of which are available at Ethica. The popularity of this metal comes from its durability and resistance to tarnishing which means whatever colour you choose, you are guaranteed to have an engagement ring with long lasting shine.

Platinum is another popular choice when it comes to what metal you may want to use in your engagement ring. Not only is platinum strong and long lasting, it really brings out the shine of whatever you choose as the stone or stones for your engagement ring since it has a slightly more grey finish than white gold or silver, for example.

Rising in popularity, the lab grown diamond is a very desirable alternative to mined diamond that accounts for about 50% of diamond sales these days. Lab grown diamonds are identical to natural diamonds in their brilliance, fire, and sparkle since their chemical makeup is identical. You can't beat the classic look, so lab grown diamond is a fabulous stone to use in your engagement ring.

One other material that is massively popular in the world of engagement rings, is coloured gemstones. They can come in the form of precious and semi precious stones which can often be lab grown and in virtually any colour! It isn't hard to understand why coloured stones would be a favourite for your ring - who wouldn't want a colourful gem to reflect their personality and style?

So, there you have it. The most popular materials for an engagement ring.

Here are the top five most popular stone shapes which you can choose for your engagement ring:

Round Brilliant

The classic round brilliant cut is the most popular style of stone cut, designed to reflect and refract the most amount of light for the highest amount of sparkle. This style will suit everyone!

Princess

This shape has just as much sparkle as a round brilliant except it has a more contemporary look with its square shape when seen form above. Very popular in Art Deco inspired engagement rings.

Emerald

The emerald cut is a rectangular shape which holds flashes of lights rather than a consistent sparkle like the round brilliant or princess cut. This type of ring suits long fingers with its linear, straight facets.

Cushion

The cushion cut has a more vintage feel to it since it is based on a more old-fashioned cut which has rounded corners - like a cushion! similar to the princess cut but with much softer edges.

Asscher

Asscher cuts are reminiscent of the emerald shape, except that they have more facets and therefore a much greater sparkle. Art Deco style and timeless this is a popular choice for an engagement ring.