
A study by The Knot found that, out of 7,000 women surveyed, a staggering 25% of them received a solitaire ring from their partner! The solitaire continues to be a popular option because it was designed to promote a diamond’s sparkle. Today, the solitaire setting is still the #1 engagement ring choice for most couples. By the 1990s, over 80% of new brides received an engagement ring! While only 10% of brides received engagement rings in the 1930s, this slogan skyrocketed the solitaire diamond ring to fame, calling upon the diamond’s everlasting durability as a sign of one’s enduring love for a partner. In 1947, De Beers launched their “A diamond is forever” ad campaign, and the vision of the solitaire setting as the perfect symbol of love and marriage was sealed.

Diamonds were very rare at the time, so offering her such a valuable stone was seen as a sign of deep devotion. The solitaire is the oldest and most popular ring design, dating back to 1477 when Archduke Maximilian of Austria gifted his fiancée Mary of Burgundy a diamond ring. The term solitaire can even be used to describe necklaces, earrings, fashion rings, or men’s jewelry with the same simplistic style.😁 There are no other gemstones anywhere else on the setting, and the design itself is rather straightforward.

A solitaire ring setting is a specific design, featuring one band and one center stone. So does any ring with a center stone count as a solitaire setting? Not exactly.
