Solitaire Necklaces

A solitaire necklace carries one diamond and no side stones, suspended from a fine chain. The setting is either claw prongs, which lift the stone and let light in from underneath, or a bezel, which wraps the girdle in metal. Round and pear shapes here take six prongs, and the step cut shapes take four.

Yes. On the select-your-diamond pendants you pick the shape and the individual stone, then choose 14K gold or platinum for the setting. Lab-grown and natural are both available at every shape. Diamonds over one carat are certified by GIA or IGI and the report comes with the finished piece.

Around half a carat reads as a fine everyday piece and sits quietly under a collar. One to two carats is where the stone becomes the thing people notice first. Above two carats, and the pieces here go to just over three, a solitaire necklace holds a room the way a ring does on a hand.

Prongs let more light through the stone, so the same diamond looks brighter and slightly larger. A bezel protects the girdle, snags less on knitwear and is the safer choice for a necklace worn every day under clothes. On a pendant that sits against fabric all day, most people are happier with the bezel.