1. Skin complexion: Different pearl colors compliment different skin tones. Right choice of a pearl color can highlight the skin tone and give a lift in life. White is the most popular color and suits the widest range of skin tones. Nevertheless,

* Fair skins are well matched with white pearls.
* Tanned and dark skin tones are harmonized with creamy and golden pearls.

2. Age: Age plays a distinct role in selecting the length of the necklace and the size of pearl. In general, young ladies look better with shorter necklace and smaller pearl; longer necklace with larger pearl look good on old ladies.

* Simple, shorter necklace of smaller pearls show best on youthful necklines. Necklaces closer to the throat can show off smooth skin. Contrarily, flashier, bigger, and wider necklaces on young ladies do not enhance but detract.
* Longer chains (18 - 24 inches in general) with larger pearl (>7 mm) on older women will help draw attention away from the neck and any other apparent imperfections.

3. Body shape: Customize your necklace style to your proportions.

* If you have a long neck, a single or multi-strand collar (12-13 inches) or choker (14-16 inches) will accentuate your charm and grace.
* If your neck is shorter, a longer strand such as a matinee (20-24 inches) or opera (28-34 inches) will "elongates" the neck, creating an overall harmonizing look.

4.Dress: Choose a pearl necklace of right length to complement the dress.

* Shorter necklace such as pearl collar or choker is perfect for the off-the-shoulder grace of wedding gowns. They also complement evening gowns and "V" neck sweaters.
* Longer necklace such as pearl princess (17-19 inches) is the most versatile necklace length. It is suited to everyday sports and business wear, providing a classic, timeless elegance to every kind of outfit.

Pearls make a woman shine. A poetic metaphor for life, pearl is a perfect gift for all occasions. A simple strand of pearl necklace can take a woman through every moment in her life, every outfit in her wardrobe; it will be loved and cherished for life.

One key decision to make when you build your own engagement rings is the metal. Yellow, white gold and platinum are most common. Titanium bands and silver are less so. Rose gold engagement rings or copper are pretty rare.

Titanium bands are the new black in the wedding industry. Titanium has a long history in industries such the military, aerospace, medicine, etc. but has only been widely seen on the fingers of brides and grooms for the last 20 years. While titanium is not rare, it is one of the strongest materials around, compared to other materials of similar weight. For example, titanium weighs 75% less than gold, but is 50% stronger than steel of the same weight. Titanium is a tough cookie and will outlast other metals such as gold and platinum.

Wait, there are even more advantages to titanium bands. Since titanium is one of the 9th most abundant metals around, it is relatively inexpensive, thus, it will usually cost less than platinum and sometimes less than gold. The cost in titanium jewelry is not for the raw metal but the artistry and labor involved in designing the ring. Titanium is also hypoallergenic and will not make your skin turn green or other unsightly shades. It is a low maintenance metal and doesn't tarnish

Titanium can be combined with other metals such as silver, gold, and platinum and embellished with any kind of gemstone. It can also be colored to have sheens of any shade of the rainbow.

Titanium bands also have a few downsides. Titanium is often marketed as being scratch-resistant, but that's not exactly true. Titanium bands will show small scrapes and scratches just like gold and platinum wedding bands. However, any local jeweler should be able to polish a titanium ring look new again. you need to take care when picking out your ring size because re-sizing titanium rings is nearly impossible. You may be able to slightly increase a titanium ring size, but you really can't make it any smaller. Thus, don't plan on losing any weight after you purchase your ring.

There is an urban legend surrounding titanium, since it is such a strong metal, that if you get a titanium ring stuck on your finger, you will not be able to get it off and your finger will have to be amputated. What a horrible thought! This is not true--- as with other metals such as gold or platinum, if need be, titanium can be cut off one's fingers with a professional-grade ring cutting tool.

I don't think I've ever seen any women wearing rose gold engagement rings. Nonetheless, they exist and while not typically sold in most mainstream jewelry stores, can be found in antique stores. Victorian antique engagement rings (1835-1900) were often set in rose gold. You can also find rose gold engagement rings that are produced today. There are some online jewelry stores that actually specialize in producing them.

Most people have preferred the color of gold to remain close to that of pure yellow gold itself. Gold only naturally occurrs in the yellow shade. All others shades are produced by mixing 24K gold with other metals. Pure gold is too soft to wear as jewelry and so alloys are almost always added to it, regardless of the color desired. The term alloys refers to a combination of two or more metals. Gold alloys are a combination of gold, copper and silver. Nickel, zinc, and palladium are common components of white gold alloys. To create rose gold alloys, the silver content of gold is reduced while the content of copper is increased slightly. The more copper that is added to it, the deeper the rose hue.

Ever heard the song "Walk Like an Egyptian" by the Bangles? It came out in the late 80s and has been stuck in my head ever since.......but I digress. Egyptian engagement rings are not for all......and maybe not even for a few... but someone must be buying them because there are a number of online stores which sell egyptian jewelry.

I never seen any women sporting egyptian engagement rings so rest assured you would probably be the only couple on the block to own one.

Interestingly enough, women in ancient Egypt were no different than women today in that they loved their jewelry, particularly rings. Women wore numerous rings, sometimes as many as three on a finger. In ancient Egypt, rings often served as status symbols. For example, gold rings indicated wealth and were also used as money. When a couple was married, the man placed a gold ring on a woman's finger to show that he trusted her with his money. Hmmm....... sounds like ancient Egyptian men and men today also have a lot in common :) The betrothal ring, used by Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans, was adopted by early Christians and later morphed into the wedding ring.

"Signet" rings, identified the rank and position of the wearer. These rings were often embellished with carvings of scarabs (beetles) or hieroglyphs. The scarab is said to represent the powers of creativity and re-creation responsible for the evolution of one's life and one's soul.

Egyptian cartouche jewelry was reserved solely for the pharaohs or kings of Ancient Egypt and often featured their names surrounded by an oval shape. Cartouche is a French word, defined as "gun cartridge." When Napoleon's soldiers were in Egypt, they nicknamed the oval shape surrounding the pharaohs names as cartouche because the shape appeared to resemble their bullets.

The ankh is another popular feature of Egyptian jewelry. It is a hieroglyphic character that means life. Egyptian gods are often portrayed bearing one in each hand. It is also known as the Egyptian Cross.

Ancient Egyptian jewelers did not use precious gems but rather stones, minerals, metals, and man-made materials. The selection of materials used to create a jewelery piece was often based on symbolism versus aesthetic value. In particular, choice of color was highly symbolic. For example, green was the color of fertility and prosperity.

Do a little searching on the internet and you will find that there are a handful of stores online that sell Egyptian jewelry and Egyptian engagement rings.

Pearl engagement rings are a classy alternative to diamond engagement rings. And speaking of classy, let me tell you about the tooth test, which involves rubbing the pearl up and down your front tooth to determine if the pearl is real. Cultured and natural pearls will feel rough against a tooth, while imitation pearls will feel smooth.

The process of how a pearl comes to be is pretty cool, if I do say so myself. Pearls are created when an object such as a small rock enters an oyster or mussel. The oyster/mussel than covers the object with something called nacre and a pearl is eventually created. The amount of the nacre coating is dependent on the mollusk, the water composition, and the length of time that the irritant is left inside to develop. As nacre thickness increases, so does the quality and durability of the pearl.

Natural pearls are fairly rare and typically the whole process is helped along by man.... resulting in cultured pearls. The only difference between natural and cultured pearls is that with cultured pearls, the external irritant such as a small rock is purposefully added into an oyster/mussel by man, thus triggering the pearl creation process. The only other difference is that natural pearls are more expensive since they are more rare. Another way to categorize pearls is whether they are freshwater pearls or saltwater pearls. Saltwater pearls are more rare and hence, more expensive.

When people think about pearls, they typically visualize small, white round beads. Yet, unbeknownst to many, pearls come in a wide variety of sizes, colors and shapes. For instance, there are some pearls that are large, green and possibly even tear-drop shaped.

Nothing spells out class quite like Harry Winston Engagement Rings. I've never stepped foot inside a Harry Winston Store but truth be told, I might be a little intimidated.

Winston may be most famous for once owning the Hope diamond which he donated to the Smithsonian Museum in DC. I've seen the diamond firsthand and it is awe-inspiring!

Harry Winston established his company in 1932. He apparently had a love affair with diamonds....feeling immense joy when acquiring a new bauble and deep depression when selling one of his pride and joys. Harry's son Ronald Winston is currently chairman of the company.

Unlike other jewelers, Harry Winston is hands on from start to finish with their pieces. The whole process of cutting, polishing, designing and creating the finished jewel is conducted in the Harry Winston 5th Avenue building in NYC. Their jewelry and engagement rings are like no others when it comes to quality, craftsmanship, and prestige.

Image has always been of the utmost importance to Harry Winston. Harry Winston has draped some of the world's biggest celebrities in diamonds. Who could forget Bennifer's enormous pink diamond engagement ring. Ben Affleck loved Harry Winston jewelry enough to also present Jennifer Garner with a 4.5 carat Harry Winston ring. Paris Hilton briefly sported a canary yellow Harry Winston diamond, when engaged to a man with her same namesake. You may have heard of the Taylor-Burton diamond, a 70 carat pear shaped rock? Hands down, the celebs love Harry Winston. Perhaps this is because Harry Winston covers celebrities in diamonds for some of the largest, most glamorous red carpet events like the Tonys, the Emmys, and the Academy Awards. And their prices are high enough to keep most of the riff-raff out of their stores and from the majority of commoners from wearing their designs.

From what I've heard, entry level pricing for 1 carat Harry Winston engagement rings begin at around $15,000. And forget about buying a little token item. Most everything in the store sells for over $10,000. If you are dead-set on a Harry Winston ring and are a "want champagne on a beer budget" kind of individual, consider getting a local jeweler to make a replica ring.

Don't be disappointed but you won't find a Harry Winston store located at your local mall. There are only a handful locations in Switzerland, Japan, France, Hawaii, Nevada, California, Florida, and New York.

Cartier engagement rings start in the affordable $4,000 range and skyrocket to the millions. Thus, allowing for both Joe Schmo down the street and Joe Millionaire alike to be able to purchase a bauble from Cartier. Still too steep? At least everyone can afford to become a member of the Cartier Club. ...all it takes is signing up on their website http://wwww.cartier.com to receive their free newsletter....... hmm...sounds a little more exclusive than it actually is, huh?

Cartier is a long time player in the jewelry industry. They've been around since the mid 19th century. Cartier's roots were planted in Paris by founder Louis-Francois Cartier. The famed NY branch on the oh so fancy fifth avenue, was established in the early 20th century.

Cartier's creations have been worn by royalty and celebrities across the globe. Legends such as Elizabeth Taylor and Marilyn Monroe have donned Cartier jewels. They are known for their outstanding quality and design and their name is synonomous with luxury.

Go to the Cartier website and take a look at Cartier's regular jewelry collection. Specifically, find the rings in the trinity collection: They are so cool and sleek. They feature three intertwined rings of various precious metals and diamonds. (I'll put these on my birthday wish list). I don't think these classic pieces will ever go out of style.

Under the bridal collection on the Cartier website, they offer "classic," one-stone rings ranging from .5 carat to many many more. All engagement rings appear to be made out of platinum although they may offer more choices at their store sites. They also offer "creative" engagement rings made of platinum which are significantly more embellished. The same "classic" and "creative" classification system is used for their wedding bands which are presented on their website in platinum, white gold and gold metals. Custom wedding bands can be created within fairly short notice...... most likely for a sweet price. Their rings appear to be a well-balanced mix of modern and antique combined together for a contemporary look.