I might be in a minority, but I knew for sure I did not want a diamond! My idea was always for a marquise or pear-shaped colored center stone with moissanite side/accent stones but the actual shape and configuration were up in the air until it got put together. I also wanted something on the more modest stone size but with a wider band - slim bands look out of scale on my wide fingers and while a lot of my clothes and costume jewelry might be bolder, for an engagement ring I wanted something a little quieter but more unique for daily use.
My fiance wanted to be sure I got exactly what I wanted, and I already had a local jewelry designer in mind from purchasing her fashion jewelry over the years and seeing that she did fine jewelry and custom/engagement pieces as well. At the point we were looking at buying and not just me dreaming about it, I knew I wanted Alexandrite. It's super unique (natural stones are "rarer than diamonds" though this is a lab stone) and changes color in different lighting, between a blue-green and a purple-red and my favorite color has always been purple.
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It has been impossible to capture the blue/green/teal shades on camera! I can look down and it looks completely bright teal and still photograph blurple haha. It also looks red-orange with flashes of green through my sunglasses, which I found out was due to a property unrelated to its color change - pleochroism and polarized light or something or other haha.
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Super happy with how it turned out and excited but also intimidated by the prospect of wedding planning. We got engaged earlier this year but are targeting Summer/Fall 2023 for our wedding.