Show me your ‘dainty’ engagement rings :)

Congratulations!
I'm a minimalist. Most engagement rings have the stone(s) raised above the band, so they stick out. That's what I didn't want, so I had mine made to my design. It was similar to this:
https://www.jewellersloupe.co.uk/products/fairtrade-yellow-gold-solitaire-princess-cut-diamond-engagement-ring-with-a-squared-band-1

Congratulations on the engagement.

I wouldn’t call a 0.5ct diamond dainty. On a real person in real life it’s pretty big and noticeable.

My engagement ring is a 0.23ct diamond solitaire in 18ct yellow gold and I wouldn’t want anything bigger because it would get in the way and get caught on things. No idea how celebrities wear those giant rocks they have as engagement rings.

Diamond paved bands can be scratchy and irritating because they rub on the fingers next to it. Go for only a half band of paving and not a full band. Keep in mind that the diamonds can get dirty and cloudy pretty easily depending on your skin type, how often you wash your hands, if you apply moisturiser and things like that.

Honestly you’ll need to try on a range of rings to find the style that suits your hand. I would never have picked out the style I ended up choosing. The styles I did like looked like shit on my hands.

Lots of the rings shown on here are mostly setting and very little stone.

Watch that if you want sparkle, the more setting, the flatter and less bright the stone because it disappears.

Go for the highest clarity you can with the least setting possible. Pretty much the opposite of what's shown here.

The carat isn't always about the size it's more about the quality of the stone. High carat within reason, doesn't always mean huge diamond. Mine is a 0.8 solitaire but it's very simple and very dainty, plain gold band. The value is in the stone.
My ring size is an I although my wedding ring is an H, so I do have small hands and have to go with dainty jewellery.

My mother has an 8 carat ring which she keeps trying to give me. I don't want it because it looks completely ridiculous on me and I'd never wear it.

Ultimately as long as you like it that's all that matters.

Congratulations

This is very similar to mines (I also have small hands & I have short fingers) except I have a clear band. 0.5 carat with a platinum band. I love it.

@Tarkan yours is gorgeous.

This isn’t my engagement ring (that’s not dainty but it is from 1948) but I adore this one. It’s Edwardian. I also have a five diamond strip from the Fifties.

I love old rings. So elegant.

This is mine. DH chose it over 20 years ago. Simple and classic. I still love it.

This is 0.5 carat solitaire. It’s very dainty and suits me as I have small hands. I love it. I’ve since added a matching wedding ring and received an eternity ring that also matches. They stack beautifully.

Gatsby Jewellery does beautiful dainty antique rings, mine is from there.

The important thing is the clarity! Especially if you want one that sparkles & flashes of rainbows . So go to Hatton Garden in London, choose the clearest diamond in a shape that you like with the budget that you have. Then choose the setting/ring you’d like it placed in.

People have big but cloudy diamonds and they don’t sparkle. Small and pure is far nicer.

This is mine. It’s an art deco diamond cluster from the 1920s and we bought it from an antique shop via eBay. It’s almost 11 years since we got engaged and I still love it as much now as I did when we bought it (DH originally proposed with his late mum’s eternity ring and we went shopping together later for my ring, I still wear his mum’s ring on my right hand though).

Mine is an older version of this: https://www.beaverbrooks.co.uk/0131961/Platinum-Three-Stone-Diamond-Ring/p

I've worn it for over 20 years and still love it.

Ooh those are nice !

I mean something like this, not her stonking big diamond ones: https://www.melaniecasey.com/collections/rings/products/toi-et-moi-et-le-reste-stacking-ring

Melanie Casey does great dainty rings.

My engagement ring isn't from there, but I have an eternity and another ring by her.