News

Six-prong solitaires dominated engagement rings for 140 years. The cultural shift to bezel settings has three specific causes — and three specific exceptions.

If your hands actually do things, the standard six-prong solitaire is probably the wrong answer. Here's what to choose by lifestyle — surgeons, trades, athletes, gardeners — and what to avoid.

Jewellery wears down. Gold is a soft metal, prongs thin out, clasps weaken, and stones can loosen without you feeling it. Most of the repair jobs that come into our shop at Vanhess could have been prevented if the problem had been caught earlier. A loose prong becomes a lost diamond. A worn clasp becomes a lost necklace. Here are the five warning signs that mean your piece needs professional attention before something worse happens. 1. Your Ring Catches on Fabric What's happening: One or more prongs are worn thin, bent out of position, or have developed a sharp edge....

Most people who walk into a jewellery store see finished products in glass cases. They don't see the bench where the work happens. At Vanhess, the bench is in the back of the shop, and the person behind it is our goldsmith who designs and makes most of what we sell. Here's what the process looks like when a ring goes from raw metal to your finger. Starting Material: The Gold Pure gold (24K) is too soft for jewellery. It would bend, scratch, and deform with daily wear. So we alloy it. For 14K gold, the mix is 58.3% pure...

Sapphire engagement rings are having a moment, and it's not just because of the Kate Middleton ring (though that certainly helped). Sapphire is the most practical non-diamond option for an engagement ring. At 9 on the Mohs hardness scale, it's second only to diamond in scratch resistance. It has no cleavage planes, which means it won't split if bumped the wrong way. And it comes in almost every colour imaginable, not just blue. At Vanhess, we've been setting more sapphires in engagement rings over the past two years than in the previous ten combined. Here's what you should know if...

Mother's Day is May 11, 2026. If you're reading this, you probably have a week or two to figure out a gift. Jewellery is the second most popular Mother's Day gift category after flowers, and unlike flowers, it lasts. Here's a practical guide organized by budget and style, with specific suggestions from what we carry at Vanhess in Coquitlam. Under $150: Thoughtful Without Breaking the Bank This range works for daughters, sons, grandkids, or anyone who wants to give something real without spending rent money. At this price point, you're looking at sterling silver or pieces from our fashion jewellery...