Nov 17, 2025

Colour Your Story: Why More Couples Are Choosing Coloured Gemstone Engagement Rings

For decades, the “rule” was simple: if it wasn’t a white diamond, it wasn’t an engagement ring.

But that rule is being quietly rewritten.

Across Australia and around the world, more couples are walking into studios like Utopian Creations asking for sapphires, parti colours, champagne tones, sea-green teals, salt-and-pepper diamonds and unusual mixed-stone designs. They still want something beautiful and enduring, but they want it to feel like them — not like the same ring they’ve seen on a hundred Instagram feeds.

At the same time, the diamond industry is going through a major identity crisis. Lab-grown diamonds have exploded in popularity, prices for both lab and natural diamonds have dropped sharply, and a lot of people are left wondering whether a traditional diamond still feels as “special” as it used to. (BriteCo)

That combination — a desire for meaning and individuality, plus confusion around diamonds — is exactly where coloured gemstone engagement rings are thriving.

This is the heart of “Colour Your Story”: the idea that your ring should be as personal as your relationship, whether that means a teal Australian sapphire, a champagne diamond, or a thoughtful mix of both.

The Rise of Coloured Gemstone Engagement Rings

Engagement ring trends for 2024–2025 all point in the same direction: individuality, symbolism and colour.

Major style and bridal publications report that couples are moving away from cookie-cutter rings and towards designs that feel like a small piece of wearable biography — unusual cuts, asymmetric layouts, mixed metals and, increasingly, coloured gemstones. (Vogue)

Australian jewellers are seeing the same thing. Recent engagement trend roundups from local designers highlight:

Sapphires, emeralds and rubies stepping into the spotlight alongside (and sometimes instead of) diamonds. (Ernesto Buono Fine Jewellery)
Couples choosing coloured gems for their “pop of personality” and the sense that no one else will have exactly the same ring. (Pruden and Smith)
More requests for Toi et Moi designs, three-stone rings, clusters and alternative centre stones like teal and parti sapphires, peachy morganites and rich green tourmalines. (wezoree.com)

Behind the scenes, the numbers are telling the same story. Global coloured gemstone imports have risen dramatically in recent years — one trade body reported a 136% jump in coloured gemstone imports between 2020 and 2024, while the coloured gemstone sector as a whole is forecast to more than double in size by 2035. (agta.org)

In other words: coloured stones aren’t a niche anymore. They’re a serious, growing part of the engagement ring world.

Why Colour Is Speaking to Modern Couples

So why are so many people suddenly drawn to coloured gems for such a traditional milestone?

1. Personalisation and self-expression

Today’s couples want their ring to say something specific about them — not just “we’re engaged”, but “this is us.”

Coloured gemstones offer endless ways to weave personal meaning into a design:

Choosing a stone in a favourite colour or one that matches your eyes or wardrobe.
Choosing by symbolism — sapphires for loyalty and wisdom, green hues for growth and renewal, parti colours for the complexity of a relationship.
Using birthstones or stones tied to a meaningful place (for example, Australian sapphires to honour home, travel or heritage). (Pruden and Smith)

Instead of a one-size-fits-all formula, coloured gemstones turn the design process into a conversation:
What colours feel like you? Which shapes are you drawn to? What story do you want this ring to tell?

At Utopian Creations, that’s quite literally how many designs start — with trays of teal, green, blue and parti Australian sapphires on the table and a long chat about personality, lifestyle and aesthetics. (UtopianCreations)

2. A desire for uniqueness

No two natural coloured gemstones are exactly alike — particularly Australian sapphires, which can show bands of green, blue, yellow and teal in patterning that’s completely unrepeatable. (UtopianCreations)

That’s a powerful idea for an engagement ring:

Your sapphire has an internal colour “fingerprint” that no one else in the world will share.
Parti sapphires can literally show multiple colours in one stone, a visual metaphor for two lives coming together.
Unusual cuts (kites, hexagons, elongated radiants, antique-style cushions) add another layer of individuality.

At Utopian Creations, this is more than a slogan — the studio is recognised as “Australia’s coloured gemstone specialist” and holds one of the largest collections of Australian sapphires in the world, from subtle pastels to intense teal and parti stones. (UtopianCreations)

For many couples, that sense of “only ours” is worth more than following a traditional template.

3. Ethics and conscious consumption

Younger buyers in particular are asking tougher questions:

Where was this stone mined?
Who benefited from it?
What’s the environmental footprint?

Lab-grown diamonds initially became popular as a cheaper, “cleaner” alternative, but as we’ll see in a moment, the picture is more complicated than it first appeared.

Coloured gemstones — especially responsibly sourced sapphires — offer a different path: a natural stone with traceable origin, often from smaller mining operations, and a clear chain of custody from mine to bench.

Utopian Creations has been focused on ethical and sustainable jewellery since 2005, with a particular emphasis on ethically and sustainably sourced Australian sapphires and traceable diamonds. (UtopianCreations) That combination — natural beauty plus transparent sourcing — resonates strongly with couples who care where their money goes.

What’s Happening to Diamonds?

None of this means diamonds have disappeared from the engagement ring landscape — far from it. Diamonds, especially in elongated shapes like ovals, emerald cuts and elongated cushions, remain incredibly popular. (Set Together Jewellery)

But the perception of diamonds as the only valid engagement stone has definitely shifted, and lab-grown diamonds are a big part of that story.

1. The lab-grown boom… and the hangover

Lab-grown diamonds have gone from niche to mainstream in less than a decade. In some major markets, lab-grown stones now account for around half of engagement ring centre stones by volume. (Fortune)

Two main things drove that shift:

Price: by 2025, a 1 ct lab-grown diamond could cost around a quarter of the price of an equivalent natural diamond. (BriteCo)
Marketing: lab diamonds have been promoted heavily as an ethical, modern choice.

But rapid technological advances and aggressive production ramp-ups have led to massive oversupply. Industry reports now talk about wholesale lab-grown prices dropping by up to 96% since 2018 in some size categories — a collapse so severe that even the World Diamond Council has warned lab-grown diamonds may end up positioned more like fashion jewellery than luxury heirlooms. (Reuters)

At the same time, natural diamond prices have also fallen (around 25–30% in a few years by some estimates), partly because lab-grown options have taken such a large chunk of the engagement market. (Forbes)

2. Why this puts some people off diamonds altogether

To a lot of couples, all of this feels… confusing.

They’re hearing:

Natural diamonds used to be marketed as rare and enduring, but now prices are down.
Lab-grown diamonds were sold as a smart, modern option, but their prices are in freefall and some experts are openly suggesting they belong in the fashion category, not the heirloom category. (Rapaport)

It’s no surprise that some people respond by stepping sideways out of the debate completely:

“If both options feel unstable, why not choose something that’s unique, colourful and clearly itself — like a natural sapphire or another coloured gemstone?”

That doesn’t mean diamonds are “bad” or “over.” It simply means the old narrative — that a white diamond solitaire is the only serious option — doesn’t hold the same weight it once did.

Where Diamonds Still Shine (And How They Work with Colour)

Despite the disruption, diamonds are still beautiful, durable and deeply symbolic stones. Many people genuinely love diamond sparkle, and that’s a perfectly valid preference.

The shift we’re seeing is not “diamonds vs coloured gems”, but “diamonds and coloured gems, used more creatively.”

Some of the most compelling modern designs combine both:

Sapphire or coloured gemstone centre stones framed by a diamond halo.
Trilogy rings with a coloured centre stone and diamond side stones.
Cluster designs where diamonds provide glittering contrast to one or two standout coloured gems. (Set Together Jewellery)

This is exactly the territory where Utopian Creations excels. Browse the collection and you’ll see:

Australian parti sapphire trilogies with lab-grown diamonds. (UtopianCreations)
Australian diamond and sapphire rings where every gem is traceable to origin, blending local story with classic brilliance. (UtopianCreations)
Designs that pair teal or green sapphires with champagne diamonds, salt-and-pepper diamonds or lab-grown accents for a thoroughly modern look. (UtopianCreations)

For clients who still love diamonds but feel uneasy about the bigger industry picture, this mix offers a reassuring middle path:
colour for individuality, diamonds for sparkle, ethical sourcing for peace of mind.

Why Natural Coloured Gems (Especially Sapphires) Make Sense Right Now

When you zoom out from the diamond debate, natural coloured gemstones — particularly sapphires — tick a lot of boxes for modern couples.

1. Durability for everyday wear

A ring you wear every day needs to handle real life. Sapphires (and rubies, which are the same mineral) are 9 on the Mohs hardness scale, just one step below diamonds, and are widely regarded as one of the best coloured gemstones for engagement rings. (Larsen Jewellery)

That means:

Great scratch resistance.
Excellent performance in everyday settings.
Suitable for a huge range of cuts, settings and design styles.

2. A spectrum of colours — with real depth

Sapphires are most famous in blue, but they occur in almost every colour: teal, green, yellow, peach, pink, purple, and multicoloured parti stones.

Australian sapphires are especially loved for:

Teal and green tones that feel contemporary and gender-neutral.
Parti colour zoning where blue, green and yellow dance together in a single stone.
Rich mid–deep blues with a slightly moodier, more complex character than some “electric” blues from other regions. (UtopianCreations)

This variety allows couples to choose a colour that feels authentic to their personality rather than defaulting to whatever’s most common in shop windows.

3. Traceability and local stories

In an era where lab-grown diamonds are produced anonymously in vast factories, there’s something profoundly grounding about a gemstone whose origin you can point to on a map.

Utopian Creations has made this a cornerstone of their work:

Specialising in ethically sourced Australian sapphires, many from well-known regions such as Rubyvale in Queensland. (UtopianCreations)
Offering detailed information on sapphire sourcing, treatment and origin through their Sapphire Education resources and product descriptions. (UtopianCreations)
Providing both natural and lab-grown diamonds that are traceable and vetted for ethical standards, so you aren’t forced into a false choice between “beautiful” and “responsible.” (UtopianCreations)

For many clients, that means their ring isn’t just “pretty”: it’s a tiny, wearable story about Australia, geology, craft and values.

How to “Colour Your Story” with Utopian Creations

If you’re feeling drawn to coloured gemstones but not sure where to start, here’s a simple way to think about the process.

Step 1: Start with colour, not carat

Instead of beginning with a size and a budget and trying to make the numbers work, flip the script:

What colours are you drawn to — ocean blues, deep greens, smoky greys, soft peach, golden yellow?
Are you more into soft gradations or bold, high-contrast stones like parti sapphires?
Do you imagine something subtle and timeless, or something that makes people say, “Wow, I’ve never seen a ring like that”?

Your colour preferences alone can narrow the field dramatically and make viewing gemstones more focused and fun.

Step 2: Explore natural stones in person (or virtually)

Because no two sapphires are the same, viewing actual stones is crucial.

Utopian Creations offers:

One of the largest ranges of ethically sourced Australian sapphires in the country, in a wide range of shapes, sizes and colours. (UtopianCreations)
Complimentary design consultations where you can see selected stones side by side and talk through how they’ll look in different settings. (UtopianCreations)
A Gemstone Home Trial program, allowing you to experience a stone’s personality in your own lighting and environment before committing. (UtopianCreations)

This part of the journey often becomes one of the most memorable — it’s the point where the ring stops being hypothetical and starts to become yours.

Step 3: Decide how diamonds play a supporting role

Once the hero stone is chosen, you can decide whether and how diamonds fit in:

A clean solitaire if you want the gemstone to carry the whole story.
A diamond halo for maximum sparkle and contrast.
Side stones or clusters to add complexity — old mine cuts, kite-shaped diamonds, baguettes or salt-and-pepper stones can completely shift the mood of a ring. (Set Together Jewellery)

Because Utopian Creations stocks both natural and lab-grown diamonds, it’s possible to tailor the mix to your values, budget and aesthetic without being pushed into one camp or the other. (UtopianCreations)

Step 4: Design a setting that suits real life

Colour and stone choice are only half the story; the design needs to work for everyday wear:

Prong vs bezel vs partial bezel settings for protection.
Band profile and thickness tuned to your lifestyle (hands-on work, sports, kids, etc.).
Metal choices that complement the gemstone — yellow or rose gold will warm up teal and green sapphires, while white metals emphasise contrast and modernity.

Because Utopian Creations is a full in-house studio, you’re not choosing from a catalogue — you’re collaborating with a jeweller to build a ring that balances beauty, practicality and longevity. (UtopianCreations)

The Future Is Colour — but the Choice Is Still Yours

The engagement ring world is changing fast. Lab-grown diamonds have shaken up pricing and perceptions, natural diamond brands are scrambling to reassert their value, and more couples are stepping away from tradition to ask a simpler question:

“What actually feels like us?”

For many, the answer is a natural coloured gemstone — often an Australian sapphire — chosen for its one-of-a-kind character, set thoughtfully with (or without) diamonds, and crafted by people who care about where their materials come from.

That’s what “Colour Your Story” is really about.

At Utopian Creations, you don’t have to choose between diamonds or coloured gems, or between tradition or individuality. You’re invited to explore every option — natural diamonds, lab-grown diamonds, sapphires and other coloured gemstones — with clear information, ethical sourcing and a design process focused on telling your story.

If you’re ready to start, the next step is simple:
book a consultation, bring your ideas (or your confusion), and let colour lead the way.

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