Pave Setting
Many tiny stones set close together with minimal metal showing, so the surface reads as continuous sparkle.
Pave means paved. Small stones are set into drilled seats and held by tiny beads of metal raised with a graver.
Micro pave uses stones under about 1mm and is done under a microscope.
Because each stone is held by minute beads, pave needs checking periodically, and a lost stone is a workshop job rather than a home fix.
When you are buying
Run a fingernail lightly across pave. It should feel smooth. Any stone that catches is sitting proud and is on its way out.
Channel Setting
Stones held in a groove between two walls of metal, with no prongs between them.
Halo Setting
A ring of small stones encircling a larger centre, making it look bigger and brighter.
Prong Setting
Small metal claws gripping a stone at its edges. Maximum light, minimum protection.
Milgrain
A row of tiny raised metal beads along an edge, used to soften and finish a border.
Diamond
Crystallised carbon, the hardest natural material. Heera in Hindi, and graded on the four Cs.