A technique first invented to increase the perceived size of a Diamond.
This is a style of setting gemstones in rings, earrings, pendants and bracelets, whereby the gems are set into a metal or plating - such as rhodium (a member of the platinum family), where the colour of the metal is similar to the gemstone, thus maximising the aesthetic properties of the gem.
Invented by Oscar Massin (a French jeweller in the late 1860s), illusion settings normally have tiny prongs, which are often pushed up out of the metal to secure the gem, thereby resulting in the setting itself appearing as a continuation of the gem. This style of setting is also known as “Pave Setting” (pronounced “pah –vey”).
Whilst traditionally rhodium plating has been used on yellow gold on areas surrounding the Diamond to create an illusion of bigger, brighter Diamonds, today there are many other colours being used.
With Black Diamonds, prongs are often tipped with black rhodium and more recently, with modern techniques such as electronic coating (E-coating), leading designers are adding blue hues to prongs for Topaz, red prongs for Ruby and green prongs for Peridot etc.
