What are the cons of a pave ring?

Half and three-quarter pave bands can usually be resized by about half to one full size in either direction, because the plain section at the back gives the jeweller room to cut and rejoin. Full pave eternity cannot be resized in any direction, because there is no bare metal to work with: any cut destroys the setting structure. If your fingers fluctuate with weather, pregnancy or weight changes, a full eternity pave band is a poor pick. Half pave is the safer default for an engagement ring you plan to wear for life.

A pave ring needs a professional check every 6 to 12 months to catch any holding beads that have worn down, before a stone is lost rather than after. The jeweller looks at each bead under magnification and re-raises any that have flattened. Skipping these checks is the most common reason pave loses stones, since worn beads usually fail before they look obviously worn to the naked eye. None of this is expensive, but it is a recurring time and cost commitment that a plain band does not need.