For many people shopping for an engagement ring is a confusing experience at the start. They haven’t ever shopped for a diamond – how can they know what to look for? Hopefully I can help you get started. Shopping for an engagement ring should be a fun thing. It’s such an exciting time of your life so try not to get stressed about this purchase. Let’s look at the first three things you should do. Once you get these out of the way, you can focus on the most important part of the ring – the diamond.
1) Set a budget
This is the first thing I recommend to my clients. You want to set a price that you can afford and stick to it. There isn’t any rule that is set in stone about how much you would spend, but many people fork out about two months worth of salary for their ring.
Please be wise and don’t overspend – stay within your budget. I know friends who got too big of loans to purchase a ring and they are still paying for it years after the fact. It is ridiculous to put yourself into financial difficulties. You can always upgrade her ring later after your finances are more stable if you are unable to get the right stone size now. A number of factors go into figuring your budget but you do need to be prepared to pay a good chunk. The smile that the ring will put on her face will make the expense of the diamond well worth it and remember – she will wear it forever.
Choose what type metal for the band.
There are three choices for the metal used in the setting for the ring: yellow gold, platinum, and white gold. Look at the kind of jewelry she now has. If her preference is yellow gold that’s an easy choice and the decision is made. On the other hand if her favorite jewelry is white gold or silver then your choice is between platinum and the white gold. Platinum is a whopping 3 times the price of white or yellow gold, so if you’re on a budget white gold becomes an easy choice. However, platinum is the most durable of the 3 metals and numerous folks love it as they believe it’s durability makes it possible for the ring to become a family heirloom. Keep in mind that the platinum will get a matte look unless you polish from time to time. This is really the only maintenance with this metal.
White gold has a little more shine than platinum and is quite a bit cheaper. It can damage a little easier but usually that isn’t something you have to worry about. You will have to take it in to get replated every year or two – keep this in mind. White gold isn’t actually white – it is gold that is mixed with other metals to give it a white look. It is also plated with rhodium to take away any yellow tinge. As the plating wears off, you will start to see a slight yellow tinge come back. Having it related isn’t expensive but do keep in mind that it will need to be done.
It is a good idea to compare how the white gold and platinum look. Some people like one and not the other. This will assist you in making a decision.
Select the Setting
The setting is just the style of the ring. Does it have multiple diamonds? Does it have just a singular diamond? This is decided by which setting you pick for the engagement ring. You have 3 main types to choose from. The most popular is the solitaire engagement ring, which is also the simplest. There is a single diamond on the band. What a perfect way to help show off that beautiful diamond. A 3 stone ring has one diamond in the center, and 2 diamonds that are smaller 1 being on each side. The diamonds on the sides are about 30 to 60% the size of the larger center diamond.
A diamond engagement ring with side stones has one main center diamond and then several small diamond on both sides. These diamonds are usually very small so they don’t cost an arm and a leg. If you aren’t sure what she would prefer, try to find out. The best way is to have one of her friends (that you trust!) ask her and then let you know. Girls talk about jewelry so she won’t automatically suspect anything. You will feel a lot better knowing you got her the right one.
When you have done these 3 steps, you can then have some fun picking out the diamond! She will be wearing the diamond for life so be sure you concentrate on picking out a diamond that is stunning! I love watching my wife receive compliments on hers. Shows me that I did my job right!
