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How much to spend on engagement ring?

squeeks said:
would ya'll kill me if i said i was looking at a leo from kay?
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I'm late for the party, but we ended up getting my wife's ring from Kay. We were just passing through, and it just happened that what she wanted was available at there. The insurance policy is helpful - those guys are everywhere, so it shouldn't be too hard to replace the diamond if it does manage to get lost - but we haven't used it yet, so it may not be.

In the end, we spent about $1k or 1.5k between her engagement and wedding rings, with another 500 on mine. I was in school, but it amounts to about 2 weeks of salary. I don't think we regret it at all - especially with the housing market in the DC area.

Oh. Congrats on getting this far into the relationship and on the (soon?) engagement.
 
Abstract said:
but what about the "blood diamond" thing.
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Up front, I think that it is wonderful idea not to use diamonds involved in conflicts, or as they are commonly referred to as blood diamonds or conflict diamonds.

Unfortunately, this is next to impossible to completely monitor and verify because diamonds change hands so easily and are very hard to trace. While each diamond has a unique footprint, this is very hard to verify and identify with today's technology. And it takes time which diamond merchants don't want to spend. It is also easy to create forged authenticity documents. Additionally, they can always take the diamonds and reduce them to make it easier to sell and hide their origin.

What the diamond companies do, is try to get you to pay higher prices because the diamonds are to be conflict free and not blood diamonds. However, they really don't know 100% of the time. IMHO, they are ripping of the customers because the average customer does not really understand the situation.

Bottom line, is that you can easily end up buying conflict free diamonds that in reality are conflict diamonds regardless of the certification. There are exceptions, but for the most part this is correct.
 
I also support the conflict-free diamond thing. I wouldn't be able to give my partner a ring that some unknown stranger(s) had been murdered for.

If you want to make absolutely certain, and also avoid enrichening De Beers (who are pretty nasty people) then why not go for a diamond substitute?

I don't regard my organic food as fake food just cos it didn't come from a multinational with a major advertising campaign.

A lot of my friends wear custom designed rings, and I think they are way more lovely than most rings you can buy in the shops. If you find a jewelmakers, they can buy the materials at trade prices, and the 50-100% profit a chain shop would charge you for goes instead to the time and labour of making the ring for you.

For the same price, you get a completely unique ring, that nobody else in the world has, hand made by an artist, to your design, or to a design they created after consulting with you.

I have some unique silver punk jewellery that a silversmith made to my own design, and photographs of it have been exhibited round the world. It cost me considerably less than buying the same weight of silver at public high street prices.
 
Ok, but they're "pretty sure", right? I think I can live with that. From looking at their website, and the "PRIDE" website.

I think the Canadian diamonds are fair trade, but I'd actually rather buy a diamond from Sierre Leone. Why buy fair trade from a 1st world country? :p Us Canadians will be fine. If I can support the industry in Sierre Lione while still buying fair trade, non-conflict diamonds, it would be perfect.
 
Abstract said:
Ok, but they're "pretty sure", right? I think I can live with that. From looking at their website, and the "PRIDE" website.

I think the Canadian diamonds are fair trade, but I'd actually rather buy a diamond from Sierre Leone. Why buy fair trade from a 1st world country? :p Us Canadians will be fine. If I can support the industry in Sierre Lione while still buying fair trade, non-conflict diamonds, it would be perfect.
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Buying a diamond that is not a conflict diamond or blood diamond is fantastic. As a customer you are doing the best you can with the options available.

However, be advised that the diamond you end up may have been soaked in blood, and that you are paying a premium for a guarantee that they cannot live up to. If that is okay with you, then by all means go for it. :)
 
I know nothing about engagement rings... sorry. I do not want to get married any time soon... I mean, I just only recently got a girlfriend so....

Anyways, it's a good thing Apple doesn't make engagement rings because then if you held it at a certain angle, it would turn black and washed out looking... hehe.
 
squeeks said:
i just bought a powerbook g3 for 66 bucks lol
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then she is screwed!
Good luck with the divorce, it'll cost more!


I kid. Marriage, love, blah blah it's all good as long as I don't have to attend someone's stupid wedding!
 
iBlue said:
Yes, DO read up on the "three c's" (cut, colour, clarity) these are must knows when shopping for diamonds.
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I thought it was the 4 c's? ;) Color, cut, clarity and carat weight :p

If it wasn't such a cultural norm and pretty much an expectation, don't know if I'd think to give a woman a diamond ring. I'm one of the consirpacy theorists who believes that diamond supplies are strictly controlled and so are the prices.

To the OP, I wish you the best of luck in popping the question and if everything goes right, a very happy marriage :)
 
I found exactly what my wife was hoping for at a very reasonable price. She has such petite hands that a large diamond would have looked out of place. And I didn't have a lot of money to spend. I spent just under $1000.

Now the diamond earrings I gave her for our first anniversary came from a jewelry store that was going out of business (1/2 off everything)! Otherwise, they would have cost more than the ring!!!
 
I see a lot of people bashing the ring.
To me an engagement ring is important because of the sentimental value to it. It is a symbol of love. Depending on the ring a lot of engagement rings are made to be worn with a wedding ring at a later point in time. That was how my moms ring was until she had it replaced for one of there anniversaries.

Now for me it at least a year before I have any hope of asking some one to marry me. You can bet money on the fact I WILL buy a ring for my future wife. Now if it matter to her much does not matter. It matters to me and is a big deal for me and assuming she loves me she would understand that. Now for how much I will spend that is a good question. If I went for 3 months of my future salary I would say crossing 10 grand would be well over board even for me.

I believe it is spend what you can afford to spend. Some people can and will spend more than others but they can afford it. It all a balancing act. I think the big part of the ring is it show the man love the woman enough to give up a lot to be able to "prove" the love so to speak.

Like others have said spend what you can afford. I say at least 1 month take home pay is low end. Also do not go in to debt to get it. Make sure you can pay for in all and once. I think 3-4k is a good number to go with.
 
My wife's was ~$750 which was a lot considering I was working 10hrs a week, going to school full time and paying my tuition/books. White gold setting (similar to the one Squeeks picked out) 0.24 carat, round , SI1, round, I think it was an E or an F in color. It came from the Shane Co. We've had really good service with them.

The important thing is that we're still married 2 years later (was on 9/10).
 
Abstract said:
Oh c'mon, we all know that the only thing that matters is the one 'C'......carats, baby!
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*retch* I like diamonds because they're sparkly. What good is a honkin' chunk of white-ish rock if it's not sparkly at all? Might as well buy a plastic ring out a 25¢ toy machine dispenser at a grocery store.

I'd take a sparklier, clearer, smaller rock over a large, inclusion-ridden, funky-colored (in a bad way, as in not purposeful colored diamond) rock any day. Plus, it doesn't hurt that my hands are on the smaller side. ;)

And those with views strongly opposed to rings, I don't think anyone here is saying the ring is the ultimate goal of someone wanting to be married/ engaged. Nor do I believe anyone here feels that it is an ultimate necessity and that to not have one is nearly blasphemous. Not at all. But it is a convention, a cultural convention. And it's what you make of it.
 
Beh, rings are so old fashioned

get her a mac. Buy a macbook pro with all the fixins' and get down on one knee, and open it up to a screen that says "Will you marry me"

Maybe see if you can get Steve to be your best man :p
 
devilot said:
And those with views strongly opposed to rings, I don't think anyone here is saying the ring is the ultimate goal of someone wanting to be married/ engaged. Nor do I believe anyone here feels that it is an ultimate necessity and that to not have one is nearly blasphemous. Not at all. But it is a convention, a cultural convention. And it's what you make of it.
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Im only against a clear rock that sparkles. Crystal, glass, Zirconium and numerous other stones look exactly like diamonds. So whats the point.

Beauty is in the color to me, lack of color (cmon, no one can afford a truly colored diamond and post here), keeps diamonds away from me and my woman.
 
devilot said:
I'd take a sparklier, clearer, smaller rock over a large, inclusion-ridden, funky-colored (in a bad way, as in not purposeful colored diamond) rock any day.
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Nobody is comparing an opaque, matte rock to a shiny diamond. I'm just saying that size usually impresses more than anything. That isn't microscopic, and you don't need a gemologist with a 10x loupe to see the differences. You couldn't tell a VVS2 from VS1 by eye, and neither could I. They all look shiny.

So carats do rule. Saving $400 on a diamond because it's VS2 instead of VVS2 is significant (if both were the same size), especially when everyone will see a clear, shiny rock, regardless of which you choose.

Getting a diamond is customary and symbolic, so I wouldn't mind doing it for my girlfriend if we got married. However, I'm sure she'll look at them all and tell me there's no difference. She'd rather save the $400 as well.

Plus, it doesn't hurt that my hands are on the smaller side. ;)
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Same with my girlfriend's hands. It'll be much cheaper because even a 0.40 carat diamond will likely look big on her finger.
 
well, which ever i get, dont worry, in about 6 months when i give it to her ill dig up this thread and post pictures
 
I'm still holding out for a woman who's not crazy about jewelry and isn't particularly sussed about an engagement ring. Or diamonds.

You know how they say you'll end up wanting to marry a woman who's like your mother in some ways? Definitely true. My mom has never had any interest in diamonds, she and dad have matching wedding bands that are mostly white gold, and that's it. I admire their frugality and good sense, and hope that if I do get married it will be to a woman with similar qualities.
 
we did go shopping sunday though, and decided we dont really want a regular round shaped ring, we want fancies, all Kay had was boring stuff, prolly going to stick around the 1500-2000 dollar range
 
bought it today, solitaire/enhancer combo

here is the enhancer we got

im sure everyone knows what a solitaire looks like so i woulnt bore you with that, buts its round cut yellow gold 3/4 ct 4 prong setting
 
Congrats on the purchase!

I remember buying my fiancee's engagement ring. The most out of the world experience walking out with something so important, small, and valuable.

When are you thinking about popping the question?
Oh and where did you get it? What shape?
 
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