Most rings are generally made of platinum, white gold or gold.
Platinum is a rare metal which does not oxidize over time. It requires only basic maintenance to upkeep its silvery white appearance. Platinum is malleable this allows more diversity in design from other conventional counterparts such as gold. Its hypoallergenic so it will not cause any irritation on skin.
White Gold is an alloy of gold, mixed with some other white metals like silver and palladium. Rhodium, a bright white metal in the platinum group, is then used as coating around the ring to make it look more white. The downside of rhodium is it will wear out and requires re-plating.
Gold is a traditional metal for engagement rings; however its popularity has been overtaken by the white metals. The main consideration in gold is the carat mark, usually 22k, 18k, 14k or 10k, depending on the percentage of copper or other base metals in the alloy. Gold is not chemically inert, so it can still oxidize over time.
Diamonds
When it comes to diamonds, the most important criteria consist of cut, clarity, color and carat weight (commonly known as the 4C's).
Cut refers to the symmetry and proportion of a diamond. The precision of the cut determines a diamond brilliance.
Clarity refers to the inclusions and blemishes of a diamond, basically the flaws. (e.g. IF=internally flawless, VVS1/VVS2=very very slightly included, VS1/VS2=very slightly included, SI1/SI2=slightly included etc).
Color is an evaluation of quality, transparency of the diamond. The higher the letter, the more colorless the diamond is (e.g. D/E/F is considered colorless, G/H/I is near colorless, J/K/L/M is faint yellow etc).
A carat is measured exactly 200mg at present. Carat weight alone does not determine the price of a diamond. The overall quality of a diamond sets its price, so do not assume bigger equals better.
| Shapes | Settings
|
| Round Princess Emerald Oval Pear Marquise Heart
Cushion
| Solitaire Three Stone
Pavé Diamond Band Side Stone Gemstone
|
Our Engagement
On December 10, 2009, BMM proposed to LMM on Rose Street in Edinburgh. That evening was the first night of Hanukkah, as BMM was presenting the first gift to LMM...he popped the question with a little speech.
This photo is taken the day of at home after the proposal.
My engagement ring is a solitaire round diamond on a platinum band. BMM purchased the ring from Lime Blue, located on 107 George Street, Edinburgh. The staff here are very friendly and helpful. This jewelery store carries a wider range of rings with higher quality compare to most other Edinburgh jewelers located in the city center. You can get a 10% off on your wedding bands if you purchase an engagement ring from Lime Blue.
On December 10, 2009, BMM proposed to LMM on Rose Street in Edinburgh. That evening was the first night of Hanukkah, as BMM was presenting the first gift to LMM...he popped the question with a little speech.
Let me add a few points about shopping for an engagement ring from a guys perspective.
ReplyDeleteFirst off it is not as simple as you might think. Just look at the post above, there are a lot of styles and choices to make. If you are any thing like me you will not have done much jewelry shopping before so this will all be new to you. To make matters even worse commission hungry staff with be circling like sharks the second you walk in the store. So this is my advice, go shopping with her ahead of time. while you may never have thought about a ring before, I bet your bride to be has been thinking about it since she was a little girl. So just casually when you walk by a jewelry store see what she seems to like. You do not have to let her know you are thinking about proposing but I bet she will still be happy casually point out things she likes in the window. Second it is important to find a good store, one that is willing to spend the time to show you a lot of stuff and not be too pushy.
Second as this article stated carat size is not the only thing to think about. It is not the best idea to just find your budget and get the biggest diamond that you can in your budget. Finding a diamond that is of good quality (in terms of cut and clarity) will make the ring look a lot nicer than a "big" diamond of lesser quality.