Craic with engagement rings

..last post so relevant, the fact that she is not interested in (cheap, Xmas, birthday) jewellery doesn't mean that the most important pieces of jewellery engagement and wedding ring are not important to her is a dangerous conclusion to come to. I know women, the more non materialistic sort, who value a good engagement ring but have no other jewellery that they wear regularly.

My mother has a lovely engagement ring that my father regularly talks about it in terms of a mortgage but she also says she doesn't want us to buy her jewellery at Xmas and birthday. Dad offered a good watch for her 40th and she eventually bought it prior to her 46th at 5 times the value he was thinking about, and he knows her. Credit to her, the ring and the watch are heirlooms and probably cost no more than 30 years of the twice yearly jewellery some want.

OP I don't think it's a trick at all. I'd be the same as your girlfriend- genuinely would have loved a really simple vintage style ring with no diamonds and a coloured stone for no more than 500. People get sucked into the madness, but sounds like you know her. I would say let her pick herself though- otherwise there's loads of lovely antique shops with really reasonable rings and way less hard sell! Good luck

Mr. Incognito wrote: »

Funny that. I judge people with crap shallow materialistic fiancés who don't realise that diamonds are essentially worthless.

I judge a person based on their character not their carature

Anyone that needs validation from their friends/ co workers/ and perfectly other good non giving a fcuk strangers instead of their fiancé is not in for a happy marriage.

Youre making a pretty big assumption about my wife/Fiance at the time :rolleyes:

As already said, pretty much anything is worthless until you assign value to this, but you already know that..

Problem is that when you Don't have a recognisable engagement ring its almost impossible to explain it without it sounding like an apology, not a romantic story. Why would you do that to someone you love?

For what its worth for a while before I proposed we looked at rings and other jewellery in shops and I got a really good idea of what she wanted. I then had a guy on South Anne street (cant remember the name, Vinnie I think) make me an engagement ring in the style she liked but with some slight personalisation's.

Thumpette wrote: »

OP I don't think it's a trick at all. I'd be the same as your girlfriend- genuinely would have loved a really simple vintage style ring with no diamonds and a coloured stone for no more than 500. People get sucked into the madness, but sounds like you know her. I would say let her pick herself though- otherwise there's loads of lovely antique shops with really reasonable rings and way less hard sell! Good luck

bobobear wrote: »

Yeah, I don't think it's a trap either. I'm a girl, I would HATE a massive ring. I think diamond rings are nasty, tacky, wasteful, immoral etc etc. And I'm a makeup/heels/jewellery type girl.

Just make her a ring - bit of string/twine/wire - as a placeholder, then go get it together. Way more romantic. And really, noone gives a f*ck about the actual ring - they only want to hear the proposal story. Making her a ring is a readymade romantic story. Cheap/free ring, all the women going "Awwwwwwwww!!!" = Win/win.

I'd be the same. If my OH handed me a ring worth thousands of euro I'd give it straight back on the grounds that I wouldn't want to marry someone who was so irresponsible with money as to spend the cost of a new kitchen on a ring that is an invitation to mug me.

Take her to pick out her own ring, that way she'll get what she wants, regardless of cost.

Wabbit Ears wrote: »

Problem is that when you Don't have a recognisable engagement ring its almost impossible to explain it without it sounding like an apology, not a romantic story. Why would you do that to someone you love?

How is it impossible to explain without sounding an apology? Just tell anyone who gets all 'that's not a real engagement ring because it's not diamond/didn't cost enough to buy a car' to stop being such judgemental sheep and get fked - job done.

I don't have an engagement ring or wedding ring, never wanted either. Happily together with my man 18 years.

Wabbit Ears wrote: »

Exactly, good illustration of my point, you just tell everyone to Fcuk off and to not be so judgemental. Great romantic story that is...

How is that the story? That's the reaction to the "OMG you can't do something that everyone doesn't do!" group. The story could very well be that he baked a silver ring set with her birthstone into her favourite cake, which he gave to her during a picnic, at a lake, at sunset, with a frigging string quartet playing their song in the background.

Saying it'll be a shit, unromantic story just because it's not an overpriced diamond ring is judgemental, shallow, and materialistic, and almost as irritating as saying 'ignore what she says she wants, all women want big expensive rings', especially when many women have posted saying that that's not what they want.

Some people here must be gem experts or something. I wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a ring costings thousands and a cheap bit of costume jewellery.

Cantremember wrote: »

So true. So wrong! What she really really wants is what every other girl wants: the rock.

not every woman wants an engagement ring

Are women in the habit of telling people how much their engagement ring cost? Isn't that a little crass!?