Engagement Ring

I think it depends on what you can afford. Do not listen to rubbish about 2/3 months salary. This is just a marketing campaign from De Beers diamonds and frankly would be a ridiculous amount of money to spend on a ring. My gf drives a car currently worth about 5k, if I spent 10-15k on a ring, I think she'd prefer a newer car!
ETA: diamond industry/fecking eejits say I should spend 10-15k on a ring. I just spent a little over 1800 on a half carat diamond set in an 18 carat gold solitaire setting. IMHO opinion, and hers more importantly, it's all about the sparkle of the diamond!

Would you think about proposing with a token ring? We went shopping for my ring together and personally I was happy to be involved in and enjoyed that experience!

Just on the platinum rings, mine is platinum and its a very dull metal (you can get them polished but I've never bothered).

On the other hand my wedding ring is a plain white gold band (cost about €100) and is as good as the day I got it.

For insurance over a certain amount a valuation is needed by the insurer, mine is valued at €5k and costs about €100 a year to insure, not a huge amount but over time it adds up and I never wear the ring so it just seems pointless.

The token ring mentioned is an excellent idea, plus she might really like it. The fact that you picked it for her is all that matters, price doesn't come into it.

Ninesell wrote: »

Would you think about proposing with a token ring? We went shopping for my ring together and personally I was happy to be involved in and enjoyed that experience!

This was my take on it, we ended up going to look at rings and once herself had found one she liked we got it, or one similarly styled, made privately to a higher standard and for significantly cheaper (I do realise that not everyone knows a goldsmith however) but the take away is that it had nothing to do with the amount spent, just that she was 100% happy with it.

nikpmup wrote: »

Absolutely let her pick it!! Shopping for the ring is a lovely thing to do together, once restrictions are somewhat lifted. I ended up getting something that I never would have thought I'd like, once I saw it I knew it was the ring for me. If he'd picked my ring he never would have picked it based on what he thought my preference was.

I would agree with this 100%. I thought I always knew what style I wanted until I actually tried them on! It might sound mad but some of rings didn't suit my hand + you won't know till you try it on.

Its so exciting picking your ring. You will have to book appointment anyway in current climate so just tell them ballpark your spend + they will bring selection of rings on tray for her.

Also try a few jewellers as all different styles.

Good Luck!

Locotastic wrote: »

Just on the platinum rings, mine is platinum and its a very dull metal (you can get them polished but I've never bothered).

On the other hand my wedding ring is a plain white gold band (cost about €100) and is as good as the day I got it.

For insurance over a certain amount a valuation is needed by the insurer, mine is valued at €5k and costs about €100 a year to insure, not a huge amount but over time it adds up and I never wear the ring so it just seems pointless.

The token ring mentioned is an excellent idea, plus she might really like it. The fact that you picked it for her is all that matters, price doesn't come into it.

I was going to weigh in here with the very opposite advice about platinum and white gold.

My wife and I (married 2009) both have white gold wedding rings, and her engagement ring is white gold too. They have to be polished or plated (or whatever the correct term is) every so often, at a cost of about €80 to €100 a pop. She's quite good at looking after hers, but mine hasn't been done for a good few years now, and it's dull as ditchwater. And I just sit at a desk all day (even when not on Boards!), so it's not as though I'm ruining it with heavy manual labour or anything.

But I've been involved since then in copywriting for websites, including for a jeweller who specialists in engagement and wedding rings, and her take on it is that platinum has become more and more popular in recent years because it holds its sheen better than white gold does.

Then again, the woman here with the platinum ring says different, so who am I to know!!!

As regards cost/insurance - my wife's engagement ring cost me a little over €2,000 at the time, and anything up to €2,500 is covered on our house insurance anyway, so no need to insure it separately at extra cost. If €2,500 (ish) sounds like enough for you, maybe check your own house insurance too, just to see.

Finally, I did the old-fahsioned thing of buying the "proper" ring myself when I proposed back in 2008, and apparently, even then I was very much in the minority as most couples go together for her to choose it. Luckily I picked one that she liked....and I know she's not just saying that, because we went back to the shop together anyway, "just in case", and she decided to keep it instead of changing it. But overall, maybe consider the token ring thing anyway, and then go together to buy the real one.

You don't have to spend much on a token ring. There's probably still a few Halloween bracks left in the shops at around €2 each, and you can get a ring there.....

I went platinum as apparently it’s far more hard wearing than other metals, particularly important if your wearing it for manual tasks. It’s not overly shiny but then I wouldn’t want the metal to take from the diamonds!

My fiancé didn’t propose with a ring as I’m not into jewellery so after visiting quite a few jewellers I finally found a style that suited my hand. Some will try and sell you anything and be mindful of the lights they use in the room as it can be very deceptive. I asked to see them in daylight outside. Only in one store was this not possible so we left it.

We didn’t have a budget but don’t be afraid to combine your money if necessary. I personally don’t see why it has to be all the mans money! Once I found what I wanted, I spent about 2 months researching and visiting diff places, I brought my sister to see it and fiancé paid over the phone. In reality only those with a good eye for a quality diamond will ever have a true idea of the price so don’t worry about lower priced rings. Go with what you love. Cost 15.5k in the end and that was after bargaining.

I’d have no hesitation trading it in if I’m honest, so be mindful of this too as down the line styles change and she might want a change. I’d defiantly go bigger if changing..!

Pintman Paddy Losty wrote: »

You need to be forking out at least 5k for a ring in my opinion. It's embarrassing for women who have to pretend they're happy with some tiny single diamond when they're friends have proper rocks.

I spent 17.5k for my missus back in 2004. Got her another sapphire worth similar for our 10 year anniversary.

Grand if you want to but stay within a budget plenty other things to spend it on. If you need bling go for a a bigger alternative stone.

My ring cost almost 4 1/2K.
Never did I think I'd be charmed so much by the rings I tried. I remember saying things like "oh I don't care about diamonds or having a fancy ring". I wasn't long changing my mind when shopping for it. It is a very personal decision when it comes to how much you pay and isn't necessarily down to budget. For example if I fell in love with a ring half the price then that's what I'd have on my finger. I would have a line though when it comes to the max. Anything over 5k is ludicrous in my mind but that's me.

I had the opportunity with https://www.theschoolofjewellery.ie/ to make my engagement ring.

Was easy enough to do over a 2 day weekend. They ran a course at the time and I dont see it listed now but they may do a one off type thing if you ask. Could negotiate something with them.

The money spent wont matter when you make it yourself.