Engagement Rings (merged)

Poppy9

rnshon wrote:

I think most girls would prefer a smaller high quality diamond than a larger one which wasn't so nice.

I want both. Big and good quality. :rotfl:

OH used to be a goldsmith. If you want a really nice diamond ring get one made. A good goldsmith will get in a selection of diamonds for you to see unset within your budget. You tell him how much you want to spend in total and he will then discuss with you what setting and band you want and will know how much is left in the pot for the stone. Usually 18ct band with platinum setting for decent stone. You will see the difference with the colour and quality of the stones when not set and can make your choice then. Some stones with flaws in can be a fabulous colour and may even look great set as your chosen setting might hide the flaw. Also think how high you want the stone set. I love the tall settings but they do take a hammering as they catch things and get knocked. OOps forgot to add. You should pay much less than high street shop for a handmade ring by small independent goldsmith.

Don't spend more than you can easily afford, as I've said previously it's virtually worthless in money terms when you walk out of the door of the jewellers. Depreciation is worse than a car!! You will only ever get your money back on jewellery via insurance and then they might only pay you what it costs them to replace.

Jem8472

rnshon wrote:

I think most girls would prefer a smaller high quality diamond than a larger one which wasn't so nice.

If she is quite small I suggest getting it set in 4 claws and a simple delicate band to emphasise the rock and show it off to its best advantage.

Rebecca

I just recently proposed to my girlfriend in Toronto I bought the ring months before I did it. about 0.50ct diamond in a platinum setting with 18K gold band.
Ring picture

As you can see it is about the same size as the one you are looking at buying and it has 8 claws. It looks massive on her as she has small hands. The claws no way make the diamond look smaller.

But I have to say how much I hate these four claw setting rings. They seem to be all the fashion at the moment and with me being cynical I believe that is just so if you lose a claw you lose the diamond and have to buy a new ring. :mad:
For that diamond to come out of that ring you would have to lose about half the claws, and if you hit it that hard on something you would probably nearly rip your finger off.

But as long as you know her style then you should have no problem choosing a ring. Also remember that if you buy one that is in fashion at the moment then it will become "old" quicker than if you get a more classic style ring.

Also dont forget that if you get an 18K band for an engagment ring then the wedding ring will have to be 18k as well otherwise if you go for a 9k it will wear out the 18K

what-will-be-will-be

I was brought up with a Dad that was a TRUE Gangster type Dad, Men were Men and Their women a Daughters were treated with absolute and utter pride, ie Nothing was too good for them. My Mum had Bling before Bling was Bling!

My Dad died when I was 15, Mum when I was 18, Today I wear her ring, its beautiful, a 1 carat in the middle surrounded by 13 tiny 1/10 carats
When my hubby proposed all I wanted was this ring on my finger so he had it adjusted to fit me.
I didnt want anything new.
I wanted something special.
So whatever you buy, as long as its special, that'll be the best thing you can give her.
We can all follow traditions,,, big rings for the rich, little rings for the not so rich, at the end of the day, we all love our rings if we love our men, at least for the time they give it to us anyway!!!

sheryldoc

The ring I want is from QVC its diamonique.. my BF says hes not buying me a ring from QVC but he better as thats what I want!!!.. its stunning and who will kno?

Stumpy_giraffe

Hi

Has anyone had any experience of buying from bluenile.co.uk? They seem much cheaper than the high street, and easier to use than diamondgeezer.com - are they reputable?

Many thanks for any replies - I'm a newbie to this forum so be gentle with me!

Poppy9

sheryldoc wrote:

The ring I want is from QVC its diamonique.. my BF says hes not buying me a ring from QVC but he better as thats what I want!!!.. its stunning and who will kno?

m It's crap. It's a base metal with a coating of gold or platinum which will wear off with a bit of cheap glass in it. It will not take everyday wear. One of the women in work is always buying QVC tanzinite. She paid £250 for a bangle that she had difficulty opening and closing. OH (used to be a gold smith) had a look at it for her to see if it was faulty. I didn't tell him how much she had paid but asked him how much it was worth. He said a tenner but she probably paid £50. The clasp was very cheap, there was no saftey chain fitted and the bangle was hollow so it would crack and break in two ( or 3 or 4:rolleyes: ).

fuzed

What would you guys do, the other half wants a nice big stone (looking at spending around £2/2.5K on it for her... looking at UK prices i'm just thinking we DONT get value for money.

I've looked on ebay an the rings you can get in the US are much better (diamond wise etc etc) but is it worthwhile going there, or how about dubai (which I could do, just fly over buy what she wants then come back)... maybe stay a few days whilst I'm at it...

anyway any suggestions would be great...

I really would rather get her a bigger diamond etc, esp considering the prices you pay for them in the UK.


Thanks All...

First post of many... so will be asking LOTS of questions in the near future - Great Forum, and a great bunch of people on here... been reading for months now..

RACT

Have you considered something like https://www.bluenile.co.uk - they do good jewellery at good prices. Just some other personal advice - I would rather have a smaller stone that is good quality than a big stone that is not good quality. With your price range I would say that you would manage to get a good quality good sized diamond.

My boyfriend proposed 2 weeks ago whilst we were visiting my family in Malta. We bought the ring from there and prices were one third of the prices in the UK (he had a similar budget to you and he got a 0.83 brilliant cut) and seeing that flights are quite cheap, it could be an option. I could give you some more info if you are interested.

Good luck

black-saturn

Hope you don't mind me saying this but I would be wary of a man giving me a £2.5k engagement ring. I'd rather have a £150 one from Argos and save the rest for the future.

gingin_2

Oh bought the stone for my ring seperately in the U.S, surprised me with that and then I chose the setting in the U.K. You will have to pay duty on the U.S prices though. It cost much less than had we bought it as a complete ring in a U.K jewellers.