Engagement Ring Assistance

jcartlidge

Can anyone make any recommendations of particular shops in the Birmingham Jewellery Quarter please?

AbFab

Rogar wrote: »

I have the perfect place on where to ask the question now!!! I asked her out by this wall when we were kids and it was also where we first met so that's going to be awesome!!

As for the ring, I have tried getting some ideas from her but all she says is she won't care as long as we are together (that sort of thing...)...

I just want to get her the best I can afford (she'd be happy with £10 ring or something)...

Thanks again!!

Sounds great! Do the down on one knee thing too, of course (am sure you would anyway!).

Is yellow gold the colour of the majority of her other jewellery? It doesn't suit everybody.

Just ideas:
If she knows this is on the cards, it could be a nice idea to propose without the real ring, and then go shopping together for the ring. Then again, she might prefer to actually have a ring, as YOU have chosen it. Or go shopping for the ring together before you propose, and you hold on to it until the right moment. Or just go browsing together, and see if she is drawn to any in particular, then nip out in secret and get one you know she likes.
I would love my ring if my husband had chosen it with care and thought, but I LOVE my ring because I had dropped so many hints about diamond shape and ring setting he went with my preferences (AND put lots of care and thought into it)!!! But that's just me.

Best of luck, and keep us posted!

Errata

If you want a good ring and value for money, have a look in your local pawnbrokers.

BitterAndTwisted

Buying brand-new jewellery is just like buying a brand-new car: as soon as you drive it off the forecourt it's worth 25% less than you paid for it, so my advice would be to take a look in your local jewellers and pawn-brokers for a second-hand or better, an antique one.

Having said that, any woman in love really won't care that much about the actual value of said ring. That there will be a ring would be enough to show real commitment, to me

scotsgirl_3

I would recommend blue nile. We used them for a replacement engagement ring for me, and a workmate has used them since and they were fantastic. I paid less than half the price of the same ring locally (couple of years ago now, paid in the region of £700 for an e, 0.5 carat ring which was valued at close to 2k)

We looked in the high street first and would have got comparatively very little, and very poor quality stones for the same money.

nikki2804

TBH (as a female who is guessing her boyfriend is going to propose as he keeps asking about ring sizes lol) I would rather pick my own ring. You could still do the nice romantic proposal and everything but at least you then know that she will love the ring. As previously stated though there are some lovely rings around the £300 mark (the one I like is actually only £150) Put the remainder of the balance towards the engagment party and wedding.

Good luck and congratulations

fernliebee

My Dh knew I would want to pick my own ring, so he carved a heart shaped ring from a piece of hazel wood to propose with. It is beautiful, and so special to me. I can't wear it as it would crack over time, so I wear my bought one that I chose, it doesn't mean anywhere near as much to me though. I bought mine online, from jewellerydirect. com and I love it. I have a white gold ring, with pink opal and small diamonds around it. I didn't really want diamonds, just a pink stone, but the nicest one I found had them and it was £95.

Personally I would rather spend less on the ring and have more money for wedding/ honey moon but that is just me!

Congratulations, sounds like it will be a lovely proposal, in a meaningful location.

SharonW_2

Try qualitydiamonds .co.uk

You can choose your own diamond/setting and set the specifications. For your budget and the quality you want you can get about 0.5 carats and that comes with well respected GIA/EGL certificate.

Got my engagement ring there and was very pleased.

ljbnotts

jcartlidge wrote: »

Can anyone make any recommendations of particular shops in the Birmingham Jewellery Quarter please?

We used Bicknells on Vyse street (near to the station) They were lovely, not pushy and they make a lot of the rings on site in their family workshop!

Although i wanted a Tanzanite and diamond ring so i wasn't looking for a single stone ring.

there are literally hundreds of shops in the quarter and thousands of rings for all budgets! My advice is go and have a look!:rotfl:You could spend days there! We took 3 trips to narrow it down and we had a much smaller selection to look at, unlike the diamond solitaires where there are many more to choose from!

If you do a search on MSE for the jewelery quarter you will find lots of recommendations! Thats what we did and went into all of the shops to see what they had!

HTH

esio_trot

http://www.jpdiamonds.com/

I used JP Diamonds to buy a ring last year (as a memorial from an inheritance) and I love it - haven't had any problems with it at all. Not sure what they'll have in your price range but they've a fair selection. I think they also do custom rings if that's what you want.