Engagement Rings

squidney

Not sure if this is the right place to post...

My OH and I got engaged a few weeks ago (outside Wembley Stadium in his true football loving style!) and we're shopping for a ring together. My problem is the minefield of rings and advice out there.

Our budget is £1200 and ideally I would like a diamond. I feel quite savvy with the 4 C's but have no idea where to start!

Has anyone got any advice?

Thanks!

pledgeX

I bought the gf's through BlueNile online. They've got a good website, good reviews, lots of options and saved me about £700 compared to the high street.

I bought her a simple 18ct white gold solitaire ring with the biggest diamond I could afford without sacrificing on the cut, colour or clarity. It's simple and elegant and I knew it's what she would have wanted and thankfully I got it right

The only difficulty I had was finding out her ring size as she had no idea about the ring. However, this should not be a problem for you as you're shopping together!

They do offer free re-sizing if you need it, but the problem is that they're based abroad so you have to pay a fair chunk in postage to insure it. I found it was actually cheaper to just take it to a local jeweller and get it re-sized.

MrsHappy85

Congratulations on your engagment!

The general advice on this subject seems to be, if you want the biggest, best quality diamond for your budget, it is recommended you either shop on line, Ive heard Samara James are excellent as is Blue Nile or go to one of the jewllery quarters such as Hatton Garden or Birmingham.

What kind of style are you looking for?

Personally,I fell in love with a diamond and white gold cluster ring from a high street jewellers, Beaverbrooks, (High Street Jewellers seem to get a huge bashing on here as they mark up their rings so much!) so that was what I was given. The monetary value was not important to me and it was not an investment piece. I just wanted something pretty and sparkly and durable. It was about £700 at the time (six year ago)

We did get a certificate with the ring confirming the stats.

£1200 is a generous budget, Im sure you will find something you will love in that price bracket. x

gadgeteer_2

Definitely go to the jewellery quarter. A lot more choice and prices much better than the High Street.

When we went ring shopping for the same price as high street chains, we got the same size but instead of SI1/2 we managed to get IF. Colourwise I think high streets were pushing K-M but we ended up with H.

faithless

I'd recommend the jewellery quarter. We went to Birmingham and wound up getting my a better and bigger diamond in the engagement ring, AND a matching wedding band with diamonds in, for less than the cost of an engagement ring in the Bristol jewellers I'd looked at. Also they have so many different styles there that you're guaranteed to find some style you like. I'd recommend looking at wedding bands at the same time as depending on the shape of your engagement ring you may have to have an odd shape wedding band to fit, plus if you buy the two together you can negotiate a discount.

Faith177

I also recommend the jewellery quarter.

OH got my ring from there and was able to custom design it. I ended up with the most gorgeous platinum (my only condition) diamond and sapphire ring. It isn't your classic straight band the band runs either side of the stones in a kind of wave.

He was able to select all the stones himself which makes it even more special to me as he choose everything about it

Sazzarella

I know nothing about diamonds but I went for a Pink Sapphire which seemed to bring the price down a lot. We got it handmade from this Etsy seller and it cost £600.

Cooliogti

The only thing I can really remember is that my choice of stone shape - Emerald Cut, which is rectangular - means that you have to start off with a better quality of stone in the first place than you would if you had a round / Brilliant cut. Which normally means more expensive too lol. This is because there are fewer cuts made to the stone so there is less possibility of getting rid of any (or hiding) any imperfections.

It made no difference to me tbh as I'd always known I wanted an emerald cut diamond solitaire. Expensive taste possibly, but we bought mine half price in F. Hinds

Best advice I can really give? Try several styles and shapes on, see what you like, what suits you and your hands, and what is practical. If you have a job where a large cluster would get in your way on a daily basis then you may learn to regret it.

Oh, and take your time. It's worth the wait

Cooliogti

Btw Sazzarella, that's a really pretty ring xx

heart_free

Just a couple of points.....
1) listen to your heart, remember an engagement ring is an emotional purchase. If the ring you love isn't a great big sparkling diamond, don't worry - its a very personal choice
2) if you like diamond, but don't like the price why not go for moissanite? It's a man made stone that is extremely close to diamond in its chemical markup, even scoring close on Moh's scale of hardness. Good quality Moissanite is very hard to distinguish from a diamond even for a qualified jeweller, so you could even tell people it is diamond. Be wary of other diamond substitutes that are of. Much lower quality.
3) there are many other gem stones out there. You could choose your birthstone, or the stone related to the month of your engagement/marriage/meeting. You could also go for something like white topaz - a white/clear sparkly stone
4) There are lots of metal options, but remember to get one that matches your intended wedding ring to prevent unequal wear or differences in colour. 18ct white gold and platinum are traditional, but palladium is becoming a more cost effective option than platinum. You could even choose something really different like titanium.

Remember that some high street and independent jewellers offer a discount when you buy your wedding ring from them if you've bought your engagement ring there, you're less likely to get this offer online. Some also offer life-long cleaning, free repairs for a certain period and other incentives to buy. And you can haggle on price too!

Congratulations on your engagement and all the best for the future

squidney

Thank you guys!

I have larger fingers (size q) so I think a solitaire might look lost, I'm thinking maybe a cluster or something with a jewelled band like yours Sazarella, I love your ring, it's stunning!

We're going to have a good look around Bath in a couple of weeks so we can look at both independant and high street chains to compare