Tip #1: Know Your Fiancee.
I would certainly say this is the first and most important tip I can give you. Is your fiancee a ring girl? Does she want an engagement ring, or a down payment on a house? I know this will shock many of you, but not every woman wants a ring. I know you may want to lock her down and make her your property by putting a nice stamp on her for all men to see. But, maybe ... just maybe ... what will make her stick around is knowing y'all will have a roof over your heads.
Tip #2: Diamonds Are Forever, But Not For Everyone
First, let me say I love diamonds. I think a flawless six carat rock will make me marry dang near anybody. However, diamonds are too typical people. Not every girl wants one. Know this now. Is your fiancee a diamond girl? Or is there another stone she always wears, or that she just finds more beautiful. I, personally, am a sapphire guy. Deep, blue, sapphires. I love them ... and I think they are the most gorgeous stone around. My mother loves garnets. So, in our cases, a diamond wouldn't work for us. Besides, I find diamonds a little tacky nowadays. They clash with most fashions, unless of course you dress like Blair Waldorf on Gossip Girl every day. Do you? Well then, think of another stone. Diamonds are not the rarest stone around, so the price of them doesn't actually correspond to their supply.
Tip #3: Dare to Design
This is my favorite tip. If you really want to blow her mind when you present her with the ring, think about creating a ring that she's never seen before. Designing your own ring can be a great way to provide that unique touch to the ring that makes it that much more special to her when she gets it. A special tip from me to you is that I like to visit Van Cleef & Arpel's website to look at their engagement rings. They have a great selection of rings, and their designs are usually quite unique. I like to use them as a starting point and then add something more catered to my desires to the ring (in my head), and bam, you have an outstanding ring that is your own creation.
Take a look at this ring, the Couture. I love how it's designed to look like the diamond is like a button. Now, I am not a fan of the classic circle cut diamond, I like a rectangle more. So, my spin on this is to take the center diamond, make it a rectangle cut sapphire, raise it a little, and the loop can stay. It still looks like a button, but just a rectangular button. And the sapphire throws it off just enough to make you look again at the ring. It reminds me of this shirt I had once. It had wooden buttons to it...oak I think. it was so different than everyone else was wearing people talked about it the whole semester I wore it.
In this case, I think the diamonds really make the sapphire pop more once you see it together. But you get what I'm saying about a simple revamp. You can look at a number of rings to get ideas. Piece things together. Just don't do the pear-shaped diamond with a gold band. It looks hideous, and there's a reason Carrie threw up when she saw it on Sex and the City. I would too.
Tip #4: Befriend a Jeweler
If you're looking to save a little money, it might be nice to get to know a jeweler now who can make you your creation at a fraction of the cost. You can buy the stones wholesale at a much cheaper price (allowing you to get bigger stones wink wink), and even take your old gold jewelry (or platinum, whatever) and have the jeweler melt it down to make the band. There, you can have a gorgeous ring made that doesn't break the bank. I do have a jeweler in my back pocket should I ever lose my mind and go the marriage route. I have a design in mind, I can get the stones cheap, and I'm sure I can swing a good price on the white gold needed for the band.
Any of you can do it. My brother took my mother's old gold jewelry--that had broken but she never threw away--and had it melted down. He bought a garnet stone (her favorite, and had a ring made up of all her old jewelry. She loves that ring and wears it all the time. She'll tell anyone about how her son made a ring for her out of her old jewelry. And I will admit the design of the ring is great for her ... exactly her taste. The same thing can be done for your fiancee. Go for it.
Tip #5: Men get engaged too!
That's right. It ain't all about you honey. Men are on the other side of the engagement, and sometimes they want a ring too. Sometimes, more so than the woman does.
This tip is really just to make you all aware that it is okay to ask the guy to marry you. And if you do, give the boy a freaking ring. Don't ask him to marry you then demand he go out and spend thousands on a ring for you. Get him something! Nowadays, men's engagement rings are become a common thing. They are truly more unique than a woman's ring. Take a look at this one I found:
Not bad, huh? Certainly an interesting way to go. Break with tradition. Put your stamp on that man. Hell, the gays have been putting engagement rings on men for a while now. Don't let them have all the fun. Besides, maybe a nice engagement ring will get the guy to stop wearing his tacky class ring all the time. Those things are ugly ... just ugly. They are bulky, ugly, and should be kept in the box it came in. I hate those things, and men buy them as big as they can get, don't they? That's a whole other tangent I shouldn't get on. Let's just say putting that ring on HIS finger instead is a cost saver, and takes care of several accessory problems he may have. It's win-win.
LOL ... here's to style people. Cheers!
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