Engagement ring

A question about : Engagement ring

Hello all.

So after living with my girlfriend for just a month we found out we're expecting.

That in mind I'm looking to propose to my girlfriend of two years.

I've saved up around Ј2k and I'm looking to get a nice ring for her.

Ideally I want a platinum ring (they stay brighter for longer than white gold) then a nice diamond in it.

Given the variables in the diamond, cut, quality, carat and colour. I want to make sure I get the most for my money.

I went to a local jewelers where they hand make jewelry, I'm thinking I will get more for my money than a big corporate shop.

I just wondered if anyone had any advice.

Best answers:

• Well you will likely get a unique ring but will pay slightly more for this as opposed to a main stream jewellers, It is all about preference though and I think having one made would be better but remember you will probably get less for your money.
• There are plenty of independent jewellers rather than high street names where you will get more for your money. Platinum is very expensive. We bought my ring from a shop called ablesons in Manchester, they are on a side street off deans gate and more trade than high st. My ring cost Ј2500 I think and is a 1ct brilliant cut colour e and almost flawless. It has stones set in the shoulders. It's white gold. I get compliments on it almost every day and I had it valued elsewhere for insurance and it came back worth Ј4800.
• If it were me, I would want my fiance to spend about two hundred on the ring and keep the other Ј1800 in the bank. If we were expecting a baby, I would consider it incredibly frivolous to spend Ј2,000 on an engagement ring. You can get a perfectly nice and decent quality ring for a couple of hundred pounds.
  And you will need a LOT of money when baby comes along. Probably before too! So saving most of that two grand and spending just a couple of hundred on the ring seems to make more sense IMO.
  I know it may not be what you asked (or wanted to hear,) but this is a moneysaving page, and this is a moneysaving site.
  There are numerous independent jewellers where you could get a nice, decent, unique ring for several hundred.
• my brother found that palladium has similar properties to platinum, being a very hard and bright white metal, but is considerably cheaper - it may be worth looking into.
• jaylee3 is right, but left out the part about engagement rings being a scam, a sham, an incredible feat of advertising and marketing that dupes untold millions into wastefully parting with untold billions every year.
  I spent about Ј10 on my wife's engagement ring, and a few days before our wedding we went to a day-market and picked up two plain rings for about Ј3 (total! Not each!). And if anything, we overspent! No practical use whatsoever.
  UNLESS... she's a jewellery nut who spends money on items like necklaces and rings all the time anyway. If rings are something she's interested in, then a couple of hundred on a nice ring might be money well spent. My wife likes spoons, and I've bought her a couple of gold spoons over the years. This is because SHE likes spoons. Not because of some ridiculous "tradition" that started a few decades ago as a way to sell diamonds for stupid prices. :P
  Best of luck either way!
• It's up to the OP how much they wish to spend on a ring, I'm sure they are aware how much a baby will cost.
  I would go to a diamond wholesaler if possible. The chain retailers have a massive mark up on their rings. I know in Belfast we have the likes of the Gardiner Brothers but not sure about the mainland!
  Good luck
• I would and did buy the one I thought my wife would like. It was expensive but its the only one ill be buying and the only one she'll be wearing. Get her one she'll be happy to wear forever. If thats tens or thousands of pounds and you can afford it then thats the one. And to make make people on here really upset maybe get a loan?(probbably dont)
• you can go to Esty and search a best ring which will fit in your budget.and,hopefully in 2000$ you will get a nice cut platinum ring.
• I'd be very dissapointed with a Ј10 ring - call me shallow if you like
• DH and I got engaged when we were very poor students and the ring cost about Ј75.
  it seems to have done a good job - we are celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary next year
  ( though he did buy me a lovely eternity ring a few years ago which did cost considerably more than Ј75 )
• (Full disclosure: I proposed to my (now) wife with a circa Ј250 ring in '02, approx 1/6 of my monthly take home pay)
  I think the best advice anyone can give is: Find out what SHE wants.
  Does she really want you to spend a sum of money large enough to be part of a deposit on your marital home ? My wife would have been furious if I spent that much. With a baby on the way, are you really sure this is the best place to drop Ј2k ? I mean, how is the nursery looking ? Got the cot, crib, pram, clothes, crap ton of other baby related stuff already ? Maybe you have bucket loads of spare money to burn and this suits your circumstance -- your post makes no mention either way.
  Whatever the answer above... what colour jewelery does she like, not everyone likes white/silver/plat/gold ?
  What colour stones does she like ?
  Does she want a traditional ring or something perhaps a little more exotic (e.g. Celtic knotwork) ?
  Also, think about the wedding ring, it's got to compliment or mirror the engagement ring.
  If she does want you to waste such funds on the token, then another possible idea I've heard used is to buy a cheap ring and propose with it, then let her choose the ring that costs the small fortune. Since if you pick one she doesn't like for thousands of pounds...well am sure you can picture the awkwardness that causes for all concerned.
• My ring came from an antique shop.
  OH proposed and we spent quite a while shopping for something that we both liked and was within the price range we considered.
  It's a fire opal with diamonds either side, and cost Ј165.
  I spent more on a wedding band, because I wanted one that was diamond studded.
  Ask her what she wants - but bear in mind although she'll be wearing it for a long time, you will have other priorities.
  Is there a ring in the family that you can use? I already know that I have one that my daughters boyfriend and her are eyeing up - your wife to be may well be more touched to receive a family ring.
  And does she love platinum? Because I had an ex who loved it (and bought me a ring in it) and I hated it.
  I HAD worn silver - which was apparently his inspiration - but only because for day wear rings I couldn't afford gold. I preferred yellow gold.
  Ask her what she wants would be my best advice.
• I'd be too scared to wear a Ј2k ring in case I lost or damaged it!
  OP, will it be insured?
  HBS x
• I got my now wifes made by a diamond merchant in Farringdon
  It was a coonection through a friend, but I had the most amazing ring made to my Wifes spec, with the best diamonds the naked I could see for about Ј900. We had it valued at a high street jeweller, who said it was probably worth about Ј3000
  The advice I was given was stay away from the big named places as their markups are horrendous. De beers for example can mark up between 500 - 1000% due to the brand name
  Also, make sure your girlfriend loves it, its not all about the price