With all the excitement of engagements and weddings in the air of my fellow bloggers and my friends/family, I have a confession to make. I don’t really understand the hype behind the diamond engagement ring. I mean, sure they look nice… but 3 months of salary worth “nice”? *shrugs*
Polite Ring Admiration
From my experience, when co-workers/friends/other girls get engaged, they come into the office/lunch/wherever, all giddy and hold out their hand. Everyone All the women tend to crowd around and “oooh and aaaah” over the ring, they tell the future bride her ring is beautiful.
Me? Well, I do that, too. But more out of social etiquette, since I have no idea what the difference is between different engagement rings. They all kinda look the same to me. Like this.
Image via
I mean, I would do the same thing when someone shows me a picture of their ultra sound. I would probably doing a bit of “ooohing” and “aaahing” and tell the expectant mother her baby is so cute – when really, all I see is a weird blob on the snap shot. It’s not that I’m not happy for the expectant mother – I am! I just don’t see anything on the photograph!
The same goes for the ring. I am happy for the couple – but I don’t see the big deal about it. But I feel that it is polite to outwardly admire it.
But I Like Rings!
Before you think that I am a ring nazi, I want to make it clear that I like rings! I think these beautiful rings can complete any outfit.
Images via here, here and here.I love how a statement ring can complete or add a fun twist to an outfit. And I think that a wedding band can be a beautiful and elegant piece of jewelry that is a symbol of a couple’s commitment to one another. I think Miss Minimalist’s wedding ring is amazing, and her attitude (and her ring!) are more in line with my ideal wedding band/engagement ring and price tag.
Image via
What are your thoughts on engagement rings or wedding rings? Do you admire them rings?
Cheers,
fabulously fru-girl 
I don’t agree with the three month salary thing for an engagement ring at all. I don’t understand the hype behind them but I know that it is something that my guy wants to buy–so we agreed upon a price and then I told him I wanted a bridal set for that price–not just one ring and then having to buy a wedding band after.
Three months of salary is insane. I’d rather spend that on a down payment on a house. J makes $70K a year or so, so I think 1 months salary is perfectly acceptable. Or less.
I love gushing over rings but typically because the girl is usually excited, etc. I know that I am just another victim of DeBeers but I am very sentimental about mine, I love it and it is my favorite piece of jewelry. That said I don’t expect others to say anything about it (your ultrasound analogy was perfect) to most mine is very very plain!
I think it’s very personal, and I love hearing about the sentimental aspect of a ring more than just looking at the ring 🙂
3 months salary for a ring is unnecessary! You can get a beautiful engagement ring for less than a 1 month’s salary (if you avoid the big name stores in the mall and look for your ring at an independent jeweller/artisan with a low overhead). And you’re right, they all look the same anyways. Or, you can do what a friend of mine did: get a personalized ring crafted out of reclaimed wood and recycled silver. Rings should have meaning and a history – not something that looks like it just came off the assembly line!
I definitely don’t get the appeal of a big expensive ring. It’s not that I don’t like money or am not greedy, because I do, and I am :p
But I just think there are a lot more useful things to channel that $ into, like adding to the downpayment of a house, purchase price of a car, or a person’s retirement fund, for example. Even if money was no object for me and my partner, I’d feel a little self conscious about wearing a big rock anyway, especially men don’t even wear engagement rings – only women are supposed to wear them to show that they’re taken, and maybe that their fiances are rich/”care” enough about them to spend an insane amount on a piece of jewlery that can tarnish, be lost, or stolen.
LOL! “It’s not that I don’t like money or am not greedy, because I do, and I am :p”
Me, too. I like money and I am kinda greedy, but I like prioritizing other things more.
I used to care about rings but now I’m kind of jaded after learning the environmental consequences of acquiring gold and obviously, many of the social problems to get diamonds. Also now that I have a better understanding of money I can’t imagine spending so much on something that will not generate any sort of financial return. I mean, if you have money to blow ok buy whatever you want, but usually people get married when they’re trying to start a life together and that means buying a home, saving for retirement, etc — which one of those things will you take away from in order to afford the ring?
Agreed. It’s about prioritizing.
Nope. I’m not even a huge fan of my own ring – I’m not big on jewellery – and I don’t really know if any ring would do it for me. That said, I do like that mine is an heirloom – so it was frugal, and it’s unique (well, a little oldfashioned – I find pretty much all engagement rings look more or less the same). I plan to find a similarly vintage ruby ring for my wedding ring (guess I better start combing secondhand/antique stores at some point).
So yeah, like you, I never am part of the flock that oohs and ahhs over rings and babies. A coworker announced her pregnancy yesterday and there were hugs all around, and myself and my boss just kinda hung back awkwardly.
Craaaazy. Society makes it seem like an engagement ring should be super expensive, which is why I haven’t gotten one yet. BF thinks he can’t afford one but I thought it was just the thought that counts. To be honest I looked at prices of rings and diamonds but the amounts are crazy. The price of a 2 cars would be the cost of one nice diamond. SHEESH! I’d be happy with a pretty ring but if my BF can’t afford one…I’d still want to get married.
I love my ring, and I generally like most rings I see because, hey, in another life I was a raccoon and I like shiny things. 😉 there’s a lot of details that go into even the simplest engagement ring, and I really admire the craft that is there. Especially because for me (and most women, I’d imagine), it’s the one piece of NICE jewelry I own.
I must have been a leprechaun (or butterfly?) in my previous life, because I love colourful things 🙂
I think everyone should have whatever jewelry makes them happiest, and I am happy that your ring is something you cherish and love.
By the way, everytime I try to use my normal email address to comment, this error pops up: That email address is associated with an existing WordPress.com (or Gravatar.com) account. Please click the back button in your browser and then log in to use it.
Has anyone else experienced this? It’s happened in the last couple of days… I used to be able to comment without problem.
Sorry about the trouble for commenting. I’m really not sure how things work, but I try to keep the setting that is easiest to comment on. (It’s set to if you’ve commented previously, your comments should go through). Mochi mentioned that she had trouble commenting when she tried to go through anonymously, but that’s not the problem you’re describing.
Has anyone else experienced this? Or have a solution? Thanks in advance.
I have this problem as well. It will let me comment through my twitter….but I don’t know what that means even.
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I agree that the 3 month is ridiculous, but I have to say that I like engagement rings. It’s not about the size because I actually don’t like huge ones. I figure that if I’m going to wear it for the rest of my life, it has to be one that I truly love.
My bargain is that I really don’t want a wedding so hopefully that offsets thing 🙂
3 MONTHS?! Totally ridiculous! My husband spent 2 weeks salary on mine. I still love him. 🙂
-Michelle
The ring my fiance got me is totally not traditional at all. It’s a rosecut white sapphire and it’s yellow gold. He didn’t have to break the bank either, and I love it.
I am not a fan of cookie-cutter anything (except the literal kind), so I agree with your sentiments whole-heartedly.
Hahaha, BF thought that his work colleagues were joking when they told him 3m salary! And when he was telling me, he thought that it was for *all* the rings — engagement and his/hers wedding bands 😛
I used to think the whole diamond ring thing was totally ridiculous and a waste of three months salary, but being engaged now, i sort of get it mainly because A) i’m gonna have to wear this ring until i die and B) this is probably the most my BF will ever spend on jewellery for me. Not that he spent 3 months salary, that’s still kind of a high price tag for a ring. 1 month if that is really all you need to spend. Then again my mom didn’t actually get an engagement ring my parents 25 year anniversary, so i’ve never really engagement rings were that necessary to begin with.
I prefer engagement rings to be plain and simple, which is exactly what I got! I always find it easier to gush over everyone else’s ring, even if I don’t particularly like it.
Though I do have a traditional diamond engagement ring, I’m glad that non-traditional styles have become more accepted.