I’m want to propose to my girlfriend. She isn’t the type to want expensive or fancy things. That’s fine and dandy, but I don’t want to come off as a cheap bastard. How much is a reasonable or budget engagement ring? Are diamonds a must? Is it possible to pay no more than 00? Thanks.
13 Responses
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
Are diamonds a must? No.
Preferable? For most women yes.
Less than $2,000? Yes.
You should only get what you can afford *without* incurring debt.
I got my wife’s ring at Diamond Brokers of Florida:
http://www.dbof.com/
http://www.diamondring.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=1054
Or you could check out these other online sources:
www.WhiteFlash.com
www.GoodOldGold.com
www.ExcelDiamonds.com
www.BlueNile.com
Blue Nile’s database is good, but they don’t provide you with photos or analysis reports of the diamond. I wouldn’t go with them for that reason.
Happy hunting.
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June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
this is a veryyyyy broad question
but what the real situation is, it’s all about you and your budget
an engagement ring is said to be around 3 months of pay i think?? so around that
but it’s really up to you and how much money you have or are willing to pay.
and even though you say your girlfriend isn’t one for fancy things, an engagement ring is worn forever, and a girl is going to be excited and hopefully proud to show off her ring.
diamonds are traditionally a must. but get what you can afford
my advice would be to pick a budget, and then to head to a jareds or a nice jeweler, and they can really help you see what you can get for that price range
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
It is SO possible to pay less than $2000 for an engagement ring. I recently got engaged (about a month ago) and my fiance bought me the most breathtaking ring ever, and it was one that I had tried on before and totally fell in love with. The diamond is 1/3 carat, but that makes no difference to me, the ring is still stunning. He paid about $700 for mine.
Diamonds are pretty much a must unless your girlfriend has specified another stone that she would like more. They are very classic and elegant.
To be honest, the bigger the carat on a diamond, the less appeal it has to me. I know many women who prefer simplistic engagement rings over gigantic ones.
My fiance bought my ring from Kay’s Jewelers, but I don’t know if they have any where you live (we live in Nebraska). If you don’t have one there, I’d suggest doing some online price comparing of jewelers in your area.
Here’s the website for Kay’s:
www.kays.com
Best of luck! This a very exciting time!
P.S. a romantic proposal…always a must!
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
As MUCH as you can afford… -And 2K ain’t bad for a piece of rock…
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
depends on the girl. we are ring searching now and i’m looking for something under $1000. big, expensive rings are nice to look at, but not practical. I want something I can wear every day and not worry about knocking the diamond out of the setting.
The diamond industry says you should spend 2 months salary. But hey… its more important to save up for a house than give her a 2 carat solitaire.
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
Don’t feel obligated to stick with diamonds or to adhere to some ridiculous formula of salary to price of ring probably established by the diamond industry which is so corrupt (i.e. blood diamonds). Check out the origins of the diamond engagement ring: http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Origins-of-the-Beloved-Diamond-Engagement-Ring&id=2396836
However, if you must have a diamond from what I have seen $2000 is plenty to get a nice ring. Since she will likely be wearing it all her life, I would suggest you let her help pick it out or get an idea by walking into a jewelry store with her and see what she oohs and aahs over. Or look at www.zales.com or some other site to get a better idea of price and style.
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
my boyfriend got me a .30ct diamond ring and 1/3 eternity wedding ring for 400 total, I love them they are beautiful diamond, white and clear found them on ebay, you just have to know what your looking for and what you are willing to deal with, D-G color pretty much white, anything above SI2 clarity is eye clean so dont get anything I2 and lower, check out bluenile not for the rings but they have information you can use to see the difference between all color and clarity grades….
And De Beers Diamond Industry has set the standard of 2 months salary although it’s bullsh*t, get what you can afford for 2k you can get the most beautiful ring,and is more than reasonable …in my opinion 400 was alot when we are saving to fix up our house.
Your girlfriend might agree that she’d rather get a house, splurge on your honeymoon, or anything! Thats what I wanted…
the $400 he spent on me wasnt cheap but smart as we will have to have money for other things after the wedding ya know?
Good luck…
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
Diamonds are not a must but are a safe choice. You really need to know your girl to not buy diamonds. And yess $2000 is plenty. You can get a very nice Solitaire ring for that price or a simple band. Remember crazy shapes cost more because they cut away more of the diamond to make it and rounds sparkle best. The people at the jewelry store are best for this because they know exactly what questions to ask and how to find something to suit her and your budget. Good Luck!
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
The rule of thumb is 3 months of the males salary. Like your gf I’m not into huge flashy rings. (Plus we live on a farm and huge diamonds and work just don’t mix.) For $2000 you can a really beautiful ring. Diamonds aren’t a "must" BUT, diamonds are hard stones and other gemstones will break and scratch, an engagement ring is meant forever. Also, every girl dreams of her diamond engagement ring. We go to Kay Jewelers for all of my jewelery. They sell really great insurance. If you go there buy it it’s soooo worth it. They replace ANY lost diamonds, re-size, replate(if you get white gold) and much much more for FREE!!! If you’re interested in a credit card they have one.. I seen an ad on tv that they were having free financing.
Good Luck, and congrats!
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
Diamonds are the traditional thing (3 months salary is SO not, I mean, it doesn’t work out mathematically on average). Diamonds are very hard stones, the hardest actually, with moissanite, rubies, and sapphires as the nearest runners up. My ring cost $2800 and is a one carat solitaire with a ring guard that has 14 smaller diamonds on it, I am sure that you can find a good deal. A 3 stone ring is also less expensive, because diamond prices rise exponentially based on size. I recommend looking for a small family jeweler that you can trust. The mall stores have inferior quality stones, are not truthful, and overcharge. I mean, if they have a 70% off sale, then they must have marked the ring WAY up. They have to make some profit. When I worked at a small family jeweler, we marked diamonds up only 30%. I highly recommend overstock.com though, I bought my fiance’s wedding band there with 1 carat of diamonds total weight for only $840. If you order it and don’t like it, they will take it back. I recommend NOT buying any rings with a clarity of I or below for an engagement ring, or a color of J or below. This is because these stones get more attention. In mall stores you will find almost always I quality or slightly better, with G-I color range. They lie though, their diamonds are not certified by the official agencies (GIA or EGL). They have some made-up marketing scam, I have caught them out before. Caveat emptor with them!
Good luck, God bless
http://www.overstock.com/Jewelry-Watches/Diamond-Rings/White,/diamond-color,/14630/subcat.html?index=61&sort=Highest+Price
http://www.overstock.com/Jewelry-Watches/14k-Gold-1ct-TDW-Diamond-Three-stone-Ring-H-I-SI1/1081074/product.html
http://www.overstock.com/Jewelry-Watches/14k-Gold-1-1-10ct-TDW-White-Blue-Diamond-Ring-SI-Size-6.75/4126828/product.html
PS Blood diamonds are very rare due to the Kimberly agreements, I have heard it is like .2 percent of diamonds in US. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimberley_Process_Certification_Scheme
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
Tough question as all girls are different in what they want. I personally, would rather have a Tanzanite with diamonds or a colored diamond. My ex ( the guy I thought I would be engaged to) hated that idea and was going to get me a classic white diamond. But, anyway, I dont think you have to spend over 2,000 for a nice stone.
The important thing to do is 1. research- the C’s on diamond picking
2. find out what she prefers…white/yellow gold. etc. shape etc.
3. Realize what you can AFFORD vs. what is rule of thumb ….I know someone that is paying off a very expensive ring purchased at zales even tho he is no longer engaged ( 5,600 size headache). I didn’t have the heart to tell him the diamond quality wasn’t that great to start with.
I would also, take a look at www.jtv.com
they sell loose gemstones and nice diamond rings. My advice would be not to have it sized through them . ( then if you dont like it you cant return it) but, if you dont have it sized you can have a month to decide if its what you want.
good luck
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
The average of what people in the US spend is 2000-4000, a good budget is 5 percent of your salary. 2000 is a reasonable budget, for that, you can get 1/2 carat, good quality diamond solitaire. A 1/2 carat is the average sized diamond, and you can get better than average color and clarity, and cut with that budget.
Diamonds are not a must, but they are traditional, some people may wag their tongues at a non diamond, depends on the family and friends.
examples
http://www.whiteflash.com/premium_select_round/Premium-Select-Round-cut-diamond-1987274.htm#
http://www.whiteflash.com/oval/Oval-cut-diamond-2157877.htm
http://www.bluenile.com
http://www.goodoldgold.com
http://www.jamesallen.com
http://www.adiamor.com
http://www.brilliance.com
http://www.whiteflash.com
I agree 1/3rd carat is plenty, even if she has large fingers. We upgraded, but my first E-ring is a pear .34ct (1/3rd) H/SI1 and was 600
1/3rd ct .29-.36
3/8ths ct .37-.44
1/2ct .45-.58
5/8ths ct .59-.68
3/4 ct .69-.82
look at antwerp’s site below to see sizes of diamonds, notice that different shapes are different sizes
http://www.ajediam.com/Sizes-of-Diamonds.html
here are some settings
http://www.whiteflash.com/Engagement-Rings/Styles/Solitaire/6-Prong-tiffany-style-Diamond-Solitaire_993.htm
250 18k white gold/600 platinum
http://www.whiteflash.com/Engagement-Rings/Styles/Solitaire/-Legato–Sleek-Line-Diamond-Solitaire_1118.htm#
this is pretty, I’d only consider wh gold though
http://www.whiteflash.com/Engagement-Rings/Styles/Solitaire/Classic-Tiffany-Style-Knife-Edge_1137.htm#
can’t go wrong with a knife edge
June 24th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
It is definately possible. Check out the link below which offers engagement rings at very decent price.
http://www.unclereview.com/buy-engagement-diamond-ring-online/
Congrats in advance bro!