[KingOfJericho]

I kind of roll my eyes each time I see those rings with a 0.75 stone surrounded by 50 pave stones to make it appear that she has a 4 carat ring on. To me, it's like a girl stuffing her bra...

[David70]

Originally Posted by BMW F22

Well, I went on Bluenile.com to price out a classic style ring and it was about$9k total for 1.21 carats, F color, VVS2, ideal cut in a platinum setting. That is dirt cheap. A similar ring runs about $15k at Tiffany's and sky rockets from there. I like Tiffany's but you do pay for the name.

Also, you could save a lot of money by going with between sizes. Example, instead of 1 carat, go with .96. Almost impossible to tell the difference between .96 and 1.00 and it's a lot cheaper.

My ideal ring would be closer to 1.5 carat, D color, VVS1, and ideal cut.

Also, congrats on taking the next step OP! Hope she says yes!

Also got my wife's ring on Bluenile and I agree with the above. Also, when the diamonds are professionally graded and come with paperwork, then you have a time period to return the ring (you/she doesn't like the ring or she says no), I can't see paying the overhead of the retail jewelry store. You pick out the individual diamonds, the setting, etc. unlike a jewelry store that tries to sell you what they have and who makes it difficult to judge all of the attributes.

While we like to make it out to be a really important decision, reality is I have never met someone that said their marriage wasn't good or they got a divorce because of the ring. If your marriage sucks it will be because of far greater issues. Buy something in your price range and try to find something you think she will like and you will be fine.

I also have never understood the woman who wants you to spend way more than the two of you can afford (for this or any other major purchase) as reality is the lack or money or now increased debt will soon be her problem also. Also a red flag to future money problems.

[David70]

Originally Posted by KingOfJericho

I kind of roll my eyes each time I see those rings with a 0.75 stone surrounded by 50 pave stones to make it appear that she has a 4 carat ring on. To me, it's like a girl stuffing her bra...

I can honestly say I have never looked at someone else's ring and thought anything negative of it and I find it odd that you care.

If they are both happy with it good for them.

[KingOfJericho]

Originally Posted by David70

I can honestly say I have never looked at someone else's ring and thought anything negative of it and I find it odd that you care.

If they are both happy with it good for them.

Do I care? Not one bit. Do I think it's a little silly? Sure.

[AWSAWS]

Ah, worthless diamond rings and the peer pressure of life...

[bodega_bladerunner]

Originally Posted by KingOfJericho

I kind of roll my eyes each time I see those rings with a 0.75 stone surrounded by 50 pave stones to make it appear that she has a 4 carat ring on. To me, it's like a girl stuffing her bra...

Men seriously do this? Peep women's rings and roll their eyes?
Wow

[csu87]

Originally Posted by David70

I can honestly say I have never looked at someone else's ring and thought anything negative of it and I find it odd that you care.

If they are both happy with it good for them.

When you drive a V-Dub, you can look down on the peasants

OP, size matters most imo, but you can always upgrade later on. Both the ring and the wife

[KingOfJericho]

Originally Posted by AWSAWS

Ah, worthless diamond rings and the peer pressure of life...

Exactly my point on rolling my eyes.

Originally Posted by greenc51

Men seriously do this? Peep women's rings and roll their eyes?
Wow

We all clicked on a thread about diamond engagement rings so don't pretend to be above this conversation.

The trend has shifted from having a nice, modest solitary stone to putting a zillion flakes of diamond dust around a stone to make it look bigger. I would never roll my eyes at a modest ring but I do think it's a bizarre trend to intentionally try to give the illusion of a larger stone. I'm rolling my eyes at the trend, not the person. It seems to be a direct result of societal pressures.

Originally Posted by csu87

When you drive a V-Dub, you can look down on the peasants

Because this crowd goes really easy on people putting M badges on 325s... it's a similar concept. You're giving one thing the appearance of another.

You also just judged me based on my choice of car so I don't see how you're in a different boat.

[Alfisti]

Big mistake I made, went for a really nice stone but no one gave a fuck, all they see is the size of the stone..

Women cannot tell between SD and HD tv ffs.

[jaye944]

let me put it this way

size

size

OR

SIZE

Originally Posted by kprocivic

So I just bit the bullet and got a decent ring. I wanna know from your experience which do women prefer size or clarity/cut.

[KingOfJericho]

Originally Posted by Alfisti

Big mistake I made, went for a really nice stone but no one gave a fuck, all they see is the size of the stone..

Women cannot tell between SD and HD tv ffs.

Our jeweler gave us a great piece of advice. He said you should never buy a stone to impress only your jeweler. Literally 100% of the rest of the world will not be able to spot minor inclusions in your stone. Size is the most obvious, followed by color to the layperson. A better cut will also give you much more sparkle.

[jaye944]

wife asked, so what the big deal with HD

Originally Posted by Alfisti

Big mistake I made, went for a really nice stone but no one gave a fuck, all they see is the size of the stone..

Women cannot tell between SD and HD tv ffs.

[David70]

Originally Posted by Alfisti

Big mistake I made, went for a really nice stone but no one gave a fuck, all they see is the size of the stone..

Women cannot tell between SD and HD tv ffs.

If you and your wife like it who is the "no one" and why care? Trying to impress the masses with your purchases is a pointless exercise.

I also prefer a nice stone over just a big, poor quality stone but this is a never ending sliding scale of what nice or good is and how much more you want to pay.

[jaye944]

Look the ONLY main thing to do here...

1> buy a ring based on 3 times you paycheck <weekly or monthly>

then go out and buy the biggest MOFO diamond for that price, screw clarity and dat shizzle WOMEN dont care they wanna flaunt a big a$$ ring.

My wife got a really good quality ring from a jeweler I used to know, didn't pay half what I thought, wife took one look at it..........ONE LOOK AT IT

you know that look,................

PLEASE learn from a married dufus like me

its not ALL about the Bass, its all about the size (if you dont have size) better have money

[csu87]

Originally Posted by KingOfJericho

Exactly my point on rolling my eyes.


We all clicked on a thread about diamond engagement rings so don't pretend to be above this conversation.

The trend has shifted from having a nice, modest solitary stone to putting a zillion flakes of diamond dust around a stone to make it look bigger. I would never roll my eyes at a modest ring but I do think it's a bizarre trend to intentionally try to give the illusion of a larger stone. I'm rolling my eyes at the trend, not the person. It seems to be a direct result of societal pressures.

There are the lets put a lot of little diamonds together to make it look like a big diamond, then there are the vintage style rings with a center diamond and accent diamonds around it. Then theres the real diamonds surrounding a fake stone or non diamond stone. The 1st, yes, cheesy. I prefer the look of the 2nd over a solitaire or 3 stone setting, and this is the most popular type in my expert analysis of looking at the women's rings in my office. The 3rd, IDC about unless they try to tell everyone its a diamond. Not everyone can afford a $5k ring and a couple hundred $ ring works great for them.

Because this crowd goes really easy on people putting M badges on 325s... it's a similar concept. You're giving one thing the appearance of another.

You also just judged me based on my choice of car so I don't see how you're in a different boat.

im a peasant so i can judge.

[CanadianGatorBacon]

Back in the 70's my dad bought my mom an engagement ring with a sapphire. He couldn't afford a nice diamond at the time, but said that when he could he would buy her a diamond. My mom didn't care and they've been married since. She eventually got a diamond in the 00's because a sapphire is not as hard as a diamond (although it is the next hardest stone) and it was starting to get chipped.

Point is, she should be happy to marry you no matter the ring. Also, other precious stones are cheaper and kind of in these days. Princess Kate got a sapphire. Maybe consider treating your bride like a princess.

If you really want to go the diamond route, my experience is that letting my wife pick was cheaper than me buying it. She told me she didn't want to wear an expensive ring because it made her nervous. I didn't do a traditional proposal so it was easy to get her to do the shopping after we were engaged. But a buddy of mine proposed with a fake he bought online and then got his fiancee to pick out what she wanted.

[SDH]

Originally Posted by BMW F22

Forgot pix

Excellent choice sir, this looks identical to the one I purchased for my wife.

[csu87]

Originally Posted by CanadianGatorBacon

Point is, she should be happy to marry you no matter the ring. Also, other precious stones are cheaper and kind of in these days. Princess Kate got a sapphire. Maybe consider treating your bride like a princess.

This mudda fukka wins everything.

Wish I had thought of that when i bought my wifes ring.

[Reborn_]

I just proposed last weekend as well. I went for a compromise in all areas, but I'm glad I didn't go larger. The ring looks nearly comically large on her finger (my fiance is small). Neither of us are the gaudy type.

[SDH]

So is the ring pre or post proposal? If post why not just take her out to a few jewellery stores and ask her what type of ring she likes so you have an idea for the styles she likes. But really your looking to see if she's picking out the larger stones

[BayMoWe335]

Ring envy wears off, VERY quickly.

That said, it's a diamond. "Bang for buck" is the dumbest, most overrated aspect of diamond buying. Let me see if I can articulate this.

A diamond is rare. It should be rare. Prices are essentially commoditized. You'll pay a bit of a premium at places like Tiffany, but at the end of the day, it's all in the same ballpark.

I know a lot about diamonds. Cut is the most important thing. I'd rather have a slightly more included less white diamond than a terribly cut VVS1 in an E color.

Again, that said, all aspects are important because the entire purpose of buying a diamond is rarity. If you get a 2 carat K color, SI2 clarity, but "no one can tell" it has inclusions and the color is shit, it's still a shit diamond.

Get the best diamond you can for $20,000 or Whatever you're spending.

There is a reason a 1 carat, VVS1, Ideal Cut, E color diamond is ~$12,000 and a 2 carat, SI2, good cut, J color diamond is $10,000. To me, a bigger diamond is just a show off. If it's a shit stone, who cares?

Let me give you some perspective. A 2 carat, essentially flawless, ideal cut, colorless diamond is around $100,000.

Same size, 10x the price.

Long story short, don't fall for sales guys trying to sell you a bigger rock that is a shit diamond. Diamonds should be essentially colorless, no inclusions, and ideally cut. Anything beyond that, you begin to marginalize the entire concept of a diamond.

If the whole pitch is "you can't tell it sucks," just get a cubic zirconia.

My minimums:

• Ideal cut
• D, E or F color (maybe)
• VVS1 is lowest clarity I'd go
• No less than 1 carat (or what's the point)
• No Florescence
• Excellent symmetry
• No Culet

[SDH]

Originally Posted by BayMoWe335

Ring envy wears off, VERY quickly.

That said, it's a diamond. "Bang for buck" is the dumbest, most overrated aspect of diamond buying. Let me see if I can articulate this.

A diamond is rare. It should be rare. Prices are essentially commoditized. You'll pay a bit of a premium at places like Tiffany, but at the end of the day, it's all in the same ballpark.

I know a lot about diamonds. Cut is the most important thing. I'd rather have a slightly more included less white diamond than a terribly cut VVS1 in an E color.

Again, that said, all aspects are important because the entire purpose of buying a diamond is rarity. If you get a 2 carat K color, SI2 clarity, but "no one can tell" it has inclusions and the color is shit, it's still a shit diamond.

Get the best diamond you can for $20,000 or Whatever you're spending.

There is a reason a 1 carat, VVS1, Ideal Cut, E color diamond is ~$12,000 and a 2 carat, SI2, good cut, J color diamond is $10,000. To me, a bigger diamond is just a show off. If it's a shit stone, who cares?

Let me give you some perspective. A 2 carat, essentially flawless, ideal cut, colorless diamond is around $100,000.

Same size, 10x the price.

Long story short, don't fall for sales guys trying to sell you a bigger rock that is a shit diamond. Diamonds should be essentially colorless, no inclusions, and ideally cut. Anything beyond that, you begin to marginalize the entire concept of a diamond.

If the whole pitch is "you can't tell it sucks," just get a cubic zirconia.

My minimums:

• Ideal cut
• D, E or F color (maybe)
• VVS1 is lowest clarity I'd go
• No less than 1 carat (or what's the point)
• No Florescence
• Excellent symmetry
• No Culet

I agree with you on quality of stone vs. size of stone, just a shame I couldn't afford top spend that sort of money on my better half... $20k