How much for an engagement ring?

[speedycoche1]

Spoken like a true engineer.
Not for anything I recall that when I was "shopping" for a ring about two decades ago, a "perfect" 1-carat (not overly huge) stone was going for ~$11,000. So (to me anyway) pricey doesn't necessarily mean big. Conversely, you could buy a 5-carat diamond for ~$3000 that was essentially yellow with black inclusions visible to the naked eye.

Well, when I was looking, all of the rings in the size I was looking at were significantly less than that price range. The rings they showed me that approached and/or exceeded the price range I "should" have been in just didn't do anything for me, and it wasn't necessarily just about the size of the rock either. I knew that she would want something fairly simple and plain, and not something with alot of different stones/filled with diamond chips/etc... Like I said, I found a high quality, clarity, and color stone in the size I liked and put it in the band I liked and bought it...

 

[Santiagj]

When I got married last year I gave my future wife two options. A house or an engagement ring. She went with the house which is good. I think expensive engagement rings are rediculous. The only purpose of having a huge engagement ring is to flaunt your wealth. We later endulged a bit on a wedding bands by going with platinum. The platinum bands were not that expensive, 2200 for both of them. Mine being the more expensive one because of my fat fingers. Plus they have a neat look to them.

 

[Supe]

CZ or lab diamonds. They'll never know the difference unless they try to hock it, at which point you're probably divorcing the ***** anyways!

 

[RIP - VTEnviro]

^ It's so good to see that romance is still alive!

 

[Supe]

^ It's so good to see that romance is still alive!

Hey, I'm romantic! I put big red bows on my boxes of condoms!

 

[RIP - VTEnviro]

^ Not that I should be one to talk. Today is my 2 year anniversary, and my wife is spending the evening with a 50 year old man taking the spine and vital organs out of a pig. :true: If I'm lucky, she'll catch the train that gets her home at 11:45. At which point I will be awoken by a kick to the ribs from the dog as he hops out of the bed to greet her.

:hung-037:

 

[Supe]

^ Not that I should be one to talk. Today is my 2 year anniversary, and my wife is spending the evening with a 50 year old man taking the spine and vital organs out of a pig. :true: If I'm lucky, she'll catch the train that gets her home at 11:45. At which point I will be awoken by a kick to the ribs from the dog as he hops out of the bed to greet her.
:hung-037:

Be sure to light some candles before getting kicked by the dog. For ambiance.

 

[squishles10]

my hubby got my e-ring from india so he got one hell of a deal. i think they paid around $7000 for it but it appraised here for a lot more. i dont trust the whole appraisal stuff though so i dont know what it would actually cost here.

 

[RIP - VTEnviro]

^ You sure he didn't mean 7,000 Rupees? Which goes for a whooping $144 here in the US.

 

[snickerd3]

my hubby got my e-ring from india so he got one hell of a deal. i think they paid around $7000 for it but it appraised here for a lot more. i dont trust the whole appraisal stuff though so i dont know what it would actually cost here.

so how was the indian wedding? did you get your elephant?

 

[Ble_PE]

I don't remember the exact amount that I spent on my wife's engagement ring, but I think it was around $1500. Luckily she didn't want a big rock and doesn't really like jewerly at all, so I didn't feel like I needed to spend a fortune for the ring. Our wedding bands are titanium and cost $50 bucks a piece, so I'm not complaining at all about them.

 

[MGX]

^ It's so good to see that romance is still alive!

"Romance without finance is a nuisance!" - Dolomite

I'm tempted by the lab-grown diamonds, but my girl is an accomplished rock hound and claims she can detect synthetic rocks. I'm scared to call her bluff because I'm so clueless (I don't wear or like jewelery)!

Has anyone bought a blood diamond? I was wondering if I could buy an extra bloody diamond, one that several people have died for, that'd be a real value (value ascertained from several deaths must mean its worth a few souls).

 

[RockyMtnHigh]

Hubby spent about $100 per ring, they are tungsten steel, no rock. We were originally going for titanium, but got the whole "cut your finger off since the metal is so strong it can't be sawed off after a bad accident" schpeel.

We're both rock climbers so we often remove our rings to avoid the heinous de-gloving that can occur. We saved on the rings and blew the money on the live band, booze, wedding food and honeymoon.

 

[Fluvial]

My wedding ring is a blue sapphire set in a silver band with diamond chips in it. It doesn't look like a conventional "wedding ring" set. It looks kind of like this one or this one. Sapphire is hubby's birthstone and blue is my favorite color. We looked for a flush setting 'cause I hate catching a ring on stuff.

The ring cost $650.00 in 2003. That wasn't even half a month's salary for hubby. I'm of a practical mindset and didn't want to spend much on a ring. Hubby's is a plain silver band.

As far as guys wearing the band, he likes to wear his, but it's not so thick that it bothers him. He will take it off if he's welding or doing heavy mechanic work.

That being said, this is such an individual choice that there's no real way to say "what's appropriate?". Each couple and situation are different, and people should choose based upon what they want out of a ring, not what the jeweler or their friends or whomever says about it. If you want to spend $20 k on a set, go ahead, do it and enjoy your jewelry.

 

[CivE Bricky]

I think what's been overlooked here is that those rings can be worn every day for a lifetime.

They should be something she likes and will enjoy and fit in with the couple's priorities and overall financial situation.

If I remember right, my rings were about 1400 = 700 center stone and two 350ish diamond bands (one for engagement and one for wedding) designed to nest together. The setting was lowered so it stuck out less (my preference). I've worn those rings nearly every day for nearly 16 years with the exception of swollen fingers pregnancies. I liked the idea of colored stones, but learned they wouldn't take the same punishment diamonds do. If I were getting engaged today, I'd be interested in manufactured diamonds.

 

[jonstone]

Under 500, wait 10 years to make sure it works out then splurge,lol.

 

[Sschell]

^ :appl:

well done!

 

[Supe]

Since it was mentioned, what's everyone's take on manufactured diamonds?

Nearly indistinguishable from the non-synthetics, and a huge rock for the ladies to show off at a fraction of the cost. Personally, I like the idea, and being a huge dork, would prefer a manufactured one just because of the science involved behind growing them.

 

[Sschell]

^ I totally agree... just don't tell her!

 

[Ble_PE]

Since it was mentioned, what's everyone's take on manufactured diamonds?
Nearly indistinguishable from the non-synthetics, and a huge rock for the ladies to show off at a fraction of the cost. Personally, I like the idea, and being a huge dork, would prefer a manufactured one just because of the science involved behind growing them.

So, you starting to plan on what to buy MIAF?