When you find the love of your life, a soulmate made just for you, it’s easy to be swayed by the magic of romance. And, whereas your love for one another transcends the material things in life, it certainly doesn’t hurt to splurge on a few shiny symbols representing your bond or the upcoming union between you. One such example is an engagement ring.

While for boomers, the entire process of choosing an engagement ring was just asking themselves questions such as “what color?” and “what style?”, shopping for a ring today is ten times the work. With fashion trends changing significantly and customers becoming more environmentally aware, the general market trends continue to shift drastically.

So, how can one choose a special ring just right for their significant other?

Get Your Partner’s Engagement Ring Style Right!

The engagement ring is an essential part of a proposal for most people.

Ask them

As silly as this sounds, asking your partner point-blank what kind of style they’d like saves you a lot of time, second-guessing, confusion and evasion. Of course, this takes away the element of surprise from the entire endeavor, but it certainly saves you hours of uncertainty.

Go ring shopping together

If your partner is not into surprises or you both simply don’t want the pressure that comes with a surprise engagement, then the next best thing to do is go engagement ring shopping together. Not only does this allow you to spend more time together, but it also means that you can get a one-of-a-kind ring that’s just the perfect fit for your significant other.

Ask their friends and family

If you don’t already have clues to your partner’s dream engagement ring, enlist the help of their family and friends. They may understand your partner’s style better, or even have a link to their Pinterest ring board! In addition, making friends and family a part of the engagement itself could also make a wonderful surprise.

Consider their lifestyle

One oversight when shopping for engagement rings is that people forget that the design must suit their partner’s lifestyle and their work. For instance, if they are in the medical field and wear gloves, go for something dainty that doesn’t snag the gloves.

Drop some subtle hints

If you’re planning a surprise, start dropping hints such as, “Did you look at JLo’s new wedding ring? It’s huge!” What they say about the style will give you a fair idea of their preference of certain engagement ring designs.

Get a custom-made ring

If you’re both suckers for thoughtful gestures, consider designing your partner’s engagement ring from scratch. Sunny Eden offers the possibility of creating a unique diamond engagement ring from hair. This process takes around four months for a one-carat diamond, so be sure to plan months ahead if you would like to take this route.

The History and Meaning of Infinity Engagement Rings

Math classes have taught us that the infinity symbol (a horizontal 8) represents the concept of eternity. As a result, infinity engagement rings are often mistaken for eternity rings and vice versa. Although the intent for both ring styles is the same — to express undying/unending love — they are very different design-wise.

In ancient Greek, philosophers originally called the infinity symbol ‘lemniscate,’ to mean ‘ribbon.’ However, the English mathematician John Wallis officially named the symbol in 1655 to represent a never-ending phenomenon. Today, the adaptation of the symbol has evolved to encompass eternal love and devotion, endlessness and regeneration.

The infinity engagement ring, as the name suggests, involves the horizontal infinite. In contrast, the eternal engagement ring does not necessarily have the infinite symbol but instead is characterized by the entire band being studded with stones. Structurally, infinite rings allow more design creativity because you can combine their shapes with other designs, stack them, get matching sets, choose to embed their bands or leave them as is.

The average cost of an infinity engagement ring

On average, an infinity engagement ring costs somewhere around $7,000. This isn’t to say that you cannot find something that costs more or less than this.

The following are the factors that influence the final custom-made diamond ring cost.

The diamond 4Cs

The cut, color, clarity, and carat weight of a diamond have the biggest impact on its final cost. The higher the color and clarity grades, the purer and clearer the diamond is; the higher the carat weight, the heavier it is; and the more symmetrical and proportionate the cut, the more the diamond sparkles. Make sure to research independently how all 4 aspects interact with each other before making your big purchase.

As a general rule, the less color a diamond contains, the more expensive it will be.

The design

Which metal are you going for? Gold and platinum engagement ring settings are more expensive than sterling silver.

What type of band? Stacked bands cost more than single bands.

And how about the design of the gemstone? Do you want a centerpiece diamond, pavé set diamonds, or both?

These will all factor into the final price of your engagement ring.

The sourcing

Engagement rings with naturally sourced diamonds tend to be more expensive compared to man-made diamonds, more so if the natural diamonds are imported. However, more and more people are opting for lab-grown diamonds due to human rights violations and environmental degradation claims in sourcing natural diamonds.

The location

The location of the store determines the popularity, the demand, and, therefore, the cost. Posh or high-end neighborhoods, on average, tend to have more expensive jewelry than your average, around-the-corner store. Therefore, it is essential to do your research on the place and look at customer reviews before buying the engagement ring.

Customization

With more couples opting to get tailor-made engagement rings these days, it is no surprise that the cost of customization has reduced significantly. However, a store-bought engagement ring will always be cheaper than a custom-made one.

With the wedding industry being worth billions of dollars, it’s easy for the bride and groom to fall for elaborate marketing schemes. What matters most is selecting a ring that represents your bondage with your loved one and is within your budget. No matter what billboards and advertisements want you to believe, you really cannot put a price tag on love.

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