Ten Tips on Shopping for an Engagement Ring

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Once in a while during the past (almost) four years of marriage, my husband would tell me bits and pieces of how he planned for his proposal. He proposed to me on July 2010, but he told me that he already had one of the two rings as early as February. He bought the second one at the last minute. Out of all these conversations, I came up with ten tips that will probably help the guys out there who are planning to propose soon!


1. Set your budget.

You would undeniably want to splurge on an engagement ring, but you have to realize that this is just the beginning of a life-long battle with your finances. You need to pay for a wedding, and then prepare financially for your married life. So the first thing that you need to do is to set your maximum budget and stick to it. Make sure that it’s not too high to make you drain your bank account yet not too low because the last thing you would want is for your wife-to-be to feel that you didn’t invest for her engagement ring.


2. Be patient.

Choosing an engagement ring will not be an easy task. You will probably spend weeks scouting for the perfect design and looking for the best supplier so your best weapon is tons of patience. It will get tedious. It will probably stress you out. But just bear in mind that you already had the hardest part out of the way which is finding the girl you want to spend the rest of your life with. Therefore, choosing for an engagement ring will just be a piece of cake. =)


3. Make sure it fits her personality.

Odds are you at least have an idea of her taste. Is she the traditional or the quirky type? Unless she says NO, she’ll definitely be stuck with the ring for the rest of her life so make sure that she and the ring becomes ONE, too.


4. Be sneaky.

You won’t want to ruin the surprise so get those sneaky moves on. Throw out some “out of the blue” comments when you see a piece of jewelry to give you an idea of what she feels about it. Pay extra attention when you hold her hand in case you don’t know what her ring size is. Conspire with her best friend who might know her dream engagement ring. (Make sure that her best friend can keep a secret!)


5. Get help.

Talk to other married guys or those who were just recently engaged. You may also seek the help of people who know a lot about jewelry. You might learn a trick or two from things like where to get the best deals or how to choose for the perfect cut.


6. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a diamond.

There are a lot of fishes in the ocean, and so are stones in planet Earth. Don’t limit yourself with the traditional diamond ring. If she’s quirky, try to experiment on other stones. I’ve seen engagement rings with sapphires and emeralds, and they look so amazing!


7. Research, research, research!

Life is surely easier in this day and age where everything you need can be found in the internet. Before you go gaga on jewelry store-hopping, equip your mind with the basic knowledge in buying an engagement ring. Know the different styles. Get acquainted with the different cuts. I know that rings may just look all the same for most men, but each has a characteristic that’s different from the others. Look at it like the shades of pink. Baby pink, hot pink, fuchsia and carnation pink may look the same in your eyes, but they’re not. Good thing that there are sites that can help you get a glimpse of the different kinds of engagement rings. One of which is anjolee.com! From round cuts to princess cuts, the classic ones to the vintage types. I grabbed some of the styles from their website!










9. Know the 4 C’s.

Anjolee also aims to educate their clients with the ins and outs of shopping for rings. I stumbled upon this tip as I was looking at their rings. And apparently, there are 4 C’s to consider in buying for a ring.

“… the Four C’s of Diamonds. These are the four universally accepted characteristics by which diamonds are graded. The combination of a diamond’s attributes; cut, color, clarity and carat weight, affect the value of a diamond.”

The site has a separate section detailing these 4 C’s so it’s best to check it out if you’re still on the lookout for the perfect engagement ring.


10. Buy from trusted jewelers.

You don’t want to throw away all those hours you spent researching and all your hard-earned money just to end up with a ring that costs more than its real value. You also don’t want to settle with the cheapest jeweler because you might end up compromising quality. =)