Band Practice: How to Best Select Your Rings

The process of choosing wedding and engagement bands can be a mentally taxing exercise. There are several independent components that can and will influence your choices, so it’s important to carefully consider every ring-related caveat before landing on your chosen piece of jewellery. Such a sentimental selection process requires extensive pre-planning and a guiding hand will always prove helpful – that’s where we come in. We’ve put together a comprehensive overview of the most important factors to consider during the acquisition of the all-important piece of precious metal used for popping the question.

 Assess Your Budget

Understanding your budget is possibly the most important aspect when selecting rings. What your personal finances allow will certainly have the most impact on your train of thought and it’s crucial to select an affordable band before settling on a choice. There are multiple components that will alter a ring’s pricing, including the chosen material, as well as the diamond’s shape and size, which often differentiate down to the millimetre. Whilst this may sound like a miniscule discrepancy, it can have a massive impact on the overall cost of the ring and is a very important consideration to make. As personal finances are exactly that, it can be difficult to find specific budget planners that exclusively tackle ring related budgeting tips, however, there are several generalised planners that can be found online that will aid in making the task much easier.

Material Choices and Stone Shape Selection

Material matters. Picking out the perfect precious metal is the basis behind every elite engagement and wedding ring choice, with each of the available selections sitting at a different price point. Overall, there are a limited number of options available during this stage of the process with Platinum, White Gold, Yellow Gold and Rose Gold holding firm as the standard picks. Each alloy is accompanied by benefits that abet its selection; platinum is renowned for its sleek durability and contemporary charm, Yellow Gold remains steadfast as the classic, ever-versatile option with its cousins White and Rose Gold serving as modern alternatives to offset the more conventional choices. Each metal interacts with your chosen stone in varying ways, encouraging a refined procedure of choice to ensure the corresponding stone sits atop its beautiful base material just right.

Sourcing a sensationally shaped stone should be the next order of business. Diamonds are the leading choice across most jewellers and tend to accompany engagement rings en masse, however, it should be noted that alternative gemstone picks such as dazzling sapphire, the rich tones of emerald and brilliant topaz are popular choices also. The type of stone chosen will of course, impact the price, but it is the particular cut that is the most crucial aspect. Each specific shape holds a certain significance – cushion cuts symbolise comfort, asscher cuts aim to withdraw every drop of brilliance from the stone and the elegant pear cut invokes feelings of sophistication. Much akin to the metal selection process, there are several cuts to choose from and careful deliberation is paramount.

An amalgamation of an amazing base alloy, coupled with a complimentary gemstone choice will be certain to yield fantastic results, so be sure to consult your jeweller when finalising your picks in order to form the perfect combination.

Consider the Particulars

After you’ve selected the perfect combination of gorgeously grafted gemstone and an accompanying underlying metal, it’s time to delve into the particulars. Personal taste is the driving force behind choosing the perfect engagement ring and considering your partner’s personal tastes is paramount before finalising your purchase.

Another aspect that many leave unconsidered is the size and width of your partners finger, with differing bone structures having corresponding ring types that best fit their form. Shorter fingers will benefit from elongated gemstone cuts and wider fingers flourish when sporting bolder shapes, so a careful assessment of your spouse-to-be’s digits will allow for an informed final decision.

Personalisation stems far beyond ring width and diamond shape, however. Options such as personal engravings or matching initials on wedding bands are commonplace but will require pre-planning with your chosen jeweller in order to achieve the desired result.

Familiarising yourself with the key ring band shapes will allow you to select the most comfortable shape, maximising both wearability and visual impact. The four key styles are as follows: D-Shape, Court, Domed Court and Flat Court, all of which provide subtle differences in their form and appearance. Court style, for example, is the classic choice and favours a rounded surface area on both the interior and exterior of the ring, allowing for a supremely comfortable fit. Each style differs in form, seeking to emphasise wearability without sacrificing distinctive design. The width of each band, whether a pair of wedding rings or a lone engagement ring are dependent on the wearer’s preferences, so whether you’re buying a pair or just one piece, ensure to do your due diligence before making a final purchase.

Ensure to Insure

Whether you’ve already tied the knot or are gearing up to do so, keeping those rings firmly on your fingers for the rest of your days is a difficult task, to say the least. With that being said, taking out insurance for your rings is almost certainly a good idea, keeping your most sentimental possessions insured is a fantastic way to keep your peace of mind in the unfortunate event that you lose one (or both).

Insuring your wedding/engagement rings properly can be a challenging task, but it is doable when utilising the correct resources. Certain jewellers offer jewellery insurance as a standard, whereas mainstream insurers such as GoCompare and Aviva suggest filing your rings separately from your general contents/travel insurance options, so to ensure the correct value is assigned to each piece of jewellery in the event they are lost. Although covering individual items may incur additional fees, it’s definitely an intelligent decision in the long term, providing peace of mind and the assurance that any missing rings will assuredly be at the very least, financially accounted for. Be sure to review and update any valuations made on your jewellery regularly, so to best keep on top of their overall worth.

Steps to Success

We understand that all of this information can be incredibly overwhelming, especially during a situation where choosing your jewellery is already proving to be a monumental task. In order to streamline the flow of information, we’ve laid everything out step-by-step:

1. Get Ahead: Customised jewellery takes a significant amount of time to produce, especially in situations where engraving is involved. Stay ahead of the curve and plan to start acquiring your rings well in advance.
2. Budget: Assess your budget – it’s crucial to understand what is within your price range before commissioning each piece of jewellery.
3. Explore Your Options: Consider each metal, ring style, fitting requirements and gemstones carefully before deciding on a ring.
4. Parlay with your Partner: (Not applicable to engagement rings) After you’ve popped the question, decide on the overall style, fit etc with your partner.
5. Consult Your Jeweller: Make the necessary journey to your preferred jeweller and ask for their advice, insurance offers and make the necessary plans to make the final purchasing stages go smoothly.
6. Tie the Knot!

If you’ve found any of this information helpful, we’d love for you to have a look at some of our other planning articles available to read on the website. Happy ring hunting!