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For some reason, I feel like this question is just one you can't ask. Overall budget, sure. DJ, flowers, fine. Ring, uh... Do you feel the same way?
But, I'm super curious anyway! The last poll on Weddingbee for ring price was in 2007 so I think it's time for an update.
I think we are judged by our rings all the time, but it's so hard to determine price with the naked eye or without a gemology report. And the trends seem to favor larger stones, rather than higher quality. Let's check out the reality...
Mine is vintage and cost under $1000. Way under $1000, actually.
With my wedding band, diamond, and setting the total was about 7,000.
Exactly $1,000, including the setting itself, and resizing, and I'm very grateful for it. I didn't expect a ring that much, and actually I get picky with the setting, not the diamond. (The setting was $200 of the overall price.)
It's worth much more, though, that price is at cost about 10 years ago. We have, er, hookups.
Mine is an antique. We had to do a repair to it, so altogether it was $2100. But, now after the repair, it is valued higher for our insurance.
We got my e-ring, my wedding set (long story, but I got an e-ring+ a set) and DH's band for around 1000$).
I did not want a ring with a high setting, in fact, everything needed to be "flush". Also, I tried on many, many rings, but only the very simple ones (and less expensive, yay!) looked nice on me - others looked like aliens on my fingers.
So the most beautiful rings for me also allowed us to put our money where we like it best: in our pockets for a house and travel and other plans.
I don't know exactly but I would bet less than $500. The diamond and band were gifted to him by women in his family so all he had to pay for were two small sapphires and a jeweler to create the setting.
Mine cost $1900. He picked it out himself. We never went and looked at rings, nor did I tell him what I wanted. He just went and did it all himself! I love it to death! It's .5 karat, but looks bigger because the diamond quality is incredible. He went for quality over size, and I couldn't be happier!
I think my ering was $3500, but I'm not sure. I was peaking over my DH's shoulder when he was writing down notes in his notebook. lol
I made my FI tell me because I always misvalue things and I didn't want to think it cost less than it really did, weird huh?
Mine was around $2500 for the set. I only know this because FI had to give me the receipt so I could take it in and get it sized.
I asked him why he didn't spend more (I don't care, was just curious) and he said he thought I'd be mad if he did! I was like, yes, I'm frugal to the point of being cheap sometimes, but this is different!
$927 for my vintage 1920s ring. Many similar rings we saw at antique stores for $2500 - $3500, but we totally lucked out on this one :) We went ring shopping together a few months before he proposed so that I could choose what I liked and he could still suprise me when he actually proposed. It worked!
Edit - - I took down my post - - - I don’t want to feel judged by my ring value and I hope I never am. If we had to pay retail for my rings we simply wouldn’t have been able to afford them, that’s the reality of that! And yes I agree 100% w/ daydreamwanderer - - The important thing isn't the size, financial value or quality of the diamond - the important thing is the love that that ring represents!
I have no idea how much my e-ring was. My dh bought it with his grandfather. I do know that it wasn't purchased through a regular store. I know it's a .47 c colorless with 18k band and platinum prongs and it's certified. I refuse to be told how much he spent. It's none of my business. My wedding ring, an enhancer, was $350, it was on a sale! Dh's ring was $85 for a titanium band but I just upgraded him to a Tungston for $35. (can you belive that? An upgrade in quality and a cheaper price?)
My set was around $800. I have to wear my ring on my right hand so I wanted something smaller but with personality.
I don't know the exact cost either - but like Jackie-O, mine was designed by my FI and made by a wholesaler at a better cost and when we had it appraised for insurance purposes, it was valued at close to $15,000
There are times I feel judged about my ring - I have a good friend who got engaged about a month before me, and her diamond (three stone) is much smaller than mine (half bezel). Another acquaintance of ours got engaged about the same time as me, and her stone (solitaire) is barely bigger than mine - but because of the settings looks larger. First friend (smaller 3 stone ring) is ALWAYS saying how "her ring is so enormous!" and "Can you imagine wanting to wear such a huge diamond?!" and "I can't believe she got such a big ring." and sort of implies that it was a waste of money.
I finally interrupted her and said, "I think her ring is beautiful. And it's not really all that big - it's probably not more than a carat, and it's not really any bigger than mine."
She hasn't said anything since, but since she's not usually a hurtful person, I was surprised to hear it from her in the first place.
My ring cost more than I expected, but my diamond is almost perfect (at the top of all 3 c's [minus carat] - I know because J was so excited when he gave it to me that he whipped out the GIA certification about 2 minutes later, haha... with the value at the bottom). The important thing isn't the size, financial value or quality of the diamond though - the important thing is the love that that ring represents!
I don't have the ring yet...but his grandmother (VERY wealthy) passed to him her diamond from her ring before she passed away. He had it appraised for insurance reasons and was a lot of dollars. It's a little over 3 Carats. We plan to downsize it (I know, crazy right?) But I don't feel comfortable wearing a ring that large, not to mention everyone would just think it was fake. But we're getting a smaller stone, the difference will be applied to the setting and our wedding bands. Anything extra will be applied to our honey moon. I felt bad since it was his grandmother's but he had said that she wanted him to sell it anyway to help pay for his school.
My ering was $2700. My wedding band was about $450, and my husband's wedding band was $38 +50 to repair and resize (because it has a tricky milgrain edge).
My e-ring was $ 1900 and appraised at $6900. It is a .7 carat in the middle and 5 little diamonds on each side. I love it because I know how much care and thought went into it for FI to pick it out.
The poll shows so far what I was thinking would be the average. Btw. I think it is really cool that some of you have had diamonds passed down. I plan to do the same with my ring one day.
I have a 3/4 of a carat center stone on a pave band with 18 smaller diamonds. Its very beautiful and delicate. It was about $4.5-5k. It appraised at $9k for the insurance.
For those of you who have your rings insured and got them appraised...how come it seems that the rings are often appraised for more than what you/your FI bought them for? Is it just that you got a good deal on the ring? Or is it some other reason?
Ok this might be a stupid question but I'm going to ask it anyways.
How do so many bees have rings that were appraised for much more than they paid for them? (I understand in some instances where it was passed down or paid wholesale or something, but if you go to the store and buy it and it's worth more than you pay isn't the store losing money?)
Please don't laugh if the above is stupid :(
Rings are appraised at the price it would cost to replace them, which is not the same as what you actually pay for it. Your ring should ALWAYS be appraised at a higher value than you paid for it. Repairs are sometimes more expensive than total replacements, and you want to make sure that even if prices go up, you can get something similar.
I have no idea how much e-ring was, and I don't want to know. All I know is that he had to save up and was nervous about paying it, meaning it was a big purchase. About the wedding band, we went together for that one, and mine was $400.
Are we talking just the e-ring here? Or e-ring + band? I believe my e-ring was in the 1-3K range.
Mine was $4,600 (including setting and stones) and my wedding band was $500. E-ring is a 3 stone and the stats are fantastic. I know because he gave me the stats within about 5 minutes...he's so proud :)
My ring was $3100 and my wedding bands were $1300 combined so a total of $4400 give or take a bit.
My future hubs and I picked his ring together and it was about $600
@Helstrong:
In my case, my ring would be appraised at about 4x what we paid for it because FBIL's dad gave it to us at what the cost was when he bought it years ago. My diamond had been sitting in the vault of their jewelry store (they have a large inventory) for years. So yes, we got quite lucky!
I would never judge someone on the size or cost of their ring, big or small. I just don't see how it's relevant for someone outside the relationship to judge something like that.
I don't know how much FH paid for it... I just know what the insurance papers say.
@hilsy85- I just read this article in the Wiki section and it kind of helped, didn't even think to look there. http://wiki.weddingbee.com/index.php?title=Jewelry_appraisal&redirect=no
Thanks for the info ErinMarguerite and lilyfaith!!
Results so far: pretty close to a bell curve, which also existed in the 2007 poll but so far the total prices seem to be a bit lower...not surprising considering the differences in the economy.
Here's the link (with an excel spreadsheet of results!):
http://www.weddingbee.com/2007/01/31/engagement-ring-cost-graph/
I know exactly how much my *first* ring cost, as I lost it two months after we got engaged. And had to call my fiance while I was filing the police report, because it asked for the approximate value. Not a phone call you want to make, trust me! Due to the power of insurance, I ended up going with him to obtain my *second* ring, and I know how much it cost, too.
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