Post # 1
Member
938 posts
Busy bee
SO and I went out to look at engagement rings for the first time today. We only really stopped and looked at 2 stores. I did figure out what carat size in solitaires I like, and wrote down a ton of item numbers, but I’d like to go in later and get pictures of some of my favorite rings on my finger. I’d also like to check out a couple of the smaller, family owned places that might have a more unique selection.
I’m just curious about other bees experiences. Did you go once, twice, a dozen times to look at rings? Always with your SO, or did any of you bring a best friend or mom for a girl’s opinion? Anything you’d like to share? I want to hear all about the ring search!
Post # 3
Member
586 posts
Busy bee
I was not involved in shopping for my ring at all 🙂
Post # 4
Member
3525 posts
Sugar bee
I never actually went to a store! But I searched online for months and months until I finally found one that I really loved. There wasn’t a long list of things I wanted, so I’m really surprised it was so hard to find.
Post # 5
Member
938 posts
Busy bee
@JLR1982: I have to be involved. I’m very picky about jewelry, especially something I will hopefully wear for the rest of my life! But I’m going to give him a choice of rings to choose from and that way I can be surprised.
@mepayne: I have several rings online that I LOVE but I’m so scared of buying a ring before I can try it on. I have tiny hands so I have to be careful about the size of ring I get (a fact that was just proven today!).
Post # 6
Member
663 posts
Busy bee
We went on one trip and it just so happens that I found the ring I wanted that time. We didn’t buy it that day, though. We waited about three weeks to actually purchase, to make sure we were sure.
Our specific journey: We went to a mall outside of Pittsburgh called King of Prussia that has, basically, everything. We started at Tiffany & Co. because I said “I want a 1 carat Tiffany solitaire.” I tried it on and wasn’t impressed. We moved on. Although we knew we couldn’t afford it we hit Cartier. I decided I LOVED their solitaire (1889, I think) setting. We weren’t spending $17,000 on a ring, though, so we thanked the nice man and left. Then we went to Baily Banks & Biddle, where I told the lady that I wanted a solitaire that wasn’t boring. She didn’t realize that when I said solitaire I meant “one diamond” not “lots of tiny diamonds encrusted on the setting.” No go. On our way out of the mall we stopped through just one more store: David Yurman. We were unfamiliar with the brand, but it looked like a fancy jeweller, so we went in. I tried on the one solitaire that fit my requirements, and voilá! I’d found my ring. Solitaire, but not boring!
Post # 7
Member
2590 posts
Sugar bee
Post # 8
Member
1184 posts
Bumble bee
@ForeverBirds: SO and I shopped together most of the time. We started looking in December (2011) in NYC (at Tiffany’s lol) and he ended up buying the original e-ring in February (2012). In that span of time, we went to about 20 different stores and I had tried on a bazillion rings, and was starting to worry I’d never find something I would like. I knew what I sort of liked, I knew what I did not like, but I hadn’t found the perfect ring yet…until we found the original e-ring.
Fast forward 14 months later, after a debacle with the original e-ring left me ring-less….we went to a big local jewelry store, I tried on rings, and we found the new e-ring in less than 30 minutes. At that point, I just *knew* what I liked and what I did not like. I’m a person who HAS to see the ring on my hand to figure out if I like it or not…. my new e-ring is not similar to my old one at all, but I love it just the same! It took a LOT of trying on of other rings for me to narrow down in my head what I liked and what didn’t work for me. Don’t give up, you’ll find it!! For me, when I kept putting the ring BACK ON and staring at it every chance I got…was the ultimate sign that it was The One for me.
Post # 9
Member
6317 posts
Bee Keeper
@ForeverBirds: I’ve always dreamed about my e-ring the same way some girls dream about their weddings so I am quite familiar with the various websites such as Blue Nile. I learned all about the 4Cs and other factors such as fluorescence.
Long story short I thought I wanted a round solitaire until I actually tried one on and was underwhelmed. A beautiful yellow diamond caught my eye at Tiffany’s one day and that is the ring I hope we get.
I’ve been to various high end stores (Tiffany’s, Birks etc.) with my SO and by myself. There are soo many gorgeous rings out there that I’d love to have, but I can’t stop thinking about the yellow diamond.
Post # 10
Member
9168 posts
Buzzing Beekeeper
I knew pretty much what I wanted since I have always wanted a cushion halo with a round diamond We went shopping at 1 local store and probably visited a half dozen times to look at settings and diamonds before purchasing. I picked out my setting on day 1 but took me a while to commit to it!
He and I only went together – never went with friends or alone or anything. It was such a fun process to go through with him!
Post # 11
Member
434 posts
Helper bee
I did tons of research about diamonds, e-rings etc. It seems that I know as much as a professional jeweler now..LOL
So after 4 months of detailed research I told my fiance, that it should be set in the yellow gold (cause I like yellow gold jewelry more)..I told him how big my center stone should be…what are the clarity and color minimums..I sent him images of the settings I like, size of my finger..etc. After all that he chose the diamond, setting and ordered it himself..but due to my detailed requests I got exaactly what I wanted. :))))))))))))
Post # 12
Member
938 posts
Busy bee
@PeachSnapple: Now I don’t feel crazy for wanting to go looking 4 or 5 times lol.
@canarydiamond: “There are soo many gorgeous rings out there that I’d love to have, but I can’t stop thinking about the yellow diamond” That’s how I feel about one specific, tulip-set moissy I saw online. I really hope that’s the one I end up with , but in the end, I’m going to let him choose.
@MrsWBS: My SO is really ambivalent about the ring. He wants me to pick what I like, which I get, but he has no opinions whatsoever. Which is why I think I’m gonna bring along my best friend next time. At least she’ll give me some honest feedback.
Post # 13
Member
1354 posts
Bumble bee
Oh gosh. Where to begin. Well I’d seen tons of rings in magazines that I liked, we often trolled Zales and other, random shops. We went by jewelry stands at faires. I looked online. A lot. Like, all the time. I liked one ring, then another, then another and so on. I kept falling in love with ring after ring. We had almost settled on one until I really researched the quality and it was not up to snuff. So we searched some more. And more! We almost settled on a Moissanite, but I didn’t like the yellow and was deluding myself that I didn’t see it until it became crunch time. Gave up on it.
Got so disenheartrned that I wrote up a rant about ring hunting here on the ‘Bee and immediately girls jumped on board to help me find something. Many links later, someone pointed me in the direction of this one particular site and I fell in love completely. He ordered it, proposed, and when the ring arrived… The real life color was all wrong.
So he sent it back in exchange for a new color. It arrived, and it was PERFECT.
The End.
Post # 14
Member
73 posts
Worker bee
SO wanted us to pick it out together because he knows how picky I am, haha. But we looked at stores and online for about 6 months before deciding. I chose like 8 different styles before we both fel in love with one. Kinda glad that over but I do love looking at rings;) I’m glad he put up with it for so long though!
Post # 15
Member
36 posts
Newbee
Since I knew that I wanted a more ethical ring (conflict-free diamonds or non-diamond, recycled gold, etc), I knew I would be ordering one online since there aren’t any jewellers local to me who offer them, but we went to various jewellery stores to get an idea of what style I liked.
We went to 2 or 3 stores and I tried on various solitaires and three-stone rings which I thought were very pretty, but didn’t feel right at all on my finger. I found all of them much too fussy for me! I would have loved a non-diamond ring, but SO insisted on diamonds so I ended up choosing a beautiful white gold & engraved antique-style half eternity wedding band for my engagement ring from Brilliant Earth. I spent a couple of nights looking for various engagement ring settings at various online stores, but again felt like none were me, and as soon as I considered “wedding” bands I felt more comfortable and chose the ring very quickly!
I suppose I would have liked my mum’s or sister’s opinions, but my SO wouldn’t let me tell anyone!