How to Choose a Wedding Ring

The ring is still perhaps the single most important purchase for your wedding – or purchases as most couples now select rings for the bridge AND groom.  Getting the decision right is essential, so here are some helpful tips when choosing the perfect wedding rings.

1 – Choose you style

Bling or understated? Fat or thin? Classic or modern? There are plenty of styles to choose from so decide in advance what style suits you: don’t go with trends, go with your heart as you will be wearing the ring for the rest of your life so it needs to be a style that you will be happy to look at for the many years to come. Don’t let friends, family, partner or salesman make the decision for you: listen to their advice and experience, but ultimately the decision must be yours.

2 – Choose your metal

The choice of metal for the bride’s wedding band is often – but not always – dictated by her engagement ring. The groom’s ring will often follow suit too. However, if the bride and groom have different preferences there is nothing to stop the groom opting for gold while the bride goes for platinum. In any case, here are the most popular options:

• Yellow gold is the traditional choice. 24k is the purest but the softest variety so is not generally used for wedding bands. 14k and 18k gold are less pure but harder and make a durable wedding ring.
• White gold will complement any silver or platinum jewellery. However, a white gold wedding ring is often plated with rhodium to enhance its appearance, and this plating is likely to wear off with time.
• Platinum is another popular choice as is highly resistant to damage as well as looking great. It’s much rarer than gold and is therefore more expensive but will last a lifetime.
• Titanium is a more modern choice. It is extremely durable and can be carved without losing its strength.

3 – Shape

There are many different shapes to rings to select from and the main terms are as follows:

• Flat Cross Sectioned – a sharp edged profile for a modern sleek look
• Flat with Softened Edges– a slightly softer looking profile than the flat cross sectioned version
• D Shaped– a ring profile with a rounded outside and a flat inside
• Court Cross Sectioned – slightly curved both on the outside and the inside of the ring and designed as the most comfortable to wear
  

Ask your jeweller to show you rings of different shapes and profiles – you’ll need to perfectly comfortable when wearing the ring.

4 – Diamonds and Gemstones

Couples often favour jewel-set wedding rings. If you like this idea you should consider the harder stones (such as diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, topaz) as time takes its toll on softer varieties. Diamond-set wedding ringsare the most popular option.

5 – Engraving

It’s increasingly popular for the date and other messages to be engraved inside the wedding bands. If this is the overriding concern, tell you jeweller at the beginning – they will then only show you rings which can be engraved. Supply your message as clearly as possible and in plenty of time.

6 – Budget

Saving the hardest decision till last – you need to set a budget and STICK TO IT. You’ll be faced with hundreds of beautiful wedding rings ranging in price from a few hundred £ to £000s so you’ll need to be strong. There are some beautiful low cost and cheap wedding rings which any bride and groom will be proud to wear for the rest of their married lives.