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Engagement rings in Canada (more specifically, Edmonton)
vsove
....also yes.Registered User regular
....also yes.Registered User regular
So I've been with this girl for a year and a half. And, frankly, about two months in I knew this was it. The big one. The relationship where you end up with someone who is, in pretty much every way, the person that it is a Good Idea (TM) to be with for the long term. Now, I waited - I wanted to make sure that this wasn't just my 'finally in a healthy relationship' blinders, and to see if we were, in fact, that compatible. Fourteen months later, I have to say that I'm convinced. Someone who'll take me out of my comfort zone and make sure I have a blast, and then the next night sit at home, eating popcorn and watching Supernatural? Heck yes.
Ahem. Anyways.
I've decided to pop the question, and am starting to look for a suitable engagement ring. Now, I know what she likes - there are particular shapes of diamonds she's a fan of, and as for settings she likes simple and slim (she's a slender girl and would look odd with a large band on her finger). She wants to travel and has told me not to follow the 'two months salary' rule for the ring, as she'd rather we spend the money going on a nice trip or buying something we both need.
Now, I know she'd be happy with something in the .5 carat range, but I'm thinking I'm going to aim a little higher. Regardless, I'm not looking to spend 6,000+ on a ring as some people have suggested. With all that in mind, I've started looking online and in-store. A suggestion was made that the best course of action would be to buy a diamond through Bluenile or similar, and then buy a setting at a local jeweler.
With all that in mind, I need help. I've never even considered shopping for engagement rings before, so this is virgin territory for me. I'm wondering if any of you wonderful folks have any experience with online shopping, or, just as (or even more) helpful, in-store in Edmonton. Places to avoid, places to look at, etc. I've already read up extensively on the four Cs of diamonds, but I'm still a little clueless as to where to go and how to go about this whole procedure. Any thoughts, wonderful H&A forum people?
Ahem. Anyways.
I've decided to pop the question, and am starting to look for a suitable engagement ring. Now, I know what she likes - there are particular shapes of diamonds she's a fan of, and as for settings she likes simple and slim (she's a slender girl and would look odd with a large band on her finger). She wants to travel and has told me not to follow the 'two months salary' rule for the ring, as she'd rather we spend the money going on a nice trip or buying something we both need.
Now, I know she'd be happy with something in the .5 carat range, but I'm thinking I'm going to aim a little higher. Regardless, I'm not looking to spend 6,000+ on a ring as some people have suggested. With all that in mind, I've started looking online and in-store. A suggestion was made that the best course of action would be to buy a diamond through Bluenile or similar, and then buy a setting at a local jeweler.
With all that in mind, I need help. I've never even considered shopping for engagement rings before, so this is virgin territory for me. I'm wondering if any of you wonderful folks have any experience with online shopping, or, just as (or even more) helpful, in-store in Edmonton. Places to avoid, places to look at, etc. I've already read up extensively on the four Cs of diamonds, but I'm still a little clueless as to where to go and how to go about this whole procedure. Any thoughts, wonderful H&A forum people?
WATCH THIS SPACE.
vsove on
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Blue Nile is pretty damn awesome.
I've heard some complaints about settings from Blue Nile being a bit problematic - the gem not being completely set, that sort of thing. Now, to be perfectly fair - most of the complaints along those lines that I've read have been from a while back, and from the lack of more recent complaints I'm thinking that perhaps that may no longer be a problem.
Otherwise, I've certainly looked at the settings on BlueNile, and for a reasonable outlay of money I can get pretty much exactly what I'm looking for. So it's certainly something I'm considering.
I went with this setting with a princess cut, so I don't know if those are more stable easy to set though. (it came out beautiful)
If you do decide to go locally, you may want to make sure they can set it in front of you. I have heard stories of jewelers swapping out diamonds.
http://www.diamondinfo.org/content/canadian-diamonds.php
Seems like blue nile sells canadian:
http://www.bluenile.com/canadian-diamonds?gclid=COrY_I6G2agCFUMUKgodYmwIDQ&rf=pd
You could also look at antique jewelry stores. You can find some great stones for much cheaper. The only thing to make sure of is the ability to return so you can get it looked at by someone who will be able to tell you that its a diamond/and its quality.
I was like you in that I knew nothing about these rings. I did a ton of reading. Blue Nile has great information for people who have no idea, as does Brilliant Earth.
Just do a lot of reading, I would suggest. Keep your budget in mind and that'll make things easier.
Spence is a good spot to look for what you / she likes but I would not buy there again.
Spence is a sales front, they actually don't have anything in stock / made at the store. They have thousands of rings on display, and then they ship your diamond to Vancouver, ring gets cast and mounted there and shipped back. I ordered our ring there and we had an issue with it and tried to return it. We only had it for about a week or so but since we ORDERED it over 30 days ago, they wouldn't take it back.
If you want something custom or something special, I recommend David Keeling Jewellery. It's not as expensive as you think and it gets you EXACTLY what you want. He ended up casting 3 rings for us to get it just right with no additional cost.
Also, make sure you talk about marriage before you pop the question.
I really should dig up my old posts about rings, but keep in mind there's more than just the 4 Cs.
1/2 Caret is a good size, take a look at the off-sizes too like .65, .58, etc.
Pricescope is like the AVS Forums for diamonds, but (usually) less douche. Their on-line estimator is pretty cool - only works with Round, though.
At this point, we've discussed marriage to a not-insignificant extent. It's certainly something where we both know where we stand on the issue. That part, I'm not too worried about. Honestly, the biggest thing by now is just knowing where and what I'm going to be buying. And we've looked at a couple of rings online (we put one together on bluenile that she really liked), so I have an idea what she likes. I think I'll need to figure out her ring size surreptitiously, though - that's the other part I'm not sure about. Though I've got an idea on that count.
Getting engaged after a year and a half isn't a big deal. I got engaged after a year and a half, but we'd known each other for 3 years and had dated on-and-off for a year before we were official.
For many people it's a LOT less than a year and a half. Don't forget that there's always an engagement period before you get married. I was engaged for a year and it was a great idea.
She -had- a ring that she wore a lot, but lost it when we moved in together.
She's in Italy for two more weeks, and I'll be home Friday so I have about a week to be sneaky. I'm going to talk to her parents and, specifically, her dad about this and see if they know her ring size.
http://www.canadian-diamonds-wholesale.com/
The best advice I can give is get her to go with you and have her help you pick the ring out. She has to wear it and their staff are great at matching a ring to a person style wise. As well, they tend to be very affordable and have extended guarantees, etc.
Unless she has specified that she wants a specific, different stone he should stick to diamond. You don't go nontraditional on a whim. Women who prefer other stones tend to speak up about it.
I would caution against asking her friends or family what they think she would like. Unless you think she has told them what she wants, they're going to tell you what they think she wants which could be completely off the mark. I tend to throw my hat in with the 'take her shopping with you' crowd.
Also, congrats Vsove! I remember you posting about wanting to propose before, I'm glad you decided to take the plunge.
I did not think of this when i bought my wife her ring, and i picked one out that had a lot of architectural work on the sides of the band as well as some diamonds and it was a real pain to find a wedding ring that would sit flush against it, and much of the detail is hidden.
Something to consider.
I suggested one of the bridesmaids, but got slapped.
Whenever someone says something like this I wonder whether they actually know where the tradition comes from.
That said, talk it over with her. Find out how she feels about stones other than diamonds.
I make it a point to at some point in the first couple months of dating someone, to talk about how opposed I am to buy diamonds and will under no circumstance ever buy a new one.
But this is getting way off topic and getting into D&D territory. OP, I recommend looking for heirloom diamonds if a diamond you must buy. You can also ere on the side of a larger ring to be safe. Its easier to remove material than to add.
You think so? Fair enough.
As noted, this is outside the scope of the thread, though