If you’re finally ready to pop the big question and start the journey to a blissful future with your partner but don’t know what to buy or how much to spend on a ring, you are in the right place. Below are a few tips and tricks to help you stick to your budget without compromising on the quality of your engagement ring.
Re-Think Your Jewelry Choices
Natural diamonds are overly expensive and not necessary. Instead, save money by choosing a lab-grown stone, which offers the same color, sparkle, and durability as natural diamonds. In addition, lab-grown diamonds are cheaper (20-60%) due to the efficient and cost-effective production process in a controlled environment. Consequently, replacing a lab-grown stone ring if it ever gets lost or stolen will be much easier and stress-free than an actual diamond ring.
Do Your Due Diligence
Before buying an engagement ring, it’s essential to research and compare prices of similar diamonds online. This helps you avoid paying over the top for a ring you could get at a lower price elsewhere. Knowing the correct ring size before purchasing can also save money as it eliminates the need for re-sizing later. If you can’t figure out a way to get your partner’s finger size, don’t hesitate to ask them.
Be Flexible With the Carat Weight
Full-carat diamonds are generally expensive and harder to find. As such, if your ideal ring is over your budget, try looking for the same design with a lower-carat weight. Decreasing the carat weight slightly can result in significant savings, as the difference in appearance is minimal and barely noticeable to the naked eye. Furthermore, your partner may not even notice that you’ve downgraded the carat weight!
Embrace Diamond Imperfections to Save Money
When shopping for an engagement ring, it is easy to get fixated on finding the perfect diamond with high clarity and no visible inclusions. However, diamonds with high clarity grades (IF to VS2) are much more expensive than their counterparts, the “slightly included” grades of SI1 and SI2. Instead of focusing solely on clarity, consider embracing flaws and going higher on color grade and lower on clarity grade. A popular combination is a nearly colorless G-color diamond with slight inclusions. This way, you can save money without sacrificing the ring’s overall appearance.
Notably, do not go lower than Sl2 on the clarity scale, no matter the temptation. Low-grade diamonds look cheap and are less durable than the higher grades.
Don’t Complicate Things
Generally, the simpler your ring is, the cheaper it will be. For instance, a ring dripping in diamonds may be much more expensive than a simple, plain metal ring. On the other hand, if you fancy a diamond shine, you will make more significant savings if you only put the diamonds in the center. Alternatively, consider having the ring set in 14k gold. This is one of the more affordable ring options and is readily available even in smaller jewelry stores. By keeping the setting simple, you can focus on the center stone and use the savings to buy a larger or better quality diamond.
Consider Halo Engagement Rings
Solitaire diamonds weighing one carat or above are some of the most popular diamond stones, and as you would expect, they are costly. If you want a certain-carat ring, you can be sneaky, have the more precious stone in the center, and surround it with a halo of smaller, cheaper stones. The halo diamonds complement the center stone and add some classy sparkle. The difference between the two types is not easily noticeable, so you get your ideal look without breaking the bank. As you will find out when you look around, the difference in price between a single diamond solitaire and a halo diamond can be more than several hundred dollars.
In Summary
Lab-grown diamonds are cheaper than natural diamonds and are identical in appearance, making them an excellent option for those looking to save money without sacrificing quality. By embracing flaws, keeping it simple, and going with a halo engagement ring, you can save money and find the perfect ring for your partner.
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