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Posted: 3/2/2015 6:22:17 PM EDT
[#1]
Quoted:
How much should a young male fresh out of college with no real assets spend on a wedding ring? I went to a reputable jewelry store and the saleswoman told me the average cost is around 6K. I was blown away. There's nothing saying I wouldn't want my wife to have the best of the best but for a first ring is this acceptable? Why not wait till you can afford a more suitable ring later and upgrade your lady after a few years? I know the answer may be very situation dependent but for my circumstances what is reasonable? I'm saving now and will cough out the 6K but I will be financing the ring if that is the case. How much did you spend? Thanks A saleswoman told you that? No shit? 
If you have to finance the ring, it's too much. $500 is not too little and $10k is not too much. It depends on what you can legitimately afford and what kind of woman you are working with. Some girls will appreciate a fine piece of jewelry and some would be happy with something you get out of a crackerjack box. There is no right or wrong answer. I take that back. If the bitch wants you to finance the ring so she has a big piece of ice to show off to her friends, ditch her. My buddy pointed out one of his friends once whose fiancee made him take out a $40k loan to get the ring she "had to have". 
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Posted: 3/2/2015 6:22:52 PM EDT
[#2]
We've been married 15 years now and I spent $60 on her gold wedding band, and $40 on mine. They are just a symbol.
If you ask me, they are mainly to display so other women don't hit on you. There is no benefit to either of you in spending a lot of money on them. Just my 2 cents. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 6:24:05 PM EDT
[#3]
Quoted:
How much should a young male fresh out of college with no real assets spend on a wedding ring? I went to a reputable jewelry store and the saleswoman told me the average cost is around 6K. I was blown away. There's nothing saying I wouldn't want my wife to have the best of the best but for a first ring is this acceptable? Why not wait till you can afford a more suitable ring later and upgrade your lady after a few years? I know the answer may be very situation dependent but for my circumstances what is reasonable? I'm saving now and will cough out the 6K but I will be financing the ring if that is the case. How much did you spend? Thanks My wife's first ring cost me $1200 in 1997 at Sam's Club. No shit. She loves that ring. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 6:29:36 PM EDT
[#4]
A lot of truth has been posted here but especially when it comes to financing the ring. Don't. Save up and pay it off and be done with it.
My first wife I think I spent $2500 on her engagement ring and a few hundred dollars on the wedding band but that was in the late 1990s. and I was making damn near poverty wages as a new police officer. In my current life I make good money and my wife makes about three times what I make so cash really wasn't too big of a deal. Even though we are very financially comfortable she said she would be fine with a used pawn store diamond. And she was serious, no shit. Because of that I wanted To surprise her with something nice. If she had demanded it it wouldn't have happened but she's very easy-going and completely nonmaterialistic so I dropped a fat wad on a nice Tiffany diamond. Plus I have a propensity for buying expensive guns and Rolex watches and she understands and supports my sickness so I felt it was the least I could do to get her something nice. The moral of the story is buy something that is meaningful to you and her but not necessarily based on just the price tag. There's more to it than that. And fuck with the salesman says. They are not in it looking out for your best interests... |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 6:32:42 PM EDT
[#5]
If your girl loves you it won't matter how much you spent on the ring. And if she's the kind of person that expects you to spend X amount on a ring enough thought it's beyond your current means you probably shouldn't marry her... that's just a warning sign to future financial difficulties.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 6:34:41 PM EDT
[#6]
anything less then 100,000 means you don't love her.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 6:42:07 PM EDT
[#7]
We spent $90 total for both gold bands. We just celebrated our 40th anniversary. If you have to spend a small fortune on a ring to make her "Happy". You're doin it wrong.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 6:42:59 PM EDT
[#8]
http://www.jamesallen.com/
I found that site to be the best option. I spent $5,800 (on both of her rings) and they appraise for FAR greater than what I paid. Not that any of that matters other than to say I think it was a fantastic value. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:02:18 PM EDT
[#9]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
http://www.jamesallen.com/ I found that site to be the best option. I spent $5,800 (on both of her rings) and they appraise for FAR greater than what I paid. Not that any of that matters other than to say I think it was a fantastic value. ^This. I got a diamond from here for half of what it appraised for. Also got to this website: http://niceice.com/ Go to the Diamond Education tag and read either the 15 second tutorial or the 5 minute tutorial on diamond buying. Then use his preset searches to find the best diamond for the money on any of the online sellers. ETA: spelling is hard |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:06:43 PM EDT
[#10]
did not read entire thread, too long...
but if it hasn't been said yet, one word: COSTCO... Higher quality for less $$$ than mall stores 
Plus, if it doesn't work out, you can return it. 
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:07:41 PM EDT
[#11]
I spent about 10% of my gross income on a engagement ring and about 1/2 that on the wedding band.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:10:03 PM EDT
[#12]
Quoted:
How much should a young male fresh out of college with no real assets spend on a wedding ring? I went to a reputable jewelry store and the saleswoman told me the average cost is around 6K. I was blown away. There's nothing saying I wouldn't want my wife to have the best of the best but for a first ring is this acceptable? Why not wait till you can afford a more suitable ring later and upgrade your lady after a few years? I know the answer may be very situation dependent but for my circumstances what is reasonable? I'm saving now and will cough out the 6K but I will be financing the ring if that is the case. How much did you spend? Thanks As someone who's never been nor ever will be married, let me offer you my perspective on this entire idea... 
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:12:22 PM EDT
[#13]
The rule use to be 2 months salary. But......IMHO, that's all BS.
Anyway.......at least KNOW (both of you should know) the ground rules before a ring is given. 1) You break off the engagement.........she keeps the ring. 2) She breaks off the engagement........you get the ring back. 3) Later, if you ask for a divorce........she keeps the ring. 4) If she asks for the divorce................you get the ring back. Even if she or you don't want the ring because of "the bad memories".......think of it as PAWN SHOP trade material (you can thank me later for that one). 
Aloha, Mark |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:17:34 PM EDT
[#14]
Double Tap
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:17:47 PM EDT
[#15]
I spent between $1,000 and $1,300 on my wife's engagement ring and wedding band together. She spent $100 on the Tungsten wedding ring I wanted.
At the time two moths pay pre-taxed for me was $8,900. That's a car, not piece of jewelry. Also, there is no way my wife would want a large ring. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:18:17 PM EDT
[#16]
I'm not saying to go out and buy a high quality fake diamond in a nice setting but a fellow can save a shit-ton of cash that way. There are very quality artificial diamonds out there that will fool some jeweler a, just saying.
If you're not inclined to do the fake, try to find a local diamond broker and have cash in hand. A nice 1/3 caret shouldn't set you back too much and you can shop for a nice setting. Craigslist and Pawn shops are a good option if you have cash in hand, how much is up to you. I will tell you that Platnium is a much better looking and durable setting than Gold, IMO. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:21:05 PM EDT
[#17]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I've been told 2 months of YOUR pay is what you should spend. Net or Gross? |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:25:23 PM EDT
[#18]
I spent $300 to get my wife an emerald ring since that's her birth stone. She loves it. She knew when we were dating that I wasn't going to spend thousands on a diamond.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:26:18 PM EDT
[#19]
overstock.com
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:30:02 PM EDT
[#20]
$100 tungsten band engraved for my wife, and she kept that as her wedding band. Same price for the same thing for me. Of course, I have one of her great grand mothers diamond ear rings, which one day will get mounted in a ring for her, but right now we're newly weds, and that means I barely have enough money for ammo, much less fancy rocks
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:44:56 PM EDT
[#21]
Quote HistoryQuote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
Whoever convinced a large part of the population that a guy is supposed to spend a shit-load of money on a wedding ring is a huge asshole. http://headlinesindia.mapsofindia.com/images/27010703823de%20Beers%20diamond%20logo.jpg Yep. DeBeers rules the diamond market and they are increasingly greedy M-Fers. Years ago when I bought my wife's diamond they were hawking "She deserves a diamond worth one month's salary." Nowadays it's up to three month's salary. I'm sure there's been inflation over the past 30 years, but 200% inflation? |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:46:22 PM EDT
[#22]
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:50:26 PM EDT
[#23]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Go to a pawn shop, jewellers are stupidly overpriced. Wife and I were just talking about her "wedding" ring today. It's a half carat stone that I bought from a buddy's pawn shop for $260.....about 9 years after we were married. Funny thing is we had it appraised and it's near flawless and was appraised at about $3k. My buddy was going out of business and sold it to me for what he had in it. He told me that it was a beautiful stone but I though he was pulling my leg. He wasn't.... $6K for a ring is getting close to being a big part of a down payment on a house. That's where we put our money when we were married and so far that plan has worked pretty damn well. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:51:13 PM EDT
[#24]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
We spent $90 total for both gold bands. We just celebrated our 40th anniversary. If you have to spend a small fortune on a ring to make her "Happy". You're doin it wrong. Another statistic for my theory. Your words have iron. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:53:50 PM EDT
[#25]
figure out what you can spend, then cut it in half, spend half on the ring and then spend half on a lawyer for a bitchin prenup.
Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 7:57:37 PM EDT
[#26]
Hop on craigslist and search for wedding ring. You'll find hundreds upon hundreds of single guys out there trying to get rid of their rings "worth $XXXXX amount of money" but willing to trade for a _______ of considerably lesser value because the marriage/engagement didn't work out.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:10:00 PM EDT
[#27]
I would hope you and her are on the same page about money. the wife and I picked out our rings together and wearing them 37 years later.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:12:41 PM EDT
[#28]
Come'on OP, quit being a cheapskate....
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:17:58 PM EDT
[#29]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Go to a pawn shop, jewellers are stupidly overpriced. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:18:44 PM EDT
[#30]
6k good lord no way. Save Your money or choose another mate. When I got married my wife wanted to use the recePtion money for a honeymoon trip. I talked her into using it for a down payment on our first home instead. She soon realized it was the right choice. You better break the spending habit early our you will be working a lot.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:25:22 PM EDT
[#31]
The cost shouldn't matter to her. If it does you need to re-evaluate.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:27:00 PM EDT
[#32]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Try this, go buy her a $100 ring, on bended knee, ask her if she'll marry you and show her the ring. If she acts like its the Hope Diamond, go find a preacher that day and marry her. If she turns her nose up and acts embarrassed to even look at the ring, run, don't walk, away as fast as you can. Here's a very true statement (determined by years of research by me) The length of your marriage is inversely proportional to how much you spend on the wedding ring. The less you spend, the longer the marriage. When I married my wife (we were both 19), I bought a $225 ring and paid it out at $20/week (its all I could afford). We've been married 37 years. I've begged her to let me buy her a 5 carat rock to put with that simple little ring, she looks at me and asks if I've got dementia, she'd wouldn't add to the little ring for the biggest diamond in the world. I got a keeper.
Good advice. Mine passed the door test right from the beginning so I wasn't too worried.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lNNUl9jrzw |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:27:14 PM EDT
[#33]
A half carat is a more than adequate ring. Anything more than that is just icing on the cake.
Kharn Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:30:07 PM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Whoever convinced a large part of the population that a guy is supposed to spend a shit-load of money on a wedding ring is a huge asshole. It didn't take too long for me to learn that people living off commissions are only interested in what is good for them. If you think a salesperson is being truthful with you, you've already been robbed, you just don't realize it yet. Our rings were at cost, and it took a bit to get the jeweler to get up to that. The stones were family heirlooms, and my Dad had stopped an armed robbery at the jewelers years before. Clearly that took a lot of planning on my part. ahem. But, there are some things that you can't put a price on the emotions involved. If one or the other of you or both insist on spending more than you can REASONABLY afford, something is off the tracks. Isn't any reason that a single stone in a tiffany type setting isn't more than suitable. Although I might recommend up to 6 prongs, after a lot of years the setting prongs can wear down and losing the stone can be devastating. We came too damn close but snagging the setting and noticing it was snagging was enough to see that one prong was gone and another bent. (That took about 35 years.) |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:30:10 PM EDT
[#35]
I don't know. I spent $1200 on one and she ended up buying a $10 silicone one to wear instead. I don't get it. She likes guns, she could have another Dan Wesson in the safe. Whatever.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:32:19 PM EDT
[#36]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Go to a pawn shop, jewellers are stupidly overpriced. Or at least use that to get a nice stone, and then get it set in a nice ring |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:37:43 PM EDT
[#37]
Since marriages fail at such a high rate these days ,
Why don't you just rent a couple of rings .??? gd |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:39:15 PM EDT
[#38]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
We spent $90 total for both gold bands. We just celebrated our 40th anniversary. If you have to spend a small fortune on a ring to make her "Happy". You're doin it wrong. take the gold price rise into consideration, but in reality both gold and stones are commodities, paying over market price is foolish. Paying for the making of the ring isn't all that bad. If you are lucky and have a real jeweler in town that actually makes their stock rather than a chain store in the mall, check with them. USUALLY they want you as a continuing customer, like a good mechanic, screw you once or keep you coming back for years and recommending them to others. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:40:56 PM EDT
[#39]
Whatever you pay for it, you never stop paying for it.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:45:05 PM EDT
[#40]
OP, stay as far away from chain stores as possible. You are paying a premium for their name, and that premium does not carry over once you leave the store.
I was fortunate to have my Mom's 1/4 ct diamond from her ring, so all I needed was a setting, which was $700 or so. The only problem was when we were looking at wedding bands, we couldnt find a wrap that the ring would fit. Luckily the jeweler was up for some serious redneck ingenuity, and made a wrap out of a band that was the same as mine. . The custom work was equal to the cost of the band, $100.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:50:25 PM EDT
[#41]
All depends....first off.....if she really cares about the dollar amount you spent on the ring......EJECT!!!
I spent $1,100 on a wedding/engagement ring combo. Impressed the hell out of my fiancée and everyone. It sure as hell wasn't 2 months worth of pay, but why spend $6,000 on a ring when there's real-life crap that needs attention. Didn't help keep her interested in me though
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Posted: 3/2/2015 8:51:19 PM EDT
[#42]
Choose the woman wisely and she won't care about the cost. I ended up spending more than I thought I would but she was worth it. She didn't demand it, I just wanted to get her something she would really like. I think it was about $3k. Mine was $9.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 9:04:05 PM EDT
[#43]
If you are both are really in love buy 2 gold bands It's the vows that matter. Money spent should go towards wedding/ reception. That's where the memories come from. That will last a long time. You are just starting out on your life together. Work on that first. Other stuff will come later. You are best friends and being together and experiencing life together that's what it's all about. Focus on that.
Wishing you all the best and good fortune and happiness. Now go forth and conquer you 2. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 9:04:23 PM EDT
[#44]
spend what you can afford.
Craigslist the diamond and have it evaluated at 2 jewelers before buying. Have that diamond made into a ring she likes. You end up with a ring that appraises for 2x what you paid and you didn't get fucked by paying retail. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 9:06:16 PM EDT
[#45]
Pawn shop....lots of broken dreams there.
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Posted: 3/2/2015 9:07:41 PM EDT
[#46]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Buy what you can afford. Not what they say you can afford. If she's stupid stuck on the ring, you don't want to marry her anyway. truth |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 9:09:10 PM EDT
[#47]
A wedding ring?
Only what you are willing to lose. Cubic Zirconia. If she can't like that, then she's high maintenance and only concerned about what her friends think. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 9:13:46 PM EDT
[#48]
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Posted: 3/2/2015 9:13:56 PM EDT
[#49]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Buy online and save some money Buy used and save even more. |
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Posted: 3/2/2015 9:15:36 PM EDT
[#50]
I have gotten my wife 4 different wedding rings over the years, the most expensive one was about $400 - her first ring in platinum with a row of diamonds. Then we got a titanium band set (~$50), and then a tungsten carbide set (~50). Most recently I got her another platinum ring with a huge lab created diamond. that one was about $225.
Point is - tastes change, and no point in spending $6K on a ring. I still wear my tungsten carbide one since it doesn't scratch. |
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