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Engagement Rings ! ??

grimslade

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Originally Posted by RJman
This is why you should have bought five of them at the beginning to have a lifetime supply.

Touche.
 

TheFoo

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Originally Posted by RJman
Rubies and sapphires are both corundum. Wouldn't they both be similarly durable?

I have no idea what the scientific explanation is. But sapphires are much, much harder. Rubies can crack and chip much more easily. The color fades too. They turn pink over time.

Originally Posted by grimslade
I got my wife an art-nouveau ring with an acanthus-leaf pattern on it. The pattern is all but worn away, but the marriage is still going strong. Who cares?

I'm talking about gemstones. Obviously, the OP could do a gold or platinum band instead; that would be very elegant. But it sounded like he wanted to do some sort of stone.
 

grimslade

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I don't know how you infer this:


Originally Posted by mafoofan
... it sounded like he wanted to do some sort of stone.

From this:

Originally Posted by pjw123
Well, my girlfriend of five years and I are ready to take the next step, but she doesn't want a diamond. She think its "buying in" to an ill conceived social construct. Anyways, what are some other options that are cool and not seen as just a cheap way out. Any ideaas would REALLY help me out. this whole ring thing is starting to drive me nutso. Thanks in advance
 

TheFoo

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Originally Posted by evor1
gemstone durability? is this a joke?

No. They are generally fairly fragile. If you bang them up against something casually, a scratch, chip, or crack is not impossible. That's why when you buy softer stones, like emeralds and rubies, you have to make sure you're not buying one that's been 'repaired'. In all this diamonds-are-the-devil talk, people forget that diamonds do have some inherently unique qualities.
 

TheFoo

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Originally Posted by grimslade
I don't know how you infer this . . .

The OP didn't say his girlfriend was against the idea of a stone, just against the idea of diamonds. Typically, an engagement ring has a stone in it, distinguishing it from the wedding band.
 

TheFoo

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Originally Posted by dopey
The point of a diamond engagement ring is to show commitment and seriousness. If she doesn't want a ring, perhaps you can get a cool tattoo. Even better would be for you to get matching or complementary tattoos.

Did you and your wife go the tatoo route?
 

dopey

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Originally Posted by mafoofan
Did you and your wife go the tatoo route?
We did body cuttings that line up when we are together, but that is more advanced and I wouldn't recommend it to people who aren't already into body modifications. Tattoos, on the other hand, are no big deal anymore.
 

Ataturk

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Count me in the "diamonds are a scam" camp. They aren't particularly rare or precious; the prices are kept high by a cabal and some very deliberate social engineering (for example, look at how men who don't buy diamonds for their loves are portrayed on television).
 

dah328

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+1 on the sapphire ring. You need to look in more specific places for them as they are not as ubiquitous as diamond rings, but you can get a really nice sapphire ring (platinum pave or sidestone, etc.) for a fraction of the cost of an equivalently-sized diamond.
 

JoeWoah

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Get something vintage, even if it has a diamond. You can come up with something sappy about love never dying, moving on, blah, blah, blah....
 

TheFoo

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Originally Posted by dah328
+1 on the sapphire ring. You need to look in more specific places for them as they are not as ubiquitous as diamond rings, but you can get a really nice sapphire ring (platinum pave or sidestone, etc.) for a fraction of the cost of an equivalently-sized diamond.

Do it the iGent way: buy a loose stone and then have a ring made bespoke.
 

robin

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Originally Posted by mafoofan
Do it the iGent way: buy a loose stone and then have a ring made bespoke.
And ask the designer if you can have copies of their sketches of the setting.
 

unjung

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Christ, I would love to find a woman who didn't want a diamond. As several other posters have noted, they have no true value, they have no investment value, they're not rare, and they're not historically notable. The wedding ring industry is a creation of a few Boor landowners a century ago. Find something that has some deeper significance to both of you.
 

grimslade

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Originally Posted by mafoofan
The OP didn't say his girlfriend was against the idea of a stone, just against the idea of diamonds. Typically, an engagement ring has a stone in it, distinguishing it from the wedding band.

Ah, so we've gone from having the impression he wanted a stone to his not saying he didn't want one...

sarcasm.gif


I'm sure that while she thinks diamonds are a scam, sapphires are dandy.
 

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