Photo (above): Jeweller: Maudart - Photographer: Joline Loos / Jeweller: Scaldis - Photographer: Anne De Geyter Fotografie / Jeweller: Juna Fae
No stress!
Buying an engagement ring for your loved one can understandably make you a bit nervous. Your jeweller or jewellery designer will be happy to guide you through every step of your purchase, from start to finish. An engagement ring reflects someone’s personality and style. For your loved one, the jewel should, in a way, tell your story. The most important thing, then, is that the ring suits her 100%. After all, it’s a piece of jewellery… forever! Start your search reassured by the fact that you know your loved one best, and that your choice will undoubtedly be the right one!
Keep your eyes and ears open
Very important: keep your eyes and ears open at all times whenever your loved one talks about his or her jewellery. That way, you won’t miss any valuable information you can use during your search for an engagement ring. Feel free to ask for advice from close friends or family of your partner, too. They may well have golden tips about the style, taste and preferences of the ring your future fiancé(e) will wear on their finger every day. Be sure to have a look on Pinterest beforehand to gather inspiration (or perhaps she already has a board where she saves her favourite rings).
A diamond (or gemstone)?
Whether or not you include a diamond (or another gemstone) in your engagement ring is entirely your choice. When making important decisions like this, try to put yourself in your partner’s shoes. Does he or she love diamonds and bling bling? If so, do you go for a larger stone, such as a solitaire ring, or would you rather choose a series of small diamonds set around the ring? What diamond colour do you have in mind? How many carats? Ask your jeweller or designer about the different options.
The right size
Finding out the exact circumference of your fiancé(e)’s ring finger may be easier said than done. One of the simplest ways is to secretly take a ring of your partner’s with you to the jeweller. If you don’t have a ring available and your partner is a deep sleeper, it’s time for a mission impossible in real life. Take a piece of string or a measuring tape and discreetly measure the lower part of the ring finger while your partner is still blissfully asleep...
The budget
The buyer of the engagement ring decides the budget—unless you’re choosing it together, of course. So, what you spend on an engagement ring is entirely up to you. However, keep a few reactions or conversations with your fiancé(e) in mind. Your fiancé(e) may once have reacted with disbelief or horror when the budget came up that a friend wanted to spend on it. The most expensive ring is not always necessarily the most beautiful. Choose a model you fully stand behind and that your partner will undoubtedly be over the moon with – for life!
The delivery time
A golden tip: start your search in good time! It can take several weeks before the chosen engagement ring is delivered and/or made to size. The process for a made-to-measure ring can take up to six weeks, so order your ring in good time. Have you already got the perfect time and place in mind to propose? Then make sure that, by that moment, the engagement ring is sitting in a box in your trouser pocket!
