% of money on ring/diamond

[EastCoast]

I was just curious what people think their e-ring budget should go towards. What percent did you spend on your ring versus your rock?

 

[vespergirl]

I wanted the biggest diamond I could find in our budget (and good quality of course as well) so I knew that I would get a platinum solitaire - my husband liked solitaire settings best as well. Most of the diamond settings I liked were around $4000, so I would rather spend that $ on the diamond, and get a reset in a couple of years as an anniversary gift. I did go with plat over white gold, which is cheaper, because white gold turns yellow on me quite quickly.

 

[geckodani]

I would definitely put as much as you can towards the diamond. Settings are easy to change, diamonds not quite.

''Sides, then you get to look forward to a setting upgrade down the road!

 

[tommalle]

I agree. I bought the biggest diamond we could afford and put it in a plain band. I just got it remounted and it was so much fun picking out a setting. Especially since I had a lot of time to look at rings and decide what I liked most.

 

[Dreamer_D]

I would get a simple solitaire in iether platinum or 18k WG and then put ALL the rest towards the biggest best diamond possible! I feel that a setting can be changed later on, but perhaps not a diamond for some women? BUT if your FFI is very sentimental that changes things... if she wants a "forever ring" then you should just allocate the funds as necessary to get her the setting she wants.

I would note that many women change their minds a lot about what they want in a setting once they wear a ring for a while. So you could work that into you conversation after your propose, "Honey, I want you to have a ring that is exactly what you have always dreamed of, so I got you a simple elegant solitaire with the intention that we can plan and look together for the perfect setting that you adore!" Many women find this very romantic because then they can really get what they want, but your FFI may feel differently.

 

[coatimundi_org]

hmmm depends on what type of setting interests you. Everyone is different. I put a fair amount into my setting, because it is handmade. I''ll splurge on a setting, because the ring quality is as important as the stone to me. But that''s only for permanent settings--I had a super inexpensive temp setting at first--needed a lot of time to decide on my new permanent setting.

 

[DiamanteBlu]

I would [and, in fact, have] put "all" the money into the stone - especially if there is a financial constraint. You can always upgrade the setting later.

 

[Steel]

Date: 1/5/2009 3:05:35 PM
Author: dreamer_dachsie
I would get a simple solitaire in iether platinum or 18k WG and then put ALL the rest towards the biggest best diamond possible! I feel that a setting can be changed later on, but perhaps not a diamond for some women? BUT if your FFI is very sentimental that changes things... if she wants a ''forever ring'' then you should just allocate the funds as necessary to get her the setting she wants.

I would note that many women change their minds a lot about what they want in a setting once they wear a ring for a while. So you could work that into you conversation after your propose, ''Honey, I want you to have a ring that is exactly what you have always dreamed of, so I got you a simple elegant solitaire with the intention that we can plan and look together for the perfect setting that you adore!'' Many women find this very romantic because then they can really get what they want, but your FFI may feel differently.

Isn''t that the truth!

 

[parrot tulips]

It was really important for me that the ring I was proposed to with, was the ring I''d keep, so the setting was more important to me than the size of the center stone. In the end, my diamond cost twice as much as the setting. I was very fortunate, though, because I''m very happy with the size & quality of my stone. Now I''ve just got to get around to writing my (rave) review for Ari at Singlestone. My computer has "eaten" my last two attempts...

 

[kittybean]

Since you asked about percentages, I did a little calculating and figured out that my stone was a little over 90% of the cost of my ring (you can see it in my avatar <--).

When talking about percentages, I think you should consider that settings are a little more of a "fixed" value than stones are, i.e. a particular setting will cost the same amount whether you are setting a 2 ct D IF or a 1 ct H SI stone in it. If you''re going for the first stone, the setting will be a much smaller percentage of the total cost than it would be for the second stone.

You gotten some good advice so far: try to talk to your girlfriend and see what she might prefer. That''s ultimately the most important thing

.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

About 5% of the cost of my eng. ring was the setting. Mine is just a simple solitaire.

I checked your posts and see that you''re planning to purchase a halo setting. For that style, I wouldn''t go cheap, but rather pick out a quality halo setting with well-cut stones, EVEN if that means going with a slightly smaller center stone. But, that is just me. IMO, with a setting like that, it''s a package deal.

 

[Dreamer_D]

Date: 1/5/2009 3:45:11 PM
Author: parrot tulips
It was really important for me that the ring I was proposed to with, was the ring I''d keep, so the setting was more important to me than the size of the center stone. In the end, my diamond cost twice as much as the setting. I was very fortunate, though, because I''m very happy with the size & quality of my stone. Now I''ve just got to get around to writing my (rave) review for Ari at Singlestone. My computer has ''eaten'' my last two attempts...

Pssst.. I have gotten into the habit of hitting "select all" and "copy" before I hit submit on all my posts.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 1/5/2009 5:15:50 PM
Author: dreamer_dachsie

Date: 1/5/2009 3:45:11 PM
Author: parrot tulips
It was really important for me that the ring I was proposed to with, was the ring I''d keep, so the setting was more important to me than the size of the center stone. In the end, my diamond cost twice as much as the setting. I was very fortunate, though, because I''m very happy with the size & quality of my stone. Now I''ve just got to get around to writing my (rave) review for Ari at Singlestone. My computer has ''eaten'' my last two attempts...

Pssst.. I have gotten into the habit of hitting ''select all'' and ''copy'' before I hit submit on all my posts.

Same here. I copy every post before submitting.

 

[Steel]

Date: 1/5/2009 5:17:31 PM
Author: MC

Date: 1/5/2009 5:15:50 PM
Author: dreamer_dachsie

Date: 1/5/2009 3:45:11 PM
Author: parrot tulips
My computer has ''eaten'' my last two attempts...

Pssst.. I have gotten into the habit of hitting ''select all'' and ''copy'' before I hit submit on all my posts.

Same here. I copy every post before submitting.

Thritto!

 

[Babyblue033]

We spent about 30% on the setting, and for us choosing the right setting was just as important as choosing the right stone. I don''t plan on upgrading my e-ring and I really wanted the ENTIRE ring to be perfect even if that means getting a slightly smaller stone.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 1/5/2009 2:05:48 PM
Author:EastCoast
I was just curious what people think their e-ring budget should go towards. What percent did you spend on your ring versus your rock?

IMO...as cheap as possible !! i don''t want to lay down $6k on a fancy setting and then she changes her mind the next month. remember most of the dollars goes to labor cost.the stones and the precious metals probably wouldn''t add up to $1500 worth. both of my wife''s solitaire are set in a cheap 14k wg setting .as long as she don''t complain it''s okay by me.

 

[Gypsy]

I upgraded my setting recently, but my original setting was 3% of the total budget for the ring. LOL. The diamond was our priority by far. Durable setting though. Built like a Mac Truck.

 

[Harriet]

My setting cost 3+% of the total.

 

[kmci]

I have a plain, simple bezel solitaire, in 18ct WG, which actually cost about 14% of the total ring cost. Our budget was a loose figure "whatever makes you happy, but that doesn't mean go nuts", and we got the perfect diamond for an awesome price, so the whole deal came in well under what we had expected.

The jeweller who made our ring was recommended by our appraiser (someone who no doubt sees rings of all different qualities) the setting was custom, and although I'm sure we could have had it set cheaper, we wanted to be sure we did the right thing by our diamond, and we have a gorgeous ring out of it, so everybody is happy!!