engagement ring that's not a diamond ?
Q.What type of stone do you like in engagement rings where the stone isn't a diamond. Most of the diamonds out there are mined by companies that exploit their workers and violate some of their basic human and civil rights and I don't think that giving a diamond is a great way to ask someone to marry. What other stones do you like in your rings?
A.I have a moissanite engagement ring. Moissanite is a man made diamond (*NOT* a cheap, inferior CZ). At risk of sounding like an ad, let me say I'm not in the jewelry business. Anyway, moisanite is silicone carbide, almost the same chemical composition as a diamond, and it tests positive for diamond every time I have it tested at a shop. It actually has a higher index of refraction. You should see that baby in the sunlight! It's completely internally flawless, about an H in color, and my husband paid $500 for it...it's a full carat!!! That's 1/10 of the price of a comparable diamond, and this one is just as durable. Check out www.moissanite.com for information on the stone. I've worn mine for a year, in a platinum setting with six genuine diamonds flanking it...I couldn't be happier with it!!! If you are totally against buying anything man made, though, sapphires are often used for engagement rings. :-) My grandmother has a ruby engagement ring that is really beautiful. Or a plain ring, or skip the ring all together for a different piece of jewelry or gift, many women just wear their wedding band for daily wear. I find rings with stones don't work well for me at work or around the house anyway. Emeralds are great, though it is hard to find a non-occluded one. Sapphires work nicely too. Really IMO it's the design of the ring and the high quality of the stone, not the stone itself. One old tradition calls for the ring to be the birthstone of the beloved. My own is a large garnet cabochon with about 10 smaller stones surrounding it, heavy gold band, very Cossack-princess-y and I get raves whenever I wear it. I'm not certain that any mined stone would be for you in this case. Most mining jobs are difficult and workers are exploited. I'm with the woman who suggested the man-made stone if the mining conditions are what keep you from buying a diamond. I have a diamond and I like it a lot. To many, there's nothing like a big chunk of coal... but I think that ANY gift that's just a bit frivolous and will last forever makes a good engagement item - ring or not. MY greatgrandmother recieved a diamond-encrusted hatpin as an engagement gift, which she much later had made into a ring. A close friend of mine and my fiance's rec'd a ruby as a gift, and it is lovely as well. Personally, I think a black pearl in a lovely setting or an opal would really do it for me. Consider the personal taste and style of your intended and then use your imagination. I adore black pearls; I'm dying for a strand of peacock pearls. However, I think pearls are way too soft to wear every day for the rest of your life...it'd be destroyed in a few years from wear. I think a sapphire or ruby or something equally as hard would be lovely, but their still usually mined the same way. Synthetic may be the way for this guy to go (synthetic sapphires and rubies look really weird to me, though).
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