Designing your own *engagement ring*?

Q.Ahhh....! Well, I may need to be doing this pretty soon (the way things are going as of now)! =) I've known him since I was about about 13 or 14, so you know the drill... =) Anyways, back to the topic! Have any of you ever designed your own engagement rings? If so, how did it turn out? I can't stand the thought of wearing a ring on my finger for the rest of my life, and having 25,000 other people wearing the SAME exact one! ;) Any tips for me?

A.Have fun, but I have one suggestion...design/sketch to your heart's content but you should pass it by someone who works in the (jewelry manufacturing) trade before setting your heart on a particular design. Something that may really strike your fancy may be (due to the nature of the materials themselves) impossible to actually fabricate. This happens *all* the time in his shop when the sales people "up front" design something for a customer without thinking about how feasible it actually is to make - this can be messy, or you can end up with a less-than-stable piece of jewelry. Not to put you off, you can do alot of neat designs...just be sure before you get the final design down. Yes, my fiance asked me what kind of stone and setting I wanted and he designed a ring based on my info. My advice is to look at some rings in stores and on the web and figure out which shape stones you like. You may want a round stone, or perhaps you'd really prefer a square princess cut or an emerald cut. I think you need to see some in person to decide, so you should look at some rings at jewelry stores just to get an idea. One website with lots of ring designs is http://www.adiamondisforever.com/ . This site will show you some of the different designs that are out there. The next step is to read up on diamond buying. I highly recommend the book: "How to Buy a Diamond : Insider Secrets for Getting Your Money's Worth" by Fred Cuellar. It tells you what to look for in a diamond and has a price chart in the back so you know exactly how much you should be paying. I wear my mother's engagement ring on my right hand. It's 14k gold twisted around two pearls, it was custom made for her in a little jewelry shop in Berkley, CA. The cost? A whopping $50 (in 1968!) The ring outlasted the marriage and has drawn (literally) thousands of compliments over the past 32 years where it has been worn constantly on either her hand or mine. I've been offered more than 10x what it originally cost, and wouldn't even THINK of letting it go! I thought I had lost my rings once, and was FREAKING out over "my mother's ring!" Later my husband pointed out that I didn't get half as concerned about MY wedding rings! LOL

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