I LOVED picking out my ring, and you should too.
Every couple handles this part of the wedding process differently. Some want to be totally surprised. Some want to give general guidance. And some want to pick out their exact ring. I fell into the last category. I wanted to be able to pick out the ring that I’d be wearing for the rest of my life and Jacob and I are both thankful I did. When it came to picking out rings though, I had no clue what I was doing. I knew I wanted something unique with a vintage style but I wasn’t sure what that would look like. I read blogs, spent hours scrolling through jewelry websites, searching for rings on Instagram, and I just wasn’t sure. I had heard of all the major jewelry retailers, but I had no clue how many options were really out there! It was overwhelming. I eventually found my jeweler through my best friend. I asked her to help me search for rings and she started sending me options from the jeweler she used. I had never heard of them before, but their mission statement really struck me. Their premise is sustainable jewelry that isn’t harmful to the environment and doesn’t contribute to harmful diamond mining. I honestly did not even realize there were jewelers out there like it. Ultimately, I found my ring. They had a section of antique-inspired rings, with lab-created diamonds, and I fell in love with one that I still think is the perfect representation of my marriage to Jacob.
Every ring search is unique, so here are a few tips and questions to think about on yours!
- TRY THE RING ON. This one is so so so so important. If you’re ordering your ring and they don’t have a virtual try-on option, email the company and ask them to send a picture of someone with it on their hand, and get their ring size information. That’s what I did while picking my ring and it really helped me narrow down what I wanted.
- If you’re anything like me and you want a lot of input on your search, you’re probably going to hear or read something like… “will you still love it in 40 years,” or…. “is it timeless?”. Ignore these questions. Any ring you choose will be timeless if it is the one you love!
- Think about your relationship and how that will translate into a ring. Jacob and I love antiques. One of our first dates was to an antique store. This little detail about our relationship is so special to us, and I knew I wanted that to be evident in my ring in some way.
- And finally…. Find a sustainable jeweler! I had no clue how harmful diamond mining and unsustainable jewelers are until I started my search. Through my whole wedding planning process, I looked for companies and vendors who genuinely seemed to care about me and my wedding. My search started with large companies and when I would email them, they wouldn’t respond. Or I would get a generic response about going into a store. Every time I emailed or called a sustainable jeweler they were beyond helpful. These are companies that care about their impact and they care about YOU.