Where Did You Buy Your Wedding Ring From?

I'm over here in the UK but the mark up on precious metals and Diamonds is stupid!!  So I am consdering other options as even with P&P it's likely to be cheaper.

I have looked at Dubai but apparently the quality can be unreliable, South Africa maybe but difficult to have anything of value shipped from there.

A cheaper option that I have just found is Tungsten Carbide.  Anyone have one of these?  Lifelong shine, virtually indestructible and good reviews.

Any advice welcome.

One huge problem with Titanium and Tungsten is the issue of a possible hand injury. The metals don't cut, they shatter. Also Tungsten cobalt can tarnish against skin oils.

Have you thought about Titanium?  My boyfriend is a transport truck mechanic, so wanted something that would stand up to his career.  They're also VERY reasonable, depending on what you're looking for.  Check titaniumrings *DOT* com.  They're a canadian company, but may ship to the UK

My husband is a medic so he wanted something that wouldn't bend to his finger if it got crushed. itsbutters is right, it will shatter, but like ceramic shatters, not like glass (and this may be a good thing depending on what causes it to shatter).  The metal has a blueish tint to it so you can tell it's not white gold or platnium, but I think it's pretty.  You're right, it NEVER scratches or tarnishes.  Just don't drop it on a tile floor (the ceramic may cause it to shatter).

I forgot to mention I was refering to tungsten rings.  Sorry!

When I bought the wedding rings for my wedding that did not happen I got them from www.titaniumera.com. They were inlayed with white gold. I really liked them but I can't speak of durability of the because they were never worn.

Have you considered getting a Moissanite diamond?  I don't know much about them but from what I understand they are diamonds made in labs and they are usually like 1/10 the cost of a diamond ring.

My mum is getting married in september and her and her fiancee bought really nice ones from Azendi.

All their Jewellery is gorgeous!

I was an American living in the UK when we got married and we flew to Vegas to get rings/married etc. We payed about $4500 for ring/band and his ring. My ring alone would retail for 6000 quid in the UK. You could potentially fly to the US and buy a ring for less than the cost to buy one in the UK, depending on your budget.

Evidently, alot of jewelers in the UK do that.

I'm going to provide a little info on the various options mentioned as I briefly sold jewelry for a retailer and had to learn all the different points on metals and alternatives

Regarding Tungsten and Titanium.  They are great metals and definitely gaining in popularity.  They are very sturdy because they are industrial metals that are meant to resist normal jewelry wear-and-tear.  They are great for guys because generally men don't ever need their rings resized (or refuse to).  For women, especially those looking towards starting or adding to the family, these metals can be a bad idea just due to the size changes that naturally happen with our body and how some of us react after pregnancy and the difficulty of dropping weight.  Tungsten and Titanium can not be resized by ordinary jewelry methods (melted).  They require laser cutting and high temperature welding that most jewelers do not have the equipment to do.  Therefore changing ring sizes means buying a new ring.

For alternative diamond: unlike lab created gemstones that have met the gemologist standard of simulation to the natural variety to be called a sapphire, ruby, etc.  There is no true equivalent to a diamond.  Their composition is so unique and difficult to fabricate that nature still beats out the scientists. Moissenite is a close runner up but generally will have a yellowish hue to the color.  If perfect, icy white color is not a priority then go for it.  I would also never trust the picture posted on a webpage.  If you choose to purchase with a business where you do not have the ability to see the product before, make sure they have an excellent return policy because the pictures are usually the best of the best of that style and the actual product is only modestly similar and not as glamorous.

Original Post by sunnybra:

I'm over here in the UK but the mark up on precious metals and Diamonds is stupid!! 

I'm assuming you're talking about newly designed jewelry from new materials here?

Have you considered high end antique stores and estate sales?  It didn't occur to me and my hubby when we were looking, but friends of mine have moral issues with the precious metals and gemstone industry, so they got a very beautiful, high quality, certified set of gold and diamond bands from an auction house - at a fraction of the price of new stuff from a high end jewelry store.

Just a thought...

If you have time for a trip, I was in Bangkok in late September 2000, during the King and Queen's wedding anniversary.  They opened the government monopoly jewelry stores to the public for a few days, and there were crazy deals to be had.  To this day I regret not buying a 10 carat ruby ring set in 18K yellow gold that was selling for USD 600!

When I say "store," I should clarify that was more like a warehouse/factory.  It was a massively large room and it was divided into sections, depending on what stone and metal you were interested in.  There were quite a few couples looking over the wedding ring section.  I wound up getting a 1 carat sapphire, TCW 0.5 carat diamond, and 18K white gold ring for $200. 

The experience was incredible...

Good luck,

I found the coolest men's jewelry designer, BlumLux.  I got the perfect wedding band!  They are so helpful too!  www.blumlux.com