Anyone start small and stay small?

[Platinumplus]

Yes - definitely this in the UK!

I hope it's OK to post this (mods please delete if not - I read the forum rules and it specifies no links to other jewellery forums, which this isn't). It's a popular parenting forum in the UK and most of the posters are broadly middle-class though there is a wide range. You will see the huge variety of rings that bears very little relation to wealth. People are very scathing of "upgrades" but if you keep (or accidentally break / lose) the original and call the new one an anniversary ring, you can get away with it It's pretty representative of what I see every day in the UK.

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I could only see the first page without logging in, but definitely more variety of styles than you would expect in the US, which is lovely. I think the colored stone with a diamond halo is more accepted as a standard engagement ring in the UK, while in the US that’s more of a right hand ring, or an “alternative” engagement ring.

 

[Ibrakeforpossums]

Oh yes! I’ve only read the first 30 or so pages, but so many lovely, lovely rings.

I LOVE that thread! The biggest display of beautiful rings I've ever seen. It's like people put their money and energy into the greatest cuts and rings designs, and it just rocks. It's 15 years old, I could go thru it again tomorrow and be amazed.

 

[ItsMainelyYou]

I could fall into big money and I would still stay within my personal millimeter parameters for rings. My absolute top: no round/sq/cush etc over 8-8.5 for a solitaire and no oval/marq etc over 10x8.
I just can't comfortably wear any larger and have no desire to push it.
*I have one ring outside of this and I only wear it occasionally because of this.

So, it makes it pretty easy to frame with parameters. I don't care about carat weight that way.

 

[LilAlex]

We did not think it was small at the time -- like yours, a bit over one ct -- but spouse has kept her same e-ring diamond for 25+ years.

Quoting myself just to add: I am not opposed to upgrading; I was just trying to answer the "have you ever?" question. Multiple family members have upgraded but we have not. She likes her diamond, although it's far from ideal. If she didn't, I assume she would...

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

And here she is: 1.07 carats Brian Gavin Hearts and Arrows, K color. I don’t remember the clarity, probably VS1? Set in the Brian Gavin classic six prong platinum knife edge. The wedding band is 2mm platinum half-round from Blue Nile. (I bought it first and wore it awhile just to make sure I *could* safely wear platinum. They go together well enough.)

she is beautiful and looks quite substantial
i dont know anyone with an ER that big (not on PS)

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

@MillieLou : very representative of Europe.

European people would laugh at you if you said you upgraded your e-ring, because
in Europe the engagement ring is the ring you've been proposed; any other ring is just another ring: anniversary ring, push present,..., call it whatever you want except engagement ring.

NZ and probably Australia too

if it wasn't for PS and getting to know all these lovely people i would be doing eye rolling at upgrades

of course i now know better
and if the couple could only afford a wee ring and always had the idea to buy a bigger one when times were better

and its not like i even have an ER of my own

i mean i guess id still be a bit dissapointed if this is what id got but id still be keeping it, not that im into minimilism -although i might move it to a pinky

 

[purplesilk]

Ok, get me out of Pricescope, but this is the ring I wish I was proposed with (3mm platinum or 18kt yellow gold band with 0.03 ct diamond)...in my plans, it would also have been my wedding band, just one ring to rule them all...
I was proposed with something totally different, which I hated, but my fault for not having had a prior frank talk with my then fiance.

 

[purplesilk]

Then fiance/now husband could, still can, easily easily afford to buy my "dream" engagement ring , but I refused because I couldn't call it my engagement ring ... I was proposed with a different ring, past can't be changed.

 

[ringnut]

I thought I could pull off a 5 carat emerald but I have recently learned that their personality might not be for me.

@nala, I remember about five years you posted about a Jabel emerald cut ring you almost purchased. There was discussion about how it was an unusual EC, possibly Russian cut. I dream about that ring to this day! However, like you, I'm not certain the more quiet personality of an EC is for me.

 

[nala]

@nala, I remember about five years you posted about a Jabel emerald cut ring you almost purchased. There was discussion about how it was an unusual EC, possibly Russian cut. I dream about that ring to this day! However, like you, I'm not certain the more quiet personality of an EC is for me.

I still remember that ring! And guess what?!! I saw it again for sale last year! Passed on it and the following month it was gone!

 

[ringnut]

I still remember that ring! And guess what?!! I saw it again for sale last year! Passed on it and the following month it was gone!

@nala Oh my gosh! Was it for sale online or in a local shop? I'm crazy for Jabel, so it's like the Holy Grail for me.

 

[Platinumplus]

Ok, get me out of Pricescope, but this is the ring I wish I was proposed with (3mm platinum or 18kt yellow gold band with 0.03 ct diamond)...in my plans, it would also have been my wedding band, just one ring to rule them all...
I was proposed with something totally different, which I hated, but my fault for not having had a prior frank talk with my then fiance.

My first dream was just a plain gold band… I knew that would never fly, so I found the Alex Sepkus band I posted above. (I found it at a local store, then slipped my now-husband their business card. He would never have known what I wanted otherwise!) Sometimes I’m wistful that I was never surprised with what he would have picked out himself, but the “surprise” tradition doesn’t work well if you want something different!

 

[nala]

@nala Oh my gosh! Was it for sale online or in a local shop? I'm crazy for Jabel, so it's like the Holy Grail for me.

It’s was a pawn shop—in Vegas!!!

 

[ringnut]

It’s was a pawn shop—in Vegas!!!

Well if good fortune occurs a third time and you come across it again and don't want it yourself, please let me know!

 

[Platinumplus]

she is beautiful and looks quite substantial
i dont know anyone with an ER that big (not on PS)

She photographs a bit bigger than she actually is in real life, but yes, she holds her own! Thank you!

 

[FutureChocolateMLK]

I wanted to add… the whole size upgrade thing was influenced by my knowledge thanks to PS and the quest to attain perfection—not bc I wanted to come back here and post it or bc I wanted to be the person with the biggest ring. It was all about unleashing my inner emotional excitability! This characteristic is part of the Gifted and talented spectrum. We tend to fixate on certain subjects and obsess over them. That’s me! All the while I upgraded, I never told anyone in my real life and hoped they would not notice. And guess what? They. Did. Not. Lol

This perspective has suddenly changed me. All my life I have researched and obsessed to the point of it basically taking over every spare second of my time once I sink my teeth into a new "hobby." I, too, was labeled G&T as a kid. It all makes sense now...so thank you! Seriously. This is a revelation for me.

 

[FutureChocolateMLK]

Oh. My. Gosh! Me!!!! This is exactly me. I never correlated my need to obtain extensive knowledge and potential obsession on the current subject to me being a TAG person. (That’s what we were called in the school programs I was in.) It makes perfect sense though, even down to not telling anyone (outside PS and the few followers on my jewelry IG).

This is ME. I do not reveal my secret PS life to anyone for fear I will be judged. I have far too much knowledge about jewelry to the point it's embarrassing. I come here daily to peruse and learn, all without a soul in my personal life knowing. If I mention anything like "oh, I saw this on this jewelry forum I'm a member of..." their eyes glaze over, and they look at me like I have lost my ever-loving mind. So happy to find like-minded wonderful people!

 

[Platinumplus]

As a former gifted kid who wasn’t diagnosed until I was 38, let me tell you Autistic special interests are real. I’m 100% positive I’m not the only Autistic person on this board, but Autistic or not, it’s lovely to be able to geek out with like-minded people.

 

[Austina]

I started out with absolutely nothing, so I couldn’t go smaller!

I didn’t have an ER when we got married over 40 years ago. Then if you had anything between .25 - .50ct ER it would’ve been considered large. Only 1 of my friends has upgraded her ER from .20 to .50ct, and that’s because I bought a .50ct solitaire at auction, and she fell in love with it, so I sold it to her for what I paid.

Back in the UK, ‘upgrading’ just wasn’t a thing, and I think unless you’re on PS, it probably still isn’t much of a thing.

I waited 40 years to get the ring of my dreams, and I wouldn’t change a thing about it.

 

[Platinumplus]

I started out with absolutely nothing, so I couldn’t go smaller!

I didn’t have an ER when we got married over 40 years ago. Then if you had anything between .25 - .50ct ER it would’ve been considered large. Only 1 of my friends has upgraded her ER from .20 to .50ct, and that’s because I bought a .50ct solitaire at auction, and she fell in love with it, so I sold it to her for what I paid.

Back in the UK, ‘upgrading’ just wasn’t a thing, and I think unless you’re on PS, it probably still isn’t much of a thing.

I waited 40 years to get the ring of my dreams, and I wouldn’t change a thing about it.

This is lovely! We need pictures!

 

[ringnut]

This is ME. I do not reveal my secret PS life to anyone for fear I will be judged. I have far too much knowledge about jewelry to the point it's embarrassing. I come here daily to peruse and learn, all without a soul in my personal life knowing. If I mention anything like "oh, I saw this on this jewelry forum I'm a member of..." their eyes glaze over, and they look at me like I have lost my ever-loving mind. So happy to find like-minded wonderful people!

Exactly this! I downplay the blingy side of me at my work because I have been judged when I dared to wear an emerald ring that was different from my very modest wedding set. One woman who has a stable full of luxury cars, takes expensive overseas vacations, and owns just about every Kate Spade bag ever created told me "I wish I could afford to buy jewelry like you do." I never travel and live far below my means with my home and vehicle. People choose to spend money on their own interests, but for some reason jewelry lovers get the judgment.

 

[daisygrl]

@MillieLou : very representative of Europe.

European people would laugh at you if you said you upgraded your e-ring, because
in Europe the engagement ring is the ring you've been proposed; any other ring is just another ring: anniversary ring, push present,..., call it whatever you want except engagement ring.

I disagree. I am a European born and raised. You can upgrade an engagement ring in Europe. Some do not even have an initial engagement ring (due to financial reasons or other) and buy one after the wedding and it is still considered an engagement ring. Moreover, most Europeans do not have a "push present" event - that sounds very American - everything is made into an event followed by (often times an expensive/memorable) present/diamond...etc. I believe a "push present" might be a tradition in India but not to a degree US made it to be.

 

[AllAboardTheBlingTrain]

I disagree. I am a European born and raised. You can upgrade an engagement ring in Europe. Some do not even have an initial engagement ring (due to financial reasons or other) and buy one after the wedding and it is still considered an engagement ring. Moreover, most Europeans do not have a "push present" event - that sounds very American - everything is made into an event followed by (often times an expensive/memorable) present/diamond...etc. I believe a "push present" might be a tradition in India but not to a degree US made it to be.

Kind of, but it's not a gift that the husband gives to the wife; rather when you have a child, (in some communities), your parents and/or your in-laws give you a gift (usually jewelry). Nowadays husbands do also get their wives gifts I guess, but that's not super traditional!

It's also not a given that anyone gives you a push present. Some people follow the tradition, some don't.

 

[daisygrl]

Kind of, but it's not a gift that the husband gives to the wife; rather when you have a child, (in some communities), your parents and/or your in-laws give you a gift (usually jewelry). Nowadays husbands do also get their wives gifts I guess, but that's not super traditional!

It's also not a given that anyone gives you a push present. Some people follow the tradition, some don't.

I was more talking about Europe and responding to the previous poster who claimed we (Europeans) have something like a "push present" and that people in Europe would laugh at you if you upgraded your e-ring, which would no longer be called an e-ring if upgraded. These claims are not true for most Europeans.

 

[AllAboardTheBlingTrain]

I was more talking about Europe and responding to the previous poster who claimed we (Europeans) have something like a "push present" and that people in Europe would laugh at you if you upgraded your e-ring, which would no longer be called an e-ring if upgraded. These claims are not true for most Europeans.

Oh sure! I was just contextualising the part about push presents in india

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Ok, get me out of Pricescope, but this is the ring I wish I was proposed with (3mm platinum or 18kt yellow gold band with 0.03 ct diamond)...in my plans, it would also have been my wedding band, just one ring to rule them all...
I was proposed with something totally different, which I hated, but my fault for not having had a prior frank talk with my then fiance.

i really love that
i think it would also be perfect for daily wear in an expanding collection

 

[MillieLou]

Europe is a big and diverse place. Everyone will have different experiences.

Mine (UK):

People are terribly scathing of the term "push presents" but buying a piece of jewellery to commemorate a child being born is fine.

People will go crazy with righteous indignation if you speak of an "upgrade" but a new ring for an anniversary or because your old one doesn't fit / broke / is lost is fine.

British people are illogical

I would say I've never heard anyone in the UK calling a ring an engagement ring when it wasn't received at / following the engagement. Unless posting on PS when we usually adopt the US system of an e-ring meaning anything on that finger. But then, that's just my experience.

 

[Petalouda]

In all my travels around Europe, Italy was the one country I saw large diamonds. I took my e-ring to the Tiffany’s in Vienna for a cleaning and the male SA was ogling over it saying how large (1.37ct) my diamond was. He even put it on his pinky and joked about running off with it. That’s when it hit me how Europeans overwhelmingly prefer small diamonds. I’ve always considered my diamond modest but it all really depends on perspective.

With that said, a few years ago I would of said I would be ok with a 5ct emerald cut or a 3.5 carat round. Now I realize I wouldn’t be comfortable with those sizes. For rounds 2.8-3ct max and emerald cut 3-3.5cts. I know those are still large sizes but I feel they would have a presence on my size 6.5 finger but not look huge (to me. Again, all about perspective).

 

[mrs-b]

This is exactly how I am. I rarely wear the rings I have with larger stones, and they are not large by PS standards. And I like having variety.

You also have one of the best collections on PS.

 

[Lookinagain]

You also have one of the best collections on PS.

Thank you! That means so much coming from you!