these days...2 ct is the norm ?

[Haven]

There's a saying around here that you can tell how long someone has had means by the size of her diamond--the larger the stone, the newer the money.

 

[kenny]

I'd guess the average diamond size in my part of So. Cal is 1/2 ct.

 

[pancake]

I really really believe this is an American phenomenon. The 2ct thing, the upgrading... None of my friends would even think about upgrading. They get the ring, they love it, they move onto other, things.

I'm in Australia. Just infected by PS. But not an upgrader, and I don't know of anyone in my fairly affluent group who would upgrade or consider 2ct the norm.

And of course PS is even more extreme

 

[Imdanny]

I haven't read every post so I'm probably repeating something that's been said. There was a study that said the norm in the US was less than .5.

No way is 2 ct the norm statistically. Not a chance.

 

[Imdanny]

I'd guess the average diamond size in my part of So. Cal is 1/2 ct.

In my part of rural HI it's about that or less. I kind of have to strain my eyes to tell if the stones are real. Some I can tell are real. None of them sparkles. I don't doubt that these everyday women I see working in everyday places bought, or their husbands bought, these rings at a mall.

Another thing I see here is a lot of gold, but it's not well made pieces (it's a kind of style where they stamp it with names and images of flowers etc.) and sometimes I see men with gold chains. I believe they are plated.

It's the style here for men to wear two earrings. Huge stones and fake diamonds (around 2-4 ct. looking).

So you can see the "normal" world of jewelry that I see is not very exciting.

 

[canuk-gal]

About 5 years ago, one of my colleagues came to me for advice about a diamond for an e-ring for his girlfriend. I about fell off my chair when he said she wanted a 3 carat diamond! If he bought online, that probably would have been about 3-4 months gross salary for him, so technically do-able I guess, but they were also buying a house (very expensive in our city). No one in the under 50 age range at our firm sports a rock that big, nor do the wives. I gave him advice about cut, color, clarity, etc. He ended up buying her a beautiful RB in the 2 ct range, and it looks huge on her tiny finger. I don't know where she got the idea or nerve to suggest 3 ct.

I know I'll be kicked all over PS for this, but I find this comment offensive. What has "nerve" got to do with it or anything else for that matter?

It seems to me fiance's ask their intended' "what they would like or want". And they tell them. I know my fiancee did and while I did not give him any ballpark or size range I would like to believe he asked me b/c he wanted to know what I truely desired.. .33 points or 33 carats, notwithstanding, would I not have been able to say? How is that "nervy or arrogant or entitled"?

Am I missing something here?

Sharon

I ain't gonna kick ya ... I was wondering the same thing. Indulging my usual pleasure in literary analysis, since Kay says the dude earned roughly the salary that's usually commensurate with that kind of outlay, my guess would be that it's sentence #4 that's the biggest hint: by the standards of the culture, it was ostentatious. Good confirmation of the advice you see all the time in RockyTalk to go off what the bride-to-be's circle is wearing!

Hey, Sharon, since you didn't mention price or size ... am I right in guessing that you indicated shape and maybe cut or clarity? I'm backwards-formulating a kind of etiquette of what it's okay for women to specify, and that sounds like it meshes with most of what I've heard/read. (By "okay," I mean by broad social standards, not my own.) (And, in the same vein, I do hope I'm not offending anybody: I just like playing armchair anthropologist on issues like these.)

I told him I wanted a wedding band. We were engaged 4 months before I got a ring--and were in a LD relationship so no time was spent talking/shopping about rings.

cheers--Sharon

 

[petrock<3]

It is becoming the norm in my group, I think because all my friends got engaged/ getting engaged at older ages.


To comment on women "expecting" or hoping for a 2 ct + I really think alot of women have no clue how much these stones are. I was shocked when we first started looking at what the prices were, I had no idea.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Two carats isn't the norm around where I live and I'm betting it's not as common on PS as we are given the impression of. My guess is that there are A LOT of members and/or lurkers who have "smaller" stones but post about them as much because of the bigger-is-better mentality. When person asks about a smaller-size stone over on RT, the ability to upgrade the stone is always brought up.

Anyway, around where I live, diamonds are NOT a priority! Most I know prefer to spend on house/furnishings, vehicles, and the other "affluency" is the mom being able to be a SAHM rather than work.

 

[kenny]

Two carats isn't the norm around where I live and I'm betting it's not as common on PS as we are given the impression of.
My guess is that there are A LOT of members and/or lurkers who have "smaller" stones but post about them as much because of the bigger-is-better mentality.
When person asks about a smaller-size stone over on RT, the ability to upgrade the stone is always brought up.

Good point.
I agree.