The Cost of an Engagement Ring
The proposed cost of an engagement ring vary greatly from person to person. DeBeers launched a campaign that two to three months wages should be spent on the ring alone. I personally told my husband that I would have been happy with a bread tie since I knew we didn't have a lot of money to buy large extravagant rings. We ended up spending about $500.00 for a tasteful 1 carate diamond engagement ring in a platinum setting. It has a 1/4 carate center diamond with four channel set diamonds on each side of the center. If you buy the ring as part of the wedding band set then you will save several hundred dollars of the overall cost.
I recommend observing your intended to see what type of jewelry that she favors. Once you have established if she likes silver colored or yellow gold colored jewelry then you will need to see if the jewels are smaller or larger to find the perfect ring. Cost should not be a factor when finding "The Ring" but shop around the local jewelry stores and even online to find the best deal while not compromising the quality. When buying online always look for a jewel certification from an accredited certifier since you cannot see the quality for yourself. Going to a local jeweler will allow you to look at all the cuts and differences in clarity as well as seeing the rings for yourself. Once you find the cut and setting you can check with all the jewelry stores to find out their cost. Smaller mom and pop stores will tend to be more expensive than the chain jewelers but have more specialized selections.
The cost can vary from around 100.00 to several hundred thousand dollars. What I would say is that once you know what she wants, try to get as close as possible without worrying about the price. You can always do a preliminary shopping trip to find out the costs for what you are looking for and then start saving for it.
