Buying an Engagement Ring or Wedding Rings
The process for most guys when buying an engagement ring these days starts off with a Google search for some arbitrary term like the best place to buy an engagement ring near me. While Google, in its all mighty powerful search results will return a list of great options, the question remains where is the best place to buy an engagement or wedding ring?
Online
You can bet that any online search will show you a list of online-only jewelry retailers. As e-commerce has evolved and so has buying jewelry. High-resolution images, video, and interactive shopping tools all provide a more efficient and arguably better shopping experience. However, the fact remains when shopping online, you cannot touch and feel the ring’s weight or know how it will really sit on your ring finger.
Brick & Morter
Physical brick and mortar jewelry stores are more of a rare sight in 2021 than ever before. Finding the best local jewelry store near you today might be harder than you think. Many local independent jewelers, which were often family-owned and operated by actual goldsmiths, shuttered long ago with the onset of the big box store and corporate jewelry retailers. Now, most of the big box retailers have faced their own demise thanks to online shopping and the death of the archaic shopping mall.
“Physical brick and mortar jewelry stores are more of a rare thing in 2021 than ever before”
Things to Consider
If you’ve read this far, you must really want to know where to find the best place for buying an engagement ring near you is. The answer to your question depends on what will be most important to you as the buyer and of course the person wearing the ring. When shopping for wedding or engagement jewelry it is important to define and prioritize a few key things.
Engagement Ring Shopping Preflight Checklist
Total Time: 30 days
Proposal Timeline
How soon you need a ring is also a very important element when shopping for wedding and engagement jewelry. Custom-designed jewelry requires the most time to acquire. However even finished showroom pieces often have to be sized and will require some amount of time to complete. Online retailers are often displaying generic images and will use just-in-time production to fulfill your order. All be it that every retailer is different, the fact is good things take time. Allowing 4 to 6 weeks for production would be wise and more than enough time to produce your piece and plan your proposal. This production time, together with the time it takes you to do your research and actually commit to buying your jewelry might also take another week or two. Giving yourself two to three months to understand, find, produce, evaluate, and complete this important purchase would be ideal.
Know the right finger size
You need to know the finger size that the ring will be worn on. Typically an engagement ring is worn on the left hand, 4th finger from the thumb. A ring can be sized, but getting it right the first time is always best.
Ring Budget
It is important to know how much you want to spend. The old saying of multiplying your monthly salary by three to determine your budget for an engagement ring is not necessary. Buy what you can afford. No need to shop for a Maserati when you can only afford a Toyota. The same goes for jewelry and diamonds.
Personal Preferences
Typically fine wedding jewelry will be available in your choice of yellow, white, or rose-colored metal. You will have a choice of 14K, 18K, or Platinum. A large variety of gemstones are used in engagement and wedding jewelry, besides diamonds. Sapphires, Rubies, and Moissanite are popular alternative gemstones. Different shapes of these stones are available with round being the most popular choice.
Make it with Love
Buying an engagement ring and or wedding ring is often the most significant piece of jewelry you will ever buy or give to anyone in your lifetime. The do-it-yourself (DIY) approach to making your own ring will give your jewelry even greater sentimental value. LaProng Jewelers is proud to offer a hands-on, workshop excursion experience where you can actually make a high-quality piece of fine wedding jewelry.
Why Choose Us
Offering the full service of a Personal Jeweler LaProng Jewelers can help you through the process of hand-making your own wedding jewelry or you can commission a custom design to be made for you. LaProng offers the DIY coaching to make your own wedding and engagement rings and gives you access to purchase a wide variety of ethically sourced diamonds, lab-grown diamonds, moissanite, and other notable gemstones that are all competitively priced.
Interested in learning more about how you can make your wedding rings with love? Check out the workshops offered by LaProng Jewelers at LaProng.com
