Engagement ring...

[legatosummers]

need your opinion guys, planning to buy a ring which of the two is ok? my budget is 40 - 60k

Matus:
0.30 ct. J-VS2 PSA Excellent Cut, polished, symmetry = 54,230

Begnnings:
18k wg/ 0.33 CT =48k ( i was not able to get the full description but they allow me to take a pic)

http://i293.photobucket.com/albums/mm63/blakedaddy123/ring.jpg

[sevenstars]

Hi legatosummers, it's hard to compare the two without stats on the second stone.

For what it's worth, I'd expect a GIA-certified stone with those stats to cost between P20,000-P30,000, so if you're looking at a classic, simple 18K WG solitaire setting, I'd actually be inclined to say the top ring might be a little bit on the expensive side? I'd ask for a cert for the second stone and see how the stats compare to the first.

[j.adore]

Are you decided to get from those suppliers or you'll shop around pa?

I've been inquiring recently and the best so far is from Meicel Jewelry. Price is less than 40k for a 0.3 ct solitaire VVS1 G in 14k gold.

So I think the first one is too expensive given the specs.
Second one, hard to decide whether it's justified as it's missing some info.

[legatosummers]

Thanks sevenstars and j.adore for the feedback! i will visit the store again this weekend to ask for the specifications.

still shopping around if i can get a much bigger stone for that price range then that would be great .. i will check that Meicel Jewelry thanks for the tip!

[j.adore]

I think you can get a bigger stone at 60k ☺ options are sale (they have this often), bridal fairs (there's around 10 in a year), or promos (some stores join group discount sites).

I shouldnt have read this thread at all. I actually thought what h2b gave me is disproportionate to what he can afford. I'm also torn, kasi the money he is saving is for our wedding. Alam ko naman cash flow nya. And we are also applying for migration to AUS so wala talaga syang extrang money. But I cant help but be deeply disappointed and I've cried over it several times. I also told h2b about it and we kinda fought over it too. Kasi he was saying na hindi nya daw ako tinipid but I really felt that he did. Granted, he gave me a ring with a good clarity (VVS2) and color (G) but its so small. Sabi nya nasa .1 something lang. The ring is 18k white gold with good craftmanship. Pero damn ang liit. Maliit na nga yung ring finger ko (size 4) so getting a quarter carat or kahit 1/3 carat (.3) is a big thing for my finger. Not necessarily naman na half carat talaga. I told him I'll return his e-ring but ill still marry him. It's just that I don't feel that the ring he gave me is what I should get. Even my brother said maliit nga. And magka kunchaba sila in the first place ha.

Ilang beses ko na sinabi sa sarili ko na I should be happy about my e-ring but the feeling of discontent resurfaces. I feel unhappy about myself kasi nag expect ako. But shouldnt I? Sana kung alam nya pala na mag propropose sya eh nag ipon sya. He adamantly refuses to accept na tinipid nya ako. Hindi daw talaga. Im unhappy but at the same time I feel I dont have a choice, kasi eto na yung binigay nya eh. Pag pinalitan ko edi hindi na yun yung e-ring na pinag proposan nya. I dont like the feeling that resurfaces everytime I remember na I'm not happy about the ring. There are days na okay lang ako. But like today upon reading this thread, I feel like crying over it again. Feeling ko kasi talaga hindi nya pinag-effortan.

I don't know what else to suggest because you're crying over the stone size pero ayaw mo palitan to the point that you want to return the ring?
Upgrade sana later on pag may funds na..

San siya bumili? He might be telling you the truth because some stores over charge as in grabe.
Would it even help if you find out how much he spent on it complete with receipts?

[weddingbelle]

Hehe actually nakaka hiya kasi im crying over the stone size. Im not so high maintenance na gusto ko ng 1carat or something. Its just that, I felt na tinipid nya ako. Thats why Im so disappointed. And no matter how many times ive explained to him, it cant replace the fact that Im still wearing a ring I dont like. But I dont want to return it because its the one he proposed with..

Siguro my problem is figuring out if I want to replace the ring and get a bigger size or live with it and stop complaining about it.

[sparklingjewel]

^Weddingbelle, i don't get what you want to happen, honestly. You don't want him to change the ring because of sentimental reasons, but you're also very very unhappy about it and you can't get over the fact that the ring seems to be too cheap for what he can afford, and that you deserve something better.
Are you aware that the two are conflicting? :p

That said, probably the best suggestion I can give you is to choose what you want more. is it so important to you to have a fancier engagement ring? Then tell him how you feel and let go of being sentimental about your small e-ring. We can be a bit materialistic sometimes but what matters more is that you are true to yourself. Or if you really are sentimental with it, then accept the smallness of the ring as it can never be replaced for what it stands for.

You can also consider getting a nice wedding band. Then again, it might trump your e-ring all the more... personally, I'd rather have a nice fancy e-ring too than a fancy wedding band.  It's up to you. Thankfully, my fiance's mindset when buying it was that it had to be good as he didn't want to disappoint me. Sad naman that your fiance doesn't even accept how you really feel about it. Try to tell him sincerely?

[simang]

Thankfully, my fiance's mindset when buying it was that it had to be good as he didn't want to disappoint me. Sad naman that your fiance doesn't even accept how you really feel about it. Try to tell him sincerely?

I'm sure na ito rin naman ang nasa isip ng fiance ni weddingbelle, he knows she wants a proposal and a ring, and he did exactly that so as not to disappoint her. I guess hindi nya rin naisip that the size would even matter to her.

Honestly ako personally di ko pa din gets ang hype over engagement rings, yes i believe it's just a hype lol. but then again kanya kanya naman yan. My guy gave me a ring, which is awesome, but it's also fine by me if he didn't. We both decided to get married, and the ring was just an accessory for me. But that's just me.

[sparklingjewel]

^Very possible also that he thought clarity and color matter for her over carat. Though we all know that cut is the most important and even jewelers say that, most girls can't help but notice the size of the stone, too. Perfectly normal I think. Kanya kanya lang talaga if it matters to you or not. If it does, it just really helps if your fiance knows what you value too.

[caleeice]

Hi sis weddingbelle. While you think that the ring may be disproportionate to the amount he can afford, it is possible that your fiance spent what he thinks is a reasonable amount (vs. your expected amount) and that he has other things that he wishes to prioritize. Sometimes men don't understand the value that some women put into their engagement rings. For other guys, it's just another piece of jewelry, a luxury and a non-essential item, so they would rather invest their hard-earned money on something else they deem more valuable, i.e., a family home, education for future kids, etc. In your case, you mentioned that he's saving for your wedding and future migration.

Don't dwell on the thought na "tinipid ka niya". Try to be more open minded and understand his reasons for doing so

[belle_v2g]

^sis caleeice,  your description fits my husband so well. Lol! He's one of those guys who values other "essential" stuff over a piece of jewellery.
Sis weddingbelle,  you are not alone. my hubby is probably worse lol!! He didn't gave me an e-ring the first time he asked me to marry him.. (although bumawi sya this time around) our 1st wedding is a rush one coz I had to leave for AU as well. And speaking of migration, he must be really preparing for it..and it will cost you guys a lot so he's probably allocating some funds for that aside from the wedding gastos which is not at all cheap these days..

[mrsdeezon]

hindi ko sinabi sa bf ko na maliit yung bigay nyang e-ring kasi alam ko naman na simple lang talaga sya and he just spent what's reasonable. i also feel guilty wearing a small stone worth over 100k! (baka mawala ko pa) so although bf suggested na iupgrade namin after a year (para daw malaki sa SDE namin.haha) i declined na and said i'm happy na with it.

pero ang totoo minsan i feel uncomfortable pa rin when my colleagues compare their erings. i would intentionally hide mine and just say na nakalimutan ko sa bahay kasi lahat sila 1+ carat yung bato.

minsan nga pag gusto kong magpakabitter parang gusto ko sabihin na so what kung 1 carat eg kinredit card lang yan! hindi pa bayad. at least yung sakin siguradong cash kasi walang credit card si bf! hahaha. but rather telling that, dinadivert ko nalang yung topic.

[legatosummers]

Ok, i called Beginnings store and ask for the details so here's the info. what do you girls think? which one is better?or both are a little too expensive for their specifications? i read from other sites that if i want to have a bigger stone i have to sacrifice the clarity of the stone.

i will see what i can find in Meicel Jewelry.

Matus:
0.30 ct. Grade J -VS2 PSA Excellent Cut, polished, symmetry, w/ GIA certificate = 54,230

Begnnings:
18k wg/ 0.33 CT round cut, Clarity SI, Grade H w/ store certificate = 48,000

[sparklingjewel]

^I have never seen an H or J-colored stone up close, but a friend told me the J-color already looks yellowish at certain angles especially when you have a bigger stone, like 1.5 carat and above daw obvious na so you would go for H or I at the very least. Not sure about smaller stones if obvious din. Check nalang if it looks yellowish to you.. you might not want to sacrifice the color up to that point.

 On clarity, if you're not too particular on it, maybe ok lang SI for as long as the inclusions are invisible to the naked eye (go check). And yes excellent cut is good para sparkly

^Sis mrsdeezon Ok lang yan, we can't all have the biggest rings naman diba. We're not Kim K. Haha. Of course nakaka-insecure esp if you have friends na puro malaki yung stone, (in my case nga madami akong kilala with 2, 2.5, even 4 carat, the guys happen to think na 2-carat yung standard since friends nilang nauna yun kinuha) but for as long as im happy with what i've got, then its perfectly fine, hindi na ako naiinggit sa kanila. Hello naman more than a car na yung value nang suot nila. Exag.

A few months ago we were just malling and i tried on a 0.9 carat ring in a random jewelry store, it looked okay na on my size 4 finger. So i knew i would be happy na with a 1-carat ring, just a bit bigger that the one i tried on. But of course i was super happy when fiance gave me a 2-carat halo. Di ko naman tatanggihan! Haha

[Chili1113]

sis legatosummers: Current price per carat of a .40-.49 carat VS2, H-I Color is P115k/carat. So a .40 carat stone will be P46k for the stone alone. And on that basis, I find the price of the rings you are looking at on the more expensive side.

Take note though that a .3-.39 will cost a tiny bit less per carat than.4-.49 - because the bigger the stone the more expensive it is per carat. I only have the price of .4-.49 carats, but if you use that price range then a .30 stone should only cost P34500 for stone only. Plus take note, it is a J color, the price I have are for H-I colors. Lalabas that Meicel is charging 20k for the setting alone.

These prices are from a Jewelry store in Manila Peninsula so they are more expensive pa. So talagang medyo mahal yung ring esp sa Matus!! Not sulit sis. J color, pa and mahal the setting.

[sparklingjewel]

^How much ba is an e-ring setting supposed to cost? I'm going to have my e-ring's halo reworked soon (finally!)  and i have no idea on the supposed price of 18k white gold settings. And would you know how much for 18k bands?

[Chili1113]

^Sparkling jewel, I am not sure about how much plain 18k bands cost. But I know a place where labor for fabricating a plain wedding band was P8000.

For wedding bands kasi h2b wants a plain thick band, and we plan to melt some old pieces of gold jewelry that we dont use. And so this jeweler in greenhills quoted 8k for labor only. Their setting is good as Ive seen previous custom work by them.

Jeweler is AMI jewelry in greenhills.

[sparklingjewel]

^Thanks for the pm, i almost slipped off my chair from reading the wedding band quotations. Huhu. I may have to rethink that half-eternity. Or just resort to using small stones. I don't want it to cost like another e-ring Plus, super dangerous na to have that much value on one finger. Hehe

Will check out the family jeweler, and also AMI. Thanks!

[120515]

i would like to rephrase what i read from the blog that described kitchie nadal's wedding - sometimes it's about the relationship and not the ring

at the end of the day, the diamond is just another pretty stone. if you have your ring valued at a pawnshop, most of them will only value the gold and not give the stone any value at all.

our engagement rings are gifts from our fiances - something that they must have agonized over for days, weeks, or even months to select; something they must have worked so hard for to buy; something they must have spent sleepless nights thinking about.

i don't want to discount anyone's feelings but i also want to send a reminder for us, brides, that the decision of asking someone to marry you takes a lot of courage and determination. it is not only an engagement ring you have to think of, you also have to consider the wedding costs and the costs of starting a family and giving your family a good life. in the grand scheme of things you might come to the conclusion that your limited resources will be of better use if you invest in a house for your family rather than a ring. let us put ourselves in the shoes of our fiances for a minute and understand their position. then maybe we will be a little prouder of the rings on our fingers - whether they are big or not.

[legatosummers]

Thanks for the feedback/info Chili! by the way do you have a ring store that you can recommend?