Two Months Salary? Not on Engagement Rings

We have all seen the commercials, sappy and blurry, that declare two months of salary is the appropriate amount to spend on engagement rings. Are they nuts?! A much better investment of that money is called a down payment if you ask me. Fortunately, there are ways to get a beautiful engagement ring for much less and frankly. So if your fiancee is demanding you spend that much on a ring, you may want to think things through a bit more.

Save Money with an Heirlooms Engagement Ring

The best way to save money is to not spend it. If you have a family heirloom sitting around you may want to consider giving it to your bride instead of purchasing something new. If your fiancee is the sentimental type, getting an heirloom will be much more special to her than getting a new ring. On the other hand, with half of all marriages ending in divorce, you need to realize you may not get the ring back if things go sour.

Doing your research before you buy a ring

Before you even step out the door to look at rings you need to do a bit of research. The four C’s of diamond buying are Cut, Color, Clarity and Carat. Cut refers to the shape of the stone, color its shade; clarity describes any inclusions and carat the size. Stones of the same size are not necessarily worth the same if their color or clarity varies.

While a D color is considered the highest quality, a J is nearly as colorless and a lot less expensive. Since the stone will rest in a setting and is not an investment piece, pick a “darker” color and save yourself a bundle. The same is true for clarity; small inclusions may drop the value of a stone, but in a setting are rarely noticeable.

Editor’s Note: I disagree with the author here. Diamonds are like everything else. The more you know about them, the higher your sensitivity and awareness for its differences. If you look, the higher quality diamonds are shinier and look whiter/brighter