For most people, a wedding ring is the ultimate symbol of love and romance. When two partners tie the knot, placing the wedding rings around their ring fingers is the big moment. Choosing a suitable wedding ring is very important because a wedding ring should last a lifetime. When choosing a wedding ring, it is best to take the style, quality and material into account. You can choose a gold, silver, white gold or diamond wedding ring. What should you pay attention to when buying a wedding ring and which tips are useful?
Wearing a wedding ring: on which hand?
It is a question that has confused so many people: On which hand should you actually wear your wedding ring?, We are clear that you wear your wedding ring on your ring finger, but the ring finger of which hand, left or right? The answer to this question depends on the tradition and customs of a country, but also on a religion. For example, Catholics wear their wedding ring on the left hand, while Protestants wear their ring on the ring finger of the right hand. In ancient Egypt people saw the left hand traditionally as the hand that was connected to the heart. Wearing your wedding ring on the left hand was therefore a sign that your ring, as a symbol of loyalty to your love partner, was also connected to your heart. This romantic view of wearing the wedding ring on the left hand had a major impact on global customs in that regard. In the twenty-first century, the requirements of traditions and customs are being treated more flexibly. For example, it is quite common for left-handers to wear their wedding ring on the right hand and right-handers to the left hand.
Buying a wedding ring: what to look out for?
More than anything, wearing a wedding ring is an expression of eternal love and connection. It is therefore important that a wedding ring looks nice and fits well, in other words: appearance and wearing comfort are crucial when choosing a wedding ring. In addition, you must also take into account the quality and durability of the wedding ring, because a wedding ring should last forever. You can choose and buy wedding rings together, but you can also surprise your partner and buy the rings on your own.
Choosing a wedding ring: tips
Style
Do you want a wedding ring for your loved one with the same style as yours? Or are you going for a unique ring with additional decorations? These are important questions when it comes to choosing a wedding ring. Know yourself and your partner and think about what you find beautiful and stylish, and let this play a role in your choice. You may have a more frugal lifestyle, and then a silver or titanium wedding ring seems suitable. If you prefer something more shiny or extravagant, gold, zirconia or diamond are options.
Quality
With wedding rings that are relatively cheap, you have to take into account lower quality. It can be useful to compare the gold or silver content of the ring, for example, with the price of the ring. For example, a high gold price on the market will affect the price of the ring. It is also interesting to look at the name of the ring: ‘gold plated’ does not mean the same as ‘golden’.
Wearing comfort
A wedding ring should be handy and easy to use in your daily life and the comfort of the ring is therefore something to take into account. A classic wedding ring is more practical to wear than a ring with a more irregular shape or one set with gemstones. If you often do physical work where your hands come into contact with water, ground or hard objects, choose a ring with a harder quality (for example titanium).
Color and extras
There are also countless possibilities when it comes to the appearance of the ring. You can choose a single color, but also different colors at the same time, such as a white gold wedding ring. You can also make the ring original by adding extras, such as the initials of your name and that of your partner, the date of your wedding, a life saying or motto, or even a fingerprint.
Types of wedding rings
The range of wedding rings is very extensive, and when choosing a wedding ring you will first have to decide on the material. Gold, silver, diamond or another material: it can all influence the quality, comfort and price of the wedding ring.
Gold wedding rings / Source: Erik Stein, Pixabay
Gold wedding ring
The choice that is probably made most often is a gold wedding ring. Gold is the most evocative precious metal worldwide and symbolizes beauty, opulence and incorruption. The latter characteristic in particular has great significance: gold as a sign of imperishable, eternal love. A gold wedding ring is therefore the most obvious choice for partners who want to tie the knot. Gold is an extremely soft precious metal and to ensure the durability of the wedding ring, numerous other materials have been added for protection. When choosing a gold wedding ring, it is interesting to know that the gold content is expressed in carats : for example, most rings are 18 carat gold, and when one speaks of 24 carats, it concerns pure gold. Most people usually choose a 14 carat gold wedding ring.
Silver wedding ring
Silver is a precious metal that is less expensive than gold and appeals less to the imagination. However, a silver wedding ring can also be very stylish and radiate class. Silver is not as soft as gold and is therefore less at risk of damage.
White gold ring / Source: Schtone, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA-3.0)
White gold
To protect the gold of a wedding ring, a white top layer of rhodium is sometimes added. This ‘rhodining’ makes the ring better protected against damage. In that case it is called a white gold wedding ring. White gold can also be obtained by alloying gold with other white-colored materials such as nickel, palladium or silver. White gold wedding rings look modest at first glance, but they still radiate a certain class, which makes them quite popular among people who are getting married.
Diamond ring / Source: Angela, Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Diamond wedding ring
Another classic among wedding rings is a wedding ring with diamonds. Diamond represents unprecedented beauty and it is not without reason that there are numerous proverbs associated with this dazzling gemstone, such as Diamonds are forever, or Diamonds are a girls best friend. When choosing a diamond wedding ring, you must always take into account the four quality criteria or four C’s: carat , clarity , cut and color . A solitaire wedding ring has a single diamond, while an eternity wedding ring has multiple diamonds set all the way around the ring. Wedding rings with diamonds are stunningly beautiful, which also means they have a high price tag.
Zirconia wedding ring
If you want a wedding ring that resembles a ring with real diamonds, you can choose a zirconia. A zirconia ring does not contain real, but artificially made diamonds. A zirconia is also called an imitation diamond . The difference between a real diamond and a cubic zirconia is very difficult to tell. Zirconia rings have a beautiful appearance and at the same time offer the advantage of a lower price.
Wedding rings with other materials
There are also wedding rings for sale with other materials, such as palladium, platinum and titanium. Platinum is a precious metal that is less sensitive to allergies than gold and could be a good choice for people who quickly suffer from allergy complaints. Titanium is a very hard material and virtually indestructible. If you choose a titanium ring, you have the disadvantage that the ring is more difficult to adjust to the size of your ring finger after purchase.