Hello, my name is Jerome Silas. Welcome to my website about creating and following a healthy household budget. When I was in college, I tried to create a smart budget to save all the pennies I could after paying my bills. Unfortunately, I jumped in too fast and created a budget that was impossible to follow for the long term. Through the years, I have learned all about the methods that work best while creating and following a budget. I would like to share those methods with you all to help everyone create a healthy household budget. Thanks for your time.
When you want to propose with the ring but have a tight budget, you might wonder how you can get the kind of ring you want for your partner without breaking the bank. Fortunately, there are several ways you can save money while ring shopping. Here are some tips to consider.
Check out the local pawn shop.
You might not have considered buying diamonds secondhand, but many pawnshops offer beautiful rings at a bargain price. Pawn shops are also great places to find vintage or unique rings, which can be appealing to some tastes.
The only worry you should have about pawn shop ring buying is that you'll have a harder time assessing the quality of the jewelry you buy there. It's hard to tell whether a diamond is cut well and has few flaws without a jewelers loop. Some shops specialize in selling jewelry and will have more information about the rings, including their carat weight and the quality of the metal. If you can, bring someone with you who can look at the different rings and give you an unbiased opinion on their worth and quality.
Pay for one part at a time.
If buying used is not for you, you might consider purchasing just one part of the ring at a time. When you buy a ring, you buy the setting first and then choose a diamond to fill it. When you can't afford both the setting and the diamond, pay for the setting first, and save for a precious jewel to fill it later. In the meantime, you can fill the diamond's place with a cubic zirconia or glass gem. These will get scuffed and begin to lose their beauty over the course of a year or so, but you'll have the beautiful setting waiting for a diamond after you've had more time to save.
Shop around.
Sometimes, people can buy engagement rings on impulse when strolling through the mall. However, impulse jewelry buying will cost you. Instead, take some time to research diamond quality, types, cuts, and colors. Try to get a feeling for what a good price on a gemstone might be. The more informed you are, the better you will be able to scout out good deals as you visit several jewelers in the area.
Forget about flawless.
Diamonds are graded on carat weight, cut, color, and clarity. The carat weight is basically how large the diamond will look, and the color affects how brilliant the diamond shines in bright light. Diamonds that are truly colorless are more expensive, while diamonds will slight yellowing will cost less. Cut will affect how a diamond looks most drastically. When cut poorly, the diamond will not reflect light as well, making the stone appear dull. It should be your highest priority when shopping, because a diamond with perfect color or even a large carat weight will not look as nice when it is not cut well.
An area you can "give" on is clarity. Most stones have inclusions -- little imperfections that you can see when looking at the diamond with magnification. Heavily included diamonds will be much less expensive, especially if you can see the imperfections with the naked eye. However, even if the occlusions are small or not visible without a loupe, you can enjoy the lower price and still have a beautiful diamond.
Recycle.
Finally, don't forget that you can recycle old jewelry into something new. If you have a ring from a grandparent or other jewelry that you do not use or wear, you can have it reformed into a custom ring. This way, you don't have to pay for the costs of materials, and your ring, especially the diamond or gemstone, will be less expensive.
For more tips and to check out diamonds for sale, visit retailers like the Rocky Mountain Gold & Silver Exchange.
Share10 October 2017
