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Personally, I think even plain wedding bands are overpriced for what they are, as well.
I agree. I'm lucky to know a lot about making jewelry and I was able to have our rings custom made at a really reasonable price. The price was based on the market price of the metal at the time plus labor. It was much cheaper than anything from a regular jeweler.
My mom did the same thing. She and my dad purchased my bouquet and my bridesmaids' flowers, and that was their gift. My mother-in-law picked up the tab for a rehearsal dinner. We paid for the rest. It was a simple church wedding with BBQ reception at an old vintage movie theatre, and it was completely affordable for us - we didn't even use all the savings we earmarked for the wedding. I got a thousand-dollar bridal gown and veil for free, our photographer was a military photojournalist who worked with my husband, and did our photography for free, so we really had essentially no big ticket expenses. Getting married is only as expensive as you make it.
Why would a guy not like a woman that says "Nope - I don't want you to spend $10-20k on a ring"?
Quote:
Originally Posted by jsun556
Women want rings and not the wedding because the man pays for the ring and the woman's family typically pays for the wedding. So... they'd rather the man spend a lot of money because they don't want to.
Why not just tell it how it is?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Checkered24
If I ever meet a marriage minded woman who doesn't want an engagement ring, I will let you know. Otherwise, I cannot imagine this is all that common.
It's not common at all for a woman to NOT want a man to get her an engagement ring. My wife and I thought having thousands of dollars wrapped around our fingers wouldn't make much sense. Instead we saved that money for a longer honeymoon and home improvement. We did get wedding bands but that was about it.
I agree. I'm lucky to know a lot about making jewelry and I was able to have our rings custom made at a really reasonable price. The price was based on the market price of the metal at the time plus labor. It was much cheaper than anything from a regular jeweler.
Ours were inexpensive, too, as those things go (got them from a military exchange jeweler, so discounted and tax-free, like essentially everything in military exchanges). I still thought they were overpriced for two plain gold bands.
I recently read a newspaper article that the average cost of an engagement ring in 2014 was between $2500 and $3500.
The article also mentioned that the pricier the ring, the more likely the couples were to divorce. I can believe how that might be true. It's sort of similar to how tattooing your sweetheart's name on your body is a sure sign that you are about to break up!
In my first marriage, I didn't have an engagement ring. We were young and poor and it wasn't important. I don't wear rings anyway. My current husband not only insisted on a ring, he refused to purchase the ring I picked out at first, because it was "too small". He said that he would be embarrassed to have his wife wear it.
So the ring I have meets his requirement for being "respectable" in size and quality. It's bigger than anything I ever would have chosen without his prodding me to go bigger and better. I've gotten used to it and I love it now. It means something to me, and I would be devastated to lose it. I am glad that I have it.
I paid for both of my weddings and his wedding rings (he keeps losing them, so I've bought him 4 rings at last count). My husband paid for the honeymoon and the engagement ring. Not that it matters, it's all the same at the end of the day.
I recently read a newspaper article that the average cost of an engagement ring in 2014 was between $2500 and $3500.
Yeah, there's no way mine was that expensive.
People can spend whatever works for them on jewelry. I just know that for us, the money was better spent elsewhere. My ring's great, but between choosing to spend more money on the ring, and having that money to spend on traveling to England and Scotland, it was a real no-brainer for us. Others may prioritize differently.
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