Bliss Rings » Wedding Ring Tips

How to Buy Wedding Rings Direct

Silvya Curtis — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 22:16:19 +0000

There are literally thousands of websites offering to sell you wedding rings direct online. Buying a wedding ring is a daunting task in a high street store – let alone buying rings online where you pay for the ring prior to seeing it.

Here are a few tips to keep you safe when buying wedding rings direct.

How to Check For Reputable Online Jewellery Websites

When choosing your wedding rings make sure you are purchasing from an accredited jeweller. Choose an online store that is a member of a professional trade association like the British Jewellers Association. Such associations have ethical and quality standards to which their members adhere.

Bliss Rings is a member of the British Jewellers Association and we proudly show off their logo on our website.

Also, check with government watchdog agencies to see if the store has a good record of delivering what they promise. For example, does the store honour its return policy? If there are customer complaints filed with a watchdog then look for another online site from which to purchase your wedding rings direct.

Check out Online Websites Policies Before You Purchase a Ring

All good jewellery stores should clearly outline their policies and commitments to their customers.

At Bliss Rings, we have a privacy policy, an FAQ and also we are very proud to spell out what you can expect from our service via our commitment to you policy page.

Price

Price is probably one of the most important considerations for customers when buying wedding rings direct from a website.

The cheapest site may not be the best alternative – but you also do not want to overpay for the type and quality of ring you are purchasing.

Be sure to get quotes for similar wedding rings on several reputable sites to make sure you are getting the best ring for the best price.

Getting the wedding ring design you want

Find a buy wedding rings direct website that offers multiple styles and types of rings and/or ring designers to choose from.

It is also helpful if the site provides multiple views of the rings available so you can easily see which rings meet your design and style expectations. The more details you can see online the less likely you will end up with a ring that does not meet your expectations.

In our experience in the industry this is the biggest area of disappointment for customers. Often what a customer sees in a single picture on a website doesn’t look quite as nice when they receive their rings in the mail.

This is why Bliss Rings have chosen a different model – where you can try on as many wedding rings as you want in the comfort of your own home before making your selection. We often find that after trying on a range of rings our customers fall in love with a ring that is very different from the styles they have been browsing online.

When to Buy Eternity Rings

What Are Wedding Ring Sets?

Silvya Curtis — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 20:13:41 +0000

Wedding ring sets sometimes called bridal sets are typically an engagement ring and matching wedding ring with similar or complimentary designs, metals, settings and stones. Occasionally you will see the term “wedding ring sets” used to describe matching his and her wedding bands.

Wedding ring sets tips

Wedding ring sets that include perfectly matched engagement and wedding rings are thought to be symbolic of the unity of the relationship you are creating and are a beautiful way for the bride to be able to comfortably wear both her wedding ring and engagement ring on the same finger. Designed to fit neatly together the rings are made to nest closely one above the other without gaps.

When buying a wedding ring set you need to follow the same guidelines as buying separate wedding and engagement rings. Set your budget first. Select the style of rings you are interested in and the metal or gems stones you want to incorporate in the rings.

Your budget may influence the type of metal you select for your ring. For example, platinum is expensive so if your budget can not accommodate platinum you will want to look at a white or yellow gold ring. Compared to platinum gold is relatively inexpensive.

Another interesting and inexpensive choice of metals is palladium. Palladium offers exceptional value for money. Palladium rings are typically less than half the price of an identical design made from platinum.

Whether plain or patterned or set with gem stones, your choice of wedding ring sets is a personal choice and should reflect your personal taste, the type of other jewellery you wear, your budget, your lifestyle and if you intend to wear the rings everyday or occasionally. There is no right or wrong choice of style, metal or design.

His and her wedding ring sets

His and her wedding ring sets are important to some couples. If you are looking for a matching wedding ring set for you and your significant other make sure you shop together and that your choice of metal, style and design works for both of you. The rings do not have to be identical they can be complimentary and often are different widths to fit comfortably on the bride’s and the groom’s fingers.

Take your time and choose a ring or wedding ring set that you will enjoy wearing for years to come. After all you are entering into a relationship with the intent that it will last for many years and you would like your choice of rings to last as long. Be careful of selecting a trendy or fashionable ring that may go out of style quickly. On the other hand do not feel constrained by tradition. Look for the middle ground; something stylish and striking but with a tasteful design that will have lasting appeal.

Wedding Rings for Men

Silvya Curtis — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 02:12:29 +0000

When selecting a gent’s wedding ring for a gent it is important to consider your lifestyle and personality as well as finding a ring that is comfortable to wear and fits within your budget.

Lifestyle

An important consideration is will you be wearing your ring at work or while participating in sports or leisure activities that may damage your ring. If you intend to wear your wedding ring at work or while participating in rough leisure activities are there special considerations you need to take into account in terms of the design and metal the ring is made of so that the ring will stand-up to your day-to-day activities.

Many men who work with their hands find it easier to not wear their ring at work. Wearing the ring only on weekends and special occasions allows you to expand your choices of designs and metals. Another option is to wear your wedding ring on a neck chain while at work.

Comfort

A major consideration when selecting a wedding ring is to find a ring that is comfortable to wear. This is a much bigger concern for men who have not worn rings in the past. Keep in mind that thinner bands are generally more comfortable than thicker bands. Bands with rounded rather than sharp edges are often more comfortable.

Consider a comfort curve ring that is curved on the inside of the band, rather than having a flat inner surface.

To ensure a comfortable fit you must try on the rings and select the one that feels the most natural on your finger.

Metals

Gold is one of the most popular wedding ring metals. Wedding rings are typically 9ct, 14ct and 18ct gold. The higher the proportion of gold used in the ring, the more hard the metal in the ring will be. However the difference in the hardness of a 9ct and 18ct ring is small.

A man who works with his hands might find a titanium ring a suitable option. This high tech metal is much stronger than traditional gold, silver or platinum rings (titanium is the hardest metal in the world) and is also lightweight and hypoallergenic.

Another great metal choice is platinum. Platinum is a very attractive white metal, like silver or white gold – but is much denser, heavier and more hardwearing metal.

Although typically more expensive, platinum wedding rings are my pick for the best wedding rings for men.

How to Maintain a White Gold Wedding Band

Silvya Curtis — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 06:28:43 +0000

White gold wedding bands became popular during World War II when using platinum for non-military purposes was banned. White gold is an inexpensive, elegant, versatile metal that can be used to create unique and beautiful jewellery. White gold wedding bands are lighter weight than platinum wedding bands and stronger and more durable and more scratch resistant than pure or yellow gold. With proper care, a white gold wedding band will maintain a flawless appearance for a long time.

White gold wedding bands are not pure gold. White gold is an alloy of gold and usually nickel, palladium or silver. The alloy of metals is naturally a pale yellow in colour however typically white gold wedding bands are plated with rhodium to make the while gold rings shinier and whiter in colour. Rhodium is very reflective, extremely hard and does not tarnish.

The problem with the rhodium plating is that in three to five years depending on how active you are when wearing the white gold wedding bands the rhodium plating begins to wear off where it rubs against your hand or other fingers and must be replaced. The re-plating process is not expensive. The price depends on the intricacy of the design of the wedding bands being re-plated. Most jewellers offer a re-plating service.

You can easily clean your white gold wedding rings at home. The simplest way to clean the rings is to use a solution of equal parts of ammonia and water although there are also ammonia based commercial jewellery cleaning solutions you can purchase. If your white gold wedding band has pearls or gems set into the ring check with your jeweller before cleaning the ring with an ammonia solution.

Soak the rings in the ammonia solution in a bowl for 10 to 20 minutes to loosen any dirt and grime that has accumulated on the rings. Please note: it is recommended that you soak the rings in a bowl and not in a sink to avoid inadvertently losing the rings down the drain.

After soaking you can use a soft toothbrush to gently scrub off any remaining dirt in the crevices of the ring. After the ring is clean rinse the ring with warm water and dry with a soft towel.

If your white gold wedding band has designs or etchings you may want to use an ultrasonic machine which uses vibrations and water to clean the crevices.

To keep the ring clean it should be stored in a cloth box or bag or a jewellery box with separate compartments to keep other jewellery from scratching the white gold wedding bands.

White gold wedding bands are beautiful and a good value for their cost and even when figuring in the cost of re-plating the rings every so often still are a less expensive option than a platinum wedding band.

Choosing the Perfect Wedding Rings for Women

Silvya Curtis — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 06:05:23 +0000

Most guys do not buy wedding rings for women without first consulting the wife-to-be. Engagement rings are typically purchased in secret to surprise the lady – but wedding rings are most often bought together. This is a good thing because it avoids the size issue. To purchase wedding rings for women you must know their ring size – and just as important – what sort of wedding ring will match their engagement ring.

What if the ring you spend all that time searching for and purchasing does not fit your bride’s finger or sit perfectly with her engagement ring?

My recommendation is that unless you have already had a discussion about wedding rings and already know what she wants, you don’t want to risk choosing your bride’s wedding ring without her being there. If you are sure you know what your bride wants in a wedding ring go for it; otherwise make the selection of your wedding rings a joint decision.

For example, wedding rings for women can match the groom’s ring – or the bride and groom can choose rings of entirely different styles. Either is appropriate. It really is a matter of personal taste.

Selecting wedding rings for women

Selecting wedding rings for women can be tricky; there are so many decisions to make. If your bride has already decided she wants her ring to match her engagement ring as a set, some of your decisions such as which metals to select and the profile of the ring will already be determined by the engagement ring it is going to match.

In selecting wedding rings for women you need to consider the woman’s lifestyle. If your bride is a gardener or uses her hands in her profession you will want to choose a ring that will not be damaged easily. Selecting wedding rings for women who work with their hands means that you should find a ring made from a durable metal that will not easily scratch or bend. You will want to avoid wedding rings with settings that could catch on something and cause the stone to come loose. If you do get a wedding ring with a setting make sure the setting is secure.

If you are selecting a wedding ring with a stone, make sure you have read about the stone and understand how to evaluate the stone’s quality. For diamonds, familiarize yourself with the 4 C’s: cut, clarity, colour and caret. There are similar measures of quality for all gem stones.

The three most popular metals for wedding rings for women are yellow gold, white gold and platinum but there are many other choices including palladium and tungsten.

Tips for Matching Your Wedding Ring with Your Engagement Ring

Silvya Curtis — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:26:31 +0000

Correctly matching your wedding band with your engagement ring is very important for 3 main reasons:

Design and visual appeal
Comfort
Durability

The following are some tips to consider matching your wedding ring with your engagement ring.

Colour

Selecting a metal colour for your rings is a subjective decision and will depend on the look you are trying to achieve with your rings.

Some of our customers favour the same colour metal and finish to be used in both rings to create a perfect match. Others prefer contrasting colours and bring together white and yellow gold rings – or choose a two tone or alternative colour wedding ring.

My recommendation? Although I’ve some absolutely beautiful two and three colour combinations, I think it is hard to beat matching white gold colour engagement and wedding rings – with a generous sprinkling of diamonds!

Metal

Your choice of metal is very important for the maintenance and durability of your rings. Make sure the metals in each of your rings are of similar hardness. Ideally this would mean that the metals are the same.

If you do not do this – for example if your engagement ring is white gold and your wedding ring is platinum – then it is likely that the rhodium plating on the white gold engagement ring will be worn away more quickly by the hard platinum ring rubbing against it.

During a Bliss Rings home consultation one of our advisors can help to ensure the metals you choose will not cause durability problems down the track.

Design

Although there are no specific tips I can give about creating a matching design for your engagement and wedding rings, I do recommend that you try on lots and lots of rings.

It is very common that the wedding ring design that initially catches your eye in a picture or in a jeweller’s cabinet actually doesn’t look very good when it’s on your finger alongside your engagement ring.

Try on lots of different designs, including different ring widths and profiles, to make sure your rings look great together.

Better yet, consider a custom shaped wedding ring…

Shape

A custom shaped wedding ring can be designed to fit perfectly next to your engagement ring. There are lots of different styles to choose from – and with a custom designed ring you are limited only by your imagination – and the knowledge and experience of your jeweller.

Importantly, a well made shaped wedding ring will be much more comfortable to wear and much less prone to pinching than badly matched engagement and wedding rings.

Your Bliss Rings advisor will bring to your home more than 220 stunning rings for you to view and try on to ensure you choose a ring that matches your engagement ring perfectly. We can also help you to design a custom shaped wedding ring – or even remodel your engagement ring.

Choosing diamonds for your wedding ring

Silvya Curtis — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 02:06:58 +0000

Choosing a diamond for your ring can be a confusing process. You are probably already familiar with the 4 C’s of diamonds. These are the 4 factors that contribute to the value and the beauty of a diamond.

The 4 C’s are:

Cut – the shape and proportions of the diamond. The cut has a big impact on the “sparkle” and wow-factor of the diamond.
Clarity – the number and size of “inclusions” in the diamond – and to what extent these imperfections are visible to the naked eye.
Colour – the amount of color the diamond contains. This can range from colorless through to yellow, gray or brown.
Carat – the unit of weight for the diamond – in other words, the diamond’s size.

Individual diamonds are evaluated by a number of grading authorities across the world. One of the largest is the Gemological Institute of America.

Larger diamonds, such as those used in engagement rings are typically sold with a grader certificate that provides detailed information on the diamond including the 4 C’s.

When selecting diamonds for a wedding ring we recommend as far as possible that you match the grade of the wedding ring diamond with the diamond on your engagement ring or gents commitment ring.

This is particularly important for the colour grade of the diamond – since variations of diamond colour can be quite apparent when the rings are worn next to each other on the same finger.

All Bliss Rings diamonds are of the highest quality – with a minimum VS1 clarity and G/H colour. Ask us for more information on matching your wedding ring with your engagement ring.