Gonna Take the Plunge

darahagan

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After 8 Years with my girl, I will be finally asking for her to marry me. I am 25, she is 24. Still pretty young but it is the right time. The reason for posting is one the ring, I found the perfect ring, but it is slightly out of my price range. I can afford it. But we are planning a big trip to Australia next year and kinda have to save as much as possible. This ring was in the first shop I went in, so I still have to shop around but I don't think I will find anything as perfect. I will update on this after tonight.

The second thing is the proposal, I am fairly romantic but I don't know where to start with this. Does anyone have any interesting or inspiring stories of how they did it or got it done to them.

Thanks for the help THP.

PS she hates golf, so a course proposal is out of the question.
 
Congrats and best wishes! You might look around for estate jewelry to save a few bucks. Diamonds are a terrible rip off.

I'm not really a romantic type, so no advice that will be worth much from me.
 
Good luck! Don't worry, my Mom got married at 19. So don't worry about your age. As for the proposal, do something at sunset, or at a pizza place like my Mom and Dad did.:D
 
Check our Blue Nile in New Orleans. They are an internet based company and they offer some great design services. Prices are pretty good also. No clue about international orders though.

I proposed to my wife on top of the Empire State Building.
 
First, congratulations. Next make sure it is something a bit spontaneous and ties into things that are important/meaningful to her. A big splash isn't as important as making it clear that you thought about her when you planned the how, what, and why. I've seen too many guys go way over the top and make it about them not their bride to be, narcissism isn't a good start to a marriage.
 
Nice Dara! I'm about your age and seriously thinking about this step with my girl in the near future. I'm definitely no romantic, so I am probably worse than useless on the idea front...I dunno what the hell I'm gonna do once I decide to go for it...

Oh and my g/f would probably kill me if I proposed on a golf course!
 
Congrats, buddy. It will be a lifetime memory.
 
Nice Dara! I'm about your age and seriously thinking about this step with my girl in the near future. I'm definitely no romantic, so I am probably worse than useless on the idea front...I dunno what the hell I'm gonna do once I decide to go for it...

Oh and my g/f would probably kill me if I proposed on a golf course!

Yea, although it does sound funny! she wouldn't expect it!
 
Good luck, but after 8 years, I think you may have this one locked up.

For the ring, every store is different. I went to an Iowa based jewelry company when I purchased the ring, and not a chain. Not that there is anything wrong with chain stores, because my wedding band came from one. Nonetheless, depending on the store, you may be able to save some money by purchasing a lesser quality diamond. Have you ever wondered how 1 carat diamonds go for so cheap? It's because there is an entire diamond rating system, and it greatly effects the price. See this link for an explanation of that rating system.

http://www.hwgem.com/diascale.htm

The other key thing that could save you money is the weight (carat) of the diamond. Many jewelry shops will let you purchase the individual diamond for the ring, meaning you can choose the ring style, and the diamond that will be placed in the ring. I purchased my wife a very clear and excellent colored diamond, but had to have cost savings in the carat. Every quarter step in carat comes with a significant price jump. For instance, a 0.90 carat diamond is significantly cheaper than a 1.0 carat diamond. I don't specifically remember, but I believe I bought my wife a 0.73 carat diamond, and I saved a few hundred dollars over a 0.75 carat diamond.

If your store does not allow you to select the individual diamond, you may consider a store that does. Many engagement rings are not exclusive to one particular store or chain. When I bought my wifes engagement ring, I saw many styles in the catalog of rings that I had seen in many other stores.

Now, onto the proposal story. I proposed to my wife at a putt-putt golf course. I know your wife doesn't like golf, but the rest of the story is that I repeated everything from our very first date. Same restaurant, same activities. So that is just one of many thoughts for setting up the proposal.

And again, congratulations.

~Rock

EDIT: My personal philosophy is not to use credit to purchase a ring. Cash is king, and may help with negotiating a lower price. Those stores have to pay mastercard (or any other credit card) 2% or more of the total sales price when running a credit card. They aren't allowed to explicitly offer you a discount for using cash instead of a card, but for all practical purposes, they will be more willing to negotiate a discount when you tell them you will be purchasing with cash.
 
Thanks guys, I forgot to mention. I am planning to propose on the 15th of October, its the night we met 8 years ago. She sot of knows its happening but not when its happening.
 
Congrats! I proposed about 14 years ago on the beach in Aisle of Palms, SC. We were at this small concert venue on the beach seeing Sister Hazel and Cowboy Mouth. At the intermission between bands, we walked out back to the beach and I proposed there and luckily she accepted so the 2nd half of the concert didn't suck...haha. After the fact, she told me that she figured I was going to propose because I was acting strange and nervous all night.
 
I'd definitely check around for diamonds. Unless the ring is an estate ring, a different company likely has the same setting and a similar diamond. I went to Jared and got a diamond that was certified and graded for thousands less than other chain stores. I have also heard good things about Diamonds Direct and Blue Nile that was mentioned above.

As for the proposal, just do it in a way that means something to both of you. The night you met is a good start, but you could do it at the place you met or something similar. Also do it in a way that she can tell her friends and family exactly what happened. Once the ring is on their finger, they really like to talk about it....a lot. So don't propose just before you are going to get it on, because she won't be able to tell her family about it.
 
Hey man congrats and I hope she says yes (8 years, you got this in the bag). Everything will work out, but maybe she will come around on the golf, at least putting for "Love is in the Air"
 
Congratulations dude! I'm sure you'll figure out a good proposal, it will likely just come to you. I looked at all of these ideas and didn't use a single one. On a side note, I can give you a good deal on a really nice diamond haha, but seriously.
 
Never pay the asking price of a diamond in a retail shop. Always offer less than the asking price. Like shopping for a car. You will probably get it unless it's out in left field. Also a fan of Blue Nile. Very friendly site.

Good luck!
 
I'd definitely check around for diamonds. Unless the ring is an estate ring, a different company likely has the same setting and a similar diamond. I went to Jared and got a diamond that was certified and graded for thousands less than other chain stores. I have also heard good things about Diamonds Direct and Blue Nile that was mentioned above.

As for the proposal, just do it in a way that means something to both of you. The night you met is a good start, but you could do it at the place you met or something similar. Also do it in a way that she can tell her friends and family exactly what happened. Once the ring is on their finger, they really like to talk about it....a lot. So don't propose just before you are going to get it on, because she won't be able to tell her family about it.

This made me laugh out loud, but it is very true.

~Rock
 
Put some time and effort into your proposal. I had some big ideas for mine, but then got excited and popped the question in a nonchalant setting. While my wife has never made a big deal out of it, I've always regretted not giving her a more special memory for that moment.
 
Oh, another funny story to go along with this, and a lesson for your proposal.

While planning my proposal, I attempted to send a text to my wife's cousin arranging a sort of 'please keep her busy while i go and pick up the ring' sort of thing. Unfortunately, I spaced off and sent that text to my wife. My wife was at our local pharmacy (were a small town, everyone knows everyone). She starts crying, the pharmacist and close family friend says "what's wrong." My wife apparently cried out "he's going to propose." For whatever reason, the pharmacist thought I was going to propose to someone else, so he was like "******, REALLY!?!? That seems really quick."

Still not sure why he thought we had broken up and then I magically got engaged super fast.

Anyways, moral of the story is, if you're sending txts about your plans, make sure you don't send it to your future wife.

~Rock
 
I would recommend buying from a local chain as well, and always ask if that is the best they can do. They are trying to get a customer for life so it never hurts to ask.

As for the proposal, my wife and I were living together already and she really wanted a dog, so I got the dog and put the ring on his collar. I went with the day we first started dating as well.
 
Sorry to hear this....I mean congrats!
 
Congrats...I think.
 
Congrats! I popped the question to my wife on the beach at sunrise....and I live in land locked Kansas, so my timing and setup had to be perfect. lol
 
My wife I went shopping and stopped at a jeweler. We had been discussing it at length and both knew we wanted to get married but never really pushed it. She was browsing and had 3 picked out that she liked. I went back a week or two later and bought it. She seems happy with it but as you'll soon learn, somebody will always have one bigger or better. Just deal with it.
As for the proposal, I'm a big ol romantic at heart and handed her the ring and asked if we were gonna do this or not.
 
Congrats!!!!!
 
Congrats. Getting married myself in 3 weeks
 
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