Wedding Help

With all the hubbub around your wedding planning, sometimes we just don’t think about some of the traditions or meanings behind the certain things were doing. It’s not really our fault, there really is a ton of stuff to work on when doing your wedding planning. But sometimes it’s important to know the traditions and why you do certain things the way you do in order to help make them more memorable for you. Take wedding rings for instance. Why do we give wedding rings in the first place, and why are they always worn on the left hand? Is there any kind of meaning behind them or is it just something to mark us as taken to the world around us? Here are some little known facts about wedding ring traditions to help you get a better idea  of the meaning and uses behind that wedding ring.

Are Wedding Rings Always Worn on the Left Hand?

No they’re not. And this was even a surprise to me when I was working on this article.

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Tags: engagement ring, wedding ring traditions, wedding rings

Up until a few months ago, I had never even heard of conflict free diamonds, and now it seems as though I’m hearing about them all the time. They were pretty widely publicized when Pete Wentz proposed to Ashlee Simpson with a conflict free diamond ring, and since then I’ve been hearing about them almost non-stop, either that or I’ve just had my head in the sand for that long. No telling. Leonardo DiCaprio’s movie Blood Diamond has really brought the matter to the attention of the public. In the past, most couples never worried where their diamond came from, but now that is no longer the case. Here are some frequently asked questions about conflict free diamonds in part of a new series I will be doing on couples wanting to have a “green” wedding.

What is a Conflict-Free Diamond?

In some areas of the world, diamond mining is used to finance rebel fighting in places like Sierra Leone, Angola and the Congo. There is an estimate out which states that these smuggled diamonds, also called conflict diamonds, represented as much as 10-15% of the global diamond trade about ten years ago. The idea of people dying over the diamond in your engagement ring is terrible, and many couples want to make sure that the diamond they purchase for their rings doesn’t have such a grim and terrible history. Many changes have been put in place to help couples ensure that their stones are conflict free.

How Can I Tell if the Diamond is Conflict Free?

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Tags: conflict free diamond, conflict free diamonds, engagement ring, Green Weddings

So you have your wedding dress all picked out and sized, you’ve chosen your wedding shoes and even have some kind of an idea on what kind of wedding hairstyle you’d like to wear on your big day. What else do you need to complete your wedding look? Simple, you will want to look for some kind of wedding jewelry to wear with your wedding dress that will help to complete your look. Wedding necklaces are a great place to start. There are many different kinds of wedding necklaces that you can buy to help accent your wedding dress. I’ve seen simple wedding necklaces with perhaps only a single pearl that adds a touch of elegance, and I’ve also seen more ornate wedding necklaces that are very glamorous. Wedding necklaces really do come in all shapes and sizes, and you want to make sure to buy a wedding necklace that goes the best with your wedding dress. Here are a few tips to use when looking for the perfect wedding necklace to complete your wedding day look.

Wedding Necklaces to Go with Your Wedding Dress

The first thing you will need to consider when looking at wedding necklaces is what kind of neckline your wedding dress has. Knowing this will help you to choose a wedding necklace that is the correct length for your dress. If you have a simple wedding necklace with just a single pearl and your dress has a high neckline, then the pearl could wind up sitting on the top of your wedding dress, and the effect will be gone. My wedding dress had a V-neck and I was able to look at all sorts of wedding necklaces since length wasn’t very much of an issue with my dress. Also, when shopping for wedding necklaces, make sure that the style of necklace you buy will compliment the beading on your wedding dress as well. My dress was beaded with lots of tiny pearls, so a pearl wedding necklace worked the best for me. You could also look at wedding necklaces that will add a little bit of color. One wedding I went to, the bride wore a white strapless dress, and then a very heavy wedding necklace of many different stands of white and bronze colored pearls. The effect turned out really beautifully. So feel free to be creative.

Wedding Necklaces with Special Meaning

Perhaps the best idea for finding wedding necklaces is to use one that already has special meaning for you. Maybe borrow a necklace from a mother or sister that will complete your wedding look as well as serving as your ’something borrowed’. Or maybe you already have a special wedding necklace you want to use. On the day of my sister’s wedding, her husband sent over a bag from Zales shortly before the ceremony with a beautiful heart and diamond necklace inside. It was such a sweet surprise, and gave her the perfect wedding necklace to wear with her wedding dress.

There is no tradition or rules set in stone as of to what kind of wedding necklaces you should wear with your wedding dress. Just be sure that when you are shopping for wedding necklaces, you get one that you really love. Of course, it is always an added benefit when you get to wear your wedding necklaces again for special occasions. If you have any great ideas for wedding necklaces you’d like to share, please write in and let me know.

For more great wedding tips and ideas, visit Wedding Help.

Tags: wedding jewelry, wedding necklace, wedding necklaces

Tiffany and Co. has been around since the 1800’s, and there is no doubt, they make a truly fabulous line of jewelry. In fact, while many women out there dream of their perfect Tiffany engagement rings, other women out there are just waiting for their boyfriends to propose, and any kind of engagement ring will do. So what makes a Tiffany engagement ring so special for some women out there, and not a big deal for others? Is it simply a difference in taste, a finance problem in affording the ring, or perhaps something else? No matter what the reason is for so many women out there craving a beautiful Tiffany engagement ring, one thing is for certain, Tiffany and Co. is well known for their quality in jewelry, and they’re not going out of style anytime soon. So if you are looking at Tiffany engagement rings, and wondering if they are worth the cost, then here are some great pros and cons of spending the extra money for a Tiffany Engagement Ring, and some alternatives to buying an original Tiffany engagement ring.

Why Tiffany Engagement Rings are so Beautiful

Like I said before, Tiffany and Co. has been around since 1800, and they know what they’re doing when it comes to crafting a beautiful piece of jewelry. Many grooms go in for a Tiffany engagement ring to impress their brides, while others know that their brides would really love any kind of Tiffany engagement ring. Tiffany engagement rings have a simple and classic setting that continues to be popular among brides. Tiffany engagement rings are known for their glowing diamond rings having bases in platinum or gold with a six prong arrangement that elevates the stone to get more exposure of light, which really makes the diamond sparkle. Not only that, but everyone knows that the Tiffany engagement ring that comes in a little blue box with a silver ribbon is made of the highest quality.

Tiffany Engagement Rings - Other Options

Tiffany has certainly set itself up to cater to the upper and the upper-middle social class. Some of their engagement rings can be obtained for a little over a grand, and they are willing to work with their customers to find the perfect Tiffany engagement ring to fit nearly any budget. But maybe a Tiffany engagement ring isn’t for you. There are many diamonds that are still very beautiful that do not require you to pay for the name brand. If you are really wanting a Tiffany engagement ring without the high costs, then nearly every jeweler out there can create a custom Tiffany setting for your engagement ring, and even custom make an engagement ring for you for less than the cost of buying a Tiffany engagement ring over the counter at one of their many locations.

Tiffany engagement rings are very beautiful, and diamonds really are a girl’s best friend. If you are wanting an original Tiffany engagement ring, then I’d suggest either waiting for a sale, or to start saving your money now, as an original Tiffany engagement ring can easily run you over $5 grand. Find a ring that fits into her tastes as your budget (if possible), and remember that the engagement isn’t just about the ring, though it is a great place to start.

Tags: engagement ring, tiffany engagement ring, tiffany engagement rings

Lots of guys out there who are fixing to pop the question, and you know what question I mean, are faced with multiple decisions and questions. How should I do it? Should I have the ring first, or should we pick it out together later? What kind of engagement ring should I get? And of course, the nagging question on some men’s mind, Will she say yes? I know that my husband went through the same questions and thoughts while he was planning on proposing. One of the questions he worked through really well though, was which kind of engagement ring to get, and that was a princess cut engagement ring. I loved my engagement ring, it was what I had always dreamed of, and impressingly enough, he found out the answer himself. So, here is how my husband found out that a princess cut engagement ring was right for me, and maybe his methods will work for other guys out there looking to pop the question.

Look at Her Current Jewelry

What really helped my husband choose a princess cut engagement ring for me, was just his observation of some of the rings and jewelry that I already had before we got engaged. I already had a nice princess cut stone ring, in a light aqua color that my parents had bought me at graduation, and while we were dating, my husband would look at the ring and ask questions about it. From that, he knew that I preferred princess cut stones with white gold bands, and would love a princess cut engagement ring. While he was looking for the perfect princess cut engagement ring, he took one of my other rings from my jewelry box and had it sized to find out what size ring I was. So, that worked out really well too.

Talk to Her Friends and Family

First of all, before talking to her friends and family, be sure that you talk to someone you can really trust to keep your secret, so that it will stay a suprise. Once you find someone that you trust, then ask them what kind of rings you think that your girlfriend would prefer, and take their opinions seriously. Be sure to ask about what cut of diamond you think she prefers, as well if she wants a yellow or white gold band. After all, not every girl out there wants a princess cut engagement ring.

The princess cut engagement ring is a pretty new cut of diamond that has taken hold and gotten popular in the last decade or so. But remember that a princess cut engagement ring may not be right for every girl out there, some prefer older fashioned rings, or even engagement rings with other stones besides diamonds, or a yellow gold band. My identical twin sister preferred a round cut diamond instead of a princess cut engagment ring, so don’t make any assumptions when it comes to the ring. So, like I said, the princess cut engagement ring that my husband picked out was perfect, and the ring that you pick out for your girlfriend should be something that you know she will love and cherish for the years to come. Happy hunting!

Tags: engagement ring, princess cut engagment ring, wedding rings