Most couples get engaged during the holidays
Most couples get engaged during the holidaysIt turns out, while everyone else is tuning into the classic holiday movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” many couples are planning their own happy futures together.
Engagement Season starts on Thanksgiving and ends on Valentine’s Day, and marks the time of year when the most men – and women — pop the question. The experts at WeddingWire attribute this trend to the fact that the holidays are traditionally family time; the couple wants to show mom and dad the stunning ring and pop some bubbly to celebrate the joyous occasion.
WeddingWire estimates that about 40% of couples who will be engaged in the next 12 months will do so between November and February. Six out of the 10 top engagement dates fall in December, with Christmas Day being the #1 day to say “yes.”
Money Matters
Before you head out the door to hit the stores, it is important to sit down with your partner and honestly assess how much you can spend. Keep in mind, you’ll have wedding bills to deal with next.
Once you have the magic budget number in hand, start researching how much ring that figure could get you. In many cases, this may be the largest purchase of your life up to this point, so make sure you do your homework before handing over a credit card.
4 C’s of Diamond Engagement Rings
Digging into the four c’s of diamonds — color, cut, clarity and carat — are key, both to assess the quality of a stone and understand where you might be prepared to make compromises (or not).
For example, you can probably save money by getting an H color diamond instead of a G, but you need to understand what that means.
Shape can also have a big influence on price. Round stones are the most popular, with 40.1 percent of shoppers picking them, according to RareCarat data.
However, high demand equals higher prices, so you could opt for considering ovals, which have a similar aesthetic appeal, are less expensive, and appear even larger on the bride-to-be’s finger.
It’s also helpful to know how that shape interacts with other aspects, like clarity. Couples can go fairly low on the clarity scale before imperfections are visible to the naked eye, but those cuts with large, flat surfaces (like an emerald cut) are often less forgiving.
You can also save a significant amount by selecting a diamond that’s lower on the color scale. For example, choosing a yellow or rose gold setting and picking a stone with some blue fluorescence can make a stone with a low color rating appear whiter.
Safeguarding Your Purchase
Once you’ve made your purchase, it’s important to take the stone for an independent appraisal to confirm its quality and value. With that information, get it insured as soon as possible: either as part of your homeowners’ or renters’ coverage (you may need a separate rider) or a separate policy. Things happen – the stone could fall out, or it could be stolen – and you don’t want to be caught without coverage.
F. Silverman Jewelers in Woodcliff Lake, NJ has been helping couples select diamond engagement rings and engagement jewelry for more than 20 years. Contact us or visit us today and let us help you find the perfect symbol of your love that she will cherish for a lifetime.
More Information on Holiday-Season Engagements:
- The Knot, “Proposal Season 2017,” https://www.theknot.com/proposal
- Huffington Post, “How to Get Through Engagement Season Without Losing Friends,” https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/rules-of-engagement-how-to-get-through-engagement_us_5851e2