Archive for the ‘Wedding gifts’ Category

Why We Use Engagement Rings These Days

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

Engagement rings are worn on the ring finger of either hand, depending on which country the bride-to-be is to be wed. For instance, in Poland, the woman will wear her engagement ring on her right hand’s ring finger while in the West women will wear their engagement rings on their left hand’s ring finger. Engagement rings are said to show the formal acceptance of the bride-to-be of her fiance’s offer to get married.

A new tradition regarding engagement rings is for the woman to buy the engagement ring for her male fiancé when they get engaged. This new tradition is on the rise in Canada and the USA. An alternative tradition which is followed in Spain is for the woman to give an engagement wristwatch to her male fiancé upon her acceptance of the engagement ring from him.

It is believed that the diamond production company named de Beers is responsible for the growing acceptance of and use of diamond engagement rings in Western culture because de Beers has been advocating use of diamond engagement rings since the 1940s. Use of diamonds in rings (not necessarily engagement rings) has been a practice observed for centuries. The concept itself of using engagement rings per se can be traced to a decree by Pope Innocent III wherein couples that intended to marry should wait longer after being betrothed to one another. To symbolize this waiting period, engagement rings came into being.

However, in many countries it is not necessary to give out diamond engagement rings because engagement rings may use other colored gems rather than simply the commonly-used diamond. The diamond became accepted because it is the hardest of all the precious stones thus symbolizing enduring love. But if the couple accepts the use of other gems, the engagement rings given out may have rubies, emeralds, star sapphires, and sapphires instead of diamonds. And in certain countries, the engagement rings used may be just bands made of gold, silver or even titanium without any precious stones mounted on them. Semi-precious stones are also acceptable nowadays to be used in place of precious stones on engagement rings.

If you opt for engagement rings that are simply metal bands, do use gold or platinum since these are more durable and have higher value compared to other types of engagement rings that use other types of metals. Silver is usually not recommended for engagement rings because this metal is less durable than gold or platinum. If you do opt for a gold or silver engagement ring, the jeweler may advocate use of a platinum setting so that your engagement ring stays more durable over time.

The more contemporary types of engagement rings may use titanium or even just stainless steel because they are less expensive than gold, silver or platinum yet are stronger than the latter. One problem you may encounter with use of titanium engagement rings is that in a medical emergency the titanium engagement ring might be impossible to remove because of its sheer strength and because cutting tools in hospital emergency rooms are not usually equipped to cut through some grades of titanium. A gold ring is so soft, on the other hand, that your standard electrician pliers can cut through a gold ring within a second.

In the past, the groom-to-be was expected to select the engagement ring (or possibly engagement rings – one for his bride, one for him) by himself. Nowadays though, since many couples try to live together before marriage, it is becoming more of the norm for these live-in partners to select engagement rings together.

A woman who accepts an engagement ring is considered betrothed to the man who gave the ring. If she breaks the wedding engagement, it is generally expected of her to return the engagement ring to the man who gave it. If the man breaks the wedding engagement, the woman is not expected to return the ring. In extreme cases when wedding engagements are cancelled, the court has to intervene as to who owns engagement rings and why.

Seeking for Beautiful Asian Women for Marriage

Monday, January 25th, 2010

Are you searching for exotic women to marry? Finding the best couple for a lifetime is very difficult. We have to consider many things before we decide to end our bachelor adventure to one woman only. Reliable background and good personality are two most important things that we put in our consideration. Background or culture often influences the adaptation of the couples which means that we have to find a spouse with compatible culture so the marriage will last forever.

Many people agree that marriage is supposed to be once in a lifetime. That is why we have to be serious in choosing the appropriate soul mate who will accompany us for the rest of our life. There are of course many women are occurred in our surroundings, but to select one out of thousands is very hard. There are some significant points that we have to observe and determine in order to get the one that matches best with our characteristics.

Setting up a standard for the dreaming woman is much suggested. Therefore, we can limit our search and easily select the ones that fit with our standardization and those who don’t.

In this modern era, the method of searching potential wife candidates is now getting easier. A social networking site, or the kind of dating sites, is available to provide people with the matching girls that they are looking for. A great site such as asianwomenplanet.com is obviously suitable with this particular need. This site has a large quantity of Asian beautiful chicks that you probably are attracted into. Finding asian women for marriage is no longer complicated if you use this site services. You only need to create an account in this site and ask for membership. Once you get the membership, you will have plenty of Asian girls’ options. Just get to know to some of them and you will find your soul mate immediately.

Celebrity Inspired Custom Made Engagement Rings

Monday, January 25th, 2010

When designing your own engagement ring, it can be useful to look at the latest celebrity engagement rings for the most recent trends and ideas. This can be especially useful if there are celebrities out there who have a style you admire. While you may not have the unlimited finances of some celebrities, you can certainly adapt some of their engagement ring designs.

These recent and not-so-recent celebrity engagement rings are all worthy of a mention:

* Portia de Rossi is the latest celebrity to be wearing a sparkler on that finger. Yes, she and Ellen De Generes are planning on marrying soon. Portia’s engagement ring features a central marquis diamond surrounded by pink diamonds.

* Ashlee Simpson has an engagement ring that is beautiful in its simplicity. Ashlee’s ring is a square cut diamond (probably Asscher) with many smaller diamonds set around this to maintain the square style. The platinum band also is inlaid with multiple small diamonds. While Ashlee’s ring is new it is certainly reflective of the growing trend for square settings and vintage inspired engagement rings.

* Mariah Carey has never made any secret that her favorite color is pink. Not surprisingly, her engagement ring from Nick Cannon features 58 intense pink diamonds coming in at a hefty 17 carats. The rumored value of this enormous engagement ring is $2.5 million. Mariah’s ring is very much a vintage inspired setting with a square central setting surrounded by smaller diamonds. The pink diamonds give this almost Art Deco inspired ring a contemporary feel.

* Jessica Alba has a platinum set 4 carat solitaire Asscher diamond. The square setting and the platinum is a very elegant and classic design.

* Eva Longoria Parker. This desperate housewife has a far from suburban engagement ring. Her platinum engagement ring features 3 emerald cut diamonds in a very simple but contemporary design.

* Scarlett Johanssen has a unique sense of style. This girl has chosen a solitaire ring with a roundish stone set in a bezel setting on a gold band. No platinum or square settings in sight.

* Carmen Electra has a black diamond as her central stone. This makes for a very striking engagement ring.

* Katie Holmes may have been married for a while but her engagement ring is still worthy of a mention. Katie has a 5 carat flawless round solitaire diamond as her central setting. Interestingly, the diamond is set in rose gold which contrasts nicely with the platinum band. Around the central stone is a beautiful pave setting of smaller diamonds.

The latest celebrity trend for engagement rings are very much platinum, square settings, vintage inspired, and colored diamonds.

Designing your own engagement ring gives every girl the chance to feel like a superstar. Have a celebrity inspired engagement ring custom made at a fraction of the celebrity price tag. Find the celebrity engagement ring of your dreams and have your custom jeweler make it up for you in a more realistic price range. Your jeweler will be able to advise you on how best to replicate a celebrity engagement ring and keep within your own budget.