I love this one My engagement ring is a tension set with a sapphire (http://www.amazon.com/Pinnacle-Blue-Sapphire-Titanium-Tension/dp/B001ECT...) so it doesn't exactly pair with a wedding band well. For the actual wedding I gave him a ring and he gave me a necklace. His ring looked like this: http://www.etsy.com/transaction/15032128 and my necklace looks like this: http://www.etsy.com/transaction/16354288

He and I only wear our actual "wedding rings" for special occasions, though I always wear my engagement ring.

I specifically asked for a non-diamond ring that cost under $100. I don't want to feel guilty when I inevitably lose it. My engagement ring and both our wedding rings ran us under $200 total.

I can't stand the thought of that much money on my person...I'd spend my life in heat failure, checking my jewelry every 5 minutes to ensure I haven't lost of damaged it. I prefer artsy jewelry that is unique. My FDH couldn't quite stomach a stone-less engagement ring, so we compromised; he had a ring designed just for me with some inexpensive small green and blue sapphires. But the wedding ring? A simple gold band for me!

I have a sapphire engagement ring, I don't particulary care for diamonds the only reason my wedding ring has a few diamonds in it is because it was my grandmothers. There isn't anything wrong with not having a diamond.

OOOH!

That was me!

I don't wear diamonds because I am in marketing and I know the premium you're paying just for having a "diamond." Beyond that, we didn't want to spend a ton. I had my rings insured, however, and they were appraised at $1500! So I suggest ordering from Amazon as we only paid about $900 total.

Yeah, I have a .5 c blue sapphire engagement ring and then THIS is my wedding band. Absolutely beautiful.

http://www.amazon.com/White-Gold-Carat-Sapphire-Stackable/dp/B002XFJTYI/...

My engagement ring is white gold with a center cut emerald (looks black but dark green in the sun). There are tiny ribbons with diamonds on either side of the emerald.

I'm not big on diamonds either...Kay's did mine as a special order...I found a setting that I liked & they took the diamonds out & replaced it with the emerald.

I've since been told that emeralds are far too soft to stand out on a ring that is worn all the time & that most other gems aside from diamonds are. Kay's has me have the ring inspected every 6 months & has had to replace the emerald once in 2 years due to chips in the gemstone.

Try going to talk to a jeweler & see what they tell you. I honestly don't believe that it HAS to be a diamond...to each their own! I would have killed my SO if he spent 2 months worth of earnings on a ring (which is what the old-time tradition was). Traditions are changing every day due to the way our world is today so do what you want & whatever you are happy with!

My engagement ring is a has a ruby (very dark red). It was a stone i inherited from my great-grandmother and I asked DH to use it. Many reasons: to save money since DH is a teacher, partially because what the heck was I ever going to do with the loose stone, it seemed a nice way to keep a the tradition and gift of the stone and incorporate it into a new tradition and gift, and because DH has a thing about "blood diamonds". I could have gone with a diamond, but it wasn't that big a deal to me and I like that my ring is different.

DH then made my wedding band (art teacher) and that made it all the more special to me.

Don't let your DH fall for the diamond and man card thing. Do whatever you guys want to do.

I am sure there are some douchebags out there who have given their wives HUGE diamonds....
I have a very cheap engagement ring and he 'owes' me a more impressive one. I insisted on a ring becasuse he was flying back to the States and I knew everyone would ask about one.
I actually do have diamonds in my wedding band (channel style). The diamonds aren't important. The engraving on the inside lies next to my skin and is closer than silly diamonds.
I like newer designs. That titanium ring is AWESOME!

I've got a cheapie CZ but it's big and sparkly! I got it to piss off BM.

If I were to get a diamond, I think I would look into paying waaaay too much and getting a created diamond from hair from both of us. (http://www.celebration-diamonds.com/) LifeGems does the same thing (www.lifegem.com) but bills primarily as a memorial diamond.

I have an opal surrounded with tiny diamonds. More meaningful as it is my birthstone and DH loves opals too.

One of my best friends, who was married almost 30 yrs ago, whose family had money and all...has an Aquamarine ring as her wedding ring. She still has it, she loves it...and she is actually a jewelry type person with lots of money...lol So, I think it's great that you get what you like.

My real wedding ring is platinum with (white) diamonds. My DH picked it out, and there are lots of diamonds on it because that's what he's into. Honestly, if it's a ring/rings you will wear everyday thru everything, diamonds really are the way to go because they are the hardest of the gems (do I sound like a DeBeers commercial??). Other than when I'm in karate, I wear my ring constantly.

~~HOWEVER~~

Look at Caribbean Blue diamonds. Not as expensive as white diamonds. I received a 1 carat caribbean blue diamond ring for my anniversary and it's BEAUTIFUL! It's not blue, it's not green.... it is a really dark almost-turquoise color stone, but it has the sparkle and fire of a diamond.

The ones you will typically find in the states are lighter blue. I got mine in Nassau Bahamas, and there are also some reputable jewelers in the USVI who carry them also (Cardow Jewelers in St Thomas USVI is one of them)

http://www.gordonsjewelers.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4319419&camp=...

If you go to Nexus Diamonds website they are manufactured diamonds - every diamond is perfect and depending on the type of metal you may pay between 300 - 2500 for rings.

I have 1.25 carats in each ear - round diamond and they cost me $304.00 and the woman at the jewelry store did not even know they were not mined diamonds. When we celebrate 10 years in 2 years I am getting a $2800.00 diamond band that would cost around $28,000.00 if they were mined. My engagement ring was close to $10,000 and over a carat surrounded by 2 smaller ones and many others in a ring wrapper and if I had known about Nexus Diamonds I would have went there instead.

I think that an engagement ring should express what your FDH feels for you. Diamonds, saphires, any other stone or no stone as long as he invests his time and feelings in to finding just the right engagement ring to tell you how much he cherishes you. Price does not matter, meaning does.

In my first engagement my mother offered me my GGMs aquamarine engagement ring to give to my fiance. I was touched but it was extremely worn, the stone was smoothed from 60+yrs of wear during their marriage and though it was priceless to me it would not have been well received by my fiance I went with a multi stone diamond ring.

For my XW I went with a very high quality marqui cut diamond on a wide gold band. Though it was only .6ct it had a 1.1ct table weight and was beautiful. The beauty of most fancy cuts is that they can be shallow and sit large. That was the case with the ring I gave my XW.

For my soul mate and increadible wife of 17yrs I went with a .55ct round cut of exceptional quality on a thin gold band. I replaced it 11yrs later with a 1.1ct equally exceptional quality with a platinum band.

I would consider a stone other than diamond for an engagement ring gut I like diamonds so that is what all three of the women I have proposed to got.

My engagement ring was white gold with a small stone in it but when we got married H gave me a whole new ring set the first ring has a 2 carat amathyst in with two 1 carat mystic topaz on a thin gold band with 4 very small diamonds in it and the he gave me just a plain gold band.its different and i love it. I dont like diamonds.H however got a wedding band with one diamond in it gold and titanium band he loves diamonds and its our birth stone

After selling my original diamond from my first marriage and only getting $400 for a $2500 ring I went with a nice moisionite diamond. It is a lab created diamond but one would never know unless you were a jewler. When you are young jewlers tell you that you are making an "investment"....lol

Pick what you want. Your first marriage may have been a "diamond solitare" traditonal but since second marriages and blended families are so unique I think you should get something unique as well.