Do you judge other women’s engagement rings?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lab stones are so weird to me. I wouldn’t do it. They have no resale value - at least a real diamond has some and has actual market value. An engagement ring should be expensive. It means something. I want to be able to give my ring to my kids. I doubt they’d want some costume jewelry. It feels like buying a fake Chanel off canal street. Sure, they’re made in the same factory! They’re basically the same! But one is actually made by the earth naturally forever ago and one is made in a microwave. It seems so unromantic.

Lab stones are real diamonds without the ethical issues.
Mined diamonds have horrible resale.

The resale value of natural diamonds is not terrible. No worse than lots of other luxury items. Large market for vintage Tiffany pieces etc. large market for large stones. Old mine cuts.

The ethical piece is simply used as a tool by those who want a big rock and don’t want to pay. I don’t believe for a second that’s the motivator. If that’s true, they wouldn’t be supporting the market. And if that’s the case, don’t own a cell phone or other electronic clearly made by slave labor. Isn’t that just as terrible? Yes. Yes it is.

Go ahead and see what someone will give you for your diamond. Sure, they’ll turn around and sell it for a good amount but YOU won’t get much at all for it. It’s the biggest shake down in an industry that’s the ultimate shakedown to begin with.

Oh I get that. But a lab Diamond is scrap. Nobody would ever take it to resell it. You wouldn’t pass it down. Etc.

I got my ring way before the lab diamond shift but... why couldn't you pass it down? People pass down costume jewelry. And there's nothing wrong with a lab diamond, it's just not as "special" as a mined diamond. It's still pretty (sometimes prettier because they are perfect). Plus a ring is more than a diamond, there's the band as well.

If my mother had a lab diamond ring and it was a pretty ring and she left it to me, I don't think I'd care that it was a lab diamond. I really don't. It's not like it is going to crumble to dust. It's a diamond.

Not to mention that most people wouldn't know.

We recently discovered that our heritage strand of pearls was ... not pearls (the jewelers box is legit). Had the 4th generation not felt the need to have them restrung, no one would ever have known. But whether great-great-great-Grandpa was cheap or swindled, we'll never know, and only one bride has mentioned having them photoshopped out of her wedding photo, LOL! I guess no one ever bothered to try to get them insured.

But I would know. And it would make it less special.

And that's you. The question is whether you'd judge someone else for having a lab diamond. I think people should do whatever they want but I think judging people for getting lab diamonds is dumb. They are being frugal and obviously doesn't matter to them! They should do what they want just as you should.

I would judge them if it was huge and they went around proclaiming that it was the ethical choice. We all judge some things.

[Anonymous]

I judge anyone with a diamond ring of any sort. What a waste of money.

[Anonymous]

Yes, I judge. When I see women wearing beautiful jewelery I asssume that they have disposable income for this and that their spouses cherish them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No. Size of diamond has more to do with how old the groom was at engagement. The big diamonds are usually from the geriatrics.

Also, the cut/grade of the diamond influences price. Some people just go for size.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do.

Sometimes when I see a woman with a tiny diamond I wonder how cheap her husband must be to not bother to get her something nicer.

The larger the diamond the more I think her husband wanted to impress her/ show his love. Also that he’s rich.

This is interesting, because I don't really notice them at all, but if I do notice a huge rock on someone's finger I generally have the impression of tackiness, social-climbing, and wonder if she even knows that diamonds aren't really that rare.

[Anonymous]

I feel judged sometimes by my ring, but don’t really notice others’ rings unless they’re really huge. I got engaged at 22 and my DH worked at a non-profit in NYC so zero money to spend. But happily married for almost 20 years!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do.

Sometimes when I see a woman with a tiny diamond I wonder how cheap her husband must be to not bother to get her something nicer.

The larger the diamond the more I think her husband wanted to impress her/ show his love. Also that he’s rich.

This is interesting, because I don't really notice them at all, but if I do notice a huge rock on someone's finger I generally have the impression of tackiness, social-climbing, and wonder if she even knows that diamonds aren't really that rare.

So, you’re a jerk.

[Anonymous]

Y'all all up in here judging 20k diamond engagement rings, then heading out to climb into your Cadillac Escalade for school pickup. Lol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have never thought about it or noticed other people's rings unless it's large enough to stand out (3+ carat stone). And I don't judge either way, nor do I count other people's money. Some of the wealthiest, most pedigreed people I know (the family-stepped-off-the-Mayflower kind) leave their giant heirloom solitaires at home unless it's a special occasion and wear simple wedding bands - the person I have in mind lives in comfortably worn no-name jeans and drives an 11 year old Range Rover. She has a fantastic designer wardrobe and handbag collection, but you would never see it on her in daily life. Only idiots make snap assumptions based on outward appearances.

My family stepped off the Mayflower and I don't have a "giant heirloom solitaire at home."

Wondering why your friend has "a fantastic designer wardrobe and handbag collection, but you would never see it on her in daily life." In what life -- if not the daily kind -- is she wearing this stuff?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I judge anyone with a diamond ring of any sort. What a waste of money.

My thoughts exactly. It's mind boggling that women still hold value to something so inflated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lab stones are so weird to me. I wouldn’t do it. They have no resale value - at least a real diamond has some and has actual market value. An engagement ring should be expensive. It means something. I want to be able to give my ring to my kids. I doubt they’d want some costume jewelry. It feels like buying a fake Chanel off canal street. Sure, they’re made in the same factory! They’re basically the same! But one is actually made by the earth naturally forever ago and one is made in a microwave. It seems so unromantic.

Lab stones are real diamonds without the ethical issues.
Mined diamonds have horrible resale.

The resale value of natural diamonds is not terrible. No worse than lots of other luxury items. Large market for vintage Tiffany pieces etc. large market for large stones. Old mine cuts.

The ethical piece is simply used as a tool by those who want a big rock and don’t want to pay. I don’t believe for a second that’s the motivator. If that’s true, they wouldn’t be supporting the market. And if that’s the case, don’t own a cell phone or other electronic clearly made by slave labor. Isn’t that just as terrible? Yes. Yes it is.

Go ahead and see what someone will give you for your diamond. Sure, they’ll turn around and sell it for a good amount but YOU won’t get much at all for it. It’s the biggest shake down in an industry that’s the ultimate shakedown to begin with.

Oh I get that. But a lab Diamond is scrap. Nobody would ever take it to resell it. You wouldn’t pass it down. Etc.

I got my ring way before the lab diamond shift but... why couldn't you pass it down? People pass down costume jewelry. And there's nothing wrong with a lab diamond, it's just not as "special" as a mined diamond. It's still pretty (sometimes prettier because they are perfect). Plus a ring is more than a diamond, there's the band as well.

If my mother had a lab diamond ring and it was a pretty ring and she left it to me, I don't think I'd care that it was a lab diamond. I really don't. It's not like it is going to crumble to dust. It's a diamond.

Not to mention that most people wouldn't know.

We recently discovered that our heritage strand of pearls was ... not pearls (the jewelers box is legit). Had the 4th generation not felt the need to have them restrung, no one would ever have known. But whether great-great-great-Grandpa was cheap or swindled, we'll never know, and only one bride has mentioned having them photoshopped out of her wedding photo, LOL! I guess no one ever bothered to try to get them insured.

I ended up with an inherited strand of highly valuable pearls that became cheap pearls after restringing because I hired the wrong people to restring them. They stole the pearls. I can't prove it. But I know it (my grandmother's pearls had a pink tint, the pearls on the strand now do not).

[Anonymous]

I don’t wear much jewelry and am so glad I enjoy my typical 1ct princess cut solitaire. I am not a super flashy person and it is the right amount of sparkle for me and we could afford it while meeting our other financial goals. If I’m honest I slightly judge the idea of an upgraded ring - why replace a ring that had huge sentimental value instead of getting a different piece of jewelry for another finger? Makes me wonder if they were embarrassed of the original ring. It’s just a passing thought though- I don’t remember past when they announce the “upgrade “. I have a family member who always hated her ring and now doesn’t wear it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do.

Sometimes when I see a woman with a tiny diamond I wonder how cheap her husband must be to not bother to get her something nicer.

The larger the diamond the more I think her husband wanted to impress her/ show his love. Also that he’s rich.

No, op

You are not a good person

[Anonymous]

I love beautifully made jewelry with exquisite design and craftsmanship. Mostly, what I own are real 22K gold, purest silver, real pearls, jade, opal, antique rubies, sapphire, coral, uncut diamonds and emeralds.

I think if people can carry off their jewelry and can afford it, why not? I am not impressed with the size of the diamond because I have zero appreciation for diamond. It is the most abundant and common gem on Earth. I would never pay good money for diamonds. What I have inherited is good enough. Lab, mossinite and cz would do as well.

I love jewelry that is striking and bold. Something that draws your eyes and that suits the wearer's personality.

[Anonymous]

If you tiny rings make you clutch your pearls, wait til you meet women like me who have no ring at all. Our enagement was the two of us deciding on a wedding day and the wedding was just us and the witnesses in the courthouse. No wedding bands either.