Separation Anxiety – Resizing of the Engagement Ring

We thought we should share this store since we here of this type of scenerio all too often!

Share your thoughts below, Enjoy!

The engagement ring Charles gave me is absolutely perfect. I love the setting, the cut and, most important, the meaning of it. I absolutely love it and I can’t imagine ever wanted anything different. Seriously, I can’t think of a single thing I would change about my ring… Well, except the size.

When Charles proposed, the thought of getting my ring resized never crossed my mind. Sure, I could get it on and off easily, but I knew that fingers shrunk during the winter and swelled during the summer. I thought that the size Charles got me was a perfect middle ground (especially since I didn’t know big of change my finger size would actually be).

Cue in the cold and wet weather! Okay, it’s really not that cold or wet for December, but I could definitely tell a difference in how my ring fit me. Then, at work one day, my ring actually fell off when I was washing my hands! Thankfully it just landed on the counter and didn’t go down the drain, but the incident still gave me a heart attack.

On top of all that, I saw a news story about a woman who was taking off her gloves and her ring flew off her finger while she was on a metro escalator. The poor woman had to wait until the weekend before the metro police could stop the escalators to search for the ring… And they never found it! I know it’s silly, but this story hit too close to home.

I found myself subconsciously clinching my fist and putting my thumb over the diamond. I would also wake up in the middle of the night in shear panic because I thought my ring had fallen off (which it never did in bed). For my sanity (and Charles!) we decided to get my ring resized.

It took me a couple days… okay weeks… to decide that I could give it up for the five days to be resized. There was always some excuse about why I couldn’t do it… It was the holidays and I didn’t want to be without it… Or I was going to go see someone for the first time since I’ve been engaged and I wanted to show them my ring… Or, the number one reason, I just loved it so much that I didn’t want to give it up!

Since I’m leaving for a business trip next weekend, Charles told me that today was going to be the last day to get it resized if I wanted to have it back in time for the trip. Otherwise, I would have to wait until after I got back (which meant I would be paranoid about losing it in a new city). So this morning I kiss my ring good bye and made Charles take it off my finger (because I couldn’t bare the thought of taking it off).

I freaked out on the metro not once, but twice because I didn’t have my ring on. It was that subconscious thumb over the diamond that got me both times. I knew I had given my ring up that morning, but when I didn’t feel the diamond underneath my thumb, I just stopped thinking and went into panic mode.

Luckily for me, I have an amazing fiancé who surprised me and paid to have my ring rushed. Instead of taking five days to have my ring resized, it only took two hours (although I had to go an entire work day without it)!

It makes me feel so incredibly shallow that I would care about a material product that much. Truth be told, I don’t think I’ve ever felt this way about a thing. Sure, I get really emotionally attached to my friends, family and pets… But I’ve never been so attached to a thing. I think (and hope and pray) that it’s the meaning behind the ring that makes me so crazy about being away from it.

A gift-giver's guide to buying jewelry

Bracelets, anklets, necklaces, rings, hoop earrings, post earrings, dangly earrings - and the list goes on. With so many jewelry options, it's useful to know what's in style to ensure you pick the perfect gift for your loved one this holiday season.

Jewelry trend forecaster Rocks Paper Metal began as a website in 2011. Because of its success, it has since launched its own jewelry line.

Rocks Paper Metal's co-founder, Diana Rochford, said big jewelry pieces will remain in style this holiday season. This could mean either one big statement piece of jewelry or many smaller pieces of jewelry that have been layered on top of each other.

With regard to jewelry materials, crystal colored with deep purples, blues and greens is very big this upcoming season. Midnight blues, deep plum and especially emerald are all good colors to shop for during the fall and winter seasons. You can also add this crystal to a pendant for a more complete look.

Metals such as silver, titanium and rose gold are very in this season, as well, said Ruth Batson, executive director and CEO of the American Gem Society. "There's a whole punk-girl trend going on with mixing materials that you wouldn't have seen before," Rochford said. "You see a lot of pearls mixed with crystal and spikes."

 The geometric look is also trending: Triangles and spikes are both very hot. The geometric look can also be created with repetitions of patterns of circles, squares and triangles.

However, Rochford warned to stay away from Aztec and tribal pieces, as that trend is on its way out.

To determine jewelry trends, the forecasters at Rocks Paper Metal look at collections from big-name designers a year before they hit the market. Rocks Paper Metal is a global company, so they look at trends everywhere from Los Angeles to London.

Usually, they focus on big-name costume jewelry companies, such as Topshop, that have quick turnarounds for products. These quicker turnarounds allow costume jewelry companies to pick up on trends they think are coming into fashion, of which Rocks Paper Metal takes note.

"It's not rocket science," Rochford said. "It's not like the trend changes magically from season to season. There's always a progression."

Professional jewelry companies like Jewelers of America and the American Gem Society also have knowledge of industry trends because they work very closely with many jewelers.

For gift buyers who plan to make a big investment in jewelry, timeless pieces and looks should be considered, as well. Mixing black and white metals, either as one piece or as two pieces stacked on each other, is a timeless look, said Amanda Gizzi, spokesperson for Jewelers of America.

Earrings, particularly studs, and diamonds are other examples of timeless pieces, Batson said. Before purchasing a diamond, ask for a diamond grading report by a not-for-profit diamond grading laboratory, which will evaluate the diamond's karat weight, colour, clarity and cut.

"The cut of the diamond can be the biggest factor on its value because that's what makes the diamond sparkle," Batson said.

After determining the type of jewelry to buy, it's important to be mindful of the quality of the jewelry, especially if making a significant investment.

Start with finding a reputable jeweler, Batson said. You can do this by researching online before visiting the jeweler in person. A good place to start is with jewelers who belong to the American Gem Society or other reputable jewelry groups. Members of the American Gem Society go through rigorous education about their products and must be re-certified each year to maintain membership, Batson said. These are businesses that want to protect their good name and are more likely to do honest business with you.

Other tips for buying jewelry are to ask for the return policy up front and to know what price range is reasonable.

"Don't be dazzled by discounts," Gizzi said. "Anytime you see some place that always has incredible sales, be cautious about that, because if a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is."

It's that Time of the Year!

We are close to some very special moments in our lives. We found some advice for you :)

Do you prefer to shop online or in stores?

People spend a lot of money during the holiday season. 

eCommerce is turning out to be a bright spot, a stark contrast to Black Friday sales, which fell from last year. 

Despite those slumping numbers, one Massachusetts company is conducting an experiment to see if pop-up stores can survive in this digital landscape. 

Time, convenience and other shopping trends are being closely monitored by Janet Holian, CEO of Gemvara, an online jewelry business born out of the idea that people cannot get exactly what they want from a local jeweler. 

Gemvara allows consumers to create a custom piece of jewelry online, choosing from 29 different gemstones and nine different metals. 

It's been a lucrative online business since 2010, but as of November of this year, Gemvara has been testing out its first brick and mortar store on Newbury Street in Boston. 

According to Janet, early research tells them that people are more comfortable buying from an eCommerce site, if they know that company has at least one retail location. That's good news for the online sector of her business, but she admits this retail location is still an experiment.

Why the Engagement Ring is the Foundation of Your Marriage

There are a thousand different opinions on rings that symbolize marriage. Some people put a lot of weight behind the meaning of a ring, while others think nothing of it at all. I recently read an article about the engagement ring titled, "Why Engagement Rings are a Joke."

The article, which you can read here, goes on to mock some of the marketing pitches that put so much emphasis on the ring and its correlation to love. While I agree that the marketing tactics can take an over-the-top approach to try and convince a person to buy the biggest, baddest diamond there is, I don't think they are a joke.

 I actually think the engagement ring is the foundation of your marriage. Without a good engagement ring, the wedding ring and all else that follows may not even happen. Or if they do happen, it may not be what you expected.

Let me explain my take on rings. I believe there are 7 rings of marriage, but not everyone is familiar with them, and not everyone gets to wear all 7 marriage rings. The 7 rings of marriage are not actual, physical rings. They are different stages in marriage.

The stages (rings) start from engagement and go through a stage in marriage that only few reach. Here is the list of rings:

Engagement RING

Wedding RING

DiscoveRING

PerseveRING

RestoRING

ProspeRING

MentoRING

Whether you are engaged, a newlywed, or a marriage vet, your marriage is at one of those stages right now. And each ring, or stage, doesn't have a timetable.

But back to the engagement ring, and why I say it is the foundation of your marriage. There is a passage in the Bible which provides a great backdrop for foundations, which the engagement ring is.

The passage talks about a wise man and a foolish man who both build houses. The wise man builds his house on a rock (maybe a diamond *wink*), and the foolish man builds his house on sand. Of course when storms (tough times) came, the wise man's house stood, while the foolish man's house fell.

 Much like the foundation each man built his house on, your engagement ring is the foundation you build your marriage on. You can build on a rock (so many diamond ring companies should be calling me for advertising right now), or sand.