Step 1 – Metal & Colour
It is important to think long term about the appearance of your ring and how it will stand the test of time, perhaps traditionally it may be time to reflect on rings parents and grandparents choice and how you may feel about their choices going forward.
The first step to picking the perfect wedding ring is metal and colour. The metal of the wedding ring although doesn’t have to be the same metal as the engagement ring, we do advise both are the same. This is due to the rings over time rubbing against each other that can cause ware. Two rings of the same metal will ware at the same rate. Whereas two different metals such as a 9ct and 18ct will ware at different rates, causing the 18ct to ware faster than the 9ct.
The metal you choice will have an impact then on the colour of the ring. Picking a gold ring allows for the choice of yellow or white, while picking a platinum or palladium ring will limit to white. This is why we would strongly advise reading our engagement ring guide too! It will help you plan for the future when picking the perfect wedding ring.
Which metal is right for you? This is ultimately down to personal preference and life style. If you work in a heavy labour with the risk of scratching to a ring we advise platinum, although prices can be quite high for this precious metal it is amongst the rarest and strongest. Similar to platinum but at a lower cost is palladium which shares similar rugged properties and colour.
We would also advise that during selection 18ct gold is picked over 9ct. Although the cost you would be paying is higher the benefits over time are greater. The purity of the ring is greater in 18ct gold (more gold makes up the ring) allowing for its colour to last for a much greater length of time, whereas 9ct may need to be treated over time with rhodium plating to keep its colour.
Step 2 – Width
Once a colour and metal is chosen the next step is the width of the wedding ring. The width is usually purely down to preference though once again the selection of an engagement ring before can have an impact on the width of the wedding ring. We would advise coming into the store directly with your engagement ring where we can offer a full range of width sizes to try on until you are happy with the selection.
The average width size of a wedding ring for a lady is between 2 – 5mm, whilst the average width for a man’s wedding ring is between 5 – 8mm. The final widths chosen will have a reflection on the end price of a ring, with larger width sizes costing more than smaller widths.
Step 3 – Profile & Pattern
Nearing the final step of choosing the perfect wedding ring we move onto the profile and patterns. This is where you can begin to customize the ring to your perfect vision. The profile of a ring generally comes in 3 traditional styles; court shaped, D shaped and shaped.
Court shaped is the most traditional styling for a wedding ring. This style offers a rounded edge on both the outside and inside of the band granting a very comfortable fit on the finger no matter the size of width chosen.
D shaped gets its name from the shape the ring gives, curved on the outer band on the ring but flat in the inside hence the term D shaped.
Shaped is the final of the three traditional styles you can choice from. Shaped is ideal for wedding rings that will be worn beside a fancy engagement ring, usually designed to fit perfectly and comfortably for the wearer.
Once the shape is chosen you can finally move onto selecting a pattern. Traditionally wedding rings are a gold band. But more and more popular are wedding rings that have patterns, gems and engravings. This is down to your own vision for your perfect wedding ring; sometimes earlier steps will play a role in what you can or can’t have but not often!
Step 4 – Size & Conclusion
Now that you’ve been through each step and designed the ideal wedding ring for you we can begin to order it, the final piece of information we will need is the size of your finger, we’ve made a little guide that can help you finding the perfect size too. At Stanley Hunt Jewellers we partner with master craftsman’s and brands to ensure each ring is produced to the full vision of the wearer.
Each step gone through will have an impact on the cost of the ring. The cost of the ring just like the ring itself will be unique and depend on the choices you made. The time for the ring to be delivered to us for your collection can also depend on the choices you made but a few weeks is the average time taken.
Upon receiving your ring we’ll be contact you to come collect and approve finger size etc, and from there we wish you the very best of wishes and hope that you have the perfect dream wedding!
