Blackcarat's Monthly Blog

In times of recession and tightening the shoestrings, the traditional big wedding is the obvious cutback. These days many people get married abroad and in private, so saving money, but many feel forced to cancel/postpone their wedding altogether as a means of making ends meet.

But, you don’t have to get married to wear a wedding ring. Many couples who live together want to show the world their devotion and commitment, without the expense of a full-on wedding.

So why don’t committed couples also wear wedding rings? You don’t need a ceremony and the paperwork and the change of name to prove your love. A couple who know they belong together, but don’t want to conform, could show the world by wearing each other’s wedding rings – and they don’t have to be that expensive either.

For as little as £300 a modern couple could invest in palladium matching court rings (based on a women’s 2mm court band and a gent’s 5mm court) from www.blackcarat.co.uk. These matching rings can simply be read as ‘I love you and I’m committed’.

To make the ring exchange even more special, why not arrange a memorable date and get the bands engraved inside with your secret messages?

Tradition used to say you should spend from one and a half to three months’ wages on an engagement ring, but a wedding ring is quite different. These days, with internet shopping and price competitiveness, it’s easier to work within a tight budget that suits modern living, especially at times of cost cutting.

Deciding on a metal for the wedding rings is important and will dictate the budget. Generally a woman’s wedding ring metal will match her engagement ring, and the shape and width of her wedding band will match with it too. But men are becoming increasingly daring with their modern choices of wedding bands, designs and metals – choosing such metals as titanium, palladium, zirconium or even stainless steel (all of which are very affordable!) Plus, many couples these days prefer to pay less on wedding rings and put the money saved into the wedding reception/honeymoon/flower fund.

If a couple were to decide on a pair of standard wedding bands in platinum, a realistic budget for the two rings would be around £1000 – the woman’s ring is generally a third of this total – depending on where one shopped (obviously a designer or Hatton Garden jewellery shop would charge around two or three times this amount!) Platinum is one of the most expensive and exclusive metals out there, but it is possible, by shopping online, to have a pair of bands within this budget.

For 18 carat gold, you’d be looking at just less than the platinum budget, say £800-£900, for a pair of wedding rings. And for palladium, a modern cheaper alternative to platinum, a typical pair of rings should cost around the £400-£500 – a great money saving option. Cheaper metals, like 9 carat gold and white gold, are not such a good investment as they will age/tarnish and will need further treatments to regain their original finish. It’s always advisable to spend as much as you can afford – remember it is a lifetime investment and you’re showing your loved one how much they mean to you.

And having a bespoke ring made to order is not as expensive as many may think. It’s worth asking how much extra it would be to add a small diamond or two, an engraved line or a section of brushed finish to a standard wedding ring. All these little trimmings make your bands unique, to your design, and can cost as little as £100 or so per ring.

Don’t forget to allow for extras like engraving – which is generally around £25 extra per ring – or certification (for insurance purposes) at around £30 extra per ring.

These approximations are based on buying a pair of wedding rings online (so saving huge amounts on high street prices). Check out www.blackcarat.co.uk to see how much you can save.

Wedding rings tend to be plain metal bands, but designs vary enormously. A traditional ‘court’ ring will have rounded edges while a ‘flat’ ring may look more contemporary. If you are matching a wedding ring to an engagement ring, take care to get the same colour of metal (platinum can be put next to white gold) and a similar band in width and style.

There are also many modern diamond wedding rings on the market that are worth considering. In an ideal world, try to budget about £250 for the woman’s platinum ring and about £700 for the man’s platinum ring (as they tend to be a lot heavier and wider); they don’t necessarily have to match.

White gold – an alloy of gold that has been mixed with at least one other white metal, such as nickel or palladium. This is a budget option which may need some care in the long run as the silver colour can fade.

9 carat gold – a common grade of gold in the UK. The three-digit hallmark will indicate the purity of the gold per thousand – nine carat is 375, i.e. 37.5% pure. It will have been alloyed with other metals to make it harder, more durable and less expensive. One of the cheapest options on the market.

14 carat and 18 carat gold – as stated above, the hallmark will indicate its purity. 14 carat is 58.5% pure, while 18 carat is 75% pure gold. Shop around and you can get some mid-range good value wedding bands.

24 carat gold – pure gold. If you can, it’s worth stretching your budget to pure gold. It will be hallmarked 999. Traditional and old-fashioned pure gold is quite soft and can bend out of shape and wear down over the years.

Platinum – most UK platinum rings, such as blackcarat’s, are 95% pure (hallmarked 950). It has a naturally white lustre, it does not fade or tarnish and keeps its pure white colour for a lifetime. The density of platinum makes it more durable than other jewellery metals. It does not change shape or wear away, so precious stones are held firmly and securely. The more rare something is, the more valuable it becomes. Platinum is 30 times more rare than gold so it is worth a special investment. You can find platinum rings at half the high street price in online stores such as blackcarat’s – it is more affordable than many think.

Others – palladium (modern alternative to platinum, looks similar but is cheaper), titanium (durable, affordable, with a dull lustre), zirconium (darker and softer than titanium with a dark silvery colour) and stainless steel (a cheap and long-lasting option) are also being more commonly used as modern wedding rings.

Look at http://www.blackcarat.co.uk to see the large platinum range of wedding band shapes, styles and widths available.