Resized engagement ring
Will You Marry Me?

Unusual Engagement Ring, Yes or No?

Did you know that most engagements in the United States occur between Thanksgiving and February? In a survey of 18,000 people, 40% got engaged. Christmas Eve is a trendy day to get engaged – love is in the air. Diamond engagement rings are one of the biggest diamond jewelry pieces sold in the United States. 

Is it time to decide on an engagement ring? Do you give an unusual engagement ring or something standard? 

Engagement rings date back to Ancient Rome. Traditionally, men typically do the asking, which is still true today. The engagement ring symbolizes the upcoming union between two people. In modern society, couples date for two to five years before the question is popped.

A ring is circular and thus represents eternity. In ancient times, twisted plants, twisted hair, and other products were made into small circles to wear around the finger. Wealthy and well-to-do people would use ivory and leather and place the token of commitment around the fourth finger of the left hand.

The ring was placed on the fourth finger to connect the couple’s hearts by the vena amoris or the vein of love. It was believed that the vein went from the finger directly to the heart.

The pre-marital gift today is most likely given between November and February. In a survey of 18,000 people, 40% popped the question during these months. Christmas Eve is the most popular day to get engaged.

History of Engagement Rings

In Ancient Room, how one was seen was everything – image was important. Women were given two rings to wear, one from gold that would be worn in public to show status, and an iron one for everyday wear at home. The wedding bands that followed after the “big day” made a statement of the man’s ownership of his wife and the couple’s eternal love for each other.

In 1215 Pope Innocent III declared a waiting period before a couple could marry. The engagement ring was used to signify the couple’s commitment to each other while waiting. The Roman government mandated that all marriage ceremonies be held in a church. Rings during this time represented social rank, and only nobility, the rich, and those considered elite could wear ornate rings or rings with jewels. s

The Very First Diamond Engagement Ring

In 1477 Archduke Maximillian of Austria commissioned the first diamond engagement ring for Mary of Burgundy. Rings of this value were reserved for the noble, upper class, and wealthy.

Grimmal Ring
Grimmal Ring

Gimmal Rings

During the Enlightenment Era, gimmal rings were given to symbolize love. A grimmal ring comprises two or three hopes that are joined together to make one ring. They would have a clasp hand-design showing the union of two people.

During the Victorian Era, ornate engagement rings consisting of diamonds and other gemstones, gold, silver, rose gold, enamels, and precious metals were crafted in the shapes of flowers. Pairing diamonds with other gems was not unusual, and “posey rings” became popular.

Posey Rings

A posey ring is a ring with a short inscription of love engraved on the inside of a gold band. These gold bands with “secret” messages were unique between the giver and wearer.

A Diamond is Forever

Moving forward to 1947, De Beers launched its now classic slogan, “A Diamond is Forever.”

Diamonds are durable while casting a sparkling ray of light throughout a room. The durability of a diamond conveys the meaning that marriage is forever, and the light the diamond cast suggests joy, love, and happiness.

Diamonds today represent the commitment of two people to each other and are a universal symbol of love.

In 1930 DeBeers opened diamond mines in Africa. Diamonds were more accessible, although, in the 1930s, the demand was declining. DeBeer began marketing by showing famous people and celebrities adorned with diamonds. Diamond rings, diamond and gold watches, round cut diamonds, pear-shaped diamonds, diamonds set in 18k yellow gold, diamonds set in rose gold, diamond center stone rings with complementing gemstones, the list goes on, and sales raised by fifty percent.

Diamond 4Cs
Diamond Cuts Enhance Their Beauty

Diamond Cuts

There is no debate, the round brilliant cut diamond consisting of 58 facets that divide the precious stone into a top and bottom is still and has always been the most popular cut for an engagement ring.

The princess cut, the emerald cut, and the oval cut are quick second place winners.

But what if you want an alternative engagement ring, something unusual?

There is no perfect piece of jewelry for everyone.

Personal style comes into how engagement rings are chosen for that special someone.

Perfect jewelry doesn’t exist; it is worn by the owner, the admirer, and creates a wow factor every time the owner sees it.

Unique diamonds in an edgy design may be the right alternative engagement ring for the non-traditional couple.

Salt and Pepper Diamond Engagement Rings

Salt and pepper diamond engagement rings signify looking past the flaws and focusing on love. They are less costly than a clear diamond.

Salt and Pepper Diamonds is a diamond with a mix of black and white inclusions giving the stone a speckled look. Salt and Pepper Diamonds can also be silky gray.

When a jewelry consultant talks about inclusions, he refers to the small imperfections inside the diamond. The imperfections can come in different colors, black and white, and inclusions come in different sizes, shapes, and amounts in any diamond.

A Salt and Pepper Diamond is a diamond. All diamonds have some inclusion; it’s just part of how they are formed. Some diamonds have such small inclusions you can’t see them without a jeweler’s loop. The inclusions in a Salt and Pepper Diamond are visible, impacting the overall appearance of the diamond, creating a unique and beautiful alternative to a traditional diamond engagement ring.

Diamond Engagement Ring

A Blue Nile Colored Diamond Set In Rose Gold

The Blue Nile is a diamond company that sells natural occurring diamond. Blue Nile was founded in 1999 as an innovative approach to the diamond industry. The company has an online business model, making it possible to shop for high quality diamonds at a great value.

Colored diamonds are not only sold by the Blue Nile company. Diamonds come in twelve-color shades, and their beauty is unimaginable. Many different jewelers and diamond dealers have colored diamonds available.

Most traditional diamond engagement rings are clear, but a diamond ring can include a diamond that is red, yellow, orange, green, blue, pink, purple, brown, violet, and gray.

The rarest colored diamonds are red diamonds. There are only 20-30 red diamonds that exist in the entire world. During their formation over thousands of years under the surface of the earth, the crystal structure of the diamond was changed causing light to pass through it differently.

Placing a colored diamond in a rose gold band would be an exquisite alternative engagement ring.

Rose gold is distinct and beautiful. Rose gold is an alloy made from a combination of gold and copper. The most common makeup is 75% pure gold and 25% copper, and the result is 18k rose gold. By combining the two metals, the color is changed from yellow gold to a rose-colored gold.

Unknown to many people, rose gold is very durable, more so than white and yellow gold.

Emerald Ring
Green Emerald - Diamond Ring

Platinum and Emerald Ring Complemented With Melee Diamonds – The Perfect Ring

Platinum is a precious metal, and precious metals are rare. The metal is a silvery-white metal first discovered in South America in the 16th century, and it is used for jewelry, electric contacts, laboratory equipment, and industrial catalysts.

Platinum is more valuable than gold because it is rarer. The density and purity of a platinum ring will be higher than in a gold ring. In most situations, you will pay forty to fifty percent more for a platinum ring.

Melee Diamonds are small diamonds that look gorgeous and accent the center stone on a ring. You may see melee diamonds used to make the diamond in the middle “pop on a diamond engagement ring.” Melee diamonds are a popular way to add sparkle to diamond engagement rings.

How to Decide if an Unusual and Unique Engagement Ring is the Right Choice?

Whether you are looking at a diamond engagement ring, an alternative engagement ring, gemstones engagement ring, a nondiamond engagement ring, two stones, one stone, an opal, a pearl, a sapphire, accent stones, deep purple stones, or any other choices you have in available jewelry on the market today, consider these one or two words…

“Be Informed”

After this, you will do just fine. An engagement ring is something that represents the coming together of two people. You have dated the other person for some time and have decided to marry. You know the personal style of the other person, the likes and dislikes, and what you both believe is essential.

Find a jewelry expert to bounce ideas off of and double-check the information you get. Investing in an engagement ring is just that investment, and you want to spend your money wisely.

Big box jewelry stores and online stores often have huge markups. Consider this when you are shopping. Know the general terms of the jewelry industry and search words and do some exploring online to get the information you need before going out to purchase the ring.

There are several great resources out on the internet. Know and understand how diamonds are valued, the 4cs, so you know what you are being told when talking about engagement and wedding rings.

Consider shopping for previously worn engagement rings. Unfortunately, life gets in the way, and people will trade in, pawn, and sell their gold, silver, and diamond jewelry to pawn shops.

Pawn shops are a great place to find a large inventory of unique engagement rings at a fraction of the cost.

Paulding Pawn Shop logo small

Paulding Pawn Shop (770) 693-9420

Paulding Pawn Shop, a family-owned business since 2016, located in Dallas, Georgia, knows diamonds, gold, platinum, precious metals, jewelry, and engagement rings. Having a jewelry consultant as part of your team when you want to buy a special gift, you can’t go wrong.

The pawnbrokers at Paulding Pawn Shop will talk with you along the way and keep you informed about the specifics of any rose-cut diamonds you see and want to buy, any gold band you decide you need to purchase or find what you are looking for if they don’t have what you want.

If you want to sell your diamond jewelry for cash to upgrade or meet a financial obligation, Paulding Pawn will pay you more for your Gold, Silver, and Platinum Jewelry. Then other shops. Take advantage of high Gold, Silver, and Platinum prices and turn your old jewelry into cash. This cash can then be used to purchase a unique diamond engagement ring.

Maybe you don’t want to sell but need to borrow cash. It’s your choice. Sell or borrow money by pawning your diamonds or scrap jewelry and get it back when you repay. Paulding Pawn offers something that no other pawn shop in or around Atlanta offers on pawn loans. They offer 10% Pawns (if paid in full within the first ten days).

Paulding Pawn pays top dollar for gold jewelry, silver jewelry, platinum jewelry, and loose diamonds.