Choosing A Wedding Ring

Wedding rings can be traditional or completely unique, but exercise care when choosing a wedding band. Most wedding and engagement rings are made from a gold alloy, but other metals like silver, palladium, platinum, titanium and tungsten are also gaining in popularity.

Pure gold is too soft for daily wear. Typically, gold is mixed with other metals like nickel to give it strength without losing the traditional gold colour. Wedding bands are most often made with 18K gold, which has substantially more strength and will stand up to the rigors of daily wear. Consult with a jeweller about the nickel content of a wedding ring. Some people develop an allergy to metals like nickel, and the higher the nickel content, the more likely a sensitive wearer is to react to the ring.

Do not choose a wedding ring made from different material than your engagement ring. If possible, buy the wedding and engagement rings from the same jeweller at the same time. Different metals may react with each other, and since the rings will be in daily contact, one ring can wear the other down. If the rings are made from the same materials, they are less likely to damage each other when they’re worn together.

If your wedding or engagement ring contains a precious gem, spend the extra money to get a six- or eight-prong setting. The setting should be of the same or harder material as the ring. With a six- or eight-prong setting, a lost prong will not cause the stone to fall out. A broken four-prong setting almost guarantees that the gem will be lost.

One note: tungsten carbide has been gaining in popularity as a wedding band material. It is sold as being virtually indestructible and scratch resistant. Think carefully before buying a tungsten carbide wedding ring. If your ring finger is broken, or your hand is injured and your ring finger swells, a tungsten carbide ring cannot be cut off, since it is harder than the cutters that most hospital emergency rooms use to remove metal jewellery.

Keywords: Wedding Planning, Weddingblog, Wedding

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