The Man Band (Wedding band that is)

Saturday was a big day for our wedding planning. In addition to registering at Target we swung by Guvens Fine Jewelery to look at a few options for wedding bands for my HTB.

He had in mind that he wanted something simple and heavy duty as he has never worn a ring before, but felt pretty confident that he would be rough on it. We had looked at Titanium rings online and thought the material would be a good solution and hold up well with wear and tear. Titanium is not supposed to scratch or break as gold can. It also cannot be fitted, so often you have to order the ring in from the manufacturer.

We had only intended to look and try on a few different options, but we left with his ring in hand. Mr. Guven gave us a great price and the ring fit perfectly (no order needed). It was meant to be, and we came in far under budget.

It's All About The Bling- The Engagement Ring

So when my HTB and I started looking at engagement rings we were so overwhelmed. Everybody seemed to have really good advice for us. I had a jeweler that I had worked with in the past and I of course went to him first. We worked with Guvens Fine Jewelry. This is a family-owned jewelry store with a large and beautiful assortment of rings to choose from.


I remember walking into Mr. Guven's store at the Mall of Georgia with this awesome feeling...I felt special and like a one-of-a-kind bride to be. Mr. Guven worked with us to find the perfect setting then gave us a wide array of options for the stone. I picked two settings that I loved for their unique designs and then picked out two different cut of stones that I liked for each. I let the HTB do the rest at another time.


It was really fun to go ring shopping together, and I really recommend it to all the gals out there. This is a piece of jewelry that you will be wearing for the rest of your life, it only seems appropriate that you would help pick it out. (This is my practical side talking, not the romantic one). We did visit other stores and learned more about the pricing of diamonds because we wanted to make sure we were getting a good quality stone for our hard earned money.


So here is some of the knowledge that I learned that may help some of you out there when looking for your diamond...


The 4 C's

• Cut: This is the shape, proportion, and cutting style of the diamond. What you are looking for in a good cut is a stone's "fire" meaning that there is a lot of light and brilliance in the stone. If a stone is poorly cut it will appear to leak color out the sides, and will not show the stone's natural color. It will appear dull and lifeless.


• Clarity: Clarity is the degree to which a stone approaches perfection. Keep in mind that stones have natural flaws. Internally they are called inclusions and externally they are called blemishes. There are eleven grades in the Gemological Institute of America's scale that range from flawless (F or FL) to stones where inclusions can be seen with the naked eye (I).


• Color: Color, like clarity, is rated on a scale. A perfect diamond has no color and would be given a "D" on the scale. Diamonds with the most yellow or brown color would be rated on the scale at a N-Z rating.


• Carat: Carat is a unit measurement for a diamond's weight. One carat weighs about the same as a paperclip.

Diamonds are rated and priced with the consideration of the 4 C's. A diamond with a carat weight of one can be considerably more expensive it has very little color and has a near perfect clarity than another one carat diamond.