Help a clueless guy shop 4 jewelry!

[grafxgirl]

I bought 1 piece of jewelry in my life, the wedding ring for my wife. Now, for Xmas, I am thinking of getting either a ring or necklace with a Ruby and a Diamond (the birthstones for each of our 2 kids). Now, how do I make that happen without breaking the bank? Are those places like Zales in the local malls OK, or do they completely rip you off? Can you negotiate at those places? Is there a better means online? I feel more comfortable negotiating for a used car than I do for this jewelry stuff. I just am totally clueless! You Dizzers seem to know all, so I thought I'd try here!

My husband took me to Shaw's Jewelers to pick out a mother's ring recently. We have two kids (Sept. birhtdays) so both are sapphires. We told them our budget, and what type of ring we were looking for. They brought out several for us to look at. They also were able to negotiate the price by telling us what it would cost for real stones versus man-made stones.

Mine is like this one except I don't have 5 stones. I have one diamond in the middle and a sapphire on each side, then on the outside of each sapphire I have my son and daughter's names engraved. I love it because it is a stackable ring, so others can be added in the future. It is very simple, so I wear it daily (shower, cleaning, etc). The price range for my ring is right where your price range is.

http://cn1.kaboodle.com/hi/img/2/0/0/9e/f/AAAAAnjDcjgAAAAAAJ7wiw.jpg?v=1196285811000

 

[andrews_dad]

if my wife has yellow gold wedding ring, i suppose a ring worn on right needs to be yellow as well?

 

[grafxgirl]

Interesting.... is a stackabl ring something that is worn behind the wedding ring (same hand), worn on the right hand, or worn on a different finger?

You can wear it on any finger. I switch mine around. Sometimes I wear it on my right hand, and other times I wear it along with my wedding band and engagement ring because it fits right in as far as the style goes, and looks like it is part of the set.

The stackable ring is cool because you can buy it according to the children you already have, then in the future, if you have more, you can buy her another ring like it with the new children's birthstones in it, then she can stack the two on one finger to look like one ring. Go to google images and type in stackable rings to see how they can all fit together.

 

[grafxgirl]

if my wife has yellow gold wedding ring, i suppose a ring worn on right needs to be yellow as well?

You could always get her a ring that is a mixture of yellow gold and white gold.

 

[mrudman]

My husband bought me a mother's ring when we knew we were done having children, and it's my 2nd most treasured piece of jewelry besides my wedding ring.

I'm a nurse, and those 2 rings are the only ones I wear.. I'm not allowed to wear necklaces at work, so I would steer away from getting her a pendant.

I wear my mother's ring on my right-hand ring finger, it's a low profile one (very durable), so I'd get her one that she'll be able to wear every day and not have to worry about it breaking, or prongs coming loose.

Tried to find a picture of mine, but can't find one similar.. has a crossover look to it, with 3 small hearts in the middle, with my 2 daughters birthstones surrounding mine (long story, but hubby insisted on me getting my birthstone in there too).

Oh, and to answer the question about whether you need to stick to same color of gold... I wouldnt' worry about it... my wedding ring is platinum, mother's ring is yellow gold.. doesn't look odd at all (at least to me), since they're on opposite hands anyway.

 

[luvmy3]

Thanks, all. My wife wears no jewelry other than weding ring on any reg basis. No ear-rings at all, her pierced ears grew shut 10 years ago. When she was pregnant she had to wear her wedding ring on a necklace around her neck, but that was the only time I remember her wearing a necklace. She is a Physical Therapist, so she is in scrubs a ton and with 2 kids we don't often get "dressed up" to go out (you guys know how that is). Bracelet with charms is not something I'd see her wear. Not safe at work when she assists the elderly walking and getting out of bed. So either a ring or necklace. BUT, she does love her wedding ring and gets it cleaned every time at mall, and I know she'd be thrilled to get something for the kids. I am thinking $500 or less. Her wedding ring is yellow gold. I have no idea what her ring size is. It's been so long since I bought her engagement ring I forget!

This is just a suggestion since you know your wife. I am not a big jewelry person, I have special occasion pieces but I also have every day pieces. One of my favorites is a necklace I had custom made by someone on Etsy.com. It is very simple, 3 small gold discs, each one has one of my kid's initials engraved on it, its on a fine ball gold chain. Its something I wear everyday. There are many jewelry makers and many different styles on there.
As a non jewelry wearer, I would feel incredibly guilty if my dh spent $500 on a piece of jewlery and it sat in my jewelry box everyday. I would appreciate the thought, and even though we could afford it, I would just feel bad about not wearing it often. Its just one thing to think about if you don't buy fine jewelry often for her and she doesn't wear it often.

 

[Bren's Mom]

I'm a low maintenance jewlery wearer. I have lots of 'special things'...that I never wear. The items I wear every day are my wedding/engagement ring, a simple sapphire and diamond ring I wear on my right hand (a 'push' gift from dh) and a silver chain with a flat silver heart disk on it. It's engraved with my ds's name and birthdate on one side, and 'My first steps into your heart' and a tiny baby footprint on the other side. My dss (well his mom) bought it for me when his little brother was born...I treasure it! I also have a Pandora that my boys (dh and the kids) get me charms for. I wear that often but I am at a desk all day and it hurts my wrist when I'm typing, so I don't wear it every day.

If I didn't have the necklace my dss gave me, I'd love one like this with disks for both kids:

http://www.myretrobaby.com/item/birthdate-necklace/3246/c155

And someday I'd love 3 eternity band stack rings, birthstones for dh, dss and ds.

 

[windycitymom]

Take a look at Sam's Club or Costco too.

I second this! The quality is just the same as a regular jewelers - plus they have a more lenient return policy.

 

[burnurcomputer]

What about a simple wrap to add to her engagement ring? If they are not connected, you can see about getting a simple wrap to go around her solitare and she should be able to still wear her wedding band. It would add minimal bulk to her hand, and would be added to a piece that she wears daily anyway. They can be purchased at a chain store or at a local jeweler.

My thought behind this piece in particular is that if you add it to the original set then it is symbolic of your children being loved and guarded by their parents who created them in that love

Plus, as a nurse who (now stays home BUt) worked in long term care only during her career, it would be less likely to injure a person during treatment or transfer

 

[Topper]

http://celebrationsoflife.com/

 

[Shleedogg]

Interesting.... is a stackabl ring something that is worn behind the wedding ring (same hand), worn on the right hand, or worn on a different finger?

Really it can be worn on any finger. Personally I'd wear it in front of my wedding band, where my engagement ring should be. But that's the beauty of it, as a PP said, it can be changed around. I love the stackable because you can buy another one if you have more kids and it's something you can wear every day. Here's hoping my DH happens to stumble on this page. Maybe I should leave it open?

if my wife has yellow gold wedding ring, i suppose a ring worn on right needs to be yellow as well?

That's a personal preference. I prefer my metal colors to match. It's probably safer to get it matching than mismatching. No one is going to be annoyed wearing 2 rings at the same time that match, but you never know how she feels about the other option.