Your wedding rings may arguably be the single most important piece of jewelry you will ever own–not only because you will wear them every day, but also because of their significance and symbolism. It is therefore important to understand your options and make a choice that you know you will be comfortable and happy with for years and years to come.
Trending Wedding Rings
While many couples may still opt for the traditional simple gold wedding band, there are many other options in wedding rings that may be better suited to your unique tastes. Following are some of the current trending wedding ring styles to consider:
- Rose gold. Rose gold is a beautiful alternative to traditional yellow or white gold options. It is warm, romantic and flattering on most skin tones. Most importantly, selecting a rose gold wedding band does not mean you need to have a rose gold engagement ring. The two-tone effect created by mixing a rose gold wedding band with an engagement ring of another metal color is gaining in popularity and is quite striking.
- Pave diamond accents. Plain wedding bands can have a beautifully understated elegance to them, but you may be looking for something a little more glamorous. Pave diamonds that either cover the entire surface of the band or just a few specific areas can add a lovely sparkle to your wedding band. Recently, there has been an increasing shift away from using only white diamonds for pave settings. A newer trend is incorporating other colored diamonds and even other precious stones for pave settings. This expands your options considerably, allowing you to create truly unique wedding bands.
- Stackable bands. Stackable bands are thin diamond bands that are meant to be worn above one another, creating an elegant, personalized look. They come in a variety of gold colors and can be comprised of white diamonds, colored diamonds, other colored stones, or some combination therein. You can purchase several stackable bands to be worn together immediately, or you can choose to add to your collection of stackable bands to commemorate important life events, like an anniversary or child’s birth.
- Five-stone setting. Eternity bands once dominated wedding band trends, but the fact is that they can be very expensive. Five-stone setting wedding bands convey a simpler elegance and they are usually less expensive than eternity bands. They also allow one to choose from a variety of stone sizes and cuts.
- Vintage-inspired styles. Wedding rings with detailing like scrolls, filigree engraving and delicate raised edges can give one a vintage look that is very elegant and unique.
- Unusual materials. While gold, silver and platinum metals have long been considered the most popular choices for wedding bands, the current trend is incorporating other materials. Wood, stone, titanium, tungsten and even bone wedding bands are incredibly popular choices–especially for the groom’s ring.
Matching Your Engagement and Wedding Ring
Even though new styles are constantly being created and there are more options now than ever, the fact is that one may find there are certain limitations imposed by selecting from wedding ring sets. While it is always possible you may come upon a set that you completely adore, there is also the chance that you won’t find one that is perfectly to your liking. You shouldn’t have to settle for a certain engagement ring simply because you like the wedding ring it is matched with, or vice versa. Fortunately, there are ways to buy separate rings that complement one another–even when they did not come together as a matched set. Here are some things to consider when matching your wedding ring to your engagement ring:
- Band width. A wedding ring and an engagement ring complement one another best when they have the same or very similar band width. When a wedding band is much, much wider than an engagement ring, especially if it is also embellished, it can drown out the engagement ring.
- Matching metals. Different metals and even different karat counts of the same metal can wear differently over time, which can be noticeable. A silver engagement ring and a platinum wedding band that look stunning on their own may not look or wear well together, and over time this can become frustrating. This does not mean that the metals chosen have to be the same color; in fact two-tone wedding sets can be stunning. However, you may decide that you don’t care for how some metal colors look together, like yellow gold and rose gold, so it’s important to choose complementary metal colors you’re happy with.
- Embellishments. With so many different gems, stones and patterns available in engagement rings and wedding bands, it’s important to make sure that these embellishments don’t clash with one another. Sticking to the same colored stones in both rings can be a good start, but if this creates too uniform a look for you, consider using colored stones in your engagement ring and white stones in your wedding band. Larger, more embellished engagement rings can look stunning when paired with more simple and elegant wedding bands. Finding rings that match the contours of one another can also be important, as not only will they look well together, but they will not rub against and wear each other down.
You have every right to be picky in selecting your wedding rings. On your wedding day, when your fiancé reaches down to remove your wedding ring from the ring bearer’s pillow and place it upon your finger, you will be very glad you took the time to make the right choice.
