For a long time, the diamond engagement ring has been a staple part of our culture that symbolizes the change of state in your relationship from two people who happen to be seeing each other to marriage.  It’s so engrained in our social consciousness that it is typically expected by many that there would be a ring when a couple gets engaged.

Recently, however, there has been a growing trend that questions this traditional ritual of expression such as Aziz Ansari’s character on Parks & Recreation’s claims that what all women really want is a diamond, which humorously shines a light on this stereotype.  More and more people have been chiming in on this idea and while we, of course, as a jewelry company help to keep this tradition going, we thought it would be important to talk about.

It’s Not the Ring, But the Relationship That’s Important

Realistically speaking, having a ring or not probably isn’t going to make or break your relationship.  I personally know some couples who opted to not go with any ring or decided to get a ring tattoo instead.  The foundation of the love you share is there whether or not there is a pretty little piece on your finger.

Some of you might be thinking, “Whoa.  deBebians is a jewelry company, right?  What are you saying?”  But yeah, while we are in the business in making money off of selling engagement rings, the reason why the ring is so important and why it is such a lucrative business even though the relationship means so much more is because the ring is a symbol of that very relationship.  It symbolizes your bond and the unique connection that you have together.  Part of the reason why there are so many different styles and designs is simply because there are that many different kinds of relationships and connections between people.

Your Ring is a Symbol of Your Relationship

When you decide to get married, you make a choice of love and acceptance of that special person and start building a life together that is just perfect for the two of you, but there are actually few decisions that you make together that are completely about just the two of you other than your rings.  Your jewelry and whether or not to have them, never mind the style, is so personal to every couple that what one couple likes cannot be uniformly placed on another.  Your residence, car, wedding, and other important decisions on the other hand can have plenty of other factors that inform your choice such as children, your parents, education, who you want to share your celebration with, etc.  Your rings though are something that the two of you wear and should be happy with for the rest of your lives and that is all up to personal preference.  As such, your engagement ring and later your wedding rings are a very, very special symbol of your love specifically.  If you don’t want one, then that is your personal choice and how your relationship and your love works.  If you do, allow me to point you to our collection so that you may select the piece that best describes you and the person you love.

The Ring You Choose Doesn’t Have to Have a Diamond

A ring is really just a ring.  We have seen people propose with bands that are traditionally used as wedding bands rather than engagement rings and some of those didn’t have one single diamond on them.  Again, it’s all about you and your relationship and your choice.

If you still want a center stone, but just don’t want to have to shop for a center diamond, you can always go for a colored gemstone.  Colored gemstones can make amazing alternatives to diamonds and can be a more affordable.  When you start delving into the world of colored gemstones as well, you open yourself up to a larger world of sentiment and expression and the ideals that a particular colored gemstone may represent may be more descriptive of your relationship than an engagement ring with a diamond.  We regularly carry blue sapphire, pink sapphire, ruby, black diamond, and morganite engagement rings, but if you want a different gemstone type, we can always custom make a piece for you with that gemstone.  If you still want some sparkle, you can always just pick a ring with diamond accents.

Jewelry Design is a Form of Art

Buying a ring isn’t quite the same as investing in anything else like a car that is mass produced.  Cars typically have some features that can be customized amenities, but you generally have a set sandbox to play in as to what kind of modifications you can make to a car according to law, manufacturer, safety, and physics.  Rings and especially engagement rings vary so much in design from center stone placement, metal working, accent diamonds, prong style, band width, etc. that each piece is pretty much like a small sculpture and will invoke different thoughts and feelings to each person like a painting can touch different people in different ways.  There are certain things that are accepted symbolism of a particular style like the past, present, and future motif of three stone rings, but even each three stone ring design can have so many variations in how each of the stones is presented, to details of the band, and more that the one you pick to represent your relationship is simply an expression of your story.

So what do you think?  Do you need a diamond engagement ring?  Whatever your answer, that is how you choose to tell your story.  If you choose to tell your story with a ring, we just hope that you select deBebians to craft the emblem of your affections.