The Claddagh Ring

The popularity of rings increased during the medieval period. People wore rings no matter if they were rich or poor. The most used materials in the making of rings are copper, iron, gold and silver. The class of the person was usually identified by the material the ring was made of.

Faceted jewels began to appear in rings around the 14th century. Some cultures have rings that are usually associated with them. Native Americans are associated with silver and turquoise jewelry. The Greek symbol of the fish, called the Icthus was used by Early Christians. The Irish Claddagh has an interesting story attached to it.

Richard Joyce along with the crew on a fishing boat from the village of Claddagh, Ireland, was captured the same week he was supposed to be married. Goldsmithing was Richard Joyce's trade while he was enslaved. While he was captured, neither married. Richard Joyce made a ring for his beloved that had two hands holding a heart for love and a crown for loyalty.

Joyce escaped from his captors and returned to Claddagh where he was excited to see his love again and know she had never married. She never gave up hope of his return to her. He gave her the ring that is known as the Claddagh ring. Wearing the Claddagh on your right hand, crown inward means that you are letting people know that you are single.

The person who wears the Claddagh on the right hand with the crown outward is in a committed relationship. Wearing the Claddagh with the crown outward on your left hand says Let our love and friendship reign forever, never to be separated. There are many reasons for wearing rings, one is adornment. Rewards for a job well done include rings such as the one given after the Super Bowl victory.

Rings such as engagement rings and wedding rings symbolize commitment. Women Religious wear rings to show their commitment to God. You can use almost any material to make rings now. Plastic, silver, copper, gold or even wood can be use to make them. Ceramic materials can be used as well.

Rings can be very simple or of something as intricate as filigree. Rings can be plain and simple or be adorned with jewels and/or gemstones, as is the case of birthstone rings. There is a birthstone for each month with its own meaning.

Below you will find a list.

The Garnet is January's stone the gem of faith and truth; it is believed to stop bleeding, to cure sickness of the blood and infections and it is said to protect from poisons. It is believed that February's birthstone the Amethyst helps soldiers in battle, hunters to catch prey, control evil thoughts and help the owner have success in business. In order to prevent seasickness, keep them safe, and gain courage and foresight, sailors use the Aquamarine, the stone for March.

The Diamond is April's stone and is the symbol of strength, courage and invincibility. The diamond is the greatest gift of love. In 1477 Archduke Maximillian of Austria gave a diamond to Mary of Burgundy which started the tradition of engagement rings. The Emerald is the birthstone for May and believed to sharpen the eyesight and mind of the wearer.

Engagement Ring

For most people in love, the culmination of months of togetherness and special friendship comes down to one single moment: The marriage proposal - - featuring a simple, but elegant, diamond engagement ring.

Of course, if you’re a celebrity, a simple ring may not have enough wattage to suit your tastes. Thus, we see many celebrities sporting five-carat to seven-carat diamond studded engagement and wedding rings.

Well, if you can afford it, why not flaunt it, right?

Take for instance the recent marriages of Britney Spears and Star Jones. When Britney Spears got engaged to her former back up dancer, Kevin Federline, she promptly bought herself an awesome-looking five-carat diamond engagement ring. (Does anyone really believe that Kevin bought this for her on his dancer’s salary?)

Britney bought herself the ring she felt she deserved – nothing wrong with that. Then, she and Kevin quickly made the leap to matrimony in a matter of months with a surprisingly nice (no lip kissing of Madonna) wedding ceremony.

As for Star Jones, it’s not known whether her stunning seven-carat princess cut diamond ring was bought or donated, but she too happily skipped off to a wedding ceremony with all the trimmings.

So, does all this extra diamond wattage mean that celebrities have a better wedding ceremony than everyone else?

Absolutely, not.

There’s absolutely no proof that their multi-carat diamond rings and fancy wedding accommodations gave them any more satisfaction at the alter than Joe and Jane Doe’s down right sparse nuptials in a run-down back yard.

Buying the biggest and fanciest diamond engagement ring on the planet doesn’t guarantee anything but a nice piece of ice jewelry to show off to your family and friends. Other than that, celebrities have the same odds for a successful, happy union as the rest of us.

And that’s the way it should be.

A Wedding Ring

Before buying your wedding ring the color of the element, cut of the diamond, the weight, the durability and the cost value everything should be considered before hand. A good knowledge about all the above-mentioned factors makes your choice because it can vary your choice. You should not go by the looks of your wedding ring as the suggested factors are equally crucial for making your wedding ring choice a perfect one from every aspect. So do not rush to the jewelry shop without having the knowledge i.e. uninformed. After all you will never want to be a looser or fool while buying a wedding ring. Here we will discuss about the color and cutting of a wedding ring.

At first we will be discussing on the topic of color of your wedding ring. Color is very much important factor while choosing a ring. It determines the outer look and beauty of the ring. Color is actually the color of the diamond on what we are now focusing. For ages it was thought that colorless or white diamonds are purest and of high clarity. It is quiet right that any kind of impurity is considered to be the probable reason of the color which is the color of the diamond. This flaw is now very much demanding. Years before everyone wanted a diamond pure and stainless but now the picture has been changed. Young generation and fashion houses are stressing on color factors. The color which can compliment your wedding dress and wedding theme is considered to be the perfect choice. Actually the impurities mixed in the carbon structure are the reasons of the colors of a diamond. Blue, pink and yellow are some common colors which can be found in diamonds of rings. Here we will give some names of colored diamonds. They are pure hope diamond of 200-carat diamond, D stone, E diamonds, F diamonds, G diamonds, H diamonds, I and J diamonds, K and M diamonds. Among these diamonds G-H, I-J, and K-M diamonds are colored. K M diamonds are colored and the color is detectable. As we have said earlier that to some people colored diamonds are impure but for some people colored diamonds are valued much than other. So it is upto you to choose a perfect one, either colored or colorless.

Some couples prefer matching ring on their wedding ceremony. It can be matching with their attire or can be matching with his or her partners one. The bride's ring would of course differ in size because the rings for the brides tend to be smaller. Also, you might want to visit some shops before anything because they might offer different styles and thus, ideas for your wedding rings designs. Another thing to keep in mind is that when you are looking over different shops, you might want to make some comparisons between what is available for the respective shop. For instance, a piece of jewelry can come in different shapes and the prices for it might differ from shop to shop. You can consult a ring designer before making the final choice. The professional staffs of jewelry shops can help you to buy the perfect one according to your choice and budget.

Your Wedding Ring

Here we will give you some knowledge about wedding ring. There are some aspects that you need to consider before your buy. They are your budget, metal of your ring, color of the stone, cutting of diamond etc. After analyzing all these you will get some gyaan about purchasing a wedding ring.

At first we will be discussing on the topic of color of your wedding ring. Color is very much important factor while choosing a ring. It determines the outer look and beauty of the ring. Color is actually the color of the diamond on what we are now focusing. For ages it was thought that colorless or white diamonds are purest and of high clarity. It is quiet right that any kind of impurity is considered to be the probable reason of the color, which is the color of the diamond. This flaw is now very much demanding. Years before everyone wanted a diamond pure and stainless but now the picture has been changed. Young generation and fashion houses are stressing on color factors. The color, which can compliment your wedding dress and wedding theme, is considered to be the perfect choice. Actually the impurities mixed in the carbon structure are the reasons of the colors of a diamond. Blue, pink and yellow are some common colors, which can be found in diamonds of rings. Here we will give some names of colored diamonds. They are pure hope diamond of 200-carat diamond, D stone, E diamonds, F diamonds, G diamonds, H diamonds, I and J diamonds, K and M diamonds. Among these diamonds G-H, I-J, and K-M diamonds are colored. K M diamonds are colored and the color is detectable.

This is generally made up of precious yellow alloy of gold, hardened with copper and Silver or tin and bismuth. Copper, silver, tin or bismuth is used to make the gold more durable and hard. Now a day a trend is that wedding ring cannot be made with out platinum or titanium. These are more durable and fashionable too. Platinum with white alloys of gold are demanding by the wedding couples. A slightly yellow white gold alloy, which was used with gold, is now replaced with cheaper nickel-gold alloy with a plating of rhodium. This can be cheap than before but it is it is not at all durable and good. As we have said earlier that titanium has become a hot element for making a wedding ring and every couple wants that. The reasons are its durability, affordability, and gunmetal grey color. Tungsten carbide is also another metal, which is gradually picking its name in this list of wedding ring materials. With gold or platinum inlays tungsten carbide is used. It is equally durable like platinum and titanium and can be molded to a finer finish than the metals mentioned before.

Another factor is very important and that is cut of the diamond stone. There are various measurements. As for instance facet numbers and angles determine the cut of a precious stone but all these things are not very much important for a diamond ring buyer or for a wedding buyer. They just have to choose what shape they like. It can be round cut oval shaped, square cut like princess cut gems, marquise cut or an emerald cut.

Buying A Diamond Ring

For many men buying a wedding ring is the big issue rather than wedding itself. So it has to be of great quality either as a present or purchase as your own wedding ring. Cost does not factor as far as the quality is concern. It can be less or more but consider all the possible factors before buying a diamond wedding ring. Keeping in mind certain things while shopping around for diamond wedding rings will help decide on the perfect ring for your bride. Here follows some tips and tricks:

Buy your diamond with real experience and with your own view. It is really a silly decision to choose a diamond after reading about it. So it would be more proper to buy a diamond with real experience or a first hand experience. Look at them first and compare with other diamonds. The beauty of a diamond cannot be sufficiently captured in words. The sense of beauty defers from man to man. So it is good to choose according to your choice your brides choice. Comfort level is another thing to look at while shopping. To make your shopping a comfortable and pleasurable experience the atmosphere of the store must be of good quality and the stock should match your desire and necessity. Always examine the diamond with the microscope not with a loupe. All the defects and shortcomings will be detected through the particular technology. So, understand exactly what you are buying. You must not deserve to be cheated by the merchant when buying.

Make sure the sales consultant showing you the diamonds is a trained Gemologists or Diamondtologists. A properly educated consultant can make your diamond shopping simple and fun. Also make sure that the jeweler specializes in diamonds, not a part-timer claiming specialty. In fact, there aren’t any half-time diamond specialists.

You should purchase your diamond separately from the ring and then set that diamond on the ring. You will get bigger diamond and also a good value.

The very much important things of a diamond are its color, clarity, carat weight and cut. Learn about these entire things prior your buying. Diamond shapes and certifications are also required to be learned. So doing a little research on net is profitable and enough.

Select a diamond that is graded in accordance with the GIA standards.

All the residents of America should buy diamond from AGS. It is the most prestigious and trusted association of diamond jewelers. American gem society ensure that all the members of this association observe strict regulations while selling diamonds and are ethical in diamond business.

Do not forget to ask about the certificates in order to verify the credibility of the gem. Inquire whether it is a conflict diamond or not.

You should also ask for a free lifetime warranty without any extra payment.

Your diamond purchase should come with a thirty-day money back guarantee from trustworthy jewelry stores. And last but not the least ask for her choice because it is all about her choice. With her consent win her heart with the diamond ring forever.