How to Choose A Wedding Band
7 Questions To Ask Before Purchasing A Wedding Band
You're getting married. Congrats! Your soulmate, best friend, one true love popped the question and decorated your ring finger with the stunning ring of your dreams (hopefully) that you’ll cherish for life (unless it’s not the ring of your dreams in which case...thank god for upgrades).
In Addition to the invitations, seating chart, floral arrangements and million other details you have to figure out for your big day, add picking out wedding bands to the list. You know, the thing you will place on each other’s fingers symbolizing your commitment to to love and support each other until death do you part? Yeah, no big deal.
Once the omg-I-get-to-pick-out-a-gorgeous-piece-of-jewelry-for-myself excitement dies down, chances are, a million scattered thoughts start to roll in. Do I want traditional, trendy, or something that will sparkle? Do I want them to match? Should they match?
Clearly, there’s a lot to consider when choosing an eternity band. We work closely, carefully, and lovingly with our clients on this matter every single day, so trust us when we say: we get it. We get it so well, in fact, that we’re laying out the most important questions to ask yourself before committing to your new lifelong partner (the ring, that is). Best of all, we’re also laying out how to answer said questions.
What can I eliminate off the bat?
Do you want a classic metal wedding band? Are you a diamond woman? Have you always dreamed of a unique gemstone combination? Try to narrow down the type of wedding band you envision sitting on your finger for the rest of your life before diving headfirst into an internet search or walking into a jewelry shop. Even eliminating one off the bat will make the journey a lot more enjoyable.
What colors compliment my skin best?
When choosing the color of your band and even color of the stones, it’s important to take into account the color it’s going to be sitting next to all day everyday: your skin. As a general rule of thumb, rose gold and yellow gold pair best with warm, olive skin tones, while platinum and white golds pair best with pinkish, cool skin tones. As for black gold? Black looks good on everyone with everything. For stones, think of pairing yellow, red and green stones (Yellow Diamond, Emerald, Garnet, Amber, Ruby) with olive tones, and pink, blue and purple stones (Blue Sapphire, Amethyst, Aquamarine, Emerald) with pinkish tones. If you’re looking for a particular stone eternity band or dreaming about mixing a couple different stones, send us an email! We love making our clients’ custom dreams come true.
Can I mix metals?
It’s 2017, which means the answer is definitely yes. Mixing is both super in right now, and a timeless trend that has been around for hundreds of years, so we’re confident it’s a style that isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Traditionally, rose or yellow gold is most commonly paired with a classic white gold, but we’ll be the first to tell you that traditional isn’t for everyone. Many of our Noémie ladies opt for rose gold + yellow gold, or black gold + white gold, and these combinations are gorgeous. What matters most is making sure it feels and looks like you. Give yourself permission to dream, visualize, and play around until you find that sweet spot.
How do I stack?
Can’t choose between a white gold and rose gold band? Or between sapphire and diamonds? You don’t have to! Stack anywhere between 2-3 thin studded bands around your engagement ring and enjoy the best of all words. Not only does stacking create an elegant, sparkly look, but it also can provide nice symmetry, which some interpret as a symbol of sealing in the love. We suggest purchasing all bands you plan on stacking from the same jeweler to create a cohesive look, but from there feel free to mix metals and stones to your heart’s content.
What colors compliment my skin best?
When choosing the color of your band and even color of the stones, it’s important to take into account the color it’s going to be sitting next to all day everyday: your skin. As a general rule of thumb, rose gold and yellow gold pair best with warm, olive skin tones, while platinum and white golds pair best with pinkish, cool skin tones. As for black gold? Black looks good on everyone with everything. For stones, think of pairing yellow, red and green stones (Yellow Diamond, Emerald, Garnet, Amber, Ruby) with olive tones, and pink, blue and purple stones (Blue Sapphire, Amethyst, Aquamarine, Emerald) with pinkish tones. If you’re looking for a particular stone eternity band or dreaming about mixing a couple different stones, send us an email! We love making our clients’ custom dreams come true.
Can I mix metals?
It’s 2017, which means the answer is definitely yes. Mixing is both super in right now, and a timeless trend that has been around for hundreds of years, so we’re confident it’s a style that isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Traditionally, rose or yellow gold is most commonly paired with a classic white gold, but we’ll be the first to tell you that traditional isn’t for everyone. Many of our Noémie ladies opt for rose gold + yellow gold, or black gold + white gold, and these combinations are gorgeous. What matters most is making sure it feels and looks like you. Give yourself permission to dream, visualize, and play around until you find that sweet spot.
How do I stack?
Can’t choose between a white gold and rose gold band? Or between sapphire and diamonds? You don’t have to! Stack anywhere between 2-3 thin studded bands around your engagement ring and enjoy the best of all words. Not only does stacking create an elegant, sparkly look, but it also can provide nice symmetry, which some interpret as a symbol of sealing in the love. We suggest purchasing all bands you plan on stacking from the same jeweler to create a cohesive look, but from there feel free to mix metals and stones to your heart’s content.
What should I look for in quality?
Any band you purchase should have two marks: the manufacturer's trademark (i.e. our little elephant + palm tree logo) and a quality mark (i.e. "18k" or "PLAT"). Any diamond you purchase should come with a Certification Card to ensure both the quality of the diamond and that the stone is conflict-free (a.k.a no people, animals, or land were harmed in the harvesting of your stone). The key here is to not overpay for top quality jewelry when you don’t have to. Our jewelry pieces cost, on average, 60% less than the exact same quality piece would from another traditional jewelry retailer. How? We work directly with an experienced family-owned production house to cut out all the unnecessary markups that come from sourcing, designing, manufacturing, and retailing. In other words...you’re paying for the top quality of the ring, and that’s it.
While certain styles are super in right now (we’re looking at you, triangular wedding bands), remember that you want to look for something timeless. Like, you-and-your-betrothed-78-years old-holding-hands-in-rocking-chairs-as-the-grandkids-run-around-the-backyard kind of timeless. You want the band to feel like you, absolutely, but we suggest taking ample time to visualize the band on your finger in ten, twenty, thirty years. And then saving the super modern, super trendy jewelry pieces for the other fingers.
What if I don’t like it?
There can be a lot of fear around purchasing something that will last you a lifetime. Again, we so get it. The key is to find a jeweler you can really work with throughout the process. Someone who will answer all your questions - and we mean all of them -, offer you exchanges and returns if you change your mind, and even hold your hand from time to time (in a friendly family jeweler kind of way). At Noémie, we not only will walk you through each step of purchasing your dream eternity band (or two or three), but we also offer a lifetime warranty, certification card, free cleanings whenever your heart desires, and free exchanges and returns, even on custom pieces. No questions asked.
Any band you purchase should have two marks: the manufacturer's trademark (i.e. our little elephant + palm tree logo) and a quality mark (i.e. "18k" or "PLAT"). Any diamond you purchase should come with a Certification Card to ensure both the quality of the diamond and that the stone is conflict-free (a.k.a no people, animals, or land were harmed in the harvesting of your stone). The key here is to not overpay for top quality jewelry when you don’t have to. Our jewelry pieces cost, on average, 60% less than the exact same quality piece would from another traditional jewelry retailer. How? We work directly with an experienced family-owned production house to cut out all the unnecessary markups that come from sourcing, designing, manufacturing, and retailing. In other words...you’re paying for the top quality of the ring, and that’s it.
Will I like it forever-ever?
While certain styles are super in right now (we’re looking at you, triangular wedding bands), remember that you want to look for something timeless. Like, you-and-your-betrothed-78-years old-holding-hands-in-rocking-chairs-as-the-grandkids-run-around-the-backyard kind of timeless. You want the band to feel like you, absolutely, but we suggest taking ample time to visualize the band on your finger in ten, twenty, thirty years. And then saving the super modern, super trendy jewelry pieces for the other fingers.
What if I don’t like it?
There can be a lot of fear around purchasing something that will last you a lifetime. Again, we so get it. The key is to find a jeweler you can really work with throughout the process. Someone who will answer all your questions - and we mean all of them -, offer you exchanges and returns if you change your mind, and even hold your hand from time to time (in a friendly family jeweler kind of way). At Noémie, we not only will walk you through each step of purchasing your dream eternity band (or two or three), but we also offer a lifetime warranty, certification card, free cleanings whenever your heart desires, and free exchanges and returns, even on custom pieces. No questions asked.