Ladies - please help me with this engagement ring thing

[MyClueLess]

Fast-Food Story: In a nutshell.. What do you think about a similar ring as this one as an engagement ring with eight emeralds instead of diamonds (our birth stone) on the outer ring and 1 center stone diamond?

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2366/2489303579_36346859ec.jpg

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Relaxed Meal Story: So.. after 3 years of courtship, the time has come for me to propose my "diamond" to spend the rest of her life with me... and the prevailing recommendation I get is to do it with a ring... but which one?
I am Indian and she is European and likewise our tastes are pretty different. I like color, she likes black & white and all shades in between, she like happy sounding music and movies that sometimes insult ones intellect and I like contemplative ones, she wants a big garden and I a big garage, she wants a baby and I want a Porsche, I like spicy food, ok... she like that too... but the point is, I don't know what ring to get . She doesn't wear rings and so the only clue I have regarding her taste of ring is based on her comment: "I like the ring to be beautiful, not just plain ones with a stuff on it."

 

[missD]

Golden Rule: Get her what YOU think she'll love. Not what you love. She has to be the one to wear it. If she doesn't like color, don't get her colored stones.

You know her best. But from the sounds of it, she likes sleek, simple, and modern. She likes a nice big garden, so I'm thinking she likes beauty in nature. So she's a classic at heart and a feminine person?

How about an Emerald Cut diamond ring?

In the end, you can't go wrong with walking into a jewelry stores and seeing what she gravitates towards. Stone shape that she prefers is very important, you should find that out. Goodluck!

 

[ame]

My advice is to get what SHE would like, at the highest quality available. You are not wearing this. SHE IS.

I think maybe a round with an adorned band, pave or something.

 

[elizat]

Why don't you go out w/ her and see what she likes or recruit a friend of hers, mom, sister, etc. to go shopping w/ her and see what she likes? Then, if you want, you can still pick it out, but you know her preferences on size, stone shape, metal, etc. It would still be a surprise that way.

Or you could just propose with a stone that you buy from somewhere and pick out the setting together, if you know she'd like a round diamond, for instance.

 

[ahertz]

My first ering was one that DH liked and picked out without any input from me because he wanted to surprise me. He's lovely, but he didn't really think about what I wanted or would want to wear for years. I hated it the second I saw it (including the shape of the stone), and finally had the nerve to say something a few years later. If he had just ASKED me what I wanted prior, it would have saved us money and his feelings.

So...ask her what she wants and then follow that. If you want the engagement to be a surprise, do what other ladies have told you and buy a diamond in a temporary setting.

 

[AntiqueShopper]

My advice is to get what SHE would like, at the highest quality available. You are not wearing this. SHE IS.

I think maybe a round with an adorned band, pave or something.

I agree with this statement. However, if you still feel the need to add color, look at a three stone round ring with blue sapphires as side stones. Sapphires are very traditional stones that were used as engagment rings. Plus, IMHO, I think they are a color that goes with anything.

 

[MyClueLess]

Thank you ladies for all the replies... You confirmed what I was suspecting: She would want the power of choice.

OK.. so I am thinking of taking her preview shopping and see what she gravitates to in terms of stone shapes and then present to her that in a basic temporary setting at a time of my choice ::pseudo-surprise:: Anyway, she knows its coming.. because I know she is secretly already planing for babies.

Or I could just gamble and get a round stone?

 

[ame]

I like the idea of going prelim shopping and then the stone in a temp setting. She may still love a round but you'll see in person what she goes towards.

 

[nyc_cady]

I agree with pre-lim shopping! My DF and I custom did my ering, I like to say it was a collaborative effort, he says I took over (which I probably did), but it only solidifies that most women like the option to choose.

I definitely gravitated towards things that my DF did not, but he remembered that I had to wear it. I'm sure that your lovely lady will definitely find something that catches her eye!

 

[lovesparkles]

I love the ring in the link you noted. It seems to fit "I like the ring to be beautiful, not just plain ones with a stuff on it." I think that enlisting a friend or family member to help find what she likes is a good idea though. Good luck - that you posted here shows that you really care that she is happy.