Question: Wear engagement ring after wedding?
I've noticed a lot of women wearing their engagement rings along with
their wedding rings, either on the same finger or on different ones. An
engagement ring literally signifies imminent marriage, right? So why
continue wearing it after the wedding? What other meanings besides
showing off might this have?
If you're a bride-to-be with an engagement ring, do you plan on wearing it
after you're married, and if so, why? If not, why not? If you're already
married, what does it mean to you to wear or not wear your engagement ring
(assuming it's different from your wedding ring)?
I *do* have an engagement ring and I do not plan on wearing it much after
my wedding (which is in less than two weeks, I can't believe it). My case
may be different, however, in that my beloved didn't buy my ring. It was my
mother's ring and I insisted that if there had to be a ring, it would be
one that didn't put either of us in debt. I figured that if he went into
hock for this ring, after the wedding we would essentially *both* be in
debt, and to me it wasn't worth it. However, I should think that if Ross
had indeed spent the supposedly requisite 2 months salary on a rock, I'd be
feeling pretty guilty if I wasn't wearing it all the time. 8)
If you're really wondering what to do with the ring you have, I'd say, do
whatever seems most natural. If you like the ring, wear it. If it means a
lot to you and you don't want to wear it all the time, wear it
occasionally. If it doesn't mean a lot to you and you don't like it all
that much, sell that puppy and buy some furniture.
You might also look at is as a promise, not just to eventually marry
someone, but to love and care for them for the rest of your life...and the
wedding ring as a symbol of the public commitment made during the
ceremony.
Personally, my wedding band looks dumb without the engagement ring next to
it, 'cause it fits around the stone (little "v" in the band to fit around
the corner of my slanted emerald cut stone - painful when one isn't
careful how one moves one's hands around ;)). I also have two friends
who's engagement rings were round stones set on wide gold bands. Neither
of them wears a separate wedding band, but just the one ring.
My fiance gave me a ring as a promise, but that promise isn't necessarily
dead when we get married....just one way to look at it I guess.
Every woman that I can think of that I know continues
to wear her engagement ring after her marriage. A
few wear them on different fingers (i.e. they move
the engagement ring to their right hand), but most
wear them on the same finger (wedding ring closest
to your wrist). As an old married woman of three
weeks, I can say that I always planned to wear both
rings, on the same finger. Both rings are a wide
platinum band, identical except that my engagement
ring has a diamond deep-set (bezel) into the center.
Why do I still wear my engagement ring? Because it
is a symbol of the beginning of our lives together,
cemented by our wedding rings. Because it has
enormous sentimental value. Because it's beautiful and I
love it more than any other ring I've ever had. Because
Brian gave it to me the night he asked me to
marry him. Do you need more reasons? I can't imagine
wearing it for 10 months and then putting it away in
a drawer for another 50 years.