How to Choose a Ring

So I have virtually no fashion sense. I am known to occasionally dress like an old man. My FW is helping me to improve, but some taste just can't be taught. I know that a lot of couples go ring shopping together, but we decided to go a little more traditional, with me buying it on my own.

My FW did give me two guidelines: the diamond had to be conflict-free (a no-brainer really) and the band had to be white gold (my preference as well). I had heard that there was something called the four C's (cut, carat, color, and clarity), but I didn't know what they were. Equipped with my ignorance and old-man-taste, I braved the world of internet diamond shopping.

First off, I have to say that online shopping is the way to go. There is less overhead, fewer middlemen (or middlewomen), greater selection, no taxes, and most surprising, more security. It didn't take me long to find a ring... a ring that only an old lady would wear (as my FW's best friends informed me). My brother could have told me the same thing but had decided to keep that information to himself. I tried again, and chose another old-lady diamond.

Here was my problem (besides my old-man-taste). I didn't want to go with the usual round or princess (square) cut. I wanted something simple and elegant but not typical, something that echoed the uniqueness and beauty of my fiancee. I finally found the perfect cut, a radiant cut diamond (similar to a princess-cut, but rectangular). Since radiant is one of my favorite adjectives I use to describe my FW, this seemed like a perfect match.

I was a little nervous ordering the ring because all I had was a picture, but I knew the site was reliable and that I could always send it back if it wasn't what I expected. When it came in the mail, I was so excited. It was perfect. I had it for a week and a half before the proposal, and I kept looking at it (feel free to make fun of me). My FW loves it, so that is what really matters, but I really owe a lot to the people who helped me pick it out.