SocialBrides.co.uk|Social Network,Wedding Blog & Chat Sessions, Online Wedding Fair 2012

SHOULD YOUR HUSBAND TO BE WEAR A

WEDDING RING?

 
Traditionally, the majority of women (married of course) wear a wedding ring.

The third finger of the left hand often waits for years to have such an honour bestowed on it. It is a symbol of your commitment to each other and it shows the world that you are ‘taken’.

However, many, many men choose not to wear one. They state reasons (come up with excuses?) such as, ‘I don’t wear jewellery’ or ’it would get in the way of me being able to play golf/the piano/guitar/other musical instrument ‘.

So, is this acceptable?

Should we just go along with the fact that they can choose to wear a ring, when it’s more or less expected of women to wear one when they get married, not to mention wearing an engagement ring too.

Surely if women have to show to all that they are in a permanent committed relationship, that they are married, that they are ‘taken’, then men should too?

 The newlywed Royal, Prince William chose not to wear a wedding ring. His father doesn’t wear one, and neither does his grandfather.

Is this just an old fashioned male tradition that the Royals adhere to?

 





Wearing the wedding band, which is meant to be the symbol of eternal love, shows that we are proud of being married. It shows that we want the whole world to know we are committed to someone for life and that we happily accept that we are off the market.

 
So why do men have different rules? Women have to guess whether the man they are talking to, who might well be chatting them up, is married orsingle.

They look for signs of tan marks on their left hand, for other jewellery that would show they’d wear a ring if they were indeed married.

Basically, women have to play a game of guess the marital status whenever they meet a potential boyfriend.

Men, simply have to glimpse at the woman’s left hand and decide whether or not it’s worth his while to make a move.

Discuss!

One of the biggest worries when planning a wedding is the budget. Weddings are notoriously expensive with the average wedding in the UK costing between £15,000 and £25,000! Of course, that is not the case for everyone. Many people spend more and many people spend less as you can still have your dream wedding for a more reasonable price.

 One of the best ways to achieve this is to aim for the highest quality you can, at the most reasonable price.  With more and more people adopting this strategy it is no surprise that the latest in-demand product of the jewellery industry is fast becoming an emerging trend in the wedding industry. The precious metal Palladium continues to gain popularity around the world and because of its light weight and lustre it is transforming in to the new metal of choice for wedding bands.

 Palladium is part of the Platinum Group Metals (PGM) and is similar in quality to Platinum itself at only a fraction of the cost! Palladium can be used alone or alloyed with silver or gold; it is actually whiter than platinum, remains tarnish free and has the same metal working properties as other jewellery metals.

 “This is the metal, this is the year, and Palladium will soon be on the tip of every tongue in the jewellery industry, wrapped around every finger, draped across every neckline. This isn’t a new metal, it is the NOW metal, a naturally flawless element that forever shines brilliantly white.”

(Stillwater Palladium, natural Palladium mine, USA)

It is becoming more and more popular throughout the wedding industry simply because it is excellent value for money. It is the closest metal to platinum which is regarded by some as the most precious metal available, and yet it costs less than most of the other precious metals, if not all of them, with platinum being the most expensive.

 If you want the highest quality available for the most reasonable price possible, and wish quality wedding bands as prestigious as platinum rings didn’t carry the hefty price tag then you might find the price comparisons (from three of the largest jewellers in the UK) below very helpful!

Ernest Jones.

Men’s 6mm Platinum wedding band -                £1,100

Men’s 6mm 18ct White Gold wedding band -    £375

Men’s 6mm 18ct Yellow Gold wedding band -   £425

Men’s 6mm Palladium wedding band -  £299

Beaverbrooks.

Men’s 6mm Platinum wedding band -   £1,450

Men’s 6mm 18ct White Gold wedding band -     £575

Men’s 6mm 18ct Yellow Gold wedding band -   £625

Men’s 6mm Palladium wedding band -   £325

Fraser Hart.

Men’s 6mm Platinum wedding band -                £1,150

Men’s 6mm 18ct White Gold wedding band -    £750

Men’s 6mm 18ct Yellow Gold wedding band -   £575

Men’s 6mm Palladium wedding band -   £350

All three jewellers had Palladium wedding rings priced on average at £200 - £300 less than their precious metal counterparts and for a ring that is lightweight, tarnish free, brilliant white and similar in quality to platinum, for a fraction of the price, it is definitely food for thought!



When budgeting for a wedding every penny counts and saving money where you can, without compromising greatly on quality is arguably the best way to get that dream wedding you want.
Will Palladium be the wedding industry’s next big thing?
Check it out for yourself and watch this space!
 
 Article by Elaine Mennim www.SocialBrides.co.uk  Contributor