Maybe some of you are wondering what happened with engagement ring shopping and why I haven’t plastered a pic of my finger all over social media. Or maybe not.
So we looked at several stores and also a company that supplies to jewelry stores. While we would be able to get a ring at cost, meaning it would cost half as much compared to what the store was selling it for, I only had one thought it my mind.
That’s so much money (to me, that is).
I couldn’t get over it. Damn, gemstones are expensive. It was within what my fiance/partner/bf/housemate was willing to spend, but my thoughts were:
- Whoa. That could be a monthly mortgage payment or someone’s rent.
- An all-inclusive trip to Cuba or Mexico for one person is cheaper than that.
- That’s half a year’s worth of groceries
And so on.
When the sales rep showed me a ring for what was literally $100, it looked pretty plain and crappy. It looked like something you got out of those 5 cent machines where you turn the knob and out comes your toy in a plastic bubble.
After talking to a couple of married people, they told me they don’t even wear their engagement rings or wedding rings that much. I’m not really a ring person. I lose things left, right and centre. Although I have been pretty good at keeping what low value jewelry I currently have.
Guys can rent tuxedos. So why can’t you rent rings? Just to have for the ceremony? Or is it considered a “sacred” ( I initially typed in scared. Haha) thing?
They also mentioned that they felt all the planning and stress wasn’t worth it. Mind you, they had more traditional style weddings. When I think about just planning a wedding in general, it makes me think of all the times I didn’t want to do homework.
We did check out one venue though. I thought it was worth checking out because it was smaller and different. Unfortunately, it ended up being a heck of a LOT smaller than I thought, along with a very steep set of stairs and only two washrooms. It was a coffee shop, so you could understand the size and the amount of washrooms. I had seen wedding photos of people who had gotten married there and thought, how cool is that.
The coffee shop/potential wedding venue
A year ago, I had written a post about how I wanted to get married for all the wrong reasons. Fast forward to now and I think I do want to get married for some right reasons such as to make our parents happy and to have a fun time with our close family and friends.
It’s just the planning that I hate. According to my sister, I was pretty good at planning her shower and bachelorette, so it’s not like I’m incompetent. I think after years and years of growing up and planning parties (I even had a debutante ball type party, which was pretty much a wedding), I don’t want to plan anymore.
I’m quite lazy when it comes to planning social events. I am not your hostess with the mostest.
Much to my surprise, last month was way busier than expected. I didn’t have a free weekend till the end of the month. There was always something both on Saturday AND Sunday. I also got really sick (READ: FLU AND STREP THROAT) during the last two weeks of September which was most likely due to not having any rest/down time. I’m seriously putting my foot down on saying no to more events-family or friends. My health is at stake here. It’s okay to say no here and there.
There’s also been some serious issues with the current tenants at my fiance’s rental property whom he shares with his brothers.
There’s no deadline, no rush to get married. Part of me also wants to get it over with though. But as soon as that’s done with, you know they’re going to be bugging you about growing your family.
So those are the sort of wedding updates. Meh.
Here are some not so meh pictures taken on the day we went to check out our potential venue.
The inside of the coffee shop
Imagine trying to go down that in heels or drunk. Yikes.
Yet another line. People waiting for coffee.
I had a really hard time with ring shopping too. I really didn’t want to spend that much, especially because I’m not a jewellery girl. I looked at some alternate stones and styles just to get over the cost. In the end I decided I wanted a kitten instead.
I would say if you’re ok with a fake ring, go for it!
I wish I could get a kitten but I’m very allergic to cats. 🙁
That would have been an interesting venue! I’m glad you’re looking out for yourself and getting some rest. I hope you’ve recovered from the flu and step throat! I don’t know what I would do if we didn’t have my grandma’s ring. I have a $350 ring I got as a gift years ago, and people constantly mistake it for an engagement ring. It’s not traditional style at all, so I guess I would have just gone with something sparkly and affordable!
I thought it would be the perfect venue. It probably is, if you have between 30-60 ppl that is. I think our minimum number of guests would be 100, which would be quite tight in that small amount of space.
I am almost fully recovered. I think the last time I had strep throat was when I was a kid. I forgot how painful it is. I had this constant sharp, almost stabbing like pain in my throat. It hurt constantly. It hurt to swallow and hurt to talk. Thank goodness for antibiotics. 🙂
Do you need gemstones in your ring? You could have a simple wedding band and that’s it.
After 30 some odd years, my mom recently lost her wedding ring due to a medical issue that caused her to lose weight and loosened the ring enough to the point where one day she noticed it was missing. My mom always wore another ring that she just liked on her other hand it was a plain gold band with no gemstones. I’m not exactly sure where she got it, I know that on the inside it has some engraving from decades before she was even born, but she decided that this would be her new ring since honestly the rings weren’t too important to her. The ring was always simple and comfortable so that’s why she always wears it, perhaps that is an approach you could take. A simple ring with no gemstones with something memorable engraved into it.
I’ve never really worn rings before so I can’t say first hand, but I always thought that gemstones would be more uncomfortable than plain bands.
I used to wear rings early on in high school, but for some reason I stopped. So from going from not wearing rings at all for how many years to wearing a ring would be a huge step for me. It would probably feel weird at first having something on my finger.
I’m a pretty simple and casual person myself, but I think I would like at least one gemstone in the middle. Finding one I like and one with a price I’m comfortable with my fiance spending is proving to be harder than I thought.
After having gone to the farmer’s market over the weekend, I think I may look into antique markets, which may have unique rings for cheaper…or the other way around…haha.
I can figure out how stressing it can be especially when you can find an item that its within your budget. I think I share some characteristics with you and I keep losing some small items I own, so I couldn’t offer to go for the expensive ring too.
Although the ring was still in his budget of what he was willing to spend for me, I found the price to still be quite high. I would be paranoid that I would lose something so small and expensive.
I’m with you on the ring thing. I had my grandma’s wedding ring for years and didn’t know what to do with it because it was huge and I would have lost it. I eventually had it made into a necklace which is more up my ally and I love it. I think when it comes to wedding and wedding planning, you do what is best for you at your own pace.
That’s sounds like a good idea. If I ever end up a finding a ring, I may do that after the wedding (whenever that is .Haha). I’m more of a necklace person anyway.
I bought Mrs T’s engagement ring on a day without her. I basically decided that I’d propose to her on her birthday and went to the jewelry store the Friday before. I didn’t know anything about engagement rings so it was a little intimidating to go to the jewelry store by myself and pick out a ring. Luckily she said yes and was happy about the ring that I picked out.
Even though we are going ring shopping together, I still find it intimidating! I have a general idea of what I want, but if you ask me about cut, clarity, etc, it goes over my head.
Your health is more important than planning! So yes take the time to rest and recover. Being sick is the worst and resting is the best thing you can do. That venue looks nice from the pics!
It does. It really bummed me out that it was a lot smaller than I expected though. And it’s also a bit of a drive from where we live. I liked the fact that it was different and not your typical venue.
How are you feeling now? Much better I hope.
Your wedding venue is lovely. I didn’t know the coffee shop was open to events. The distillery is always nice for wedding photographs. I like any sort of wedding updates; despite the costs and being a PF blogger, I love weddings!
Yes, I am. I feel like I have most of my energy back. Thanks for asking. Unfortunately because it is a lot smaller than we expected, we decided to keep looking. I agree, the distillery district is a very nice place to take pictures. Apparently you need to apply for a permit though.