How to select the perfect ring

You want to surprise your partner with a diamond or gemstone ring, but how do you know if she'll like the ring?

You're not alone, most men have no idea what their partner prefers or even what size ring she wears.

Please note there is no quick soloution to this dilema, to get this right, you have to spend a bit of time gathering the following information before you go shopping:

	What type of stone she prefers
	What colour of stone she prefers
	What shape of stone she prefers
	What setting she prefers
	What metal she prefers and if she allergic to any metal.
	Her ring size

Follow this two part ring selection guide and you won't go wrong:

Part one - her preferences

Establishing what your partner prefers generaly takes some time, but not everybody remembers such things as birthdays, anniversaries, mothers day and so on, so this guide takes this into account:

	If you have a lot of time before you need to buy the ring, establish your partners jewelry preferences by casually talking about jewlery. Over a period of time you will find out exactly what your partner likes.
	If time is a little short, take note of what jewelry your partners wears. In particular, take a good look at the shape and color of the diamonds or gemstones in the jewelry your partner wears. Pay attention to the color of the metal. If you get the opportunity, look in her jewelry box and take a good look at the jewelry she owns.
	If you've left it a little late and time is running out, you can try speaking to her mother or close girlfriends, maybe they will know of your partners preferences. Be prepared, they will guess your intention and may spoil the suprise.
	If you've left it way too late and you need to get the ring urgently, you'll have no option but to take her to a jewelry shop and buy her a ring as a gift! Keep your eyes and ears open this time and pay attention to her preferences!

Part two - her ring size

While you are establishing your partners preferences, you should establish her ring size at the same time:

	During those moments you have together, try to play with her rings and see if one of them fits on any of your fingers. If it does, you've found her ring size.
	If the ring doesn't fit on any of your fingers, you can always resort to an engineering solution and that is to measure either the diameter or the inside circumference of the ring (click here for a simple method). Please try and be subtle when you try this and do it without her knowing. The best time to do this is when you are inspecting the contents of her jewelry box.
	While you are asking her mother or close girlfriends if they know her preferences, remember to ask for her ring size.
	If all else fails, you'll have no option but to take her to a jewelry shop and buy her a ring as a gift! Keep your eyes and ears open this time and pay attention to her ring size!
	If you get it all wrong, don't worry, provided you chose a size close to what it should be, jewelry shops can usually resize the ring.

Once you have established what your partner prefers you have to go shopping for the ring.

When selecting a ring to buy, the four C's (cut, color, clarity, carat) are important. Be prepared to spend a little time learning it will be time well spent.

You can find more information on this topic in the diamond jewelry tips section.

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