OMG! So, we have this friend that has had the same wonderful girlfriend for about 6 years. He is FINALLY getting ready to propose. However, he has no clue on what to do. Not only on how to ask her but, where to buy her a ring, or what kind of ring she might like. Just to fill you in – he has no idea the difference between an engagement ring and wedding band. He doesn’t have any guy friends to turn to for advice, for they are all forever bachelors.
So ladies (or gentlemen), can you PLEASE help us out and come up with a few basics for our friend as well as all those potential grooms out there. Like, how the heck do they find out your ring size with out giving it away? Where is a good place to propose, that does not involve the whole world watching you? Please leave some comments with some advice tips. Our favroite comments will be posted in a HOW TO for HIM!
A last little tip that our dear friend needs… how does he know what type of style of ring would she like? She is a stylish girl, who loves Frankie B Jeans (weird fact we know) and loves the beach. Actually they met on the beach … which is obviously a perfect place to ask her. Right? Hint hint our friend.
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My Fiance had my ring custom made, he took my normal style, classic yet modern and had a ring created that mimicked that and is timeless. You could always purchase just the center stone and get a solitare then after proposing you can both design it together.
The beach is such a great place to propose. My fiance proposed to me on the beach in Del Mar, he pretended like it was any normal day walking on the beach and we stumbled upon writing in the sand that said "Rachel Will you Marry Me" with rose petals outlining it. It was the most romantic and creative thing he has ever done. The icing on the cake is, he had a friend near by taking photographs, now we have pictures that will last forever of him down on one knee. I definetely reccomend the photos. No matter how you do it, she will love it because she loves you. Good Luck!
My fiance had one of his friends ask to look at a ring I was wearing on my ring finger on my right hand and he put it on his own finger to "look" at it and remembered where on his finger the ring fit. It was surprisingly accurate. As for style as a jewelry designer myself I think that if you take photos of jewelry she owns and loves or wears alot to the jeweler they can help you out. Good luck with everything!
Wow, congrats to them! He should just take her shopping for rings. Make it easy. Have her try on stuff and point out ones she likes – it’s by far the easiest way. My ring size is exactly the same as my shoe size, so the trick someone mentioned above doesn’t always work.
Good luck!
If you’ve decided the place of wedding, at some point you’re going to think about planning of the wedding. As with most weddings, you have the choice of planning your wedding or hiring wedding planner.
Here’s some tips from a fellow guy…
To get ideas for a ring… Go to a book store and buy a bridal magazine. Before you buy it, make sure that it has lots of pictures of rings in it. When you bring it home, just say that someone at work had the magazine and didn’t need it anymore and asked if your girlfriend would want it. Being the nice boyfriend that you are you figured your girlfriend might want to look through it. Go through the magazine at home while your both sitting on the couch together. As you browse through the magazine, take mental notes of any rings she points out. If she doesn’t speak up, start pointing out designs you like and gauge her response. The trick is to act like your only half way interested in the magazine. That way she doesn’t get suspicious. Just keep one eye on the TV and another on the magazine.
Where to propose… If your girl loves the beach then I agree with everyone else here. It’s cliche but believe me she won’t care. Get a friend to help set up something as a surprise. Candlelight dinner, trail of rose petals, etc. Me? I proposed in Vegas when we went there to stay for her birthday weekend. There’s a restaurant/lounge at the top of Mandalay Bay that’s only open at night but I got the general manager to let me use it in the morning when I told him I’d be proposing. It took my fiance up there early in the morning saying I had arranged a special birthday breakfast for just the two of us (all her friends were also there with us that weekend for her birthday). We had breakfast and I had a gift for her to open that she thought was just a small birthday gift. Inside a larger wrapped box I had hidden the ring box. When she finally opened it I got down on one knee and the rest is history…
As for the ring size… That’s the tough part. Looking through her jewelry is a good idea, just be sure the ring is made for her ring finger. Otherwise talk to your jeweler and see if the ring design you choose can easily be sized. Then just guess a size, compare her hands to those of her friends or relatives and find out their ring size.
Buy her a star with her married name on it. I have a friend who’s boyfriend bought her a star (yes you can do that apparently) for her birhtday. I thought it would be absoutly perfect thing for an engagement. Plan a candle light picnic on a clowdless night. Point to the stars and say something like… "I bet every star has a name… What do you think that one’s (her new star) name is." She might say something like who knows. Get out the piece of paper that states the name and location. And then get down on one knee while she is looking at the paper and pop the question!!!!
how perfect to have a star with your new name! So unique!
wow. first of all, congrats! this is such a huge moment and there are a MILLION ways you can do this, which i’m sure doesn’t help!! my best advice is, be YOU GUYS. i had always dreamed of all the ways i’d be proposed to and my fiancee did it SO simply and SO ME. i had just moved into my apartment and he sat on the couch with me, very normally. he began talking about our journey together and before i knew it….BAM. you know, it was the PERFECT engagemenant. it was intimate. it was simple.
do you need to do that? nope. but, just take a moment to think about your relationship. think about what makes her smile. perhaps go back to a very important place for the two of you. i hear the beach is a big place for you two! so, take a nice walk. take a walk down memory lane. and just be yourself!
Buying the ring in the right size was easy for my fiance. I went out of town for a trip and while I was gone, he took one of my rings to the jeweler and said "this is her size." Yes it was the wrong hand, but it was pretty darn close. And my fiance is very computer oriented so he checked online as to where a good place in the city we were in (Paris) that was romantic and a good place to pop the question. Don’t go anywhere cliche. And a restaurant is not very private. Go somewhere that means something to you, such as where you went on your first date, where you first met, where you had your first kiss, etc. She’ll love the fact that you personalized it. And as for picking the ring, just go to the jewelry store and see which one speaks to you. Or if you are really lost, see if one of her tight lipped friends will go with you to help out.
I say go to Robbins Bros. They are so wonderful there. They know their rings and they are SO helpful. I wouldn’t go to any other place. They’ll help with the proposal too.
Have fun and good luck.
:O)
Oh and don’t forget to take pictures.
Wow, never heard about your ring size being 2 sizes smaller than your shoe size, but that is true for me! Weird! I suggest asking her mom or getting one of her girlfriends to play detective. Mom or the girlfriend may be able to shed some light on what kind of ring style would be best too, but then again, I wouldn’t want my mom picking out my ring.
A fun new trend is to hire a photographer to discretely capture the engagement. Obviously a little planning is necessary so she’s not tipped off, but I am sure she will treasure having a once-in-a-lifetime moment like that captured. We shot a proposal last year and it was a blast! We had a slideshow ready to go a half hour later at the groom’s mom’s house and all the friends/relatives got to see the photos. The bride’s mom totally LOVED it too. Instant "in" with the future in-laws. :)
My only other piece of advice is to make it as personal as possible. Tie in something that is specific to both of you – it could be a place you love, a hobby you enjoy, something you collect. We had a groom who collected vintage Lego Little People, and he set up a mock wedding with the People and the engagement ring was the tiara that held the "bride’s" veil on. It was totally unique, and they ended up using their Little People as their cake toppers and even took them with them on their honeymoon and incorporated them into the pictures.
Jeremy had no clue what size ring I wore, so he drug me to the jewelry store (I was so not into looking at diamonds since I was not getting one any time soon… I was wrong…but whatever) So he’d already been there and told them he was bringing me in for the sole purpose of getting my ring size…. I had no clue, he’d already picked out my diamond!
The beach in your case is a perfect place… but I would do it on a deserted beach… like a national seashore or something…. not where all the sun bathers can watch! Good Luck!
Defiantly look at the jewelry she already has. If she wears alot of costume-ish jewelry then go for the bigger, if she is a simple girl, maybe look into more of an antique style (they are becoming more and more popular). And if your still confused look to the mom or best friend. Most woman have to have their rings sized anyway so even if your close you’ll be fine.
Propose somewhere you feel comfortable. If you dont feel comfortable then the whole thing can get a awkward. She isn’t going to care where it happens, its what you say that matters.
Look to friends. Go try on rings for fun – even if its the sterling silver ring cart at the mall. Or just ask her… (easiest way is to ask friend about size)… start noticing other girls rings, ask her opinion… "do you think that’s nice. too big" or play the "what if" game… but ask so many "what ifs" that she’s thrown off track as to what you are really doing!
Honestly, i had always dreamed of a big to do with my proposal. Maybe on a lake, a beach, friends and family. But it happened on the back patio. Just my fiance and i, and i was actually fresh out of the bathtub with my hair in a curly frizzy mess, hot mess as i like to call it. Again, i was still in my bathrobe, i might have been wearing my furry slippers too, i can’t remember though. As soon as my fiance got down on one knee, the whole world, bathrobe and frizzy mess that was on my head went away. there was nothing else in the world that mattered in that moment. I say, if the mood hits you, go for it. If you really love each other, it won’t matter where you are and the only other person who you will see is your partner.
to find out ring size (which she may not even know) he can either steal a ring of hers and bring it to a jeweler to have it sized or use the old trick of subtracting 2 sizes from her shoe size (ie. i’m a 7 1/2 but wear a 5 -5 1/2 ring) it’ll get him close enough that it can be sized to her exact size a little if necessary.
for what she likes the best friend is always the best source. if she hasn’t told her all the little things already at least she can ask these questions with no suspicion.
any place he asks will be perfect. just make sure it’s about them, and reflects them, not some over the top proposal that isn’t really what either of them are about.
can’t wait to hear how it goes!
Awww good for him! My advice would be to propose at the beach (since that is where they met) maybe early in the morning or late in the evening when there is not a lot of people out.
As far as the ring goes, colored stones are becoming a fast trend and to keep with the beach theme he could get an Aquamarine (like mine, I love it!) with diamonds on each side.
I hope I helped a little!
GOOD LUCK!!!
I think one of the best ways to find out her ring size and ring style is to talk to her girlfriends (or her mom). I’ve gone into plenty of jewelry shops with my girlfriends to try on rings just for fun, so I think if he talked to one of her friends that he might be able to work that out without her catching on. A clever friend could work it into a regular shopping trip for some new jeans. :)