Thinking About Redesigning & Upgrading Your Wedding Ring? What To Know First!

Redesigning & Upgrading Your Wedding Ring

Wedding rings are symbolic and hold a lot of weight for many women and couples. If you’re considering upgrading or redesigning your wedding ring, there a few things you should know and consider first. My incredibly sweet assistant, Joy, recently went through the process, and since upgrading a wedding ring is something many women consider, I knew it was worth sharing. Keep scrolling to read Joy’s experience, tips on how to start redesigning your ring, finding the right jeweler, and more…

Reasons for Redesigning Your Wedding Ring

Redesigning, upgrading, or redoing your wedding ring is a very personal decision and there are many reasons why someone would want to redo their wedding ring. As styles and tastes change, some women may want to update their look. Or, they might be celebrating a milestone anniversary. If they’ve gone through a divorce, they may want to change the symbolic meaning of the ring, or perhaps they are wanting to pass the ring on to their children.

Joy’s Story

When my husband and I got married, we were just 19 and 20 years old and we didn’t have a lot of money. Thankfully, we were able to use a diamond handed down from one of my grandmas. Fast forward 27 years to this past May. I was sitting at my computer, looked down at my hand, and saw that my main diamond had fallen out of my ring. I was devastated, frantically looked everywhere, and prayed for a few days.

During that time my husband said to me that he’s always wanted to invest in me and upgrade my ring, and now that we are in a better financial situation, he felt this was the time to do so. I was so touched by his thoughtful words. The very next day, miraculously, I found my diamond laying on my carpet!! I excitedly told my husband, “Now we don’t need to spend that money on a new ring.” He looked at me and said that he absolutely still wanted to buy me a new ring. My husband is my biggest cheerleader and insisted we move forward with creating a ring…I am very thankful for him.

Feeling Worthy

But… this was a moment I really struggled with. Feeling worthy to accept such an expensive gift was difficult for me. Since I had found my diamond, I felt like I didn’t “deserve” anything else. I know that I cannot be the only woman that has ever been in this position or experienced this “unworthiness” I was feeling. While there are so many reasons to get your ring redone…this feeling of unworthiness might be one of the reasons you haven’t gotten your ring redone or brought it up to your partner. It’s so easy to feed into that negative narrative in our heads. But it’s important to break that negative cycle and start speaking the positive truth to ourselves. We each bring unique gifts to those around us and that should be celebrated!

How To Start Redesigning Your Wedding Ring

Look for Inspiration & Ask Questions

Once we agreed that we would move forward with creating a ring, I began my research. I am a researcher by nature, I LOVE it. The downside is that I tend to over-research! I searched on Pinterest, online-only jewelry stores, brick-and-mortar stores, and Etsy. I was also reading their reviews! People would say “I love this place! Best experience ever!” and then the very next person would say “Don’t trust this store!” It is such an expensive purchase, and I didn’t want to get taken advantage of. I felt so lost and unsure of what to do. I felt paralyzed. The spark of excitement had left so I decided to take a break for a couple of days…

To get you started, here are a few questions to ask yourself when you’re deciding what you want and looking for inspiration…

Do I want to buy a loose diamond and have it set?
Should I get my current diamond reset?
Do I want to change the cut of my stone?
Should I add more or different stones?
Do I purchase a completely new ring?
Do I go with a lab-created diamond or a natural stone?
What type of ring is best for my lifestyle?
Should I just update my band?
Should I turn my current stone into another piece of jewelry (like a cocktail ring or necklace)?

Find a Good Jeweler

After those couple of days away from the research, I decided to start again. This time I would head over to YouTube to see if I could find information on lab-created vs natural stones. My search led me to Bonnie of By Bonnie Jewelry. Her videos were very thorough and educational, without being overwhelming. The range of topics is enormous, and she answers questions I didn’t even know I had. Her passion for her craft and her sincere care for her clients really came through. Her channel is an invaluable resource for anyone looking to redo their ring or create a piece of jewelry. Thanks to the videos, I landed on the style of ring that I loved and would fit my lifestyle!

Of course, I researched Bonnie and her store a bit more, and out of 200 reviews, she had  5-star ratings…and not a single dissatisfied customer! I decided to reach out to her by email. I shared my story with her as well as the details of the ring I wished to create. She and her team were very responsive, which only made me feel better about finding her!

More Tips & Questions for Finding a Good Jeweler

• Does the jeweler listen to you? Their focus should be on your satisfaction.
• Does the jeweler offer a wide array of services? Do they have an in-house gemologist? The ability to fix or resize your jewelry? Are they able to create custom pieces?
• Is the jeweler knowledgeable and helpful when answering questions?
• Does the jeweler teach you how to look at diamonds and show you the 4Cs first-hand?
• Check the metal used in the ring, it is equally important as the stone.
• Look at their policies around warranties or returns.
• Can you trust them? Search online for reviews. Look at the comments on the stores’ social media platforms and visit jewelry forums.
• Are they established and credentialed?
• Do they have certified products and trained staff?
• Do they use ethical business practices?

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The Process of Upgrading a Wedding Ring

Since Bonnie was in California and I was in Texas, there were two processes offered. I could work with Bonnie to create the ring via Zoom, or I could travel to her store and meet with her in person. The online process has glowing reviews from clients, as Bonnie and her team create an effortless and seamless process. However, with my 27th anniversary approaching, I decided we’d make a trip out of it!

The in-person consultation made me feel very special and it was a truly magical day. My husband and I were greeted with a warm welcome from Bonnie. She escorted us to a table holding 3 loose stones, nestled in a velvet holder. She sat with us and walked us through each stone, explaining all the details of each one. I was able to try them on as well. Once we decided on the stone, we moved on to the other choices including the metal type, ring settings, and band width. She kindly and knowledgeably answered any questions we had along the way and made the process feel really easy!

When we had all the details figured out, we celebrated with complimentary champagne and, of course, I needed to take a picture in front of the iconic mirror from her YouTube videos (above)! By the way, I actually did an interview with Bonnie while we were in the store. If you’re interested, you can watch that here where I share more about our story!

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How Long Did it Take?

This was the hardest part! I was so excited to get my new ring! It took 6 weeks for my ring to be finished. It was shipped overnight and arrived safely in a ring box, that was inside of two bubble mailers, inside of a larger box. Once I got through all of the layers, I was greeted by a gorgeous blue velvet ring box with a ribbon as well as the certificate for my ring. Bonnie’s attention to detail continued to the very end. Such a great experience!!

More Options for Upgrading Your Ring

I completely understand that not everyone is going to fly to California to design a new ring. But luckily, there are other options for upgrading your ring that can feel equally as special! You could get your existing band engraved with something sentimental, add a new wedding band to refresh the look of your ring stack, or consider buying a completely new ring from an online jeweler like VRAI, Ring Concierge, Catbird, Gemist, Zales, Kay Jewelers, or Jared.

Tip: If you’re not sure what style you’ll like, try ordering a fake ring from Amazon to wear around the house. You’ll get a feel for the shape, carat size, and overall look, without having to spend too much money upfront for something you’re not sure about.

Do you have more questions about upgrading a wedding ring or about Joy’s experience? Please leave a comment below…we’re happy to answer your questions!

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