Category Archives: Weddings

Sep 8 2015

Tell Her You Mean Forever with an Anniversary Eternity Ring

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Image by Carlos Gracia via Flickr

Every couple looks forward to their wedding day. There are no words to describe the feeling of being married to the person you love the most. The two of you will vow that you’ll stick together for the rest of your life. The words are forever etched in your memory “to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part” or, maybe you had another variation of the vows. If you’re Hindi, you might have said, “Finally, let us take the seventh step and be true companions and remain lifelong partners by this wedlock“. Catholics say, “I will love and honour you all the days of my life” - Whichever words the two of you chose, you’ve pledged your troth to your one-and-only.

Now, it’s the anniversary of the declaration of those vows. How better to tell the woman you love, and to give her something to remind her on a daily basis, than to begin your quest with looking for eternity rings online from Serendipity Diamonds. An eternity ring is a celebration of your couple-hood. Diamond-set eternity rings range from simple, partial set designs to fully set arrangements in a range of styles and diamond shapes. There are so many to choose from, in varying carats, from 0.06 to 3-carats, with choices of metals, cuts and settings. There are simple bands, vintage inspired, and some combine diamonds with rubies, or blue or pink-sapphires.

Eternity rings are alternately (although not popularly) also called “infinity rings”. They generally have a set of identical stones all the way around the ring, which is designed to symbolize never-ending love. While eternity rings – with faux and less-precious stones – made an appearance as far back as the 18th century, the concept of the ring was brought into public consciousness through a campaign by iconic diamond merchants, De Beers, in the 1960s. All kinds of intrigue were attached to this gem development, and an American investigative journalist surmised that De Beers had a clandestine arrangement with the Soviets to make use of the many small (less than 0.25 carat) diamonds. Since large, single stones were standard for engagement rings, the notion of marketing the ring towards older, married women began.

Over the years, however, couples not only accepted the concept of an eternity ring, they embraced it. With so many beautiful choices, one will definitely suit your loved one. Serendipity Diamonds, for example, sells full and half-eternity rings (the latter refers to rings with stone at the top facing portion of the ring only.

Another factor in choosing a special ring refers to the metal choices. Those with bigger budgets almost always choose platinum or a high-carat of gold, either yellow or white. Half-eternity rings were designed with comfort in mind – the larger the surrounding stones, the less comfortable – conceivably – the eternity ring. Wear-ability is important. A key issue is ring weight. Check the difference between light, medium & heavy weight rings. Ring metal weights are determined by the alloy or metal mix. There are definitely variations, depending on the alloy combination or metal purity, the densities of ring metal alloys changes.

While some couples like to “match” their rings as much as a lady’s and a man’s ring can match (and it is possible to have rings made from the same metals), one of you may prefer a lighter or heavier weight ring. Starting with the lightest to the densest, here are metals for rings:

The above three are super light and you can barely feel them.

  • Sterling Silver (more dense than the above but less durable)
  • Palladium (a third lighter than gold)
  • Tungsten carbide (almost identical weight to gold)
  • Gold
  • 950 Platinum (will be heavier than gold)
  • Iridium (the heaviest weight and most people need to become accustomed to wearing it)

The addition of gemstones will also add to the weight.

You can’t buy love, but you can sure show her how you feel with an anniversary eternity ring.

A Quick Introduction To Eternity Rings

 

Mar 12 2015

When he finally asks me… A Honeymoon in Aruba

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When you’re on your hands and knees scrubbing “accidents” out of your soft pile carpet, you find yourself seeking mental refuge in “the before”; Before you had children, before you had a crippling mortgage to house your ever-increasing brood, before your living room turned into a homage to soft play. The simple days when boy met girl and you spent your days either drunk, in bed or holding hands. The pre-stretchmark days were a kaleidoscope of colour; festivals, night clubs and beach holidays. Now, the colour in your life is derived from the primary-coloured plastic toys in your bathtub.

I sound bitter. I’m not. I love my life with my two protégés in it. I just sometimes miss the solitude of Craig and I.

The next time we’ll be alone, truly alone, will be our honeymoon. So when real-life threatens to turn me into an alcoholic, I’ll Google destinations and lose myself in images of white sand, birds of paradise and romantic secluded cabins.

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The Caribbean offers all this and more. Its warm waters play host to small and fiercely independent islands, all offering something new (both culturally and atmospherically) to us stressed and emotionally-stilted urbanites. A warm welcome and week’s worth of unspoiled beaches, dramatic rock formations and tropical wildlife awaits you. Explorers can explore, lovers can fall deeper into each other, and sun-seekers can simply relax with cocktails laced with fresh fruits and generous measures.

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Among others, the beautiful island of Aruba boasts all of this, and is perhaps one of the lesser known destinations that peppers the Caribbean Ocean’s southern tip. At just 19.6 miles long and 6 miles across (total area of 70 square miles) this island is not to be overlooked. It’s home to one of Trip Advisors “Top Ten Beaches in the World”, and has a water-taxi that transports you to a nature reserve complete with island-renowned iridescent flamingos.

On top of this it offers a surprising variety of accommodation, and dining experiences that will enthrall the most die-hard critic. Catering for the adventurer there’s horseback riding, SNUBA, windsurfing and off-roading, whilst party-lovers can dance down the streets of San Nicolas carnival-style and enjoy live entertainment and local cuisine at the weekly Carubbian Festival. Finally, for those that just can’t sit still there are high stakes casinos and a truly stunning golf course to shake off the inertia.

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Despite the 82 degree climate Aruba also benefits from refreshing east trade wind breezes. This creates the perfect climate for producing aloe vera, and the island has a wide expanse of aloe fields in Hato. Grown since 1890, the plant features so prominently in the island’s culture and heritage and marked Aruba’s first source of welfare. Spa and beauty lovers will be well-versed in the healing and cell-reviving properties of aloe and can luxuriate in one of the many pampering treatments the island has to offer.

Put simply there’s so much for honeymooners to indulge in, it’s little wonder that Aruba consistently features in top industry guides as one of the most romantic places in the world.

Tempted? Who wouldn’t be?

Well the Aruba Tourism Authority has recently launched a competition to WIN a romantic 7-night getaway to Aruba for two. Head on over for the easy-entry competition that could see you basking in a romantic experience of your very own.

Mar 17 2014

Why I’m not wearing an engagement ring… but am planning my wedding

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I have the strangest relationship in the world. We regularly talk of weddings and have had whole conversations about what we’d dress the kids in, when would be the ideal time, and how we plan on affording it… we’ve even been shopping for my engagement ring - twice. Both times however, I’ve come home empty-handed as I was too indecisive about the style I wanted. Recently, bored of dropping hints on the blog, I finally asked Craig when he planned on actually proposing..

Craigy & Me

His response? - “I already have… I asked you to marry me a few years back”.

Really? Really?

I know he calls me The Wife when he’s with his mates, I know he shares my vision of a Lake Como backdrop, I know he secretly likes it that we regularly receive parcels and letters through the door for Gemma Mills… I know he did once drunkenly inform me that we were engaged. But where is my actual ring? Where are the ‘engaged’ statuses on Facebook? Where was the “Will you marry me?” conversation that traditionally precedes the wedding chatter?

Oh well.

I do kind of understand why we haven’t followed the traditional route with this. I was pregnant within two months of dating Craig and I feel like I’ve been pregnant throughout the majority of our relationship. With the focus firmly on growing our family, the wedding has taken a backseat to baby preparations and the shock-to-the-system that parenthood brings. Our finances can be described as ‘tight but comfortable’ - we have nice holidays and live in a really lovely home - but we don’t have a spare £25,000 laying around for a wedding. Or, it seems, a ring.

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Photo Credit: Carretto Studio

I suppose I always knew our engagement would be a long one, and I’m actually grateful I’ll have the time to work off this baby weight before slipping into something White and Wonderful. We’ve always said 2018 would give us time to save up and time for our children to grow up and understand the significance of the day, and to take a more active role in the celebrations, so I have some kind of a date to work towards.

But the ring would be nice. Even it it only serves as a visual prompt of what the future holds for the next four years.

In the meantime, Craig has handed all wedding-planning duties to me. He’s sat through enough Don’t Tell the Bride’s to realise that his input should be minimal if he wants to keep hold of his sanity. This is ideal as he’s yet to find out I actually have a fit-to-burst scrapbook under the bed with magazine clippings dating back to 1998. Even I’m scared of this book as it’s too crammed full of ideas to make any sense out of it.

Well now seems the time to finally transfer some of the dreams in my head (and dog-eared images from my book) into some kind of cohesive plan. It can start with a Pinterest board and grow from there. When we’re ready to rev up our plans we can refer to sites like weddingsite.co.uk for advice, inspiration, to do lists and invite trackers to ensure we don’t forget anything (or indeed, anyone). The budget tracker will also keep my Craig happy. I honestly don’t know how anyone planned a wedding before the days of the internet!

So expect this blog to take on a new lease of life as we plan the ultimate wedding. With a four year wait, I have no excuses to not produce something truly spectacular. Oh and at some point in the next four years I suspect there’ll be a engagement ring post… but not quite yet.

I was aided in writing this post but views are 100% my own.

 

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