I’ve had an increase in interest in engagement rings for chaps lately, and I am here for it! Particularly for long engagements, it seems only fair that that everyone gets to wear a ring to declare publicly their new relationship status.
These engagement rings can be for either a proposal as a stand alone ring, or something that we later add to when it gets closer to your wedding day and convert it into your wedding ring.
Here are three examples of gents engagement rings I have worked on recently to inspire your own project.
Dan’s Ring
Dan knew that he and Cheryl would have a long engagement and expressed some sadness to Cheryl after their wedding ring design consultation that he wouldn’t get to wear a ring for two years.
Coincidentally, his design lent itself to being made in two parts – a platinum band, with an edge of yellow gold, made from the very ring he used as the starting point for Cheryl’s engagement ring, and a bracelet for her daughter at the time of his proposal. She contacted me to see if we could do his ring in two parts, and surprise him with just the platinum part for now to wear as an engagement band, and then add the yellow gold edge closer to the wedding.
So unbeknown to Dan, as we began work on Cheryl’s wedding ring, we also started work on his! We made a slim platinum band, with a gorgeously tactile reticulated finish to make it look like it had been dug up from the ground. She then presented it to him as a surprise on his birthday!
He’s since come back now that their wedding day is looming, and we’ve added in the family birthstones inside the band, which matches the beautifully meaningful gesture he added inside Cheryl’s bespoke engagement ring, and the yellow gold strip of gold along the edge to convert it into his wedding ring.
I am so excited to attend their wedding as a guest this summer and see the moment they both put on their forever rings!
Chris’s Engagement Ring
Chris was inspired by Dan’s engagement ring to create something similar for himself as we worked on a bespoke engagement ring for Caroline. He opted for creamy 9ct white gold with a brushed and hammered finish as his engagement band while they plan their wedding.
Later on down the line, we plan on adding slim yellow gold edges to each side to convert the ring into his wedding band.
Liam’s Engagement Ring
Katy surprised Liam with a fantastic ring she bought online, which he absolutely loved. I met them at a wedding show and we chatted over their ideas for wedding rings, and he was completely confused about what to do for his ring as he wanted to carry on wearing his silver ring.
I suggested the same upgrade effect that we’re planning for Chris’s wedding ring – edging the silver ring with yellow gold to give it additional strength as a forever wedding band, and to convert the ring he loves so much into a wedding band.
We even used recycled gold from Katy’s family for an added sentimental touch.
Ring Upgrades
What do you think of this concept? All of these examples I have worked on so far have followed the same principle – adding a contrasting coloured edge to a band worn as an engagement ring, but there are endless options other than this.
For example, we could melt down the engagement ring, add in more of the same metal, and make a new wider ring that incorporates the original engagement ring in a larger form.
Alternatively, we could be that we add to the design in a different way than an edge of contrasting metal – if we start with a plain band worn as an engagement ring, we could add gemstones inside the band or as a design feature outside the ring.
All of these gents wedding rings feature stones – birthstones in Henry and Callum’s designs, and a diamond that came out of John’s wife’s original engagement ring when we remodelled it to give his wedding ring an upgrade at the same time!
If gemstones aren’t your thing, we could add engraving to the design, such as that on Harry’s wedding ring below. We engraved a line that wraps around his band that ends in two leafy forms at the front of the ring. But the line is not just a line – its in the shape of the Hudson river, and the spot where he proposed to Charlotte is marked in the engraving towards the back of the ring –
Inside his ring, we also have the coordinates of the spot he proposed, and underneath, the coordinates of their wedding venue. This ring is packed full of sentimental touches!
We could simply stack slimmer bands – a stack that could grow over the years at landmark anniversaries, like a bride’s ring stack often grows over time.
What do you think of the concept of engagement rings for gents? And how about these ideas to convert an engagement ring to a wedding band?
I can’t wait to hear your thoughts in the comments!