When it comes to jewellery, there’s nothing quite so special – nor significant – as engagement and wedding rings.
And now women all over the UK have been sharing the touching tales behind their own rings; from irreplaceable family heirlooms to vintage finds and even rocks designed by brides-to-be themselves.
The discussion was sparked when a woman shared a snap of her own engagement ring on the Facebook page The Motherload, with a touching note about how she loves them just as much a decade after her now husband proposed.
Her admission prompted fellow users to start flooding the page with pictures of their own sparklers – and some of the moving stories behind them.
Memories: In another touching story, a lady who recently celebrated 20 years of marriage revealed she designed her own piece in tribute to her grandmother’s ring
‘Married four months’: One lucky lady revealed her partner had proposed with his mother’s engagement ring, but she swapped the stone for a black diamond to add a personal touch
Inadvertently kicking off the craze on the Facebook discussion page the Motherload, one user said reading a post about a woman who was uncertain of her engagement ring had inspired her to reflect on her own.
She shared a picture of her own rings, revealing she still loves them just as much ten years after getting married, and urged other women to post photos of their cherised jewellery.
‘Reading the post about the lady whose partner bought her a ring she isn’t sure about got me thinking about my own wedding and engagement rings,’ she wrote.
‘Mine are simple but I still love them after nearly 10 years. Let’s see yours ladies!’ she added.
The snaps that quickly followed included one from a woman whose engagement ring dates back to the 1920s-30s, who said she teams it with her grandmother’s yellow gold wedding band on her right hand – especially precious as her grandparents married on the first day of the Blitz, when gold was still rationed.
It wasn’t the only family connection; another woman revealed her now husband proposed with his mother’s ring, but that she had made it her own by swapping the original stone for a black diamond. ‘Married 4 months,’ the happy bride added.
Another poster revealed how she’d designed her own ring – using her grandmother’s jewellery as inspiration.
Many of the women’s tales proved it really is the thought that counts, with one chuffed bride explaining how her partner took on board her brief of ‘something vintage looking’, and found her her dream ring for the bargain price of £100 in a jewellery sale. ‘I love it,’ she wrote.
Another told how she was ‘furious’ when she learned her ‘elegant and simple’ engagement ring cost £2,000, because she would have been ‘happy with him spending £100.’
Other brides were rather less laid-back about the investment, with one woman she’d instructed her then fiancé to swap the ring he proposed with for one with a ‘bigger diamond’, while another revealed she and her husband are now saving for a ‘super duper blingy’ eternity ring to add to her collection after eight years of marriage.
‘My grandmother wore it on the first day of the Blitz’: Women have been sharing snaps of their sparklers on Facebook
‘Seven years and counting!’ The post was soon flooded with pictures of other happily married women’s rings, with many revealing the sweet stories behind their proposals
Thrifty and nifty! While one woman’s partner found her engagement ring in the sale for £100, another demanded an even bigger rock
It’s the thought that counts: A woman admitted she was ‘furious’ to learn her now husband spent £2,000 on her ‘elegant and simple’ engagement ring