Q. Instead of a separate engagement and wedding ring, my fiancé and I have decided to get one ring each. Some people have told me this is a bit tacky, and many want to know why I don’t have an engagement ring if I am planning my wedding. How can I minimize the strange looks without succumbing to the two-ring tradition?
A. There isn’t much you can do to minimize the strange looks, but you can rest easy knowing that your decision to go with one ring is right on trend. “About half the rings I’m designing are combination rings,” says Edina-based jeweler Robert Foote. The benefits of going this route are many: Single rings are more comfortable and less fussy than a stacked band and engagement ring combo, you don’t have to worry about two rings lining up, plus more of an investment can be made in a single stand-out stone. Something to consider: If you’re exchanging rings during the ceremony, don’t forget to wear them in photos taken beforehand. “My wife took her ring off to use it in the ceremony, and in all her pictures before the wedding, she doesn’t have it on,” Foote says. “It really bothers her that her ring is not in any of the photos.”