The world of wedding rings is undergoing a drastic change. Experts have always known that the high price of diamonds was largely artificial; huge diamond cartels have pushed prices up by tightly restricting the supply, making people think diamonds are rare (they are actually not).
Over the last few years, knowledge has become more widespread, and people have become far more aware of the anti-competitive behaviour of the diamond cartels. Add to this the fact that these same diamond cartels are pursuing predatory behaviour by causing and exploiting political problems in Africa (leading to the terms “blood diamonds” and “conflict diamonds” becoming household phrases), and it becomes very clear that there is a problem. All this, of course, has very quickly brought about a revolution in the wedding ring market, as customers choose to vote with their feet rather than remain bound to the predatory practices of these huge diamond firms.
In addition to all this, the social stigma attached to buying cost-effective wedding rings has also been reduced because of people’s increasing social awareness for these issues. To add to this, people are also becoming more understandable due to the current economic climate and the financial crisis, which was actually caused by people that spent money they didn’t really have. This has understandably affected people’s tastes, and brought intelligent spending and frugality back into style. Most people in the market for rings now try their best to find a cheap wedding ring, rather than trying to spend as much as possible, as was the case earlier.
This has led to the rise of an entirely new market for cheaper wedding rings. Young ladies are now being swept off their feet no longer by diamonds, but by sparkling green emeralds, dazzling red rubies, azure-blue sapphires, deep purple amethysts… the list goes on. The last few years has also witnessed the meteoric rise of diamond alternatives that are visually identical to diamonds, such as moissanite crystals and cubic zirconia. If you are indeed shopping for a wedding ring, there has never been a better time in all of history to do so than right now. Everything is on your side.
And it is important to note that this is not a development that applies only to women’s wedding rings, but to men’s wedding rings as well – since women are toning down the ostentation and flashiness of their own wedding rings, it becomes appropriate for the man to do so as well. Examples of cheap wedding rings for men range from simple garnet rings to elegant gold or silver bands. As a general rule for men, the more minimalist the design, the better.
As a result of these trends, most jewellers now stock a wide variety of wedding rings for cheap. And if you still cannot make the decision to live without diamonds, it is interesting to note that cheap diamond wedding rings have also become available at most jewellery stores, as well as cheap wedding ring sets for couples that are shopping for a pair of rings.
The cultural change brought about by several factors, such as the unethical business practices of diamond cartels and the current economic crisis that everyone is suffering from, has led to a shift in people’s attitudes toward buying wedding rings; less is now more. This has led to a lot of competition between jewellers to create the most reasonably-priced rings of the highest quality, offering a much wider range of choice to buyers. Affordable wedding bands and rings then, are here to stay.