10 Ways to Upgrade Your Engagement Ring

Looking to upgrade a wedding band or engagement ring? Speak to an expert and get the latest offers, information, and more by clicking the link below and selecting the right service for you!

Marriage is a partnership for life. From the moment one proposed to another, an incredible journey began. Whether you’ve found a different job, moved to a new place, or started a family, one thing is sure: you’ve experienced it together. It hasn’t always been easy, but together you and your partner have overcome the challenges life has thrown at you. Through all of it, an engagement ring has been on your finger.

Show how much your love has grown by upgrading your engagement ring. However you decide to change it, make sure it reflects the love between you and your partner.

Today, the practice of upgrading your ring has become more commonplace. While engagement rings are made to last forever, there is nothing wrong with exchanging the old for the new. Engagement rings are made to represent the relationship of the wearer. Why not illustrate it with luxury and fashion? In short, there are many options for upgrading your engagement ring. A few of changes you can make are to:

• Add more diamonds to the center stone.
• Accentuate the center stone with diamonds on the band.
• Build a color combination via gemstone accents, such as sapphires.
• Change precious metals. For example, swap white gold for platinum.
• Swap the center stone with something bigger, higher quality, or of a different cut.
• Get a new setting for a pre-existing center stone.
• Purchase an entirely new engagement ring.

Upgrading the engagement ring allows for reflection on marriage and its role in the life you have made with each other. It’s an exciting, romantic adventure for the two of you to enjoy together. Just as your original engagement ring reflects the first stage of your marriage, so too can this new and improved ring reflect your marriage as you move forward.

Why Upgrade Your Engagement Ring?

When planning an upgrade, first learn why you are upgrading. It affects the budget, the overall look you’re going for, and what to ask a jeweler. There are plenty of great reasons to upgrade your engagement ring. Rings go in and out of fashion, styles change, and your life changes as well. Your ring might have been perfect for the two of you when you first got engaged, but now it might not seem quite as ideal. And why be complacent when it comes to something as important as your engagement ring? Why not have the ring you have always dreamed of?

Here are just a few of the many reasons many couples are upgrading their engagement rings.

Your Budget May Have Changed

Many people get engaged to their future spouse in their 20s. Indeed, not everyone follows this pattern, but many do. This means that a large portion of couples are getting engaged at a time when their finances are unstable, and their incomes are proportionally lower.

Perhaps this means that when you decided to propose, you didn't have the budget for the gorgeous ring they may have desired. But now, after a few years of being married, your incomes are a bit higher. Perhaps with your time together you have both become better at budgeting and saving up. Altogether, this could mean that you're in a more financially stable place than you used to be.

Why not take the opportunity that you have now to reinvest in your ring and transform it? It'll always be a memento of your love together, but with a few upgrades, it can also become the ring of your dreams.

Your Ring May Have Gone out of Style

It's no secret that fashions come and go like the seasons. What may have been the height of fashion when you married may no longer be in style. Even though the ring is still as important to you as ever, there's nothing wrong with deciding it needs to be updated with the times.

Sometimes the band may have gone out of style, while other times it's the cut of the stone itself. Maybe your ring is plain and looks out of place next to some of the more sparkly rings that are popular today.

Whatever your reason, there are many ways to upgrade your ring and make it fashionable according to today's trends and styles.

Your Own Personal Styles May Have Changed

Everyone's tastes change, especially over a period of time. All of us wore clothes five years ago that we would never wear today. All of us have had hairstyles we would rather forget. It's completely natural. In the same way, maybe the ring you chose years ago is just not your style anymore.

It could be that a new style has recently become popular and you like it so much better than your current ring. Or maybe you hopped on board with a trendy ring years ago and have since decided that you do not love it as much as you used to.

There is nothing wrong with realizing this, and it happens to all of us, all the time. There's no reason you should be stuck with a ring that no longer suits you, your personality, and your tastes. Instead, upgrade to a ring that reflects you, your spouse, and how you are now.

When to Think About Upgrading?

There's no right or wrong time to upgrade your engagement ring. You and your spouse should make this highly personal decision together.

However, there are certain times when it's more popular to upgrade your ring. These days are usually commemorative, milestone days when it seems fitting to mark the passage of time and the commitment to each other no matter how much time has gone by.

Some great days to make this kind of upgrade with your spouse include:

• Any anniversary.
• A milestone anniversary, such as ten or twenty years since the wedding.
• You or your spouse's milestone birthday.
• Special occasions like the birth of a child.
• Vow renewal ceremonies.

At the end of the day, choosing to upgrade your ring or not is a very personal decision and something the two of you should decide to do together. Whether you decide to do it at a grand vow renewal ceremony or on an ordinary day in the middle of the year is ultimately up to you. Your relationship is unique to your love story. Your ring, and any upgrades you make, should reflect that.

Different Ways to Upgrade

Once you've decided why and when you want to upgrade, it's time to discuss the upgrades themselves. We have put together a list of some of the most popular and common upgrades, but it's important to remember that the decision is up to you.

1) Upgrade Your Solitaire to a Three Stone Engagement Ring

If your ring started its life as a solitaire engagement ring, this is a natural extra step to take. Adding a few additional diamonds will give it just that little extra sparkle.

One option is to include two additional, slightly smaller diamonds on either side of the first diamond. Doing so keeps the focus on the first and largest diamond while bringing balance to the ring along with a little elegance.

Did you know that three stone engagement rings symbolize your past, present, and future as a couple? This romantic quality makes them the perfect anniversary gift.

2) Add a Pop of Color

Diamonds are unquestionably the most popular stone for any engagement ring, and for a good reason. Their clear, white sparkle is almost synonymous with weddings and engagements. But maybe you want to have a little extra color added to your ring.

There are lots of great ways to do this. You can add extra stones to your ring or exchange old settings with new stones. Sapphires, rubies, and emeralds all come in beautiful, vivid hues that will give you the color you may have wanted. Another option might be to change the metal of the band itself. Maybe you want to trade your white gold band for a rose gold one.

Whichever option you choose, you will be sure to turn heads with your unique and brightly colored engagement ring.

3) Enhance a Diamond Solitaire

Lots of people enjoy the simplicity that single diamonds offer. Others want a little more sparkle. If you currently have a single diamond and want to upgrade, you might be interested in a diamond ring enhancer.

These specially made rings are designed to fit around the original ring and transform it into something almost entirely new. They help add an extra level of sophistication, all without changing a thing about the shape or style of the original ring.

However, when choosing one of these, you will want to be extra careful to choose one that matches your current ring and blends well with it. The two rings should complement each other so well that it looks like they were intended to go together.

4) Add Some Sparkle to Your Band

If you're looking for a slightly more subtle way to upgrade your ring, changing the band might be the perfect way to do that. Adding some extra diamonds to an otherwise plain white gold band gives your ring a magical, dazzling effect.

Another way to reinvent your ring band is to swap your plain band for a graceful V French-set band. This directs extra light towards your center stone and helps it sparkle brighter to stand out even more.

5) Change the Material of Your Band

Not all changes are about adding more sparkle. You might want to upgrade the material of your band for longevity purposes. For example, one common choice is the decision to refresh the ring band from gold to platinum. Because gold naturally appears yellow, white gold is created by adding white metals to gold; over time, this plating wears down, and white gold rings need to be replated to maintain their white hue. Platinum, however, is a naturally white metal and does not need replating. Another benefit to platinum engagement rings is their hypoallergenic properties. People with sensitive skin sometimes have allergic reactions to the other metals found in gold, and these people find platinum much more pleasant to wear.

6) Add a Surprise Diamond

If you're looking for a more subtle way to add a little extra something to your ring, try vaulting your center diamond by hiding an extra stone underneath. You won't be able to see this stone from a top view, but it will become visible from an angle.

This surprise stone is an excellent understated way to add more depth to your ring without making it too over-the-top.

7) Double Your Halo

The halo setting is extremely popular in modern engagement rings. It looks stylish and sophisticated while still maintaining a classic and timeless feel. So even if your engagement ring already has one halo, adding a second one will only add to your ring's "wow" factor.

If you're looking to make your ring even more unique, you might try making the smaller, interior halo out of colored diamonds or a different stone altogether. Doing so adds a dash of color while also making the center diamond appear even larger and more brilliant.

8) Change Out an Old Setting

It's common for rings to be passed down among family members from one generation to the next. Using an heirloom means that the ring has sentimental value and history. But not all styles age well, and even though you love the sentimental value, you may not love the old-fashioned style.

One way to give a traditional ring new life is to change the setting. By keeping the original stone, you're still carrying on the family tradition, yet you're also giving the stone a second life in a modern ring. Changing the setting is an excellent way to keep family traditions alive.

9) Upgrade to a New Stone

One of the easiest and simplest ways to upgrade your ring is to replace the stone altogether. Your reason for doing this might be that you want a larger stone, you want a different type of stone, or you might want a stone that's cut differently.

Whatever your reason and whatever type of stone you're switching to, this can be a great option. It allows you the freedom of having the ring almost entirely re-invented while still keeping the band and much of the setting. It's an ideal compromise for when you want a new look, but still have sentimental ties to your ring.

10) Upgrade to an Entirely New Ring

Sometimes, no matter how many extra stones you add or how much you change the shape and size of a stone, it still isn't enough. If no amount of change can turn your current engagement ring into your perfect ring, then the solution might be to trade it in for an entirely new one.

This might be a difficult choice due to emotional ties to the original ring. But it's also great to mark a new chapter in your lives together and celebrate new beginnings. At the end of the day, deciding to upgrade to a new ring might be easier than trying to add an addition to an already existing ring, especially if the changes you want to make are significant.

Upgrade Your Engagement Ring at The Wedding Ring Shop

Choosing to upgrade your engagement ring may be a big step for you and your spouse, and it certainly isn't a decision you should make lightly.

However, it may be time for a change, and this may be the perfect way to symbolize how far you two have come together and to express your hope for new beginnings with one another. With so many creative ways to reinvent your engagement ring, there's never been a better time to take that step.

As you and your spouse look at unique ways to upgrade your engagement ring, consider heading to The Wedding Ring Shop. With our industry-leading design center, we will be glad to help you develop the perfect way to upgrade your ring into the dream ring that will last you for years. No matter whether you’re looking for a new diamond or a custom-made engagement ring, we can ensure you find the perfect upgrade. Plan your upgrade with us today and contact us on our website to set up an appointment, or give us a call at (808) 945-7766 to speak with our talented staff.