The lifelong commitment: Choosing your ideal wedding ring

Engagements and weddings are getting more and more popular at this time of year, with no weather guarantees through summer, couples are choosing the autumnal months and the festive seasons to exchange their vows.

Amongst choosing the venue, the flowers and the photographer, we might momentarily forget about the most important part of the wedding day – the rings.

It can be difficult to choose the ideal wedding ring, you want it to match with your engagement ring and be a perfect style for you. With so many different types of cut, colour, clarity and carat to choose from, it can be a daunting task before the big day arrives.

We have teamed up with Angelic Diamonds, specialists in solitaire engagement rings and advocates of beautiful jewellery, to provide you with some advice when choosing your wedding ring.

The sparkle of the diamond

The cut is the most important part of your ring’s diamond. This is because the cut has the greatest influence on the diamond’s sparkle, meaning the better the cut, the more the diamond will sparkle on your wedding day.

A diamond may seem perfect if it has the clarity and colour grade that you are looking for – but without a suitable cut, it can still seem dull.

A diamond’s cut all depends on its light performance and the way that it sparkles. So, the perfect ring with an ideal diamond cut will not be too shallow or too deep, and it will allow light to pass through it so that it reflects evenly throughout the diamond.

The colour

When considering the perfect wedding ring, the colour of the diamond is important too. The colour of all the diamonds may look the same, but they are graded differently.

You can buy a diamond without colour on a budget too – chose a near-colourless diamond that is graded between G-H. After purchasing a ring with this grade, colour won’t be detectable to the naked eye – making your diamond look flawless on the day. Colour in diamonds appears as a pale yellow, so if this is evident anywhere in the ring you are thinking about buying, we would recommend avoiding it.

Clarity – the imperfections

The clarity of the diamond is very important, this refers to any imperfections in the diamond which are also known as inclusions. The less inclusions in the ring, the better the clarity, which means your wedding ring will shine bright no matter where you are.

Don’t fret too much over this, as small imperfections in the diamond are not easily seen by the naked eye or in photos. By purchasing an SI (slightly included) quality diamond, you’re able to buy something visually stunning, without having to pay the cost of a diamond that contains no inclusions and no imperfections.

The weight of the diamond

Although many people believe that the carat is the size of the diamond, it is actually the weight. The cut of the diamond can change how large the carat weight appears. Ensure that you get a good balance of both so that your ring sits well on your finger but also provides you with the shine and sparkle to make heads turn.

Handy tips

As well as the four tips we have mentioned, there are more things to look out for when choosing your ring:

• If carat weight is important to you, consider a diamond with a good cut, with an SI1-SI2 clarity and an I or J colour grade.
• Keep in mind that based on the size of your finger, the larger the diamond will appear.
• Not all ring fittings will fit all diamond carats and shapes, so it’s important to consider what type of diamond shape you’d like before choosing its design.

Collaborative post, thank you for supporting RTH and the brands that work with me

October Favourites Vlog

Happy Sunday Ladies,

Hope you're all having a fantastic weekend!

Ive just published my October favourites.. how oh how is it November already??

This months faves include some fashion fashion, some food and some films.

Would love you to grab a cuppa and have a watch (and subscribe too if you could!!)

And be sure to let me know, what have you loved this month?

Tartan Dress & OTK Boots ( & #Passion4Fashion Linkup)

 Who do you dress for? Do you dress for yourself alone, for your husband or partner, is it dress for other ladies approval or situation dictated like work etc, or is it a bit of all of these things on different days?

I've been pondering this question of late as I had a funny experience with a couple of very different outfits.

This week i had a bit of time with Salvatore, one day i walked down the stairs in a pleated midi skirt and sweater only to see him burst in to laughter at my apparently funny outfit, he compared me to Olive from Popeye and declared that my outfit clashed and that i must be loosing the plot(all said in jest of course, he knows i wear what the hell i like and the man has seen some bizarre outfits from me over the years, you only have to look through my archives for that proof 😂. ) 

The very next day i walked down the stairs in this outfit, short step hem dress, tie waist and Over The Knee boots. I had a much better reception from the husband with exclamation of "wow, you look great" and "Now that suits you".It made me giggle. 

That day i noticed i had observational looks from the opposite sex more than i normally have, which is uhh never, and again i giggled to myself.

It seems cliched really. Men still love the short dress, the "kinky boots" and the sexy feminine vibes.

Me? Well i prefer my midi velvet skirt and thick cosy jumper. Ladies who follow me on instagram will often love the outfits i do and the husband hates.. it seems we really are from different planets when it comes to getting dressed.

I don't dress for male approval and love to express my personalty through my clothes. Don't get me wrong i loved this outfit, i did indeed buy it all and put it together, but i sure as hell didn't style it for a mans approval.

This is of course not to say that if you do dress to please your other half that that is a bad thing, i loved making my husband happy and seeing his delight in my outfit choice, but its just not something i aim for regularly.

We are all very very different. 

But i have to say, it was really interesting to see two different reactions in the space of two days.

So ladies, who do you dress for?

Outfit details:
Dress
Boots
Biker Jacket

An InLinkz Link-up

Cosy Knitwear and Comfy Jeans

Happy 1st November lovelies!
It has finally dropped temps here in Wales meaning i am completely drawn to knitwear like a moth to a flame.
My shopping habits with Knitwear haven't always been healthy as i have been known to have one to many flings with one to many knits. I have been a knitwear hussy.
I have given so many jumpers and cardigans away to charity and theres still a load in my loft as i usually bore very very easily of them. I'm not entirely sure why🤔.
But after my month long shopping ban was lifted and the temperatures dropped around the same time, i knew it would be wise to buy a couple of new jumpers, and it would have to be something i loved for me to not have just a one night stand with it. So shopping i went. And jumpers i found. One being this one today.. and i'm pleased to say, it is most definitely knitwear love.

Here's todays outfit in full

The Coat

The coat is possibly one of my favourite (Top 3 at least) and is from La Redoute earlier this year, think it was back in January or February when i honestly thought i wasn't going to get much wear out of it that side of Spring. Turns out i did and it also turns out i'm still besotted with it 6 months on. My husband is not a big fan (in his words, "It does nothing for you" .. What does he know right?!) but that kind of makes me love it all the more. This coat is a slouchy relaxed style that makes it sublimely comfortable and accommodates chunky knitwear easily underneath it without making me feel like the circulation to my arms is being cut off. Its also like a giant cuddle. Whats not to love right? Its also a divine emerald green colour.

This year they have one in pine green that looks lovely and comfy too: Check that new version out 

-here-

The Sweater

So knowing that i've previously been a knitwear hussy i took to my shopping with a more sensible head and took in to consideration what i needed and only picked up things i love love loved.

This sweater by Next was on my lust list since September. When #NoSpendOctober was in affect it was still on my mind and on the odd occasion i went in to next (for research purposes) i saw this hanging there and still really wanted it. Four weeks on i still loved it and therefore thought it would make sense to buy it, as the fact i still wanted it and it wasn't a passing whim, was a very good sign indeed.

And i have to say, i love it, i really do.  You know me, give me a stripe and i'm a happy girl, so blocks of colour in these glorious shades was definitely a winner for me.

I love that it has multiple colours as it means i will be able to remix it well with other trousers and jeans, and this of course, makes me super happy.

I also feel nice when i wear it, which doesn't happen often with knitwear., but this makes me smile.

The funnel neck is also flattering too and i love that it is comfy, i find high neck/turtle neck/ roll necks a little restricting sometimes, but this is just right.

-Shop the jumper here-

 The Jeans

The jeans are also a new purchase after my no spend month. I soon realised that i didn't like a great deal of my jeans. With a bit (ok a lot) of weight gain over the past 6 months and the sudden dislike on my behalf of super skinny jeans, i knew i wanted something comfy and looser fitting as i honestly find the skinny style just doesn't suit my pear shape anymore.

-These Grey Straight leg jeans- again from next, grabbed my attention as i was flitting past them one day. They were the only pair on the rail and they were in my size. They looked like a nice loose fit and they were a great light grey.. I picked them up and was shocked at how soft the denim was, it felt like they had been worn the perfect amount to make them in to those perfect jeans that are like old friends.

Needless to say they came home me and i've barely wanted to remove them from my legs.

Hello new favourite jeans!!

 Finishing Touches

I finished the look with my trusty comfy Gucci dupe loafers which were such a great buy as i wear them allll the time. My -tassel earrings- are from zalando and bring a nice berry colour to the look.

The bag is my Michael Kors, which after a year of not using, i've fallen back in love with and can't stop using it. Its just the perfect size for throwing no end of stuff in to.

And -the belt-, well another Gucci inspired High street take on their famous GG belt, which i'm quite happy to take the dupe of.

 And there we have it. Outfit of comfy loveliness that i will no doubt be wearing on repeat!

Are you a knitwear floozy like i was? Or do you always get a lot of wear out of whatever knitwear you buy?