When my partner first suggested the idea of a ring I’ll admit I was slightly horrified at the thought. I’m not a guy-guy. I don’t watch football, play cricket, drink VB, wear thongs, drive a holden, eat koalas for breakfast or shave with a machete, I knew more about cocaine then Ben Cousins when that story broke but still, my first thought at the prospect of wearing a men’s ring was ‘that’s a bit over the line’.

The only piece of jewelry I’d ever worn consistantly was a subtle silver chain with a small rectangular silver plate with a gold star on it. Very discreet and you’d hardly notice it was there under most clothes. A ring doesn’t have this luxury unless you go around wearing gloves everywhere, it’s always on display so pick wisely and don’t rush into it.

I know it sounds like gearing up to have a baby but believe me, the last thing you want is for the guy your buying a ring for to go ‘that’s nice, you shouldn’t have’, and then placing it in a drawer somewhere never to be seen again. Here are some tips that hopefully help you get it right the first time.




The style of the ring

Fashion statement or commitment? Is it going to be something you want him to wear all the time, or just when you take him to meet your parents. There’s a big difference between the two types of rings. With a fashion ring you can afford to go a bit bolder design wise, but nothing too flashy.

When buying female clothing and accessories you want the item to stand out. You want to catch people’s eye on the street and then let them realise you’re underneath or behind whatever it is their looking at.

The complete opposite is true of guys. You want to be recognised as a person first and then good clothes, a ring or shoes can be noticed and complimented on. If you’re a guy and people notice your clothes or a ring before they notice you then you’re either hideously ugly.. or wearing the wrong clothes.

It should be more of a package deal when it comes to guys whereas most females tend to want the shiniest most standout thing they can find. There’s a big danger here in shopping like you’re buying for yourself. As you browse for rings think like a guy.

Yeah that shiny big stone ring might look gorgeous on your finger, but is your guy really going to be comfortable walking around with it on his finger?

Probably not.

I’m primarily focusing on fashion rings as I’ve yet to bite the bullet and go down the commitment path (wedding bands, engagement rings etc.). Keep in mind there’s no rule saying you can’t wear a matrimonial or commitment ring as a fashion ring, just expect a huge price jump when you look at them because jewelers love to play to people’s emotions and sense of worth when it comes to relationships.

As a general rule of thumb stick with the non-shiny dark colours. Black can be very stand-out and dominating on the wrong hand so consider darker shades of metallic gray too; Titanium and sterling silver are excellent choices.

White gold is way, way too shiny and normal gold can be a bit iffy. Most of the time when people see a gold ring not on the wedding finger of a guy they can’t help but think you probably have a hairy chest, wear big loafers and haiwiaan shirts and are probably a bee’s dick short of starting to lose all your hair.

Unless your guy really, really, really likes gold (or is greek) I’d avoid it altogether.

If he does fall into the really, really, really liking gold category you might want to start paying attention to what else he likes and do some investigating into his private life. He might just be hiding something.

Fancy patterns are generally a no-no. Unless you’re 12 years old it looks kind of silly walking around with a ‘gothic’ ring in silver with black satan or whatever etches running all over it.

Stick to the basics. A stripe or two can be effective if it matches the base metal of the ring and doesn’t contrast too much. I’d avoid stones altogether, they are stricly the domain of wedding bands/rings and look way too overdone for a casual fashion ring.

While you’re hunting and browsing and trying to decide just remember one thing, when people see you and your guy together you want them to think ‘This guy is hot and I sleep with him, he’s ALL MINE!’. The last thing you want is people assuming you’re out shopping with your gay best friend.




Where to start looking and how much to spend?

Remember all those times you lied and said ‘it doesn’t matter how much you spend on me it’s the thought that counts’? Well guys really don’t care how much something costs, we’re much more interested in how it looks and whether it’s going to make us look like a douchebag or not. So long as you didn’t win the ring in one of those $2 lolly machines at Kmart you shouldn’t have to worry about him turning his nose up at it because it didn’t cost enough.

When we were ring shopping we eventually came to an agreement over a Tiffany 1837,
it’s made from sterling silver and titanium and I chose the ‘Galaxy’ colour.

It is a little bit shiny at first but it wears well and doesn’t scream ‘LOOK AT ME!’

I didn’t really like the look of the black rings they had for men as I found ironically they stood out like a sore thumb which was something I was trying to avoid. I was also a bit aprehensive about having ‘Tiffany and Co.’ plastered all over my ring but it’s something you get used to I guess.

Tiffany is just one example and can be quite pricey. Definately shop within your budget as most guys just don’t know the different jewelery brands out there. When my partner suggested we go to Tiffanys I had no idea what she was talking about. I thought she was making some obscure reference to that catchy 90s song…

On the cheaper side of things there are places like Base Jewellery that have decent looking rings at attractive prices.

My only hangup with buying a ring online is that my ring looked slightly different in real life then the online photo showed. Also you get to get a feel for the ring before you buy. Still, online ring shopping definately has the convenience factor and at the very least can give you an idea of what you want before you hit the physical stores.

If you do decide to visit actualy jewellery shops, keep in mind your budget and what shop you are walking into. If you see $10,000 rings on display don’t go up to the shop attendant and ask if they have stock any $20 rings and expect the attendant to spend hours on you. If a guy serves you have a look and see if he’s wearing any rings. If not ask him why not? If he doesn’t believe in mens jewellery have a second think about taking any advice from him.

The guy who served us at Tiffany’s had this HUGE gold ring on with a giant red stone. I’m talking like something you’d expect to see the Queen wear or something. Now even though I thought it made him look ridiculously gay it gave me a bit of confidence that I was taking advice from the lord of the rings himself. If a guy is that brazen to pull off giant gold rings with red stones he just might know a thing or two about them.

Of course he could just be hopelessly delusional in thinking it’s going to get him laid but I try to see the best in people.




Sizing

If the ring is a suprise this can be really hard because the only way to get the size of someones finger is to measure it, or try on different rings till you find the size that fits you. If it is a suprise, try get an average size and keep the receipt for an exchange.

Be sure to ask the attendant if an exchange is ok provided the ring is just tested for size and returned with a receipt before you buy though as some places might be dodgy about this. Also keep in mind the difficulties of doing this with online shopping, return postage is definately something to consider as most places won’t re-emburse you for it.

If it’s not a suprise then what you’re looking for is a ring that won’t come off. For some unknown reason rings can slide on remarkably easy and then be an absolute pain in the arse to try and slide off. I don’t pretend to know how it works but it just is.

I remember at Tiffanys I tried on a mesh ring that went on silky smooth and left me kind of embarassed spending a good five minutes trying to get off. When it eventualyl came off my knuckle hurt like hell. I felt like smashing the ring in two and declaring jewellery to be the stupidest idea in the world.

When trying on the ring make sure you bend your finger and flex your hands out. Move your hand around like you would in everyday life. The object is to make sure that the ring will stay on your finger no matter what you’re doing. You also don’t want it too tight. If you’ve found the design you and you’re just deciding on size, make sure he wears the ring for at least ten minutes to make sure there won’t be any circulation problems or finger numbness.




Engraving

Engraving can be a nice touch to a ring and if you’re spending a couple of hundred dollars on one you might be able to convince the place to do it for free or at the very least give you a discount. Keep in mind though that not all places engrave, not all rings can be engraved and that it usually means you have to wait a few days longer for them to do it after choosing your ring.

If you manage to get past all that the next part is thinking about the message. Personally my ring isn’t engraved but if it was I’d probably
go with something simple and meaningful like a name and a date, for instance your name and the date you guys went out on your first date or
whatever. Don’t be too obscure, you don’t want him reading it and going ‘uh.. what’s that supposed to mean?’

Names and dates or just names on their own are good because a. it’s super personalised and b. if you guys ever break up it’s a bit more difficult getting rid of, ie. selling it. Think ahead people! I’ve been asked on a few occasions by random people to have a look at my ring, usually when I’m at work. If I’m in the middle of something i’ll pull it off and let them have a look at it while I continue doing whatever it was I was doing.

For this reason don’t get something too personal, for example ‘my vagina is always yours’ will probably give any guy an instant erection every time he thinks about it, and don’t get me wrong I think that’s great… but it’s probably not so great to have some random stranger, or his mother read when she’s having a look at the new ring you just bought him.




Conclusion

That’s about all you need to know when buying a ring for a guy. Thanks to the evolution process we’re not all that hard to impress and you’d be suprised at just how much we’re willing to compromise and wear something we might not particularly be crazy over if we think it’ll lead to more sex.

On the other hand a ring is a nice choice of gift to receive from your significant other. It’s something you can wear all the time and it’s a subtle reminder of what should be making you happy in life.

I’ve also caught myself playing with my ring between the forefinger and thumb of my other hand, usually while i’m waiting for something or just bored. I’m not sure if that’s a selling point for getting a guy a ring but it’s probably a better look then stuffing your hands in your pockets or fidgeting with something else.

Good luck!


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