Proposing with/without a ring - S/O of an old thread

Well, I did   We had a wonderful day out ring shopping, and eventually buying, in the antique jewellery stores of Burlington Arcade in London. Dh knew well enough that I loved antique rings and getting to choose one we both loved was special. 

I was proposed to without a ring. We went and picked one out together. I wanted something a little different, anyway--got a sapphire ring with diamonds.

Hmmm...meant to edit my post not quote it. Just added a bit to make more sense

We decided together to get married and then selected rings. We did not have a traditional proposal moment (which was exactly how we both like it - it may be non-traditional, but it worked for us.) Plus, my DH knows better than to try to pick out something I'll be wearing every day forever. I'm a little picky Honestly, though, the process of picking out rings together was really fun and I'd rather do that than be surprised by a ring.

15 years later and no regrets about how we did it. Every couple wants different things, and the important thing is that no matter how it all happens, the two people getting married and exchanging rings feel like the way it was done honors them.

My dh proposed 3 times, only the third one had a ring but I accepted on the second. The first time I thought he was kidding and told him I appreciated him thinking so highly of me but i'm going to need to hear a little more about how smokin' hot and amazing I am while laughing at him. What a jerk, fortunately he laughed and tried again

The second time we had been discussing and we were on opposite ends of the spectrum. I wanted a gold band, he wanted bling that said 'back off she's taken' ha I agreed to a 1/8 carat ring, he agreed to 1 carat and we started shopping. We somehow settled on 3, i'm still not sure how that happened but it's perfect and I love that we chose it together.

The third time was after the ring came in, he was on his knee again b/c he felt like he should do it the proper way with a ring. I was just dying to open it up and check it out, I almost drove the package to his office to speed it up! ha

I accepted a proposal without a ring - we've been married 35 years

I actually didn't get an engagement ring after the proposal either.  We didn't have much money and I didn't really want one.  I have worn my plain gold band for a long time!

I guess for me it would be a question of WHY there isn't a ring. If it is to wait and pick the ring out together, that is fine. If it is that the person isn't financially secure enough to buy a ring (and won't be in the foreseeable future since they didn't just wait a few months), it might be a red flag for planning a shared financial future.

My first engagement, was with a CZ on Thanksgiving evening. He asked and I accepted, then we shopped for a "real" ring that weekend. We never married, but I kept that CZ for years in a little box. It was special. I sold the actual engagement ring and he was pissed.

2nd time, there was a big fancy diamond ring. We divorced.

I would accept without a ring now, but I would like something to have in hand to memorialize the occasion. Ring, stuffed animal, toilet plunger, SOMETHING.

I accepted his proposal and small non-diamond $100 ring. I was 18. He knew I wanted a diamond to be received at the wedding, not the engagement.

Twenty two years later, I would need a rock the size of a small planet.

Yes. Dh and I have been married 16 yrs and sometimes we wear our rings and sometimes we don't. He didn't wear it while on the ship because he worked with the guns and it could have gotten caught and ripped is finger off. I take mine off to craft and forget to put them back on

We are very married with or without our rings.

I accepted a proposal without a ring.  I knew a proposal was coming at some point but not when.  I also wanted him to pick out my ring, he had asked about my preference, etc ahead of time but I wanted to be surprised.  When he proposed he just felt it was the right moment and said the ring would come later.  He/we were also in the process of buying our house so things were a little chaotic at the time.  I was busy packing so I would have been afraid to lose the ring in a box anyway.  A couple of days later I got a CZ ring so I would have something to wear.  The CZ ring was a larger version of my engagement ring. I got my engagement ring a few weeks later and it was perfect.

I wouldn't have accepted a proposal without a ring. But I don't think that it's bad if you do, it just wasn't for me. A ring was important to me (as well as a date set relatively quickly after the engagement), I didn't want to announce an engagement without having a ring to show. I like the symbol of the ring and it was important to me.

I would have turned down the proposal because he knew something was important to me and disregarded it, not specifically because there wasn't a ring. Same as I would have turned down a proposal while he was drunk (even if he had a ring). Certain things about the way it was done were important to my enjoyment of the event/process, and if he disregarded that, it would be a sign to me that he wasn't willing to consider my (reasonable) requests and make them a priority.

So if a ring is important to you, then I really think you should let your SO know and not accept a proposal without a ring. But if you really don't care either way, then fine, doesn't matter!

No matter what, I'm sure everyone has some sort of thing about their proposal that was important to them, and if your SO knows about it, I think it is an important show of respect and honor that they fulfill that (within reason).