Image by Tanya Voltchanskaya via Ashleigh & Griffin’s Classic Fremantle Wedding

While the difficult choice of your fiancée’s engagement ring might be out of the way, choosing your wedding ring as a groom can be overwhelming and just as confusing. After all, there are metals like gold, silver, titanium, tungsten – and even wood. Then there are different polishes and different gemstones – the list goes on. But there are a few key points to consider to help narrow it down.

Your Lifestyle
It might take a while to get used to the idea of wearing a ring, especially if you’ve never really worn jewellery before. So think about the practicality of a ring before you choose one. Will you wear your wedding ring everyday? Can you wear it while you work? Will you play sport or go for a surf with it on? Some metals are more durable than others and are less scratch resistant (tungsten, I’m looking at you). Or you might have sensitive skin and require a hypoallergenic metal. It’s also totally acceptable to have gemstones in your ring, so again, think about your lifestyle because some stones are tougher than others.

Some rings are also more comfortable than others. At a basic level, there’s a comfort fit (rolled on the inside), standard fit (flat on the inside) or European fit (rolled on the inside with a flat top). Chat to the jeweller, try lots on – and try picking up your phone and texting with different rings on for a quick comfort test.

Image by Glass Slipper Photography via Kate and Stuart’s Formal Cocktail Party Wedding

Your Personality
This is a little chance to show your personality and your preferences. My friends’ wedding bands are a varied bunch – one guy has a black band, another has gold, another has diamonds embedded in his – it really is up to you and what you like. If you’re a simple, no-frills kinda guy, you’ll probably go for a plain band. If you’re a bit more flashy, this is your time to get some bling of your own. You can also add engravings to the inside or outside of the ring – perhaps a sentimental message or your wedding date.

It’s important not to let your wedding ring be an afterthought in the wedding planning process. Spend time researching, shopping around and asking plenty of questions. After all, this is something you’ll be wearing every day for the rest of your life, so it’s important to get it right!

Image via Ralf Fisch Fine Jewellery

Your Bride
Traditionally, wedding bands matched – one for her, one for him – both in the same metal and finish. This can be a little problematic if you have different tastes, not to mention the fact that the same piece of jewellery looks vastly different on different sized, shaped and coloured hands! Now, there are no rules, with more couples choosing to go with their own style of wedding ring. If your partner likes rose gold but you like platinum, go for it!

Perhaps your partner wants a wedding band to complement her engagement ring whilst you like the same style in different metals, or even different styles in the same metal. There really are no rules, so think carefully about your lifestyle and your personal taste and choose wisely!

Image by Terralogical via Tobey-Anne and Andy’s Bohemian Inspired Bali Wedding

Ms Chinoiserie Says: Wonderful advice for the grooms about choosing a wedding band that suits them; the “comfort” test by texting on your phone is ingenious!