When should you buy your wedding rings?

How far in advance should you buy wedding rings?

Three to four months before the wedding is the usual advice in the UK and five or six months for a ring designed from scratch. Wed Magazine gives those figures. Wild Fawn says three to four months too and notes that the advice varies depending on where you get it.

That is advice for a comfortable margin rather than a deadline. What actually sets the deadline is how long your ring takes to make.

What is the latest you can order?

Work back from how long the ring takes. A titanium, zirconium or gold inlay band from us takes one to two weeks to make and a solid gold band about four, then one working day in the post. Add at least two weeks on top, so there is time to deal with anything that goes wrong.

So about a month before the wedding is the last sensible date for a titanium or zirconium band and about six weeks for solid gold. Enter your date in the planner and it works this out.

Wedding date planner: Your last safe order date, from the wedding date.

How long does a made to order ring take?: What happens in that time.

A timeline that works

Four to six months before: decide on the metal and the style and try widths on your hand. Three months before: measure your fingers, more than once. Two months before: order, with your engraving wording agreed. One month before: the rings should be with you, so try them on and put them somewhere you will remember.

For a design made from scratch, start this at six months, because the design stage adds its own weeks.

When should you measure your ring size?

Close to when you order and at the end of the day, when fingers are at their largest. Temperature and time of day both change finger size, so measure more than once. If your weight is changing before the wedding, measure nearer the date.

Ring size finder: Measure at home in about two minutes.

Should you buy your wedding rings at the same time?

Usually, yes, because it is one decision to make and it lets you compare them side by side. It also means one delivery to plan around. They do not have to match and they do not have to come from the same shop.

Do wedding rings have to match?: Sharing one detail is enough.

Who pays for the wedding rings?: Tradition and what couples do now.

What if you have left it late?

You still have options if you have a few weeks. Choose a titanium or zirconium band, which is the quickest we make and order today. Measure carefully rather than quickly, because a late order leaves less time to put a wrong size right.

If the wedding is days away, a jeweller with rings in stock is your best route.

Does engraving add time?

Not here. It is cut inside the band before the ring is finished. The time it takes is yours: agree the wording before you order, because an engraved ring cannot come back for a change of mind.

What to engrave in a wedding ring: Ideas and how much fits.