[royaltee212]

My boyfriend of over a year and I just got engaged. We are both working and going to school, (him to become a doctor, no small student loans there!) so we are on a tight budget. Before becoming engaged we discussed the cost of a ring, and I told him, honestly of course, that the cost didn't matter to me. He asked me if I would be alright with a CZ until he finished school and we were more financially stable, and this was fine with me. I figured this would free more funds to be spent on the ceremony itself. He selected a gorgeously set CZ of nearly 2 carats, that looks quite real to me. He wanted it to be "believable" since most assume he is "rolling in it" because of his course of study, but not over the top huge. My problem is rude people at work, and other places that ask me if its real!!?? This may sound contradictory since I agreed to a CZ, but I don't feel like telling them it's not! How do you respond to people who grab your finger and inspect your ring and ask if its real? or even what size/clarity the stone is etc.

[Wedding Queen and MOG]

I applaud you for being so prudent. []

A 2 karat stone is pretty large and eye catching. If you don't want to attract a lot of attention you may want to select a smaller stone. But, you shouldn't have to respond to a rude question. Try saying something like, "What do you think?" or just give them a little wink.

We have a few other posts similar to yours so do a search in this forum using the tool at the bottom of the page so you can see how others handled similar situations.

[Etiquette Now]

I also want to applaud you! Bravo on your focus. Diamonds only became THE stone here in the early 1900s because of a diamond company's ads. So, we shouldn't feel as if we have to have an expensive diamond. CZs look so real, why not use them if we want the diamond appearance.

It is unfortunate that so many people don't think before they speak. But, I agree that the less said the better.

Perhaps, "I don't like to brag," might work well too.