Wedding Rings Thailand
The availability of wedding rings in Thailand and the range for you to select from is huge. It is the sheer variety in terms of price, metals, gemstones and styles that can get you confused. So let the information in this report on Thai wedding rings give you a basic foundation course before, you begin your online or offline search. We do not intend to make you an expert in jewelry or in Thai culture but, you could benefit a lot with some of the suggestions mentioned here.
If by referring to a Thai wedding ring you meant, a traditional ring worn by Thais during the wedding ceremony, read this paragraph. Despite the modern and stylish exterior that many foreigners observe in the country, Thais are generally traditional at heart - no different from Indians, Sri Lankans and some of their closer neighbors. When the average Thai person is getting ready for an engagement or marriage, they would prefer to invest in wedding rings that have an intrinsic value. Since precious gems and diamonds are not part of an 'average' wedding budget, the value of the wedding ring refers to the gold content in the metal. Many Thais do not understand the concept of 10k, 14k or 18k gold, they refer to all these alloys as K-gold meaning that the metal is not pure gold. So a wedding ring for a typical Thai family would mean gold that has a purity of around 96% and this is what most jewelry shops in the country claim to offer. Visit one of the regular gold shops in reputed shopping malls or in the gold market present in almost every province and you will find such gold jewelry. Since the 96% purity is almost equal to 100%, the Thais consider this to be pure gold. Design element and gemstone adornment is not important, basic ring dimensions and gold weight is. The price of such gold wedding rings is easy to calculate, the per gram price is very near to that published by the gold control board for the day. As explained above, the design for such a Thai wedding ring is very simple, labor charges would be in the 30 U.S$ to 75 U.S$ range - these are labor charges for the entire ring and not per gram of the metal.
Now if your search for a wedding ring in Thailand is not limited to traditional style and designs, you have a flood of options too. Thailand is a treasure chest as far as skills, talent and even materials related to the gems and jewelry industry are concerned. As international jewelry labels have made the country their production base for more than half a century, skilled artisans and trained craftsmen abound. Before you begin evaluating options for buying a wedding ring in Thailand, work on your budget. You could can pay any where from 200 U.S$ to 100,000 U.S$ for a wedding ring in Bangkok or elsewhere in Thailand. So get numbers sorted out and the two best persons to sort this dollar dilemma are you and your spouse. Discuss the budget for your wedding ring at leisure, in your hotel or home. Remember that you are shopping for a wedding ring in Thailand where, variety, beauty and even value are abundant - trying to whisper about budgets at the last moment in the jewelry shop might be a sure way to bring pressure on yourselves. If your purchase plan does not amount to 2 months salary (the traditional sales pitch), don't push too hard, go for a moderately priced wedding ring. Keep the bigger buy for a special occasion like a wedding anniversary, the birth of your first baby etc. When it comes to shopping for special occasion jewelry in a city like Bangkok, nothing is too high and nothing is too low - your wedding is a personal affair, make your decision at ease and at your comfort.
So if you plan to get a studded wedding ring, what are your options in Thailand. The answer is simple, the sky is the limit but once again, draw your basic plans before shopping. Traditionally wedding rings with adornments have embraced ruby, sapphire, diamonds and emeralds. But breaking traditions is generally accepted in today's matrimonial scene - so keep options open. Consider the other angels in the world of colored gemstones, green and pink tourmaline, pink morganite, blue aquamarine, rare tanzanite, spessartite, demantoid, tsavorite, white sapphire,pink sapphire, spinels etc. Keep in mind that while some of these gemstones can be priced lower than the others, none of them are really cheap. There is a complication related to gemstone treatments and the value effect that these treatments can impart to the stone, so pick a reliable jeweler before parting with your money. It helps to take along someone who has a more formalized knowledge in gems and jewelry but, that might not always be easy to find. You are surely aware that a taxi driver, a tour guide or even a newly acquired friend on the corner of the street might not be your best adviser! Appraisals in the form of printed cards and documents can be meaningless and this is true of the U.S, Thailand, Europe and every where else. We have seen big channels in the U.S selling merchandise for 40 U.S$ and claiming that the stone normally sells for 20 times more than that!
And would buying a wedding ring in Thailand be cheaper than doing the job abroad, after all Thailand is well known as a production base for all types of jewelry. There are two issues here, if you happen to buy a wedding ring from Thailand from an online jewelry provider, you might end up paying as much as 40% to even 50% less than what you would pay for the same jewel in your country. There are some interesting conditions here, so keep reading. Choosing the right online jewelry provider from Thailand is an important task. The second is that, the price difference between jewelry sold in Thailand and that sold locally in your own country might not always be that high. But if you have some knowledge about gems and jewelry, it is very likely that you can secure a good deal for a wedding ring in Thailand. Now if you decide to pick your wedding ring from a Bangkok jewelry store or any large store in one of the provinces, expect to pay a premium price. The price would also depend on the location of the shop, rentals in prime commercial localities can be substantial.
To summarize this discussion on Thai wedding rings here are the main issues - a quick reference list. Whether you choose to buy a wedding ring from a Thailand based jewelry website or a downtown jewelry store in Bangkok , picking the right jeweler for your wedding ring is an important part of the process. High pressure selling tactics can make you feel pressed but, do not make a purchase based on half information and stylish sales talk. Always keep your posture and walk-in mood casual, do not seem overly interested in buying that wedding ring. Do not hesitate to move to another jewelry website or jewelry store, it is your money and you have a right to seek the best value for it. Stay informed about any treatment that might have been applied to the diamonds or gems in your wedding ring. If you happen to be paying a substantial price for a wedding ring whether purchased from Thailand or elsewhere, insist on a complete report for the gemstone. Third party independent gem laboratories provide gem certification, the reliable names are GIA, AIGS and GIT when in Thailand. Do not have inflated expectations related to, big price differences when evaluating your options for a wedding ring in Thailand. Look at the experience of being exposed to a larger variety in terms of styles, metals, gemstones and price ranges.