Agape Diamonds Blog News

You're engaged! But before you start planning your big day, it's your turn to pop the question—that is, to your bridesmaids. It can be a high-pressure situation. Your best friends have stuck with you through thick and thin, so it's only natural you'd want them standing by your side on your wedding day.

Proposing to your bridesmaids is a big deal—these are the women who will help you plan, celebrate, and survive your wedding. Your bridal party is basically the VIPs of your wedding, and they should be treated as such. So, how do you pop the question to your future bridesmaids? If you need some inspiration for your bridesmaid proposals, here are 10 creative ideas to help you pop the big question to the special ladies in your life.

Throw a Wine Night

One of the best bridesmaid proposal ideas is to gather your besties for a wine tasting night or drinks at your place. To pop the question, wait until the end of the evening and present the final ready-to-sip selection. Opt for a delicious white or red wine with a custom label that asks your best friends to be a part of your wedding party—you'll be toasting to yourselves for the rest of the night.

Pack a Gift Box

If big, nontraditional gestures aren't your thing, put together a simple gift box filled with wedding-themed items for each of your friends. Fill the box with a small bottle of bubbly, nail polish, white gold jewelry, face masks, and chocolates, along with a handwritten note popping the question. Depending on your budget, consider customizing each box to match each friend's personality and i

With dozens of decisions on the horizon, brainstorming fresh ideas to set your wedding apart from the rest can feel overwhelming—so how can you make sure you're planning a memorable, one-of-a-kind wedding ceremony and reception?

According to wedding planning experts, couples should focus on planning a wedding that speaks to their personal style, rather than simply embracing new trends. From floral trends and dresses to diamond ring and interior trends, here are 17 unforgettable trends that are sure to wow your guests.

Alternative Center Stones

More couples are choosing alternative center gemstones, such as sapphire, topaz, opal, and emerald, to create a unique look. While choosing alternative center gems is a great way to separate yourself from the rest, white gold or rose gold diamond fashion rings are the perfect choice for the traditional bride with a bold personal style.

Bold Prints

Flowers aren't the only way to bring a pop of color to your wedding—this year, bold prints on table linens and wedding backdrops bring a festival vibe to your reception. Colorful patterned linens, bright napkins, and vibrant tablescapes can bring life to any event space and make for one-of-a-kind wedding photos.

Lab-Grown Diamonds

As a new and exciting trend in the diamond industry, modern couples are drawn to lab diamonds because of their affordability, transparency, and sustainability. Lab

The average wedding produces hundreds of pounds of waste and tons of carbon emissions. While the easiest way to plan a zero-waste wedding is to head to the courthouse and elope, it's possible to plan a traditional wedding while reducing your impact on the environment.

If you're considering planning an eco-friendly wedding, commit to embracing zero-waste principles by renting instead of buying, selling or donating your goods after your reception, upcycling, and choosing eco-friendly brands. To jumpstart your wedding planning, here are 50+ ideas to help you plan a ceremony and reception that's kind to nature and the environment.

Send Digital Invitations

• Go paperless by sending out personalized digital invitations to save on paper and shipping costs.
• Use upcycled paper to set the tone for your wedding and reduce your carbon footprint.
• Choose for soy-based ink as a sustainable alternative to petroleum-based ink. Soy-based ink is a more ethical choice and can make your wedding invitations pop.
• Use a wedding planning app to help relieve stress when planning your big day, but make sure to read the app's privacy policy before entering your personal information.
• Ask guests to RSVP digitally by inviting and managing your RSVP tracking using an online invitation service. Most services are affordable and convenient and

Lab diamonds, also called man-made diamonds and lab-created diamonds, are a sustainable and affordable alternative to earth-mined diamonds. Lab-grown diamonds are a rapidly growing trend in the jewelry industry, with many younger couples opting for lab diamonds because of their price, transparency, and environmental sustainability. Whether you're thinking about tying the knot or treating yourself, here's why you should consider buying a lab diamond.

Environmental Sustainability

Due to a lack of green mining practices, the total carbon footprint of an earth-mined diamond is considerably high. The environmental consequences of diamond mining extend far beyond its carbon emissions, and diamond mining has been associated with water pollution, habitat destruction, and volcanic eruptions.

As an ethical and sustainable alternative to natural diamonds, lab-grown diamonds require significantly less energy to grow in a lab than mining natural diamonds. 

Lab diamonds are grown by placing a diamond seed in a vacuum chamber and applying a combination of heat and extreme pressure. The sealed chamber mimics the natural diamond growing process in accordance with highest safety measures, and crystallization allows the lab diamond to mature and form molecular bonds. Loose diamonds are then cut, polished, and graded by diamond experts to create a man-made diamond with the chemical properties, physical properties, and optical properties of a mined diamond.

As the most commonly used techniques to manufacture lab-grown diamonds, chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and high-pressure high-temperature (HPHT) processes create high-quality gems by replicating the natural growing processes within the Earth's surface:

Vintage diamond engagement rings have become increasingly popular in recent years for their gorgeous design and simplicity. But what sets vintage engagement rings apart, and what should you keep an eye out for when buying one? Is this one of those engagement ring trends worth following? Whether you're planning to propose in the coming year or in the near future, here's everything you need to know about buying the perfect vintage-style diamond engagement ring, from vintage engagement ring trends and different engagement ring styles—and how to make them work for you.

What are vintage diamond engagement rings?

Although the term is used often, the definition of a vintage engagement ring varies. In most cases, the term is used to describe a new engagement ring that mimics an engagement ring style from another era, such as the Art Deco, Victorian, Old Euro, or Georgian era. 

The term “vintage” might seem vague, but there are a few popular engagement ring trends that have structured definitions, including:

Antique ring: A ring that has existed for more than 50 years.

Heirloom ring: A ring that belonged to relatives and is passed down through generations.

Estate ring: A ring that was once owned by someone else.

A vintage-style diamond engagement ring can be a reproduction of any of the engagement ring styles above.

Whether you're searching for a diamond engagement ring or looking for a simple way to drop the hint, purchasing a diamond can seem overwhelming. Either way, the experts at Agape Diamonds are here to help. With education, research, and help from our diamond experts, you'll be able to find your dream diamond engagement ring in no time.

Your Diamond Search at Agape Diamonds

Before we discuss the essential steps to buying a diamond, we'll share what your diamond search will entail if you shop with Agape. There are multiple factors to consider before purchasing your diamond, and in all the excitement it can be easy to forget to consider everything that takes place after your order.

The easiest way to learn more about our great service is to read our reviews. At the Agape Diamonds Testimonials Page, you can find passive and active reviews from real customers that share details about their own search and purchase that you might not have considered.

It goes without saying it's important to research a company's customer service, privacy policy, current featured reviews, different kinds of merchant reviews—both negative and positive—before choosing the best place to shop for your wedding ring.

In addition to customer service and reviews, consider the perks our company offers. We're not talking about the coupons that companies offer to get you on their website—we're talking about the perks that make a company a better place to shop. We aim to make Agape Diamonds a great place to shop

So, you're ready to take the next step and purchase an engagement ring. Congratulations! For an engaged couple, buying an engagement ring and wedding band is an exciting time, one that should be cherished, not stressed over. With education, research, and help from the diamond experts at Agape Diamonds, you'll be able to find the perfect diamond engagement ring in no time. Whether you're planning to incorporate the element of surprise or shop with your fiancé, here's the ultimate guide to finding your dream ring.

Buying an Engagement Ring 101: The Ultimate Guide to Finding the Right Engagement Ring

The process of buying an engagement ring is unique for every couple, but this guide can help you break it down into easy-to-follow steps.

Step 1: Set your budget.

Before you start shopping for jewelry, set a price range. If this is your first time shopping for a diamond engagement ring or a wedding ring, a diamond ring might seem like a big purchase. Having an honest conversation with your future fiancé is the best way to keep your expectations the same and decide how much money you're willing to spend.

The widely accepted rule is that an engagement ring should cost about the same as your three months' salary. Of course, you don't need to follow this rule, but it's good to know the expectation. Additionally, if a real diamond is a bit out of your price range, then you can look into other options such as synthetic diamonds, cubic zirconia, or even moissanite. All of these options offer beauty and brilliance comparable to that of a diamond at a far lower price.

Additionally, there are other precious and semi-precious jewels that make for adequate substitutes. Ruby, Emerald and sapphire make a bold statement and lend a p

Spring is in the air—and so is engagement season!

Whether you're ready to pop the question now or you're waiting for the right moment and just want to be ready, we've got you covered with a list of some of the most popular engagement rings trending right now.

We fully understand that engagement ring trends come and go—but diamonds are forever. If you're afraid of going with a popular engagement ring choice because it might not be popular in five or ten years, don't worry; nothing says "forever" like the time and thought that goes into picking the perfect engagement ring trends.

There are so many styles to choose from, but here are some of our absolute favorites!

Rose Gold Rings

Rose gold has been one of the popular engagement ring trends for several years now. Rose gold is a simple way to add a little bit of elegant color into a ring without changing the color of the diamond. While platinum bands remain the most popular engagement ring and wedding band style—and are closely followed by white gold and classic yellow gold—rose gold has gained popularity in recent years. If your special someone has a knack for thinking outside of the box, a rose gold ring might be the perfect ring for them.

As rose gold has become a popular engagement ring trend, we've seen more and more celebrities sporting these pink-tinted yellow gold engagement rings. Blake Lively (married to Ryan Reynolds) wears a

We see diamonds everywhere—in jewelry, such as in diamond engagement rings, and in bracelets that sparkle. While the traditional diamond and gold ring has maintained popularity in the United States for a long time, diamond uses are evolving. We even see them in blades and drill bits that are made to break down other materials. But what exactly are diamonds? Where do they come from, and what other uses do they have?

We've made a list of 10 interesting facts about diamonds so you can appreciate that little sparkle on your hand as more than just a symbol of love.

1. Not only do diamonds come in all shapes and sizes—but they also come in a wide spectrum of colors.

The color of the diamond depends on the minerals that are present at the time of formation. Colorless diamonds are generally more popular and therefore the most valuable, but diamonds can be many different colors, including green, blue, yellow, brown, orange, purple, red, or even black. In recent decades, pink diamonds have gained popularity thanks to a number of celebrities showing off alternative colors on their engagement rings and wedding bands. 

Even colorless diamonds tend to

Engagement season is upon us, and being engaged is one of the most magical periods of anyone's life. The romantic time before getting married will never be repeated for any couple and it deserves its own unique engagement ring to make sure it is something special. Every engagement, as well as every wedded couple-to-be, is unique, so why not have an alternative engagement ring that reflects that? 

Here are some ideas on finding a non-traditional ring that will make a splash.

Choose Something Unique to the Wearer

The first step in deciding which unique ring suits you and your partner is thinking about what the wearer values. Are they classically traditional? Do they do a lot with their hands on a daily basis? Do they have an affinity for a particular type of gemstone? This could factor into what stone you choose, the cut of the ring, the type of metal, the size, and so many other factors that can go into making your engagement rings unique. This could lead you to options like lab-made diamonds and lab-grown engagement rings.

Mix Up Your Stone Choice

The first and perhaps most instantly recognizable change that you could make is switching it up from the traditional diamond engagement ring. If you prefer the look of a diamond ring, why not go for an ethically-sourced diamond or lab-made diamonds to make sure the symbol of your love has as sweet a story as your own? The classic white diamond look can still be achieved but with a harmless origin. This is why lab-grown diamond rings are only growing