Since Ancient Egypt, wedding rings have been used as a symbol of love and marriage. The ancient Egyptians used rushes, reeds, and sedges to braid into rings, or made them out of bone or ivory. The Romans used iron to symbolize strength and permanence, but soon adopted fancier metals (gold and silver) as a symbol of wealth.
To this day, wedding rings are a way to show love and commitment to your partner. This makes it hard to look at your wedding ring after you break up or get divorced.
You may have no idea what to do with wedding ring after divorce—you certainly don’t want the daily reminder of your marriage! Thankfully, selling wedding ring after divorce isn’t as hard as you’d think, and there are other things you can do with that wedding ring.
Below, we’ll look at how to sell a wedding ring, what to do with engagement ring after break up, and how you can find closure by making the best use of your wedding ring.
Give The Ring Back
Your ex probably spent a tidy sum on the ring—after all, an engagement ring is supposed to cost three months’ salary, and the wedding band itself is made of solid gold, platinum, silver, or titanium.
You’re talking a minimum of $1,000-$3,000 for the engagement ring, and easily half that much on the wedding bands.
If you have no desire to look at the ring, why not give it back to the ex? It’s a good way to show there are no hard feelings after your amicable break-up or divorce, and it can help them get back on their feet.
If the ring is a family heirloom, you most definitely should consider giving it back. After all, if it was passed down from generation to generation in your ex’s family, you don’t want to deprive them of a chance to pass it on to someone who will appreciate it.
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Keep The Ring
There’s no reason you can’t keep the wedding or engagement ring. You agreed to marry your ex, and they gave you the ring. It belongs to you, and unless it’s a family heirloom, there’s no reason why you should give it back.
It’s bad etiquette to wear an engagement ring or wedding ring on your finger if you’re not married, but you can hang it on a chain around your neck.
It’s still a beautiful piece of jewelry, and it’s worth keeping.
It has a good deal of value—both intrinsic and in terms of the actual precious metals—so there’s no reason why you can’t hang onto it until you need a bit of cash.
Recycle And Re-use
In this modern age of eco-friendliness, it makes sense to consider recycling or re-using the ring instead of buying new jewelry.
You can take the ring to a jeweler and have them make some new out of it: another ring, a necklace, a set of earrings, or anything else you want.
You’ve got a lot of precious metal (gold, platinum, silver, etc.) to work with, and it can make some beautiful jewelry.
Don’t worry: it’s not bad etiquette to turn your old wedding rings into something new and beautiful. It’s understood that you don’t want the daily reminder of your former marriage, but you can use the metal to fashion a new piece of jewelry to be part of your new life.
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SELL THE RING
This is the best way to go if you have a fancy piece of jewelry you no longer want.
Selling the wedding ring will give you a bit of cash that you can use on whatever strikes your fancy: a trip, a down payment on a car or house, an investment in the stock market, and so on.
That’s the purpose of the costly ring: to give you a chance to get back on your feet after the end of your marriage.
There are three ways you can sell your wedding ring:
Gold dealers
Gold dealers will purchase the ring for the metal value. They intend to melt the ring down and use the gold for another purpose, so they will pay you only the exact value of the metal. Some dealers will buy the diamonds and stones in the ring, but you may not get a very good price.
Jewelers
Some jewelers will offer you a higher price than just the metal and stone value, as they’re buying the ring as a single piece. However, if the ring is used, the price you’ll get may be significantly lower than the price you paid for the ring. You may be able to exchange the ring for store credit, which you can then use to purchase another piece of jewelry.
Auction
Auctioning off your ring can be a good way to earn a higher price, especially if the wedding ring is one-of-a-kind. Antique rings or rings made by famous designers will usually command a much higher price at auction, so it’s a good way to earn a bit extra on that special wedding ring.
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If you’re thinking about selling your wedding ring, it’s definitely a good idea to get the ring appraised first. An appraiser will be able to tell you the metal and stone value of your ring, as well as any sentimental or style value that could raise the price of the ring.
Instead of just giving you the scrap value (the value of the ring’s metal and stone), they can give you the “theoretical market value”—how much they believe you can sell the ring for. With the certification of appraisal, you’ll have much more confidence when you approach jewelers to try to sell the piece.
An appraisal is a good idea if you are planning the sell the ring whole, as a complete piece of jewelry rather than scrap jewelry. Most gold dealers intend to melt down the gold, so they’re going to pay a much lower price for the ring. With an appraisal, you can find out the theoretical market value of the ring so you know how much to ask for.
Working with a professional appraisal service like Twery’s is the best way to find out the value of your engagement ring. When we appraise diamond rings, we look at more than just the scrap value of the ring. Instead, we examine the four C’s of diamonds (cut, clarity, color, and carat), and we weigh the gold.
After determining the metal and stone value, we analyze the style and settings of the ring as a whole to give it as high a value as possible. We’ll make an offer on the spot, and if you believe it’s a fair offer, you’ll walk out of our appraiser’s with cash in your pocket.
Our goal is to make it as easy as possible for you to sell your engagement ring or wedding band. If you’re trying to move on after your divorce, that ring could be a reminder of the past. Let us take it off your hands—our mission is to give you the fairest price, one you can be happy with.
But even if you don’t know what to do with wedding ring after divorce and don’t want to sell right away, it’s still in your best interest to get the wedding ring appraised. That way, you know what the ring’s value is for when you finally decide that you’re ready to part with it
Do you have any experience selling or recycling an old wedding ring? Did you find an appraisal service you could trust? How did you get the highest possible price for the wedding ring?
Leave a comment below with any advice or feedback you have! We’d love to hear from you; you could help someone else know the best way to sell a wedding ring after their divorce.