To change engagement rings?

[NorthernAndNervy]

My engagement ring is a 18ct white gold, natural diamond but is quite small (.37ct)
would I be better getting a larger but lab grown diamond? The lab grown is actually cheaper than my ring (£1200 vs £845) which do you think looks nicer? Photos are mine vs one I’m looking at.

I don’t like solitaires myself, but would always go with larger bling vs smaller, lol. The lab grown is more ethical too.

I have a 1.5ct diamond solitaire and it’s too big and blingy I only wear it for special occasions.

I also have a smaller .89 diamond solitaire which suits my hands better and doesn’t get in the way as much but again I don’t wear it that often I only tend to wear my wedding ring daily.

At the end of the day it’s preference and what you want to wear. For example I don’t like oval diamonds but my friend does and her ring suits her, she doesn’t like solitaires..each to their own.

I like the smaller one out of the 2 you have shown.

I prefer the oval one.
My husband picked my engagement ring and I’ve never liked it. We are married 16yrs and I’m getting new engagement ring, eternity ring and wedding band in May for our wedding anniversary. I never wear my engagement ring, just my wedding band.
I’m going for a platinum, oval lab grown diamond engagement ring this time.

Your ring is beautiful and really suits your hand. It will look more noticeable once you add a wedding ring to your finger, and potentially an eternity ring in the future. You could get diamonds set into the wedding ring to add more sparkle to your finger.

I don’t like synthetic diamonds. They’re boring. They’re too clear and shiny like a cubic zirconia. Real diamonds are so much more beautiful. For that alone I wouldn’t want a synthetic diamond no matter how big it was.

We need more info. Did you buy it yourself or did your fiancé / fiancée give it to you?

I like the smaller one.

A lab grown diamond is a real diamond - it's chemically identical, so not really like a cubic zirconia.
Has your dp already bought the first one? Because if he has, then the larger one being cheaper is neither here more there, since he's already spent £1200!
If he has, then I'd keep the first unless you can return it for a full refund. I wouldn't just write off that money by getting a second.
If you are going to replace it, then go for a better metal - 9ct white gold will tarnish and need replating every year. There are different grades of white gold, depending on the mix and you can get some which will stay more white. The cheaper ones will go more yellow, hence the need for rhodium plating.

In all honestly I'm not keen on the oval shape but in the end, you will be wearing it forever, so you should have a ring you love. If that's truly not the first one, then choose another (tactfully) but go somewhere better than WJ.

Prefer the first one.

If you get a lab grown diamond, it doesn't have to replace your engagement ring - just buy it as a ring and wear it when you want a more blingy look.

Yours is beautiful and elegant, the other one looks tacky I think

when you say better what do you mean?

it comes across like you think bigger is better so yes get the cheaper bigger one

I’m not keen on your current ring, too small for my taste but I don’t like lab grown diamonds either, I prefer proper mined larger ones. How very helpful huh (not)

I told my now DH what I wanted which was a diamond with little ones going down the side. He got me just a single diamond. It’s lovely but not what I really wanted. Therefore when we had our son, and when I had my 30th we took to get it customised and had a little one added each side. It’s now got three, all for different things and I love it. They changed the band from white gold to paladium so it never yellows either.

In my honest opinion yours is too small. The lab grown diamond is only 1 carat so it definitely won't look costumey at all.

I echo what others said with what do you mean by better? Is it because you want a bigger bit of bling/status/apparent expense?

An alternative is having your wedding ring edged in diamonds, almost like an eternity ring. Would bling you up and mean you keep the ring you were (I'm guessing) proposed to with.

I guess it depends on your rationale for looking around. What you want it to be like. Sentimentality. Wedding band. Eternity band. Etc