But who’s to say that we should stop celebrating the milestones?

Here at Leo Hamel Fine Jewelers, we think every milestone is worth sharing. Take every chance you get to shout from the rooftops just how important your spouse is to you, especially as you spend more and more time together. Often times we fall into a pattern of complacency, of accepting that things are the way they are and will always be that way.

That’s why we’ve come up with this blog to help you show your spouse just how much you appreciate them, and all they do for you.

So where do I begin?

That’s the eternal question. Where do I start? The answer to this varies from person to person, and often depends on how long you and your spouse have been married, but personally, there’s always something to be said about a shared moment. This could be a fancy date, a camping trip, dancing in your living room. You know what fits you and your spouse best, but make sure it’s something special to you both.

Shared experiences are fantastic ways to continue bonding with each other, no matter how long you’ve been together. Make sure you think about the things that make you and your spouse unique. Maybe you both love butterflies, so you take them to the San Diego Safari Park’s butterfly rooms. Maybe you went to a specific restaurant for your first date, see if it’s still open and go give it a visit!

Another option, especially if you’ve been married for a while is to look into a vow renewal ceremony. A vow renewal ceremony is similar to a wedding, but is often done as a way to honor large marriage milestones. In recent years, many more couples are opting to celebrate milestones like 10 and 20 year with vow renewal ceremonies, which are just as custom as a wedding in style, size and location.

I want to do a vow renewal, now what?

Good question!

That depends entirely on you and your spouse, but here are some common items you might need:

• Venue
• Food
• Guests
• Officiant
• Rings

Your venue can be anywhere you want! It could be your place you had your first date, your favorite place to visit with your partner, or somewhere that means a lot to both of you. The possibilities here are endless, and should be just as personal to you and your spouse as your wedding was.

As far as food, that’s all your choice as well. Many places offer vow renewal services and packages, so if you want to do a big public to-do, you can look at places like the Knot for vow renewal packages in your area.

Vow Renewals are not legally binding like a wedding is, so anyone can officiate. The important part is that your officiant is someone that you love and trust and want to share this important day with, whether they are a close friend or family member, a member of your church/a clergyperson, or even your kids!

As far as rings, your vow renewal is the perfect time to update, and upgrade, your wedding bands. With having more time together, you both are more in tune with each other’s style, choices of jewelry, and what the other is likely to wear. Whether you decide to shop together, or separate, an upgrade to your wedding band or the addition of a keeper ring can be a fantastic way to honor your marriage and keep you and your spouse feeling fresh and excited about your marriage. Who doesn’t love new after all?

I want to upgrade my rings, but I’m worried about price!

Don’t worry, we get it. Upgrading can be pricey, especially if you’re upgrading to a larger size diamond. Fortunately for you, lab-grown diamonds are growing (get it!) in popularity every day. To put it simply, a lab-grown diamond is a diamond created in a lab under simulated pressure and atmosphere similar to what a diamond would experience in the ground. Because of these artificial conditions, diamonds that are made in labs are virtually identical to mined diamonds. So identical in fact, that only the GIA (Gemological Institute of America) can tell that they are lab-grown. Not you, your spouse, their friends or their jeweler will be able to tell the difference.

Now that you know what lab-grown diamonds are, here’s why they’re so important to this conversation. Lab-grown diamonds are a fraction of the cost of mined diamonds. So much so that you can get a 2.11 carat lab-grown diamond ring here in store for $8,300. To put that into perspective, a mined diamond ring of the same carat retails for $21,000. That’s a lot of savings.

This means you can get more diamond for your dollar, and can upgrade you and your partner’s rings to theirs (and yours) dream rings. No longer are large carat diamond rings the unattainable dream. In fact, more and more people are pursuing lab-grown diamonds as alternatives to mined every day, for a multitude of reasons, the most important usually being price. Read more about lab-grown and your options here.

No matter what you decide to do for your vow renewal, or even if you just want to upgrade your rings as a celebratory event, Leo Hamel Fine Jewelers is here to help you make the best decisions for you and your spouse to fit your lifestyles, personalities and style! We would be honored to assist you in finding the perfect rings and diamonds to celebrate these momentous milestones, and our skilled team is here to make sure you leave happy, every time.