By Megan Harwood-Baynes, cost of living specialist
It is one of the most popular times of the year to propose – according to Bridebook, a popular wedding planning app, more than 100,000 engagements happen during the festive period.
But with Britons feeling the pinch after years of high inflation, how much are people spending, what cuts are they going for, and what happens to the ring if you split up?
The ‘two-month salary rule’
When it comes to budgeting for a ring, the phrase that is often bandied about is that you should spend two months of your salary.
But did you know this actually came from a clever piece of marketing? It was the work of De Beers, a diamond cartel, in the 1930s.
The Great Depression was a disaster for De Beers, and so they began a campaign to link diamonds to getting engaged – and it really worked. In the 1940s, just 10% of engagement rings contained diamonds, but by the end of the 20th century, it was 80%.
They did it by launching an ad campaign that suggested a single month’s salary was the right amount to spend on a ring. The biggest breakthrough then came in 1947 with the phrase “A diamond is forever”.
In the 1980s, the single-month salary was bumped up to two months. A famous ad featuring a woman with a ring said: “Two months’ salary showed the future Mrs Smith what the future would be like.”
Another featured a ring and said: “How can you make two months’ salary last forever?”
By the turn of the century, De Beers had…
