Set in the heart of Brighton Lanes, opposite The Ivy and The Ivy Asia is Wedding Rings Direct, (WRD) a one-stop shop for buying arguably the most important piece of jewellery of your life. This family run, Brighton-based business has been selling wedding rings online since the internet revolution in the 1990s and have since enjoyed global success. For the first time they have opened a showroom in the heart of Brighton and you can visit for a consultation to find your perfect wedding ring. Discover caught up with owner Anthony to chat about wedding proposals and learn more about this wonderful showroom where dreams come true.
What are the best marriage proposals you’ve heard? I have met many of our customers over the years and love hearing stories of how they proposed. One of the best is a customer who got a group of singers together and took his girlfriend onto the London Underground. All the singers got into the same carriage anonymously and once the train started moving they broke out in unison with a rendition of, ‘Marry You’ by Bruno Mars, then the man got down on one knee with a ring and proposed.
Another unbelievable customer story is of a couple who met at the top of Mount Snowdon, they were walking alone and became lost in the mist, stumbling across one another they managed to descend safely together. That was the start of their relationship. He later proposed on the top of Mount Snowdon and had the coordinates engraved inside their wedding rings. (Excuse us while we go and cry in the bathroom…)
Have you seen a change in trends in terms of styles of wedding rings? People still love traditional plain bands but we sell 14 different metals, so are geared up for any alternative requests. An example of this was when I had a Gothic couple come to see me, they hunted across London looking for the right rings and couldn’t find anything suitable. They were spoilt for choice and found it difficult to make a selection in our showroom!
How are you settling into the new showroom? We love it and are finding it’s evolving constantly as we adapt to the needs of our customers. We have had some Saudi Arabian visitors who bought rings from us as souvenirs of their trip to Brighton. Also this is such a wonderful location, people can come and shop for wedding rings and then go for a romantic meal at one of The Ivys – a whole experience can be had when you visit WRD.
What is the process of buying a wedding ring? We offer a bespoke service. If you came to buy a wedding ring you’d probably be wearing an engagement ring, which means I can see what style you like and recommend something based on that. I can also size your wedding ring from your engagement ring, which means a perfect fit. I would usually choose something for you as a starter and then you can look at other thicknesses or designs. Essentially it’s a process of elimination. We only stock sample rings made from sterling silver, and once you have selected we then cast the ring at our workshop. You can receive your wedding ring in as little as two days.
WRD also work with Lab diamonds and we spent the rest of our interview slot feeling like Ms Monroe playing with some STUNNING stones, ranging from a carat to 2.5 carats.
Lab diamonds are optically, chemically, and physically the same as natural diamonds. In other words, they look, feel, and are identical. Their difference lies only in their origins, natural diamonds form within the Earth, and lab diamonds are grown by professionals with specialised equipment. Another notable difference pertains to cost; as lab grown diamonds are less rare than natural diamonds, they often come at a much more accessible price. We have a feeling a sparkler may soon be purchased by us…
Visit the showroom: 32 Ship St, Brighton BN1 1AD / 01273 696 515
Follow us on our socials: Facebook: @WeddingRingsDirect / Instagram: @weddingringsdirect
