Suggestions for Functional Jewelry?

szyzyg asks: "I'm getting married and my girlfriend and I have been looking around at rings and not really getting anywhere. I have all sorts of high concepts about what this should represent and I keep coming back to the thought 'nothing which is useless can be truly beautiful'. So I've been fighting with the idea of how to make a ring which has some use beyond simple symbolism... concepts like using magnetic minerals to turn it into a compass, or engraving some sort of measuring mechanism into it. So here's the challenge I'm putting to the Slashdot bright idea machine: How do I make a simple piece of jewelry useful? Someone out there must have better ideas."

Comments

Wedding Rings are usefull

[Merlin42]

For those who are not socially inept the wedding ring serves as a very simple communication device. It informs people as to who is 'off the market'. This same type of communication has been acheived by other cultures in different forms, eg a red dot on the forehead or a basil plant in the window.

"I'm getting married"

[Dukebytes]

Can you say diamond? Seriously - even if shes a g33ky g1rl - I would take a look at a diamond. ALL of her family and friends will be checking out her wedding ring - ALL of them...

You dont want your future mother-in-law saying "Well that Billy is a nice boy - but geesh did you see that ring he bought her? I thought those computer people made good money?" know what I mean? :)

If you want to make her one - go for it - but get a expensive one to put on her finger in front of the preach...

Duke

Re:"I'm getting married"

[hafree]

Yeah I have to agree here, this is one of the gayest "ask slashdot" questions I've heard in a long time. Get her a rock, not a secret decoder ring.

Re:"I'm getting married"

[Wolfier]

I think you're talking about "Smart women" instead of "Real women".

Not all real women are smart, but we're safe to assume the converse that all smart women are real.

A word to the wise....

[Asprin]

I really do wish you luck, but did you run this past her?

Are you **ABSOLUTELY** **CERTAIN** she's OK with the idea of jewelry that "does stuff"?

Don't get me wrong - I'd love the idea of having a ring that could double as a compass or has a laser or maybe has a web server in it. But I'm not a chick for a reason. My wife would have killed me if I got her a ring that did anything except sit there and depreciate - that's why I let her pick it out. If nothing else, tell her that its super-power is that it also cuts glass.

Seriously, man -- stop the bleeding before it starts. THIS COULD BE A TEST! Chicks *love* doing kind of thing to us.

Just make sure it does it's primary jobs

[swillden]

Whatever else you might try to make it do, first ensure that your choice accomplishes the basics. It must:

1. Please her. Hopefully, the idea of the ring pleases her, but she should like the ring itself as well. If she thinks it's ugly, or gaudy, or plain, or... anything other than beautiful, you've failed. Also important (sometimes more important, depending on the woman) is what her family, friends, etc., will think of it. I hate to say it, but "traditional" may be be best bet. It's certainly the safest.
2. Look like a wedding ring. The main day-to-day function of a wedding ring is to let everyone around her know that she's married and, hence, unavailable. It's of no use if no one recognizes it as what it is.
3. Be reasonably comfortable. The idea is that she's going to wear this nearly 24x7 for the rest of her life, right? Don't saddle her with some monstrosity that's always getting in the way.

Oh, and one more suggestion, something I learned the hard way: make sure that it doesn't have any sharp points sticking up. My wife's first ring (the diamond fell out at the beach one day, so she got a new one) had these fairly sharp points on the tips of the prongs around the solitaire. Every time she'd roll over to cuddle up in bed, I'd end up bleeding.

Upgrading?

[jbarr]

Don't forget that any technology that you put into the ring will probably become obsolete within a few years, so unless you are specifically planning on either upgrading the ring or upgrading your wife, I recommend going the traditional route.

What may seem novel or cool today will probably not seem so novel or cool 20 years from now. Remember that the ring is a symbol of your marriage. What ring you select should reflect what you value in your marriage and your spouse.

Re:Real Women???

[Neck_of_the_Woods]

really? I have one that would rather have a trip to hawaii, surf for 10 days straight, put the little silver band around her finger and grin like a school girl hooped up on sugar.

You see bud, it is not about the diamond. It is about knowing your girl. Some women want the diamond to show it off, others want a basic ring with a huge ass story behind it that every time someone asks her why she does not have a diamond she launches into her month long surf trip around the pacific.

I have that girl, and I am going to keep her. You can have the one that wants the diamond.