Engraving Your Wedding Bands

The presenting of rings in a wedding is the symbol of the couple's love without end. It is one of the most special moments in any ceremony. A moment like that deserves to be memorialized. Nothing preserves that moment like giving wedding bands engraved with a special message on the inside. There are many ways, traditional and new methods, to include engraving on your wedding bands. For example, ou can choose to have your rings engraved by hand, with a machine, or through a process known as laser engraving.

Hand Engraving Wedding Bands

The oldest method of engraving is by hand. With hand engraving, a skilled artisan will create your message using a tool known as a graver, which is a device that looks like a small chisel. Gravers have different tips to allow for different marks to be made on the metal. Because of this, the hand engraving method is the most customizable and most expensive option available, though the cost usually is not much more than other methods.

Unfortunately, hand engraving also offers the greatest possibility of being done incorrectly due to human error. At the same time, a highly skilled engraver can often create whatever font or characters you want. The quality will depend on the skill of the engraver and price will usually increase with skill.

Machine Engraving Wedding Rings

The more recent traditional method involves machine engraving. The machine either uses a template to stamp or spread the metal into the desired engraving or uses a computer controlled automatic graver. Machine engraving will always match the sample, but you are often limited in the fonts available. Space is also often limited to no more than 30 letters when using machine engraving.

Laser Engraving
Laser engraving provides the best of both methods. Laser engraving offers the customization of hand engraving with the accuracy and precision of machine engraving. Like machine engraving, the result will always match the sample. Since a laser can also engrave much smaller letters than the other methods, laser engraved rings can be thinner and contain up to 225 characters. Many couple's have placed a message, a Bible verse, or even their vows inside their rings with laser engraving. The laser can be programmed to create any font and almost any symbol.

Whether you choose laser engraving, machine engraving, or letting someone do it by hand, engraving your wedding bands will add to your ring ceremony. When making a life long commitment, it is always wonderful to have something that reminds you of that moment. Your special message, engraved inside your weddings bands, provides the perfect stimulant to your memory.