Jewelry has a very long and diverse history going back as far as history takes us. Every culture has embraced the use of jewelry for adornment in some form or other. The history of wearing rings goes back a long time also. We think of great rulers who used their signet rings to imprint a wax seal to put their authority on documents.

Today we love rings as much as they were ever loved. In western cultures they can be worn by male or female of any age, on any finger, thumb or toe. Rings are often made out of precious metals, like gold and sterling silver. Many popular styles of rings are made out of stainless steel or other base metals, wood, bone or shells. Rings speak of love and friendship or are worn just for beauty and fashion.

Rings are decorated by etching, using contrasting metals, plating, adding precious and semi-precious gems, pearls, enamel or oxidized finishes. The list of decoration is as endless as the many shapes and sizes of rings.

The Spinner Rings can be used to annoy everyone around you or be used as way of stress relief for the wearer.

The Class Ring or school graduation ring is often engraved with the year of graduation and a stone of one of the school colors.

Stack Rings are two or more rings designed to fit on the same finger at the same time.

Cocktail Rings are usually large and set with oversized gems, rather showy but elegant.

Rings, especially sterling silver rings, make wonderful gifts because they look wonderful and are not too expensive. The beautiful glow of the silver sets off the sparkle of any gems that may be used to create the ring. The majority of peoples skin tone is more suited to silver or a mixture of silver and gold than it is to plain gold.

Rings are widely used as a symbol of love and marriage. The continuous circular band is said to be symbolic of continuous love and commitment between the partners in the marriage. Some engagement rings and eternity rings feature three main stones symbolizing the past, present and future of the continuing relationship. Most eternity rings have a continuous line of gem stones.

The claddagh ring was first crafted in 1689. Claddagh rings have two hands clasping a heart, symbolizing love, surmounted by a crown, symbolizing loyalty. The ring worn on the right hand with the heart turned outward indicates that your heart is yet unoccupied. Worn on the right hand with the heart turned inward indicates that love is being considered. Worn on the left hand the with the heart turned inward shows everyone that your heart is truly spoken for.

The rich and famous may measure their worth by the size and price of the gems in their rings but the rest of us are content to wear rings for their own beauty and style. We are fortunate these days to be able to take advantage of the man made gems that look stunning yet are very cost effective.

Rings are for wearing, giving, cherishing and enjoying, one can never have too many.