The notion that an engagement ring should cost two months’ salary confuses the issue.  (Check out this link from adiamondisforever.com for explicit details.)  Yes, if you spend a lot of money on a gift for someone, that demonstrates commitment.  But there is the risk that the financial commitment involved in the “traditional” diamond engagement ring will obscure the more important emotional commitment that an engagement ring is intended to represent.

Of course, plenty of people manage to have very happy marriages and diamond engagement rings.  But spending less money on an engagement ring is an intentional choice to focus attention exclusively on the emotional commitment and not on the financial commitment.

Besides, imagine all the awesome things one could do with an extra two months’ salary!

P.S.  If almost 83% of brides receive a diamond engagement ring, that means that more than 17% don’t.  Here’s to the road less traveled!