Woman's 'face falls' after brother-in-law tells her 'truth' about her engagement ring

The bride-to-be kept 'gushing' about her new engagement ring and 'how lucky she was to have such a thoughtful fiancé' before her future brother-in-law disclosed the truth about the ring

A woman was left feeling hurt and confused after learning “the truth” about the engagement ring her fiancé claimed cost “more than a car”.

Choosing an engagement ring for your beloved is a nerve-wracking experience - you’ve got to figure out their ring size without arousing suspicion and then select a piece of jewellery they’ll wear for the rest of their lives. It’s an important, symbolic item that holds great emotional significance.

One man was left feeling frustrated after his brother and his new fiancée, Emily, kept “bragging” about the cost of the recently acquired engagement ring. The groom “made a big deal out of getting her a “one-of-a-kind, designer ring” that supposedly cost more than [his brother’s] car”.

After the proposal, the bride-to-be was thrilled to be brandishing such an impressive rock on her finger but the groom’s brother knew the truth about the ring. It wasn’t nearly as expensive as he’d implied, and the brother decided to let Emily know as such.

He took to Reddit to ask fellow forum users whether his revelation was the wrong move. He explained he was “genuinely happy” for his brother and Emily, especially as he believes Emily is an “amazing woman” who he’s “always” liked.

He described her as being “smart, kind, and really down-to-earth” but at a family dinner last weekend, her “gushing” over her engagement ring “really bugged” him. She was keen to show her new ring off, while singing her fiancé’s praises.

According to the brother: “She was gushing about how my brother spent months finding the perfect ring, how much it cost, and how lucky she was to have such a thoughtful fiancé. All good, right? Except… I know the jeweller my brother went to, because it’s the same place I got my ex’s ring years ago.”

The jeweller responsible for Emily’s ring specialises in “high-quality lab-grown diamonds”. Lab-grown diamonds are diamonds created in a laboratory setting using methods which mimic the natural diamond growth process. Though they’re often much cheaper than mined diamonds, they’re still very much real diamonds and even boast a range of shapes, sizes, colours and clarity grades.

The brother continued: “Now, there’s nothing wrong with lab-grown diamonds—heck, I’d even say they’re better for the environment and look just as good—but my brother’s whole story about this “rare, one-of-a-kind ring” was basically a big lie. It’s worth a fraction of what he claimed, and it definitely wasn’t some exclusive, hand-picked treasure.”

AITA for telling my brother’s fiancée her engagement ring is fake after she bragged about it at a family dinner?
byu/carmexlipcare inAITAH

He claimed his brother was “manipulating” his bride-to-be and, by extension, his whole family into “thinking he’s some kind of romantic hero”. The brother then told Emily he was “familiar with the jeweller” and “hinted that the ring was probably lab-grown, not as rare as she thought”.

Upon hearing this, Emily’s “face fell” and she was devastated. Later, his “brother was fuming” and accused him of “ruining his proposal”. He also slammed him for being “jealous and petty”. The situation has led to Emily “questioning the whole engagement because she thinks he lied to her”. The man believes his brother did, in fact, lie to his bride-to-be and maintains Emily had a right to know the truth about her engagement ring.

Now, though, his “whole family is mad at him” and his brother has stopped speaking to him. He added: “I didn’t mean to upset Emily, but I also feel like it’s not cool to lie about something like that. Shouldn’t she know the truth?”

Reddit users rushed to the comments section to share their thoughts, with many of the belief the brother is harbouring romantic feelings for Emily and used the “truth” about the ring as a means to potentially sabotage their engagement. One person simply said: “You knew exactly what you were doing.”

Another said: “He wanted to show her how brother is a liar and him to be "the honest brother", one that she will seek comfort with.” While a third said: “Not your place at all to disclose anything about the ring. And you said the jeweller specialises in lab- grown. Doesn't mean every ring is 'fake' as you call it.”

Another commented: “Lab grown gemstones are every bit as “real” as mined ones, only much more ethical”. And another added: “Just say you're super envious of your brother, so you decided to bring him and his girl down a notch to make yourself feel better.”