My fiancé proposed to me with a cheap gift shop ring – I think Asda's £1 option is really romantic

I never know what to tell people when they ask me how my partner Adi and I met. 

We ran within the same circles so we were aware of each other’s existence, but it wasn’t until we were both invited to a friend’s house for a little get together that I saw him in a different light. 

I had a headache that was slowly turning into a migraine. He offered me his water and gave me a head massage until it got to the point where I admitted defeat to my pounding head and went home to sleep it off. 

On my way home I added him on Facebook and within one minute of the request being sent we were friends. 

After sleeping the whole of Sunday, I woke up on Monday morning thinking about the guy who sacrificed his water for a girl he barely knew and by that afternoon we were on our first date after I messaged him to say thanks.

We had been together for all of two months when he proposed to me in the Lincoln Cathedral with a ring he bought from the Lincoln Castle gift shop in secret that day. 

Adi told me to look at a font, which you had to climb a couple of steps to look into, and as I turned around, there he was on one knee, smiling up at me with the ring in his hand. 

I had absolutely no clue that it was going to happen – after all we had only been together for a couple of months – but all I could think about in that moment was that he had given me the happiest two months of my life and he was the one. 

The ring was the kind that you can adjust to the size of your finger and would turn it green in a matter of days but I just didn’t care; it was and still is a symbol of his love and commitment to me.

Although he did replace it with a more traditional ring a couple of months later, it means more to me than any diamond ever could.

It was a relatively plain band, but I didn’t care what the ring looked like, I was simply happy that Adi wanted to spend the rest of his life with me as much as I did with him.

I’m sure if you asked a room full of people whether the price of the ring would have any impact on their decision to accept the proposal, the vast majority would say no. I hope so at least.

I don’t know exactly how much my ring cost, but I know it wasn’t it lot. I’m not fussed about learning the specifics as how much Adi spent isn’t what matters most to me.

I’ve seen over the past couple of days that Asda has released a £1 engagement ring for Valentine’s Day and I couldn’t be more thrilled. 

Engagement rings can be so expensive and although there are discount jewellers, even cheaper rings can still cost more than £100.

The £1 engagement ring gives everyone the opportunity to be able to propose to the person they love and if they say no simply because of the price of the ring, the hard truth is they aren’t the one. 

I’ve seen mixed reviews on posts written about this ring – most that I’ve seen, I’m happy to report, have the same stance as me when it comes to the price of the ring. 

However, I have been shocked to see some people say that the ring is tacky and they would rather drop dead than be proposed to with it. 

To those people I would just like to say that life isn’t about material things, it’s about being surrounded by people who you love and those who love you. 

Does the fact that someone loves you so much that they couldn’t think of anything that would make them happier than to spend the rest of their life with you not override how much they spend on a piece of jewellery? 

If you are worried about what your friends and family would think about the ring, don’t let their judgement ruin what’s supposed to be one of the happiest days of your life. 

My friends and family didn’t even blink when I showed them my gift shop ring. My nan even said she adored it.

As long as you are happy, that should be enough for anyone in your life and if it isn’t… well, they don’t deserve to be there.

As for me and Adi, we have been together for eight and a half years, engaged for most of that time, and come August 2023 on our 10-year anniversary we are set to become Mr and Mrs.

I couldn’t think of anything that could make me happier, all because of a metal ring bought in a gift shop.  

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing jess.austin@metro.co.uk. 

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