The idea of a surprise purchase of a ring seems romantic until the reality of one of the practical issues arises: you are not aware of the size. This is particularly true of engagement rings, in which any direct request will spoil the moment. The good news is that you need not decide whether to ruin the suspense and make uninformed conjectures. One can find a few clever hows to get helpful hints out first, and then there is a far sureter way of knowing the dimensions before you make the purchase.

Option A: Creative ways to get clues without asking directly

This first route is about gathering hints without making the other person suspicious. It can help you narrow things down, especially if you are looking for methods and tips to determine ring size without asking the person directly, but these ideas should be treated as clues, not as a final measurement.

Bring up rings in conversation, only if they do not suspect anything

This will only succeed provided they are not anticipating a proposal, a gift or anything of jewelry related to you. The even slightest question will seem strangely exact when the thought has already flashed through their mind.

The thing to do is to introduce rings to the discussion as an organic part of the discussion. You may be discussing a friend who has been engaged, a celebrity ring one of your friends has seen on the internet or a fashion you have seen in a window display. It is hard to ask there, what sort of rings they really like, whether they prefer skinny rings or fatter ones, whether they tend to wear jewelry close or loose-fitting. There are occasions when individuals refer to their size without even giving a second thought.

Ask someone close to help without giving away the surprise

A sister, a good friend, a flat mate or a parent is much more helpful than a witty trick. They can either be already aware of the size, or be able to determine it in a manner that is entirely natural. This is one of the most convenient ways that jewelry guides will be happy to note so as to retain the surprise and yet get a reasonable response.

Selecting the correct person is the significant part. It must be a person who is not too obvious and at the same time be close enough to ask without being suspicious. Somebody that is a good helper can get in a single casual conversation what you may not get in three weeks.

Get them to try on a ring casually, only if they are not expecting anything from you

Once again, this is possible when they have no suspicion whatsoever. Even the joke in a store can seem artificial in case they already believe that a proposal will be offered.

Nevertheless, under the appropriate environment, it can succeed. Perhaps they have gone out shopping and decide to put on a few accessories just in order to have fun. Perhaps a friend displays to them a ring and tells them, try this on. Perhaps you pull in and shop at a little shop and the entire process is impulsive. You are not attempting to obtain an accurate figure at that point. You only want a visual hint: whether it slides about easily, or halts at the knuckle, or loosely fits when you are wearing it?

Create a natural excuse to look at rings together

In some cases, it may even be better not to be inquisitive at all. It is merely to establish the condition of rings being present in the picture.

You may be assisting in the selection of a birthday gift on behalf of another person or in the inspection of antiques or in a window of a shop where jewelry just happens to be on display. Such an environment is comfortable. It also allows you an opportunity to observe what they are drawn to and whether they tend to instinctively put rings on and how the various widths fit their hand. It is a gentler motion, and a more natural one.

Compare with your own fingers as a rough reference

This is not the most appropriate mechanism of purchasing a ring independently, but it may be efficient with another hint. In case you are familiar with the known ring sizes, the next time you are holding hands or sitting side by side, compare their ring finger with one of yours. Some have the ring finger protruding near your pinky or your ring finger, at least that would provide a point of departure.

It is rough. It is imperfect. But it is preferable to going in a jeweler and walking in with nothing.

Ask a jeweler for a rough estimate from a clear photo

This does not measure a real ring as well as it would be, but it is much more useful than many people believe. According to experts interviewed by Brides, a jeweler can come up with a range of sizes based on a clear picture of the persons hand, in case a better reference picture is not known.

This will be effective when the photograph is crisp and it has a noticeable hand instead of the one half hidden in a pose. Here you are not seeking surety. You are attempting to bring down the margin of error.

Double check any clue before you buy

This is where most individuals fail. One clue is interesting. Two leads that point in the same direction come in handy. When a friend feels that he has an idea of the size, as well as your own comparison is taking you to a similar dimension, then that will be far more comforting than one guess.

Option A is actually reduction of uncertainty. It can get you closer. It can prevent you to make a crazy wrong decision. However, it remains unlike quantifying the real.

Option B: The best way to get the right size is to borrow one of their rings

In case, you can borrow a ring they put on the right finger quietly, then this is the best option. Jewelry guides always place an existing ring at the top of the list since they provide a physical point of reference as compared to a social one.

The only detail, which is the most important, is that the ring must be one they wear actually on one of the fingers, on which you are attempting to make the size. Any ring in a jewelry box will not help. Another finger is wearing a ring that will take you off false track.

Measure the inner diameter and use a free ring size calculator

Once you have the ring, measure the inner diameter as carefully as you can. That gives you something concrete to work with. Ring Size Online has an official guide for measuring a ring by its inside diameter and converting that measurement into a size, and its free conversion chart covers the major international systems.

This matters because a lot of people buy from stores that use a different sizing system from their own country. A single measurement can be translated into US, UK, EU, Japanese, Brazilian, and other standards instead of leaving you guessing which chart a jeweler uses.

Use a digital ring size app if you do not have a ruler

If you do not have a ruler at home, the digital route is much easier. Ring Size Online also offers an on screen tool that lets you place the ring on your phone, tablet, or computer screen and match it directly against the guide. The site presents it as an easy and accurate way to check ring size on a device, which makes it a very practical app style solution when you need a quick measurement from a borrowed ring.

That is probably the most convenient option when time matters and you want to avoid improvising with random objects around the house. If you can borrow the ring for just a few minutes, a digital tool like this can get you much closer to the right answer without making the whole process complicated.

A final tip before you buy the ring

Although you may think a very dependable approach, it is always prudent to allow yourself some room to change. According to Brides, it is easy to have many rings resized within a restricted range, but other settings and band styles are less resizable in the future.

So if the ring is for a proposal or another major moment, try to choose a design and a material that a jeweler can resize more easily if needed. Getting close is good. Getting close with a ring that can still be adjusted is even better.