Though wedding band and wedding ring have been used interchangeably recently, they differentiate from each other in terms of designs and the purposes they are to fulfill. Wedding bands used to refer to rings that were designed simple. They were simply circles that were crafted from metals and may sometimes bear some simple engravings or inlays. By contrast, wedding rings used to feature with gemstones, diamonds in many cases.
Wedding bands
As it is stated above, a band usually looks fairly plain and does not have any gemstone. In the past, when it came to choose bands or rings for a wedding, a man usually chose a ring without gemstone which was called a wedding band. A woman was likely to choose one with gemstone, which was called a wedding ring. It was said that a woman made such a choice, because her wedding ring was supposed to catch the eyes of the guests who attended the wedding ceremony. Some other sources say that it is because a woman often wore the ring she inherited from her family. It goes without saying that an inherited ring must have some valuable gemstones to drastically increase its value as an inheritance.
Wedding rings
Nowadays, the differences between a wedding band and a wedding ring are not as noticeable as they were before. “Ring” has come to represent any type of band or ring that is presented to the bride or the groom on the wedding day. In other words, a “ring” can be one that is adorned with gemstones or a plain-looking one without any gemstone.
That being said, whether a ring is designed exquisitely or simply, you can call it a band or a ring. For example, wedding rings designed for women have adopted plain-looking styles which were once exclusively for wedding bands. Wedding bands for men nowadays are also found to bear gemstones. In addition, some people believe that it is the development of new jewelry-making techniques and new materials that have also contributed to the diminishing differences between rings and bands.
