Famous auction website eBay has reported a 200% rise in the number of engagement rings listed in the first quarter of 2009, as reported by an eBay press release.

In fact, local diamond retailers are saying more grooms are buying cubic zirconia rings instead of diamonds.  Their not worried about finding the right amount to spend anymore, it’s just about saving as much money as possible right now.

Nationwide jewelry retailers said an increasing number of would-be husbands are purchasing fake diamonds for their brides’ engagement rings to save money during the economic downturn, the New York Post reported Sunday.

There are more men who will buy a nice setting and put a cubic zirconia in it for now, hoping to replace it later.  Is this trend going to last even out of the economic downturn?  I guess we will have to wait and see.  In the meantime ebay, Amazon, and Bidz.com will rake in the money as best as they can.  I’m sure the high end watch market is having the same problem attempting to seel real Rolex, Cartier, & Tag Heuer watches when people can get nice knockoffs for just a few hundred dollars.

 How do brides feel about this? They don’t appear to be happy with the cost-cutting measures of their potential spouses.  In fact, a local retailer said, “The women are little hostile about it as a matter of fact, they have been waiting a long time for a ring, and want a real diamond!”  Of course, most husbands are just hoping their wives aren’t going to find out. Have you checked your diamond to see if it’s real?