Kicking off the series of costly festivities is typically an engagement, which often means the purchase of a pricey diamond ring. After all, the rule-of-thumb is that a engagement ring is supposed to cost the buyer three months' salary. "Feel free to disregard the 'three-months' salary' rule, as this is an outdated myth that was actually based on a marketing campaign from the Great Depression era, and not based on current facts or data," she says. Indeed, the "three months' salary" rule originated from an advertisement campaign for a diamond company in the 1930s meant to increase the sale of diamonds. The company, Da Beers, initially said that a man should spend one month's salary on a ring, but over the next few decades it continued to raise the bar until it was three months' salary.

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Persons: Zola, Sarah Hanlon, Da Beers, Hanlon Organizations: of America Survey Locations: vouge