What We Know About The Love Is Blind Engagement Rings
In Netflix's "Love Is Blind" the blind date concept is taken to the extreme. Fifteen men and women are put in small rooms, known as "pods," and are given the opportunity to connect with potential matches while being unable to see each other. Eventually, relationships are established, and if it feels right, they can pop the question. Only then will they be able to meet in person, where they are then whisked away to a retreat to get to know each other face to face — as well as meet other couples in the process.
While the main gimmick of "Love is Blind" is the dating portion, the engagements and weddings are where the drama truly unfolds — especially since some viewers noticed that three of the contestants were given the same engagement rings (via Page Six). This would suggest that, like "The Bachelor" (via Cosmopolitan) those popping the question are given a selection of rings. But as Screen Rant notes, Kyle Abrams proposed to Shaina Hurley with his mother's engagement ring. So what's the deal? Does Netflix provide the rings, or do contestants buy or bring their own?
Netflix gives contestants a variety of choices when it comes to rings
Thankfully, the show's creator Chris Coelen has been pretty open about the behind-the-scenes processes on "Love Is Blind" including the actual story behind the engagement rings. Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, he revealed that contestants are indeed given a selection of rings to choose from. "Once they decided to get engaged, they were given a couple of choices should they want to take us up on that," Coelen said.
"That was, again, their choice," adds the creator, emphasizing that the producers didn't pressure contestants at any stage of the show. He added that as they "weren't able to go out into the 'real world' at that point", ring shopping was out of the question. "We wouldn't have allowed them at that point," he said. But as it's such a "gigantic moment in people's lives", he and the producers "wanted it to be as authentic to them as it could possibly be."
In an interview with Variety, Coelen clarified that Netflix provides the rings "up to a certain level," but they have an array to choose from. "There are like, 10 or 12 different styles and colors. It's up to them," he explained. "They don't have to. There's no pressure to do that."
There's no need for contestants to worry if an engagement falls flat
But what happens if the engagement doesn't go as planned? In Season 2, this happened to Natalie Lee after the couple had a massive argument the night before their wedding. As a result, the two never tied the knot, but Lee did keep the engagement ring. Taking to her Instagram Stories (via Digital Spy) she finally settled the debate raging among fans by explaining exactly what went down. "I'm getting a lot of the same questions about what happened to my ring after the wedding day, and why I changed my work schedule leading up to my wedding," she wrote. Lee revealed that the production company and Netflix actually let everyone keep the rings regardless of the outcome.
Lee proved her point in another post, holding the ring against her laptop. "Yes I have it! You guys are wild," she wrote. In a statement provided to Popsugar, Netflix confirmed what Lee said. "Whatever they choose, we pay for," a representative told the outlet. "Whatever we pay for, they keep regardless of the engagement ending."
The contestants are given a budget for their wedding
Not only are the engagement rings paid for, but the weddings are covered too, well, partially. While Season 2 contestant Amber Pike said the marriages "were 100% paid for by the show" in response to a fan on Instagram (via Women's Health), it seems the "Love is Blind" couples are also given a budget. "Of course production supplies some of the basics, but because these are their real weddings, it's up to them as to how to spend their money," a representative from the production team told Women's Health.
Another representative, this time from the show's production company Kinetic Connect, told Insider that the couples are "very involved, for the most part" in planning their weddings. "They go cake testing, they play around with the menu and food options, they're involved as can be." However, it's a little more strict regarding the actual venue due to the amount of room needed for lighting, filming, and production crews. That's also why they're only allowed a small number of guests. But overall, the couples are very much in control of the outcome. "We wanted them to really plan their weddings, and they did," series creator Chris Coelen told Entertainment Tonight. "If they wanted to spend their own money, or try to enhance it within reason, we would certainly allow that," he continued. "We would never put any constraints on them unless it was something we couldn't accommodate within the show."
There are contingencies in place if a wedding falls apart
However, there's always a possibility that the wedding won't go as planned, which was the case for quite a few couples. But that's part of the drama, as Chris Coelen told Variety. "It's crazy. You have no idea what's going to happen, no idea what's going to transpire," he explained, adding that it's "amazingly exciting" because "sometimes you think you're sure and then it doesn't go the way you expect it to go."
If a wedding doesn't go ahead as planned, the event itself isn't such a lost cause. According to the representative for Kinetic Connect, the couple and guests can continue to stay and party together if they want to. "I think if you speak to any of them, most of the cast will say they're so focused on making that connection that the wedding — unlike in real life — is kind of a backdrop," the rep for Kinetic Connect told Insider. "It isn't quite as important to them as making sure they're making the best decision for themselves."
The creator and hosts of Love Is Blind didn't expect engagements and weddings to happen
Describing the show as an "experiment first" (via Variety), Chris Coelen said the number of engagements and weddings that occurred on the show wasn't something they expected. "There were a lot of stories, not only of people who got engaged, but people who didn't get engaged, which were absolutely fascinating," he told Entertainment Tonight. "Truly, we could have made 15 to 20 hours worth of content just based on what happened in the pods."
For the show's hosts, Nick and Vanessa Lachey, they didn't expect one engagement during the first season, let alone six. "I think what we saw, and saw very quickly, were these very genuine connections that people were making, sight unseen, just talking through a wall," Nick told ET. However, seeing the contestants become "very unafraid to show their emotion and be vulnerable" truly captured the essence of this experiment for Nick and the rest of the team. Whether or not each love story was a success, individually, the contestants go on quite the journey in "Love Is Blind."