Ring size dilemna

I need to give my brother a ring size. So the day after he told me, I stopped into a jewelers after work and had my finger sized, and the size was 7½. A few days later, I’m at a friend’s house, and it turns out she also has a ring sizing kit. Same finger, but the size is now 6. I now don’t know what to tell him.

I know fingers tend to swell during the day, especially if, like me, you’re on a keyboard most of your work day. On the one hand, I don’t want the ring so small that I have trouble getting it off at night. On the other, I don’t want it so loose that it might fall off during the day before my finger swells up (and what a consideration to have!).

Does anyone with solid experience on choosing ring sizes have any advice? I don’t need the answer fast, but I do need it soonish.

I would trust the jeweler’s sizing kit over your friend’s. They are pretty standard. And yes, it is not unusual for fingers to swell a bit, but a size and a half is really kind of a lot. (Not unheard of, but not usual.)

You want the ring to fit tightly as it passes over the knuckle, which in most people is the largest part of the finger. Again, though, not everybody. Some people have more tapered fingers and it can be a problem.