Tropes. Every genre has got them. Every genre has a formula and specific plot points that it follows. But for some reason, the romance genre is extra made fun of for its use of tropes. Many call romance formulaic, but that’s not any more true than any other genre of fiction (or literary fiction, but that’s different rant for a different post). Tropes are what intrigue people to read or pick up a book. A horror reader would not pick up a book with vampires if they do not enjoy the vampire trope.

So, I wanted to share 5 of my favorite romance tropes. These will be more broad tropes, but I will probably make a list of my favorite overly specific tropes in the future. With that being said, here are my 5 personal favorite tropes.

Found Family

This trope is my absolute favorite trope and pairs so well with romance series! Since romance series commonly follow a different couple for each book, friend groups and found families can be found quite a bit within the genre.

I love books with a large cast of characters and seeing those characters pair off, fall in love, and grow into a found family is so, so satisfying. My favorite found families include the Black Dagger Brotherhood series by J.R. Ward and Lord of London Town by Tillie Cole.

Age Gap

Okay, so this may be my most controversial pick. I cannot explain why I love age gap romances, but there is something about the taboo-ness of the trope that makes the romances feel more satisfying. I personally love it even more when the heroine is the older character, and the hero is the younger character (in a straight romance).

Of course, everyone needs to be of the age to consent and have consensual relationships. Age gaps are tricky to pull off to ensure the younger character isn’t too immature, the older character isn’t creepy, and the romance is believable.

Giana Darling is a rockstar at writing age gap romances! One of her romances even has a 19-year age gap but is beloved within the romance community. I don’t think anyone has written age gap better than Giana Darling. Check out the Fallen Men series in particular. Once you meet Zeus Garro, you will thank me.

Grump/Sunshine

As with every trope on this list, I am obsessed with grump/sunshine romances. It’s the opposites attract with the sunshine character pulling the grump character out of their shell. Bonus points if the hero is the sunshine and the heroine is the grump or if at some point the two characters switch places because of trauma.

One, just in general, I need more grumpy heroines with sunshiney men. I need it in my life, please. But I can’t deny that I love me a good grumpy hero. Check out the Brown Sisters series by Talia Hibbert for this trope. Book 3 has an amazing grumpy hero. For a more serious pick, check out Running Barefoot by Amy Harmon. This book starts with a grumpy hero with a heroine who helps him heal, but eventually, he must return the favor and help her heal.

Virgin Hero/Scarred Hero

I totally cheated here, but I couldn’t help it. I wanted to keep this list to 5, and I couldn’t choose.

I really love the virgin hero trope because it breaks a lot of common tropes, or criticisms, of the romance genre. Oftentimes, we get an experienced hero with a virgin heroine, so when the roles are reversed, it is a nice change of pace. My main recommendation is the third book in the Hades Hangmen series by Tillie Cole. The hero in this book of the series is Flame and ugh, speaking of wonderful but scarred heroes. . . .

Flame! Emotionally scarred, physically scarred. You name it, Flame’s got it. But similarly to the satisfaction that comes from a taboo romance, reading a romance where the hero must heal and grow through love is really satisfying, if not a little cheesy. My favorite scarred hero comes from The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare. This historical romance is a Beauty and the Beast retelling but is hilarious, heartwarming, and has a scarred (but secretly soft) hero.

Female Friendships

Last and certainly not least, female friendships. Similar to found family, having a different couple in each book in romance series allows romance novels to build up female friendships and friend groups. The genre has gone through a major facelift with the way that female characters have treated each other, and I believe that female friendships have become an integral part of the character development of many heroines. Girl hate has de-escalated or at least evolved into something more nuanced, which allows the friendships to shine through.

My easy favorite of this trope is Rock Chicks by Kristen Ashley. Another all-time favorite series! This series is hilarious and wacky and comes with a whole group of characters including a strip club owner, a drag queen, and an ex-con Vietnam War vet who babysits cats and ends up being a barista. And that is not even including the heroines. This series is completely over-the-top and silly but such a romp if you are having a bad day. Plus, the friendship between these women is literally ride or die. I’m serious. There are car chases.

Romances are so diverse that it is nearly impossible to pick only 5 tropes as my favorites, and the beauty of the genre is that if you don’t like these tropes, then you can choose from hundreds of more.

Romance, like any genre, is a genre that you simply have to read to cultivate your taste. Eventually, you will find your perfect romances and your perfect romance tropes.

Everyone has their own personal aesthetic. Whether you enjoy the moody earth tones of Dark Academia or the floral lightness of Cottagecore, this article will help to give you ideas for an engagement ring that will reflect you!

Minimalist

Do all of your Instagram photos have a white background with a single plant or muted-color object as the subject? Are you drawn to gray and beige? Does Marie Kondo’s method of organization speak to your soul?

If so, then try a simple, minimalist engagement ring. Silvers, white golds, and platinum will compliment your personal color scheme. Try a smaller width band with diamonds set in around the band or a solitaire ring with a single gemstone.

Dark Academia

Dark Academia is one of the most popular current aesthetics. If this is your aesthetic, you enjoy classic literature, earth tones, and tweed. You enjoy a good mystery and would live in an old library of could.

Golds go best with the browns and earthy tones of your aesthetic. For the band, consider a shaped ring, such as the wishbone design; a wooden band to once again fit with the earth tones; or an engraved band because of your love for words and literature. If you want a completely out-of-the-box pick, look into coded acrostic rings, which use colored stones to create a hidden message.

Cottagecore

If you prefer nature and simplicity; wearing long dresses and skirts in light pinks, greens, and yellows; or would love to move away from the hustle and bustle into a small cottage in a flower field, then Cottagecore is the aesthetic for you.

A softer, more simple design may draw your attention. Try rose golds, yellow golds, or even wooden bands, depending on how close to nature you want your ring to be. Similar to minimalist engagement rings, you may want to try a smaller band with diamonds or another gemstone in pastel color set in. Consider a shaped band such as an infinity band or a tension band. Search for rings or designs that represent nature or gemstones that are the colors of your favorite flowers.

Vintage

Vintage can be referring to almost any decade before 2010, so depending on the specific decade you are drawn to, you could find different styles appealing.

Popular engagement styles that are often described as vintage include pavé and halo designs, both of which have become popular once again. Teardrop-shaped gemstones, specifically diamonds, are also appealing as is gold. Another design is the three-diamond design. This design can symbolically represent the past, present, and future, so it can entice your love of nostalgia while also represent the bright future that marriage can bring.

Your Zodiac Sign

If you want an even more personalized engagement ring, consider one designed for your zodiac sign. Have your birthstone instead of a diamond or fit in the colors that represent your sign.

Scorpios are passionate and intense, so rubies or black diamonds and gold may fit. Something bold. Libras are softer and romantic, so try rose gold and a unique, shaped band. Something elegant, yet charming. Consider the personality traits of your sign that represent you and incorporate those into the design as well.

Your engagement ring should represent you and your personal aesthetic. Find a ring that speaks to you!

Heirlooms, especially jewelry, connect us with our families. Little mementos remind us of our loved ones and our brightest moments. But what happens when your heirloom jewelry doesn’t suit your day-to-day needs? How can you incorporate your heirloom into your outfits when the styles just don’t match?

Cummings Jewelry Design answers these questions with a premium service: repurposing jewelry.

The answer isn’t keeping your heirlooms tucked away and dusty, and it certainly isn’t selling your cherished mementos. Cummings Jewelry Design specializes in transforming and remodeling heirlooms into custom-made masterpieces.

How Does Repurposing Jewelry Work?

The process begins with you and your jewelry. Maybe you’ve inherited a brooch, an heirloom close to your heart, but you’re someone who has never worn brooches. Maybe you prefer necklaces. If your brooch were a necklace, you would probably wear it more.

This is where Cummings Jewelry Design comes in. Repurposing jewelry is the best way to keep your heirlooms in your family and in your wardrobe. Cummings Jewelry Design creates custom jewelry exactly to your specifications either from scratch or using your old jewelry. This service can even transform your brooch into a necklace.

But heirlooms are special, aren’t they? They’re one-of-a-kind memories. How can you trust Cummings Jewelry Design?

Well, to begin, you and a custom jewelry design specialist will meet and discuss exactly what you’re looking for. This will be a good opportunity to learn about Cummings Jewelry Design and realize their designers know their craft. Your designer will listen to your hopes with the project, and then they will offer their own creative suggestions. Creating custom jewelry is a team effort, and you’ll be directly involved from the beginning. You’ll personally see whom you’ll entrust your jewelry with.

If you’re still worried—which is understandable—you’re absolutely welcome to drop by and see Cummings Jewelry Design’s custom jobs!

What Happens Afterward?

Even after your custom jewelry repurposing is finished, the support doesn’t stop. Cummings Jewelry Design will repair your redesigned heirloom should it be damaged. They will even refit your heirloom—maybe you’ve redesigned a wedding ring you inherited, and now you’re ready to pass that ring down the same way. Cummings Jewelry Design will refit your custom jewelry to any specifications you need.

Cummings Jewelry Design has stood for forty years with excellent customer service, and you’re as special to the company as your heirloom is to you.

Visit Cummings Jewelry Design’s website and begin your custom jewelry project or heirloom repurposing today!

You’ve been studying Jung’s cognitive functions, and you’re getting a better handle on MBTI. You’ve learned about extraverted judging functions, but you’re an INTP, ISTP, INFP, or INFP—your dominant function is Ti or Fi. What are those? How do they work? If they’re introverted, operating internally, are they still judging functions?

Fi And Ti Are Introverted Judging Functions

Where extraverted judging functions focus on external emotions or results, introverted judging functions focus on each individual’s logical or emotional/moral processes. Fi, introverted feeling, governs one’s emotions independent of others’. Ti, introverted thinking, governs one’s analytical structures independent of what seems apparent.

How Does Fi Work?

Introverted feeling is often mistaken for “overly emotional” in the same way extraverted feeling, Fe, is often mistaken for “nice.” Introverted feeling is responsible for one’s personal evaluations of morals.

Fi-users spend much time reflecting on what’s right or wrong, and their morals stand apart from—and sometimes above—society’s. Fi-users see the way the world should be according to their own moral compass, and they use Te, extraverted thinking, to bring that world about.

Fe might be called sympathy, but Fi is empathy. Rather than noticing and adapting to another’s external emotional state, Fi-users relate with others by putting themselves in another’s shoes. Fi-users can accidentally come off as cold when the Fi-user doesn’t agree with one’s emotional state, but the degree of warmth they can share when they do is unparalleled.

Fi-users won’t readily repress their emotions to align with someone else’s mood.

How Does Ti Work?

Introverted thinking is responsible for creating webs of if/then statements linking everything together the way the Ti-user sees the world. Unlike Te, Ti is more interested in learning why things work rather than how to make those things work for you; unlike Fi, Ti evaluates concepts according to if-this-then-that thinking rather than moral evaluation.

Ti bases its ideas in what theoretically should be, not what evidence suggests is. Albert Einstein, INTP and dominant Ti-user, developed his theory of relativity according to ideas which hadn’t been proven with evidence but were probably true according to his own personal, internal calculations and suspicions. Ti-users are more likely to disagree with what seems obvious when they sense more is at play.

Because their calculations are based on their own hunches and anecdotal evidence, Ti-users often struggle explaining their conclusions in ways others can understand and follow.

Perhaps it’s the first time you’re seriously looking at diamonds. You’re shopping for an engagement ring or wanting to redesign a treasured piece of jewelry handed down from you grandmother. Something’s coming and you just want to be prepared.

You’ve asked yourself, “What do I look for? Where do the best diamonds come from? How do I know I’m getting a quality diamond?” Cummings Jewelry Designs will answer those questions, so you’ll feel confident in what you’re looking for. Let’s first start with the basics.

The Basics

We know that choosing a diamond is forever. The four characteristics, aka the 4C’s, is the starting point: carat, cut, clarity, and color. Carat is the weight: the larger the diamond, the more expensive. Diamonds can appear larger based on the shape or cut. Buyers can choose a traditionally round shape or choose fancy cuts like princess or pear. Cut will be the most important decision in choosing a diamond and refers to the style of actual cuts of the individual facets. How do the cuts make the diamond sparkle? Will it bounce the light coming in creating the brilliance? Color is graded on a scale from D to Z, with D being the whitest and most valuable. Clarity refers to the absence of blemishes and inclusions. These flaws are expected – after all, a diamond’s natural setting is embedded, deep in the earth. Like color, clarity is also graded from flawless (no blemishes or inclusions) to included (inclusions may affect transparency and brilliance).

Where Do I Start?

Cut. Color. Clarity. Carat. In that order.

What Am I Looking For?

Choose the right cut for shimmering, dazzling diamonds. This is the reason you’re buying a diamond, right? As light enters the diamond, the light reflects and refracts from the cuts within. A perfectly cut diamond – not too shallow and not too deep – will refract light from every angle making the entire stone truly shine. Perfectly cut means that each individual aspect of the diamond is symmetrically even. GIA cut scale ratings are excellent, very good, good, fair, and poor.

Checking for color. Jewelers will place diamonds on a tray to compare color differences. We mentioned that D is the whitest – colorless – rarest, and therefore, most valuable; Z is a lower quality diamond with yellow tones; some jewelers find lower quality grades unacceptable to sell. Color is preference; generally, diamonds that are graded near colorless (G-J) and those with faint colors (K) are popular.

Clarity. Remember, flaws are natural and while they are too tiny to be noticeable, will impact brilliance. Engagement rings are expected to be flawless and colorless, so think of its clarity as the highest standard. Lower clarity grades may cause the diamond to appear cloudy. (You may need to look at the diamond from 6-8 inches away.) Clarity is the category you might want to bargain a little. Would you opt lower clarity for a larger carat?

Putting It All Together

Still not sure what all this means? Here’s the fun part. Do a little research by shopping. Walk into a jewelry store. See what catches your eye and note what you think the cut, color, and clarity grades are. Are you thinking it’s an Excellent/Ideal Cut, F color, and VVS2 Clarity because it’s sparkling brilliantly? You might be surprised. Ask the sales attendant for the specifications and see how you did. Then, start comparing other diamonds at various price points.

Where Do The Best Diamonds Come From?

Honestly, “best” is a subjective term. Diamonds are mined from African countries, Canada, Russian, and Australia. While Africa is the major producer of diamonds, high grade diamonds are also found in Canada and Russia; yet, if you’re looking for a pink diamond, you’ll find those in Australia. Today, diamonds are produced in a lab with the same characteristics of those mined.

How do you know you’re getting a quality diamond? If the diamond is dazzlingly bright, the color is not noticeable, the diamond doesn’t look cloudy, plus the carat’s weight is correct and the diamond matches the GIA grading you expected, you are getting a high-quality diamond.