help me figure out my center stone budget.....

[drkewl]

Alright, after doing a few months of research online and around the community, I have decided to have my ring custom made my a LOCAL B&M jewler while buying the center stone online. I have done much background research into them, and everyone seems to have the unanimous opinion that they are wonderful! I went in and talked diamonds with the guys there for about an hour and I can see why everyone was so happy with them. I floated the idea about maybe buying my diamond elsewhere and having them make the custom ring, to which they responded "Whatever makes you happy makes us happy. If you do all your business elsewhere and just want to ask us for opinions we''d be more than happy to be of service". Wow... certainly didn''t get that kind of response from Jareds or anywhere else i have visited for that matter... Anyways, after that, I knew i had found my jeweler (One other random thing... when i was there an old cute grandmother came in and brought them some home baked goods, chatted for a bit, then left... I was aware that they were very active in the community and have built many relationships along the way, but damn that was awesome to see!)

So anyways now I need to go get me that perfect center stone... but, I don''t know how much i should spend on it because i don''t know what the rest of the ring will cost... all i know is that my budget currently is about 16,000... might go up to 17 or 18 later on but for now all i''ve got is 16. I wanted to post a picture of the ring that I liked so much and will be the basis for the custom made ring with a few modifications (I don''t know who orginally created it... maybe WF but i really don''t know...) and ask everyone if i wanted to custom make something similiar, what would be a safe amount i would have to set aside for the setting.

The setting will only be made about a year from now and I am buying the diamond early to avoid the rising diamond prices that will surely hit before then. I was probably thinking about 5,000 maybe for the setting max, but with the side pavé diamonds that may be too little???.. please help me!

 

[JulieN]

5000 would get you a very nice setting! I don't think it's too little at all, and I wouldn't spend more than that. Personally, I would appropriate 3-4K on the setting and 12-13K on the center.

 

[allycat0303]

Hi Drkwel,

I think that $5000 is a very, very generous amount for the setting you posted. I think it will be MUCH less then that. WF gave me an estimate for a full pave setting (diamonds all around the band) and a halo (diamonds around the diamond) and the price was a little less then $2500. They were going to use an ACA melee for the ring. You can always ask your jeweler for a rough estimate, so you know what to put aside for the center stone.

Good luck on your purchase.

 

[LadyluvsLuxury]

I agree with others, $5K will get you an absolutely fabulous setting, but I definitely do not think you would need that much for the setting you posted (which is very lovely BTW)

 

[hlmr]

Hi and welcome to Pricescope drkewl!

If I were you, I would spend the full $16,000 on the stone and have it set in a simple gold setting and let your wife to be pick out a setting she loves down the line.

Heather

edited to add: I am making the assumption that you are looking for a stone for your wife to be BUT if you are the wife to be looking for a stone, please excuse me as you know what happens when one assumes.

 

[drkewl]

Thank you for the welcome

My fiance will be helping me custom design the ring (i'm not spending that much money on something she MAY not like!)

She has always liked pavé settings and the one I have posted above is the one she has liked the best so far... in her words "very pretty... not perfect but close". So I have come to the conclusion that the best way to go forward is to find one she likes a lot and custom design it to add a few personal touches that will make it 'perfect' (I have shown her hundreds of pictures.... the one i'm posting below is my personal favorite but she wasn't as big of a fan lol)

 

[hlmr]

Date: 8/3/2005 9:09:34 PM
Author: drkewl
Thank you for the welcome

My fiance will be helping me custom design the ring (i''m not spending that much money on something she MAY not like!)

She has always liked pavé settings and the one I have posted above is the one she has liked the best so far... in her words ''very pretty... not perfect but close''. So I have come to the conclusion that the best way to go forward is to find one she likes a lot and custom design it to add a few personal touches that will make it ''perfect'' (I have shown her hundreds of pictures.... the one i''m posting below is my personal favorite but she wasn''t as big of a fan lol)

This is what I would do:

If your WTB is agreeable, put your money into the stone now and in a couple of years her tastes will probably have changed and you will be better able to afford the setting of her dreams. Just my opinion. Good luck with whatever you decide!

Heather

 

[ame]

I say get the stone of your dreams now and put it in a simple 6 prong tiffany style setting (plat or whatever metal you want) and when you find or design a setting you both love, THEN go forth and make it. She might end up loving it in the simple solitaire you proposed with.

 

[drkewl]

I would do that in a heartbeat... but the problem with that idea is that my gf will never ''upgrade'' the stone or setting... she wants the first one for life, which is kinda cute

Thats why I want to try and get it right the first time... although my bank account is screaming for me to do a simply 6 prong tiffany setting and be done with it

 

[ame]

You can always do that and be done for a year, give her a new setting as a wedding gift or something.

 

[laney]

5K is way more than enough for the first setting you posted. My tacori e-ring setting wasn''t that much and it''s 3 sided pave.

I would say set aside 3K MAX for the setting.. and use the rest for the stone. You''ll probably get away with even more budget for the stone if you go with the first setting. 3K is going to get you a lot of setting.

Unless - your wedding ring is in the budget too. If so, I''d go ahead and reserve 5K - just incase she likes the bling.

If you want to get the stone ahead of time and wait for the setting.. then you may be able to put more into a w-ring and setting at the later date. But I''d get as much stone for the money now.

As for my deal.. We got my stone in a plain 4 prong platinum setting. I wore it for about six months - and then selected a setting and w-band together. That was perfectly fine with me - and give me time to try on lots of settings with w-bands.. which is how it will be worn the rest of my life..

JMO

 

[JD_MD]

My guess is that ANY setting that costs $5000 will take too much away from the diamond if the remainder of your budget allows for an $11k center stone. With a $5k setting, the melee stones would probably be out of proportion for a diamond that (I'm assuming) will be in the 1.25 - 1.5 carat range.

I'd budget $14k for the center diamond and $2k for the setting. If the setting runs closer to $3k, pay the extra $1,000 at that point rather than guessing an unknown now. Like you said...you won't be choosing the setting for a year so who knows if her tastes might change.