Setting sticker shock, advice welcome

[amytude]

Just got an estimate back for my setting. Somewhere around $3200...ouch!!! That''s really more than I wanted to pay. The ring is 14K wg (4 1/2 mm width, I think) with 3 sided pave going 1/2 way down. Is this figure in the ballgame? He estimated that he''d need somewhere b/w 1.10-1.25 carats of diamonds. I know some out there who''ve paid WAAAAYYY more, but I was really hoping to stick to $2K. I was thinking wg would''ve brought down the cost much more--I''d hate to think of how much this setting might be in platinum. Any advice? Thanks!

 

[windowshopper]

pave is very labor intensive.......... thus expensive. have you looked at dcd settings as well as icestore? they have extremely nice rings with lots of pave models

 

[windowshopper]

how about this and its platinum.............and 2750. (actually thats seems like a lot for 14k white gold)

 

[windowshopper]

Date: 2/15/2005 10

8:11 AM
Author: crankydave
The ring is 14K wg (4 1/2 mm width, I think) with 3 sided pave going 1/2 way down.

That''s a wider band with a lot of labor for the pave'' in addition to the stone weight. I don''t know if your set on the width. If not, reducing the width to say 2.5 -3 mm will reduce the cost a bit.

Dave

dave isnt that a little high for 14k?

 

[amytude]

Well, I''m doing a splint shank, so I really think any think else would be too thin (so does jeweler). I guess I will just shut up and decide whether or not I choose to spend this. Also, I am a size 8, so not sure if that matters at all or not in the grand scheme of things. My poor DH is gonna have a heart attack. My initial budget for the stone was $6K

and let''s just say I went well over that. I guess now I should ask for any tips in breaking the news to him.

 

[Hest88]

Have you shopped around? I don''t think $3200 is unreasonable for that much pave, but I also confess I''m surprised it''s gold and not plat.

 

[sevens one]

Date: 2/15/2005 11:45

1 AM
Author: Feydakin

Date: 2/15/2005 10:53:29 AM
Author: amytude
Well, I''m doing a splint shank, so I really think any think else would be too thin (so does jeweler). I guess I will just shut up and decide whether or not I choose to spend this. Also, I am a size 8, so not sure if that matters at all or not in the grand scheme of things. My poor DH is gonna have a heart attack. My initial budget for the stone was $6K

and let''s just say I went well over that. I guess now I should ask for any tips in breaking the news to him.

Tell him naked.. I always agree to anything my wife says when she has no clothes on..

Ahhhhhhh- Men are soooo weak!

 

[Kaleigh]

I know how labor intensive pave is, but still think $3200 is a little much especially for White gold. Have you shopped around to compare?

 

[cascadejim]

that never works for men does it? Can you imagine asking your significant other for something special, naked?? ha ha ha ha. Hilarious.

 

[amytude]

Naked, got it...planning to do that already. And no, it doesn''t work for men that way. You poor guys...we have periods and carry babies, so I guess it evens out.

Anyway, I''m not sure how to "shop around" for custom work. Yep, it''s custom from the get go. I wanted a design that "swoops up" & 3 sided pave. It might be a little more than 1/2 way down, but probably not 3/4, as I wanted something in between. I need some room in case (when!) I need to resize. I''m not sure what I could tell you guys to help you out. I could draw a design, but I can''t draw so I''m not sure it would even look like a ring to you *sigh*.

Kind of a mix between this:

 

[amytude]

AND THIS:

 

[amytude]

with the "swoop" being less dramatic and more like this:

 

[windowshopper]

care to share the jeweler and his geoprahical location that may shed some light on the price?

 

[laney]

Hmm, to me that seems a little high for white gold. Seems right for platnium - but again, I''m not sure exactly what you are getting. My setting was around that price - for platnium 3 sided, miiigrain and small sidestones - 5.25 ring size. And mine is eternity. However mine isn''t 4 mm thick. Will each of the split be that thick? Or just 2mm of three sided split? Maybe they could not pave the inner triangle of the split to reduce some cost. Since it''s all custom.. maybe.

Also - he''res another thing.

I was surprised when I asked about "stock" settings and possible changes to them. Most designers WILL change the stock to a specific request of a customer. this may help in the $$$ department if you found something close - but say, wanted it 3 sided when it was only one. Even more well known names like scott kay/tacori will actually change their settings to your needs. Just a thought...

 

[Hest88]

Anyway, I''m not sure how to ''shop around'' for custom work.&nbsp

The same way you''d shop for anything else. My sister visited 16 different local jewlers, and made appts and spoke seriously to 5 or 6 who had either come recommended or who were known for their vintage-y pieces. She printed out lots of pictures from the Internet of the elements she wanted and settled on a jeweler who was able to speak knowledgably and guide her about her design elements.

Granted, she''s in So. Cal, so your choices might be more limited.

 

[amytude]

I''m in the Cleveland Ohio area, if that helps WS. Maybe I will take it to a couple of other jewelers. I have 2 toddlers and don''t have the time or energy to visit a ton of different places to save something like $100. However, if we''re talking more like $500 or so, then that''s a different story.

What do you guys think something like this MIGHT cost? Can you even begin to approximate that? I did take in a pic of WS''s ring re: the 3 sided pave. BTW, I''m not even talking pave anywhere other than the band (no prongs, etc.). I''m not sure of the diamond size, either. I know I wanted more of a "bead setting", with only one row of diamonds and not several rows (like the pic below):

 

[windowshopper]

Date: 2/15/2005 2:55:35 PM
Author: amytude
I''m in the Cleveland Ohio area, if that helps WS. Maybe I will take it to a couple of other jewelers. I have 2 toddlers and don''t have the time or energy to visit a ton of different places to save something like $100. However, if we''re talking more like $500 or so, then that''s a different story.

What do you guys think something like this MIGHT cost? Can you even begin to approximate that? I did take in a pic of WS''s ring re: the 3 sided pave. BTW, I''m not even talking pave anywhere other than the band (no prongs, etc.). I''m not sure of the diamond size, either. I know I wanted more of a ''bead setting'', with only one row of diamonds and not several rows (like the pic below):

i thought you had an emerald cut?

 

[valeria101]

I could not tell if that price can move at all - it really depends on what kind of work the jeweler does. You can probably find similar settings off some catalog ready to set, so that the local jeweler would not have as much work to do. I doubt the result will have the exact look of Leon''s pices because of the different technique, but the price might just come down.

It''s not that such a setting would be "bad" - actually, I have no reason to believe that a casting company would be worse at the job than a local shop doing the same job on a smaller scale. Some things can only be done by hand though, and for them there is no shortcut. I do not know every bit of detail that goes in the many breeds of pave setting, just know enough to guess there is a wide range of costs and prices possible and few practical reasons to call one way better than the next.

Btw. Adwar lists a few split shank pave settings. There''s at least one paved ring made from an Adwar setting by Mark... easy to see what the results look like. If the work you liked at the local jeweler is comparable, this might be one option to consider, I guess.