SuperbCert Tiffany Channel Set Replica in Yellow Gold?

[hawkwind]

After many weeks of lurking on this forum, here''s my first post.

I have absorbed so much information from everyone on these forums - I think my head is going to explode!

I found that most people on here have platinum settings.... My gf has many pieces of [yellow gold] jewelry that she has inherited from her Grandmother, and she likes the look of yellow gold over platinum.

That having been said, I have three questions:

1) Does anyone think there will be any aesthetic, wear/tear, etc. issues with this setting (the pic below) in yellow gold rather than platinum?

2) The channel set ring below is from Excel Diamonds, and they don''t mention anything about "custom settings". Will it be an issue to get this in an 18K/platinum combo?

3) On DCD, there''s a section of diamonds called "Premium". These are between "Ideal Cut" and "Average Cut". Is there anything I should look out for, if considering any of these "Premium" diamonds, or shouldn''t I consider one at all and go H&A or Ideal (from either DCD or Excel)?


I am on a budget (aren''t we all to some degree)... We just moved half way across the country together, so finances are tight, but I want to propose to her over Thanksgiving, when both of us will be with our families, after I have a chance to ask for her parents'' blessing. My budget is $4k to $6k... Thankfully she has small fingers (3.25 ring size) and when we tried rings on at the maul, she thought a 1-carat looked obscene. So I think I want something in the F-H range, 0.7-0.9 carats, VS2 (or a SI1 or SI2, if it is eye-clean), and of course - a good cut.

Thanks in advance!

- Hawkwind

 

[EZ]

I am not sure that anyone here has bought one of these. There was a similar question in this thread just a little while ago.

My fiance and I looked at a couple of DVatche channel sets like that this weekend and they sure are pretty. I found I preferred the gold over the platinum though. The threads I have read that mention Exceldiamonds/Superbcert have been complimentry. You may have some luck by using the search feature at the top of this page.

Sorry I couldn't be of more help.

 

[valeria101]

Superbcert (or Exceldiamonds - isn''t that the same?) advertised this setting on DiamondTalk (a competing forum) some time ago. Unlike here, sellers can post pictures of their fare there so there was a flatering one of this setting. You might want to run a search.

 

[ecf8503]

Hello Hawkwind, and welcome to Pricescope!

I bought my diamond from Barry at Excel and couldn''t be happier - it is a beautiful stone.

As far as gold goes, I prefer the feel of it over platinum myself - and if you are going with yellow gold, it won''t be an issue at all (meaning you won''t have to worry about rhodium plating, etc). I like the "lighter" feel of gold vs the "heavy" feel of platinum. I also found that platinum, due to it''s weight, MAY have a tendency to "spin" on her finger more than a lighter metal, even if it is properly sized.

As far as this particular setting, I read on DT just today that Excel is working on the yellow gold version of this setting. I have to assume you were one of those that asked "and ye shall receive"! They are expanding their custom work, so I assume we will see more items from them in the future. Barry and Judah were extremely helpful to me, and I''m sure they will be to you as well.

I can''t comment on DCD, as I have never dealt with them.

Good luck!

 

[rainbow]

Hello,

This Vatche setting from Superbcert might appeal.

 

[hawkwind]

Thanks for the info! I was looking at the Vatche setting as well, but in the specs it says "1.5 ct center stone". I am concerned how the royal crown setting would look with a 0.75 ct...

On top of that, my FW likes the look of the tiffany solitaire, and I just brought up the option of the channel set last night, and she loves the SuperbCert tiffany channel set. I personally like the tiffany design as well, because of how it "stands up" from the rest of the ring (at least more so than the Vatche due to the ring tapering to the top of the stone).

When we went to the maul, she told me she was satified with a 0.7 ct solitaire. A couple days later she asked me, "why are you looking online at diamonds - I want the one we seen in the store!" I told her I''d find something nicer. I don''t know the rest of the specs of the stone at the maul - I think it was an I color and I1 clarity or something like that (a couple stones we seen had nasty black deposits in the middle of the table at girdle hieght - eww). I may get flamed to say that we went to Zales, but I had slim intentions of buying from them - I just wanted to get her finger sized and see what size of stone she would like. The cut had to be crap too, so I know she isn''t as picky as everyone here about her diamond!

With that said... Any advice on the "Premium Cut" stones vs. an ideal or H&A?

I am leaning towards the H&A, but with the price difference, we could start putting money towards a down payment on a house. Although, houses here in SE Florida are way overpriced!

-Hawkwind

 

[sjz]

I can give you an opinion on your first question. I don''t think there should be any durability issues with a ring made like that in 18K gold. Especially if the prongs for the center stone are done in platinum. I have several channel set rings in both yellow gold and white gold, and have never had a problem with any of them. Platinum heads look very nice on gold rings, both yellow and white gold. I wouldn''t worry about it.

As far as your question 2, I think that you should ask the vendor re: making that ring in gold and platinum. If they can''t do it, I''m sure that one of the other vendors that does custom work could do basically the same thing for you. That''s a pretty simple setting (and elegant, I like it very much). It should be very easy for for someone to make it for you. The biggest cost to that kind of setting is the channel set stones, which I believe is a bit more expensive and labor intensive than prong setting. But I like it better, personally, because there is no chance of snagging or pulling a prong, less chance of loosing a stone from your ring, and I just plain like the look! Some of the other vendors may even have that very same setting in stock. Check out their websites and see.

I think that the setting will look fabulous with a center diamond in the size range you mentioned. And you should be able to get a really nice ideal cut stone for a reasonable price within that size range, too. You should also have plenty of room within your budget to play around with the color and clarity grades in a stone of that size as well. Good luck!

 

[hawkwind]

SuperbCert is coming out with the gold setting within the next 4-6 weeks, so I think that is what we are going to do. Time to do some research and request more specs on ideal stones from them....

One last concern (actually I have a lot of them, but the ring will be something she's going to be wearing for the rest of her life)....

Her safety...

She is a school teacher in an area that isn't on the list of the top 1000 places to live in the US, if you get my drift. I'd hate to have attention drawn to her when she's walking to her car or getting gas or something in that neighborhood.... I doubt anyone in that area wears anything worth anything close to that without carrying a firearm...

Has anyone had concerns like that? Maybe I am just being over-protective/paranoid...

-Hawkwind

 

[sjz]

Date: 8/18/2005 12:48:20 AM
Author: hawkwind
SuperbCert is coming out with the gold setting within the next 4-6 weeks, so I think that is what we are going to do. Time to do some research and request more specs on ideal stones from them....

One last concern (actually I have a lot of them, but the ring will be something she''s going to be wearing for the rest of her life)....

Her safety...

She is a school teacher in an area that isn''t on the list of the top 1000 places to live in the US, if you get my drift. I''d hate to have attention drawn to her when she''s walking to her car or getting gas or something in that neighborhood.... I doubt anyone in that area wears anything worth anything close to that without carrying a firearm...

Has anyone had concerns like that? Maybe I am just being over-protective/paranoid...

-Hawkwind

I don''t think that you are being overly paranoid. I''m a nurse, and when I first got married I was working the 3-11 PM shift at the hospital. I had to walk a couple of blocks to a parking lot every night to get to my car. And the hospital I worked in wasn''t located in the best neighborhood to be out walking at night. Sometimes I got the security guard to walk me to my car, but other times he was busy with something else, and I had to walk alone, or with another nurse. To be perfectly honest, I didn''t feel safe carrying my purse, let alone wearing a diamond ring worth a few thousand dollars. I just didn''t wear my diamonds to work. I wore only my plain gold band. A lot of the other nurses who worked evening hours or night hours didn''t wear diamond or other expensive jewelry to work, either. Some of it was the nature of the job, wearing gloves and touching patients so much. But some of it was also because they didn''t really feel too safe wearing it in that neighborhood. Even now, if I have to go out to the store or something like that at night without my husband there to protect me, I don''t wear much jewelry to attract the attention of someone who might be looking to rob me. People get mugged for much less than a diamond ring, sad to say.

.

We shouldn''t have to hide our diamonds, or be fearful to wear them, but I don''t think it''s a bad idea to err on the side of caution if the neighborhood where she works is not a safe one.