- Joined
- Jul 23, 2012
- Messages
- 20,046
I will start by saying this is very wordy and the glamour shots will not be here for a few days, but I know people are anxiously waiting. (Well, really I’m just anxiously waiting. Nobody is asking lol!)
The ring was not purchased whole but instead both ring and stone were purchased separately second hand.
The stone was purchased first. Here is a photo of the listing :
As you can see, this photo is atrocious, but I was intrigued by the itty bitty table. Plus, having been appraised, I at least had a rough idea of what I was getting in terms of color/clarity. I took the appraisal with a grain of salt- but the appraisal referred to the diamond color as “fancy light yellow” - a far cry from what I saw in the photo.
With no return policy I felt I’d be comfortable buying only if they took a lowball. For about a year I submitted lowballs from time to time - which of course were declined. Eventually I wore her down, though. When the diamond arrived I was thrilled! The color was even better than I told myself to expect and so was the performance! I wasn’t interested in a stone that was “sometimes yellow sometimes white” as some mid range OECs can exhibit. This isn’t one of those. At its lightest the stone exhibits a soft butter color. Had they known how to take a photo, it wouldn’t have sat around for a year.
The weekend the stone I expected the stone delivered I said “let’s look for a used setting .“ As everyone knows ( or should know!), that is a tricky business. These days eBay sellers want an arm and a leg for used mountings (sometimes more than it would cost to make new and properly for your stone). Also, most eBay listings will not lists the mm size of the opening- so who even knows what size stone will fit in there! It’s near impossible an endeavor. But I had idol hands while I was waiting for my stone, so for a day or so I was searching eBay for rings. I expected this search to take months with little chance of being fruitful. I have some tricks for fining cheaper settings but of course those are close to the vest. I tried one random search and found a beauty- just listed. It was bidding at $8 with a low BIN.
Here was the only description.
“BEAUTIFUL PLATINUM SMALL PAVE DIAMONDS MOUNTING HOLDS ABOUT A 1 CT 3.4 GR. THIS IS A MOUNTING ONLY LOOKS LIKE IT WOULD HOLD 1 CT OR A LITTLE BIGGER”
Now this stone is at least a mm larger than your average 1ct- but here was the photo.
My experience said there’s absolutely no way that fits a 1ct diamond. I decided to trust my gut and “buy it now” right then and there. Bold for me as I usually wait an auction out, but I knew the BIN price was a steal and it wouldn’t wait til the auction ended. A genuine antique pave mount like this is hard to come by and I knew I wouldn’t get the chance again. I figured best not to be greedy and try to save $50 (would have cost me more in the end if I’d lost it).
When she came I was absolutely SHOCKED by the perfection of this fit. This setting was absolutely made for this stone! I plopped the stone in the setting it nuzzled right into the prongs- it was we like Cinderella. Here is a photo of the diamond just perched on the mount, hopefully this illustrates how snug the fit.
I know some will question putting a cape colored diamond in platinum- probably a ps rule “ set a low colored diamond in yellow gold!!” but honestly it makes the color pop in a more pure way than trying to artificially enhance it with a cup. Also, I had popped one of my studs in there and frankly the setting is very boring with a white diamond in it. Lastly, there’s something really special about finding these two completely separate antique items that made it 100 years to find each other and meld so perfectly. I know not everyone loves second hand jewelry shopping the way I do, but I hope at least a few of you understand what I mean when I say I take pride in finding the serendipitous pairing.
One additional plus is that I have nothing like it, currently. Which is saying something when I own 35+ rings.
What’s amazing is I was eyeing this stone for nearly a year, I waited over 2 weeks for it to come in the mail due to weather delays. And I found this setting the day it came. AND THEY WERE MADE FOR EACH OTHER!!!
A bit of refining required before I could wear it, though. Obviously, the diamond had to be set. Also one of the melee was missing. Lastly, it was a few sizes too small. The ring has some beautiful engraving around the shank that dk managed to mimic after sizing. I have a before photo and I will get you a comparative after photo when it’s in my hot little hands.
I trust dk implicitly with these kinds of minor repairs so off it went- though I hate to ship it nearly across the country.
Today I received my email that she was finished!I hope some of you can appreciate the ring for the chance occurrence it is. If not, hopefully you at least like the eye candy. I will of course share my own photos when she returns safely home.
As for stats. Dk appraised the stone at y-z, another appraised her as FLY (I trust dk’s judgement so we’ll go with y-z), clarity in the si range (I think mostly for the flea bites, it’s more than eye clean to me). 1.84cts, 7.4x7.73mm. She an old gal, and I’d probably classify her as an OMC.
The mounting is platinum. I would wager over 100 years old though I can’t quite place the design era. You want to assume art deco buy eeeeeehhhh I just am not 100%. Plus, truth be told, I don’t care!
The photos below are mostly with the diamond nestled into the setting loose- with one quick pick from DK.
The ring was not purchased whole but instead both ring and stone were purchased separately second hand.
The stone was purchased first. Here is a photo of the listing :
As you can see, this photo is atrocious, but I was intrigued by the itty bitty table. Plus, having been appraised, I at least had a rough idea of what I was getting in terms of color/clarity. I took the appraisal with a grain of salt- but the appraisal referred to the diamond color as “fancy light yellow” - a far cry from what I saw in the photo.
With no return policy I felt I’d be comfortable buying only if they took a lowball. For about a year I submitted lowballs from time to time - which of course were declined. Eventually I wore her down, though. When the diamond arrived I was thrilled! The color was even better than I told myself to expect and so was the performance! I wasn’t interested in a stone that was “sometimes yellow sometimes white” as some mid range OECs can exhibit. This isn’t one of those. At its lightest the stone exhibits a soft butter color. Had they known how to take a photo, it wouldn’t have sat around for a year.
The weekend the stone I expected the stone delivered I said “let’s look for a used setting .“ As everyone knows ( or should know!), that is a tricky business. These days eBay sellers want an arm and a leg for used mountings (sometimes more than it would cost to make new and properly for your stone). Also, most eBay listings will not lists the mm size of the opening- so who even knows what size stone will fit in there! It’s near impossible an endeavor. But I had idol hands while I was waiting for my stone, so for a day or so I was searching eBay for rings. I expected this search to take months with little chance of being fruitful. I have some tricks for fining cheaper settings but of course those are close to the vest. I tried one random search and found a beauty- just listed. It was bidding at $8 with a low BIN.
Here was the only description.
“BEAUTIFUL PLATINUM SMALL PAVE DIAMONDS MOUNTING HOLDS ABOUT A 1 CT 3.4 GR. THIS IS A MOUNTING ONLY LOOKS LIKE IT WOULD HOLD 1 CT OR A LITTLE BIGGER”
Now this stone is at least a mm larger than your average 1ct- but here was the photo.
My experience said there’s absolutely no way that fits a 1ct diamond. I decided to trust my gut and “buy it now” right then and there. Bold for me as I usually wait an auction out, but I knew the BIN price was a steal and it wouldn’t wait til the auction ended. A genuine antique pave mount like this is hard to come by and I knew I wouldn’t get the chance again. I figured best not to be greedy and try to save $50 (would have cost me more in the end if I’d lost it).
When she came I was absolutely SHOCKED by the perfection of this fit. This setting was absolutely made for this stone! I plopped the stone in the setting it nuzzled right into the prongs- it was we like Cinderella. Here is a photo of the diamond just perched on the mount, hopefully this illustrates how snug the fit.
I know some will question putting a cape colored diamond in platinum- probably a ps rule “ set a low colored diamond in yellow gold!!” but honestly it makes the color pop in a more pure way than trying to artificially enhance it with a cup. Also, I had popped one of my studs in there and frankly the setting is very boring with a white diamond in it. Lastly, there’s something really special about finding these two completely separate antique items that made it 100 years to find each other and meld so perfectly. I know not everyone loves second hand jewelry shopping the way I do, but I hope at least a few of you understand what I mean when I say I take pride in finding the serendipitous pairing.
One additional plus is that I have nothing like it, currently. Which is saying something when I own 35+ rings.
What’s amazing is I was eyeing this stone for nearly a year, I waited over 2 weeks for it to come in the mail due to weather delays. And I found this setting the day it came. AND THEY WERE MADE FOR EACH OTHER!!!
A bit of refining required before I could wear it, though. Obviously, the diamond had to be set. Also one of the melee was missing. Lastly, it was a few sizes too small. The ring has some beautiful engraving around the shank that dk managed to mimic after sizing. I have a before photo and I will get you a comparative after photo when it’s in my hot little hands.
I trust dk implicitly with these kinds of minor repairs so off it went- though I hate to ship it nearly across the country.
Today I received my email that she was finished!I hope some of you can appreciate the ring for the chance occurrence it is. If not, hopefully you at least like the eye candy. I will of course share my own photos when she returns safely home.
As for stats. Dk appraised the stone at y-z, another appraised her as FLY (I trust dk’s judgement so we’ll go with y-z), clarity in the si range (I think mostly for the flea bites, it’s more than eye clean to me). 1.84cts, 7.4x7.73mm. She an old gal, and I’d probably classify her as an OMC.
The mounting is platinum. I would wager over 100 years old though I can’t quite place the design era. You want to assume art deco buy eeeeeehhhh I just am not 100%. Plus, truth be told, I don’t care!
The photos below are mostly with the diamond nestled into the setting loose- with one quick pick from DK.
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