A little bothered with this WF setting

[Imdanny]

It doesn't seem the right way to look at it to judge this kind of work at 10x. Just a layperson's opinion. And I'm a little confused, if you have the actual ring in your possession, why didn't you post pictures of that? And if you don't, why didn't you wait until you did? I can't see it at 10x, so I can't see what you're talking about in any case. Sorry I can't be more help, but hand done work isn't going to look like machine made work at 10x IMHO. I always thought this little bit of variance was a good thing.

 

[arjunajane]

ditto everyone else, nothing new to add except for that my WF solitaire has a very slight variance
on one part of the wires from left to right side -
very hardly noticeable unless right up under my eyeball, and doesn't bother me a bit.

You may find that you prefer the "perfection" of machine-cast pieces (such as BN's), if you are that picky..?

 

[prettycat]

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions! I looked at the ring again. To be specific, one side of the ring looks OK, but the other side is worse. One melee stone is off center, and the tiny prongs are not in their right postions. I have poor eyesight so it''s hard for me to catch these with eyes, but my husband can see when looking closely. He doesn''t care a bit though.
If it''s just normal for a hand-made ring, as many people here said, then I would rather get a plain setting without those melee stones.

 

[icekid]

Date: 5/7/2009 4:57:34 PM
Author: prettycat
Thanks for all the comments and suggestions! I looked at the ring again. To be specific, one side of the ring looks OK, but the other side is worse. One melee stone is off center, and the tiny prongs are not in their right postions. I have poor eyesight so it''s hard for me to catch these with eyes, but my husband can see when looking closely. He doesn''t care a bit though.

If it''s just normal for a hand-made ring, as many people here said, then I would rather get a plain setting without those melee stones.

Getting a plain ring without melee is certainly a reasonable option, but I would not expect that to be perfect under a microscope either.

 

[Gypsy]

Dreamer... It would lead me into trouble too. The best way to keep something ''mindclean'' is for NOT to dwell on details under magnification. My zoom lens on my camera is enough for me.

I always considered not owning a loupe a piece of mind issue, you know the old jokes where the guy goes to the doctor and says, "Hey Doc, my arm hurts when I do this..." and the doctor goes, "Then don''t do that." That''s me and the loupe. I''m much better off not doing it.

I did inspect my pendant under the loupe however. And my setting. And my wedding band. I go to the jewelry store, browse, have them clean my rings/pieces and then inspect everything under a loupe. But the loupe does NOT come home with me.

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 5/7/2009 5:48:18 PM
Author: Gypsy
I always considered not owning a loupe a piece of mind issue

As in you''d lose a piece of your mind if you had a loupe ... or have peace of mind without a loupe?

 

[Gypsy]

WHooops. Freudian Slip, maybe.

 

[mrssalvo]

Date: 5/7/2009 4:57:34 PM
Author: prettycat
Thanks for all the comments and suggestions! I looked at the ring again. To be specific, one side of the ring looks OK, but the other side is worse. One melee stone is off center, and the tiny prongs are not in their right postions. I have poor eyesight so it's hard for me to catch these with eyes, but my husband can see when looking closely. He doesn't care a bit though.

If it's just normal for a hand-made ring, as many people here said, then I would rather get a plain setting without those melee stones.

First, I didn't think WF rings were handmade. Aren't they machine cast and hand set? If so, there is a difference. But, I do think it is unrealistic to expect perfection with anything done by hand and it's a hard lesson I've had to learn myself. I owned a 3-sided pave handmade designer ring and never louped it. I could not see one flaw with my eyes and I was happy with that. I didn't want to ruin it's beauty by louping and finding something wrong. As others have said, it is possible to achieve a more perfect, even under a loupe ring, but it will cost you a lot more than the WF ring did. You very well may be a good candidate for a machine made solitaire and there is nothing at all wrong with that. Honestly, I don't see any problems in the picture you posted but if there really is something off that is fixable I still think it would be worth it to give WF a call and let them know and give them the opportunity to see if they can make you happy.

 

[rcrosier]

Well, the pictures you posted look flawless. I''m glad that you are taking an interest in your ring, but do yourself a favor and stay away from loupes. I bought a 1.5ct ACA sleek line pave from WF with a custom milgrain finish on the edges and it looks perfect... see attached pic...

 

[laurenfischer5]

If it bothers you now then get it fixed or thats the first thing you think of everytime you look at your ring...

 

[littlejohn]

do you have more pics? from a few more angles?

 

[lowphat]

Yeah, I always check every pair of jeans I buy under a 10x loupe to make sure all the threading is evenly spaced.

 

[Lula]

Date: 5/7/2009 4:57:34 PM
Author: prettycat
Thanks for all the comments and suggestions! I looked at the ring again. To be specific, one side of the ring looks OK, but the other side is worse. One melee stone is off center, and the tiny prongs are not in their right postions. I have poor eyesight so it''s hard for me to catch these with eyes, but my husband can see when looking closely. He doesn''t care a bit though.

If it''s just normal for a hand-made ring, as many people here said, then I would rather get a plain setting without those melee stones.

Yes, this is normal for a handmade ring in my experience. I have several pieces of jewelry made by various jewelry stores/artists and if I looked at them under a loupe, I would see lots of tiny variations. When I first started buying custom-made jewelry, this really bothered me. But now I realize that the tiny variations are part of the appeal of custom-made pieces. Machine-made settings are less likely to have these variations, but they may have some variations in the tiny details. After all, there is variation between the diameters in the stones even if they are the same carat weight. So if the variations bother you, then you may be happier with a plain solitaire setting. Custom jewelry is not for everyone -- and there''s no shame in wanting something that you look at every day to be pleasing to your eye.

 

[prettycat]

Update: I sent the ring back to WF and asked for a new symmetrical setting with better craftsmanship. The remake came back in two weeks but still unsatisfactory to me, so I had to return the whole thing. Here is the picture of the 2nd ring. What bothered me most was the change of color- it''s not as white as the previous one so didn''t match my band due to the color difference.

Well, maybe I should have just kept the first ring although it had flaws. Maybe it''s just me, too detail-oriented. Anyway, I personally don''t like WF''s craftsmanship but their customer service is pretty good.

 

[Kelli]

Was it white gold? If so, couldn''t you have just rhodium plated it?

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

Sorry for your trouble. Perhaps your next option is to buy something locally where you can see everything IRL immediately, whereby eliminating the diasppointment, regret or buyers remorse you are presently encountering.

Good luck!

cheers--Sharon

 

[arjunajane]

Date: 6/4/2009 9:55:04 AM
Author: prettycat
Update: I sent the ring back to WF and asked for a new symmetrical setting with better craftsmanship. The remake came back in two weeks but still unsatisfactory to me, so I had to return the whole thing. Here is the picture of the 2nd ring. What bothered me most was the change of color- it''s not as white as the previous one so didn''t match my band due to the color difference.


Well, maybe I should have just kept the first ring although it had flaws. Maybe it''s just me, too detail-oriented. Anyway, I personally don''t like WF''s craftsmanship but their customer service is pretty good.

I''m sorry but this seems rather silly - apart from being not white enough (?), what exactly is wrong
with the pictured setting?
Of course you can''t expect WF''s gold to match your band''s colour exactly - your band is from BN. As Kelli said, couldn''t you just have more rhodium added?

"Pretty good"..hmmm..I would like to think that after two re sets and still returning the ring, it would be appropriate if you had something positive to say about WF''s customer service, if not the product. I would like to hear of a B&M jeweller that would''ve jumped through those same hoops

Just a serious question - where do you plan to buy a setting now that is "perfect" under 10x magnification?
I''m honestly concerned that your expectations seem unreasonable.

 

[prettycat]

arjunajane, the band is from BN, but it matched my 1st WF ring perfectly - they were exactly the same white. However, the 2nd WF ring had a darker color. I could see the color difference very very clearly side by side on my finger.

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 6/4/2009 10:51:14 AM
Author: prettycat
arjunajane, the band is from BN, but it matched my 1st WF ring perfectly - they were exactly the same white. However, the 2nd WF ring had a darker color. I could see the color difference very very clearly side by side on my finger.

I'm not seeing how not matching a BN ring color-wise is "poor craftsmanship"??? Why didn't you order a BN e-ring setting if you're so pleased with *their* products? Even "good" work isn't enough to earn your repeat biz I guess?

 

[writergeek]

Am I missing the pictures of the actual ring itself? Both the first one and the second? I see pictures that Whiteflash took. I guess I find it hard to give an opinion on the work if I can''t look at the ring you had in hand.

I would second the opinion that you should either stick with Blue Nile or perhaps only buy what you first see and evaluate adequately in person. So bring your loupe in with you and do the once-ver.

 

[Lula]

Hmm...this is starting to sound like a case where a customer complaint actually improves the reputation of the vendor! It certainly sounds to me (and apparently to many others) that WF has gone out of their way to make a ring that would be perfect for you. From my reading of this post, it seems like you''ve got a couple options left:
1. Return the ring to WF and have your diamond set in a setting by BN. Get a plain solitaire instead of the melee -- you will never get a setting where the melee is perfect under a 10X loupe imho.
2. Keep the latest version of the ring from Whiteflash and take it and your wedding band to a local jewelry store that does rhodium plating on site. Have both rings re-plated at the same time in the same vat, or whatever it comes in, of rhodium. Presto - matching rings!

 

[prettycat]

decodelighted, I have NEVER said a WF ring has to be made to match BN band. I was just saying the pave on the 2nd WF ring was not as white as the 1st one. I could tell the difference by comparing with my band. There were some other flaws I didn''t mention simply because they didn''t bother me as much as the color change.

I have never said WF had "poor craftsmanship" either. It''s an excellent company with super customer service. The craftsmanship is just not up to MY standard. Again, maybe it''s just me. That''s why I chose to return.

I didn''t buy my setting from BN because I liked the design of this WF setting, and happened to find the right stone from their ACA''s.

 

[lowphat]

Your husband must be a very patient man. Kudos to him.

 

[Lula]

I''m confused -- is it the metal that doesn''t match or the color of the stones?

 

[prettycat]

The metal is white gold- no problem with that.
Just color of the pave part. 2nd ring is obviously not as white as the first.

 

[arjunajane]

Date: 6/4/2009 12:12:44 PM
Author: prettycat
The metal is white gold- no problem with that.

Just color of the pave part. 2nd ring is obviously not as white as the first.

so now you''re suggesting that WF changed the colour of the melee from the first to second ring?
I find this quite unbelievable - especially seeing as the photos look identical.

Did you take any photos of your own when you had these rings in hand? Personally, at this point based on
two identical looking WF official pics that could be anyone''s, I''m inclined to think this is a wind-up.

Looking at your previous posts - you weren''t happy with your ACA because it "looked bigger than expected", and you "couldn''t find the VS2 inclusions" with your 10x .

Than you were suspicious it wasn''t your true diamond because you couldn''t locate the inscription with a 30x..

You went with the "identical" BN band because it was "half the price" of the WF one - which is reportedly alot nicer made than WF''s solitaire. However, you weren''t happy enough with BN products to buy the matching ring?

Hrmmmmmmm....

 

[Lula]

Date: 6/4/2009 12:27:38 PM
Author: arjunajane

Date: 6/4/2009 12:12:44 PM

Author: prettycat

The metal is white gold- no problem with that.


Just color of the pave part. 2nd ring is obviously not as white as the first.

so now you''re suggesting that WF changed the colour of the melee from the first to second ring?

I find this quite unbelievable - especially seeing as the photos look identical.


Did you take any photos of your own when you had these rings in hand? Personally, at this point based on

two identical looking WF official pics that could be anyone''s, I''m inclined to think this is a wind-up.


Looking at your previous posts - you weren''t happy with your ACA because it ''looked bigger than expected'', and you ''couldn''t find the VS2 inclusions'' with your 10x .

Than you were suspicious it wasn''t your true diamond because you couldn''t locate the inscription with a 30x..


You went with the ''identical'' BN band because it was ''half the price'' of the WF one - which is reportedly alot nicer made than WF''s solitaire. However, you weren''t happy enough with BN products to buy the matching ring?


Hrmmmmmmm....

Ditto -- I have to say that I''m fresh out of suggestions here. Maybe start all over by taking your center diamond to a B&M store where you can look at settings IRL as someone suggested many posts ago. And I''d really avoid the custom route, if I were you.

 

[arjunajane]

both photos PC posted together, for ease of viewing...centre diamond looks bigger in second ring, or is that just me?

 

[prettycat]

arjunajane, what''s your point? What''s are you trying to say???
If you are really so curious and suspicious, you could go ahead to call WF and ask if someone has just returned this ring.
I didn''t post any handshots just because I don''t have a camera good enough to show the details of ring.
Also, don''t be misleading by quoting my words out of context.

 

[about2begin]

Date: 6/4/2009 1:05:43 PM
Author: prettycat
arjunajane, what's your point? What's are you trying to say???

If you are really so curious and suspicious, you could go ahead to call WF and ask if someone has just returned this ring.

I didn't post any handshots just because I don't have a camera good enough to show the details of ring.

Also, don't be misleading by quoting my words out of context.

Don't get too worked up over this. arjuna has a habit of jumping on people who post neutral/negative comments about the vendor's on here. In a past thread she basically said I was making up the fact that I bought a stone for ~$5k less than a similar one was listed for on GOG. Why would I make that up? Why would you make this up? Why does she care? Answers: I wouldn't, you probably didn't, who knows

It's kind of bizarre to me, really.

Try Leon Mege if you like precision work -- the ring he made me is amazing, I didn't loop it, though, so I am not sure if there are microscopic flaws.