Advice-bezel e-ring with sapphire vs. vintage illusion ring?

[lkredhat]

Hi, I'm a long-time lurker needing a little reality check. I'm showing all the OCD symptoms of DERG -- Delayed Engagement Ring Gratification ... and need to break the spell ... I'm in the market (after 25 years!) to upgrade my e-ring (a shallow pear-shaped magenta sapphire in a pronged cathedral setting, now worn out). I love the pear shape, having a colored gem, and the way the cathedral setting protected my stone, but neither stone nor setting are great quality and that's bothered me for years.

I've always loved vintage gem cuts (OEC, OMC, etc.) and rings from the 1920s - 40s (two-tone illusion rings) and they suit me -- the stone's protected, with a delicate appearance. (Anything hefty or large just looks wrong on my finger, plus I'm not always careful with my hands). Plus the craftsmanship is just wonderful.

However, I also fell in love with bezel rings and rose cuts and emerald/asscher cuts -- so romantic and simple! Some of the ones on Etsy absolutely stole my heart, and I love the idea of a low-profile ring. Unfortunately, finding decent bezels and rose-cuts to try on and get a feel for is a whole lot more difficult so I don't have as much aesthetic experience to go on.

So bezel lovers--given that I absolutely want my wedding band to fit flat against my E-ring, am I making this too complicated? I was thinking of having a light-colored sapphire (still deciding if I want pink or green) bezel set on a 1.3 - 2 mm hammered band. Stone 4mm - 8 mm, no halo, flexible on shape, prefer something other than round or oval. However, if it's an E-ring the bezel has to somehow float above the shank, decent stones are generally $300-$600, the bezel has to be properly made, and of course I want the pretty stone to sparkle. And I want all that on a budget, but am starting to think I'm being ridiculous .... $500-$1,000? Because I don't want to be the customer from hell trying to get a jeweler to make a $2,000 ring on a $1,000 budget.

So now thinking maybe I should just buy a pretty vintage e-ring for $200-$400 (I've got some candidates), and then get a nice right-hand bezel ring that doesn't need to be engineered to fit flat against my wedding band -- just eliminate one level of craziness. But is an enclosed bezel a bad idea because it cuts off light from the stone? Or does it keep the stone clean? Would I need a bezel with a filigree pattern or some other way to let light in from the bottom?

This is the only place I can post my crazy ring dreams and know that there are others just as obsessed as I am ....

 

[chrono]

Re: Advice-bezel e-ring with sapphire vs. vintage illusion r

In most cases, a bezel ring will not sit flush against a wedding band unless it sits up high enough to allow that space to fit. The gap will probably not be noticeable with a 4 mm stone but it will be obvious with a 8 mm stone. I find that it is very difficult to find a good bench that makes an impeccable bezel (perfectly round, doesn't eat up the stone and the bezel is smooth and even under magnification). I'm guessing that a fine bezel setting will be in the $1k range. If you are less particular, then it could be in the $500 range for the setting. In general, my preference is an open bezel where not only the stone will get more light but also for ease of cleaning.

 

[JewelFreak]

Re: Advice-bezel e-ring with sapphire vs. vintage illusion r

I think your idea of a bezeled RHR is the best one, due to the difficulty of having a bezel sit flat against your wedding ring. If you see it IRL a 4-mm stone is awfully small so I imagine you'd end up liking one more toward 6 mm to the 8 mm you mentioned. That makes it even harder to have it flat against your band unless it sits high enough.

Chrono's mention of cleaning is good -- especially if you're not careful with your hands or don't take rings off when doing house stuff, it's important to be able to clean around the stone. I always like to allow as much light into a stone as possible anyway, so even if bezeling, a filigree or open gallery of some type is helpful.

 

[InToTheMystic]

Re: Advice-bezel e-ring with sapphire vs. vintage illusion r

I'm not sure if this is of any help to you, but I had a very similar design spec when I was designing my wedding set:

- Emerald cut set N-S (round looked wrong on my stubby fingers)
- Bezelled with clean lines and side diamonds (either princess, baguette or emerald cut - no round shapes)
- Low profile, but still with light getting let in to the gallery to assist with sparkle
- Wedding band had to sit flush with no airgap (see previous point re. stubby fingers)

The compromise I had to make to have the above was that the wedding band had to be moulded slightly to accommodate the engagement ring. I thought this would bother me a lot more than it actually has.

But maybe consider where your heart lies in terms of priorities, and where you're willing to have compromises. In my case, getting the engagement ring perfect was paramount as it is where your eye is drawn due to the colour, and the relatively simple design of the wedding band was a bit more flexible.

I'm not sure how a bezel set stone would translate to an illusion setting, as it's not a design that I am familiar with. I'd love to see an example of what you are talking about.

My set (please excuse the slightly grubby rings and puffy fingers. I'm 5 mths pregnant and qetting squishier by the day):

 

[packrat]

Re: Advice-bezel e-ring with sapphire vs. vintage illusion r

I have a bezeled three stone (not cs's tho) and a semi bezeled chryso. Bands fit flush w/both of them b/c the settings have a bridge that the stones sit above/on. I like having them open to see the sides/culets.

 

[lkredhat]

Re: Advice-bezel e-ring with sapphire vs. vintage illusion r

Thanks so much for the advice and OMG such gorgeous pictures! Beautiful eye candy!