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Advice Needed on Setting

R

RMercurio

Rough_Rock
Joined
Apr 1, 2016
Messages
8
Hi all,

I am a lady in waiting and probably should post there, but not sure if that gets the same amount of traffic as rocky talky, and I'd really like as much feedback as I can get.

I have been pretty involved in "guiding" my boyfriend to the exact ring that I want, since I have a major fear of wearing something I don't LOVE for the rest of my life. Untraditional, I know, but I am picky and don't mind that it won't be a surprise.

I have been pretty set on this K color 2.6 oval diamond (in white gold setting - 11.2 x 7.92 x 4.1) that I tried it on the first time we went ring shopping together, and have been dreaming about almost every night and thinking about it nonstop (mainly bc of size and ratio - perfection!). Recently, I found a 2.31 K color (in gold setting - 10.48 x 7.02 x 4.49) that would be closer to budget, don't love the ratio as much, and not as big looking.

While I was in the store today to check out the 2.31, I found a really gorgeous setting that was so opposite of the original look I was going for: timeless, classic, good size (size really matters to me! which is why I wanted a K in exchange for size). But, fell in love all over again and liked the fact that I could get a smaller center stone, with better color, and all together (setting and 1.5 I color center) would be much closer to budget.

Need your help! Should I stick with my gut and my dreams and go with timeless solitaire in gold or white gold? Was only throwing gold into the mix bc it would help the warmth out in the stone and I do wear both silver and gold jewelry. OR should be a little trendy and go with the double halo setting (mine would be all white gold and white diamonds, not rose), which would give the effect of having big stone when glimpsed at?

Look forward to your thoughts!

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I think you should hold on to your wallet and continue looking. Seems as though you aren't quite sure what will be the right stone and color for you. You need to do more research and find the stone that has a great cut and will be lovely over time. Do yourself a favor and don't be "seduced" by the sparkle that you see out there in the B&M stores. Wishing you luck with your search. :wavey:
 
No. Do not go for a double halo. I think the solitiare looks best on your hands and has more flexibility and is also much more lifestyle friendly. Plus a quality double halo, the quality you would need for an engagement ring is not going to be budget friendly.

Why pave is fragile: [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/which-online-retailer-for-a-custom-setting.203660/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/which-online-retailer-for-a-custom-setting.203660/[/URL]
Why we recommend handforging for pave:
[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/what-do-you-all-think-of-this-stone.219137/page-2#post-3981481#p3981481']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/what-do-you-all-think-of-this-stone.219137/page-2#post-3981481#p3981481[/URL]

So a double halo in the quality you want would set you back 7k for a 2 carat plus center. That's money better spent on the center stone.


As for the right stone for you. Keep looking. One will catch your heart.

This one has a lot of potential, actually:
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/2.50-carat-j-color-vs2-clarity-sku-726307


These two are is REALLY nice but may not be as large as you want:
https://enchanteddiamonds.com/diamonds/view/Oval/GIA-Certified-2-0-Carat-J-Color-SI1-Clarity-Diamond-48WMER
https://enchanteddiamonds.com/diamonds/view/Oval/GIA-Certified-2-04-Carat-J-Color-VS1-Clarity-Diamond-N16CBJ

That said. DO NOT COMPARE CARAT WEIGHT WITH OVALS. Compare dimensions. A 2.3 carat oval can face up SMALLER than a 2 carat depending on the individual stone.
 
No need to apologize for guiding your SO to the ring you want: when the time comes for me, I am going to be the one controlling the process from start to finish. There are simply too many variables at play in buying a diamond and choosing a setting to leave this decision in the hands of someone else - or at least for me. My boyfriend is currently saving up for my ring and I even know EXACTLY where he is at and how much to go until we hit the budget we've agreed upon. Once you know something about diamonds, it's excruciating to leave the process up to someone else (plus it's so much fun!).

As for your setting Q: I may be in the minority but I would not choose a double halo (apologies to all those with pavé or halo rings - they are beautiful). I think this style is all the rage because - precisely as you say - if gives greater finger coverage and looks very impressive (especially from afar). But in fact the optics are totally different: all that pavé creates a much more splintery light reflection that doesn't come close to the deep fire and scintillation you get with a single, well-cut diamond. Further, in 10-20 years this look will look extremely dated. My advice is to put your money into the best diamond you can get rather than spending it on the setting. The solitaire look is beautiful and classic always. And in a few years if you get bored or want a change you can always reset your original diamond.
 
Try to think forward down the road 10 years or so...will you get tired of look you currently have? I'm of the though to go with
the smaller size but in the color you want without the halo. Then 5/10 years down the road if you want additional size then halo
it.
 
Hi, I consider myself a lady in waiting too :D and I am also guiding my boyfriend to the ring and details I want, I have been dealing with a similar situation I have a clear idea of what I want, but then I see a halo or a pave and fall in love but at the end I always come back to the more simple settings, so in my personal opinion I would pick the solitaire, because in the long run I think maybe I would grow tired of the more elaborate settings or it's not gonna be so appealing to me in a couple of years. Plus I think it gives you more room to play with the wedding band design :D.
 
Thanks all for for the advice!

@Gypsy

I am sticking to the solitaire, since I will probably get sick of the halo and seem like it will be harder to match a wedding band.

What do you think on this diamond? Do you think the inclusion will be too noticeable since it's on the table?

http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/2.02-carat-k-color-si2-clarity-sku-818566

I also really love this one, but would prefer the dimensions of the 2.02 ct one

http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/1.51-carat-k-color-vs1-clarity-sku-818956

This one I like too

http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/1.86-carat-k-color-si2-clarity-sku-751832
 
The middle one is the only one that's even moderately well cut. And it's not going to ASET well. The other two are dogs. And the first one will never be eyeclean.

Do you want a big dead rock? Is size your priority?

I mean what you want is already not going to have a ton of selection. So if you want the biggest stone, performance be damned, okay. But I don't recommend it.
 
I would say that size is a priority, but also don't want something that isn't eyeclean. What should I be searching for to help me find a well cut oval? Or am I already at a disadvantage, for wanting an oval? It seems like there aren't a ton.
 
Wanting an oval of over 2 carats on a 7k or less budget is what is limiting you.

You need either a larger budget. Or to lower your carat weight requirements. And that is what I think you should do. Lower the minimum weight to 1.6. Or chip in to the budget your SO has set to get what you are requiring. Cause it's not really reasonable.

Is this some kind of bell that has to be rung for you? Do you need "2 carats" as a bragging right? Cause I gotta say, I think it's probably going to result in a big dead rock on the hand given your budget.
 
I think what I want is nice finger coverage and when I tried on some in the store, I liked the dimensions of the 2 ct and above. I'd say the budget is anywhere from 7-9K total cost, so with that I think the stone should be 8k and under, but was trying to incorporate tax and cost of setting. I've offered to chip in, but he's not interested.

I understand that lowering the size would result in a nicer stone, but what qualifies a nice stone besides the clarity grade? I know I don't want it boxy and 1.4 ratio, but what else should I be looking out for? Tips would be greatly appreciated!
 
RMercurio|1461602362|4023386 said:
I think what I want is nice finger coverage and when I tried on some in the store, I liked the dimensions of the 2 ct and above. I'd say the budget is anywhere from 7-9K total cost, so with that I think the stone should be 8k and under, but was trying to incorporate tax and cost of setting. I've offered to chip in, but he's not interested.

I understand that lowering the size would result in a nicer stone, but what qualifies a nice stone besides the clarity grade? I know I don't want it boxy and 1.4 ratio, but what else should I be looking out for? Tips would be greatly appreciated!
Click to expand...

It's very important to have a very well CUT diamond -- this is what makes them sparkle. :love: ...and, unfortunately, ovals are much more difficult to find a nice cut. It is imperative that you be able to view an oval and see ASETs and other performance documents.

If it were me, I would get the largest, nicest cut oval I could find from a vendor who offers a good upgrade policy and set it in a very plain, 14K gold (whatever color you prefer) inexpensive setting. This way, you can dedicate the vast majority of your budget to the stone.
 
The entire purpose of faceting a diamond is to reflect light.
How well or how poorly a diamond does this determines how beautiful it is.
How well a diamond performs is determined by the proportions and the faceting. This is why we say cut is king.
No other factor: not color, not clarity has as much of an impact on the appearance of a diamond as its cut.
With ovals all that matters is the faceting and the performance of the stone. By performance we mean: how well it reflects light because this determines how bright the stone is, how much it sparkles, and how lively it is. And how big it looks. A well performing diamond will always look larger than a diamond with compromised performance, even if the compromised stone has actually larger dimensions. With ovals what you need to determine this is images of the stone. Preferrably a video And finally an ASET scope image. That is what the stone I selected for you offers.

So what is an ASET scope image and why is it important? http://highperformancediamonds.com/education/performance-tutorial/

Basically an ASET tells you how well the diamond you are evaluating reflects light and where the light is coming from. This matters. That stone that I selected for you has a nice ASET for an oval. It's above average in performance and a really nice large stone for your budget.


So that's what you are overlooking and what you need to focus on.

I don't understand what you mean by "boxy" and a 1.4 ratio. Can you explain those comments?
 
Got it! Didn't realize there were so many variables, but glad I know what to look out for now. Thank you!

What I meant by not wanting it boxy, is some I have seen almost look like a long rectangular cushion instead of an oval. And I like the L/W ratio of 1.4 because it doesn't look too long and skinny, nor too short, fat and round.
 
Hi RMercurio, just wanted to mention that the HCA is only for round diamonds, so you don't have to worry about that lol.
 
OMG! Why didn't they say that?! Or maybe they did and I just completed overlooked that. Thanks for pointing out! :)

Gypsy - please disregard my comments on HCA tool LOL, but still curious what you think on the two I pasted from James Allen
 
They both have very strong bowties. You want to avoid that.
 
It's not a bad stone!

Get it in person and see what you think.
 
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