BLOWING MY SAVINGS FOR GIRL OF MY DREAMS SO WANT IT TO BE PERFECT

[decodelighted]

Hey there! Congrats on finding the girl of your dreams & your upcoming engagement! Since I have no experience in finding 3ct RB's -- ideal or otherwise -- I just popped in to say WOWZA! I'm impressed at how you're handling all the various opinions too. You seem to have a solid plan & reasons for everything you're doing and I have no doubt your lady will be over the moon about the ring you're designing for her. MAYBE she'd like an AGS super ideal 2.5 ct vs a 3.0 ct EGL "ideal-ish" ... but you're really the best to judge that: based on your social circle & your own expectations for "whopper"/wow-factor. LIVE THE DREAM MAN!!!

ETA: For all you canary-encrusted-pave naysayers ... have you seen Heidi Klum's masterpiece from Seal? It's a huge canary diamond in a delicate three-sided yellow gold/canary diamond encrusted setting. I think SCALE is key. When you're doing color -- the setting should maybe be more delicate in scale or it could get "Viva Las Vegas" looking. Heidi's is a KNOCKOUT though. Check out pix in the Celeb Rings thread ...

 

[nycattny]

Thanks decodelighted!

I really appreciate the support and yes the "wow" factor is extremely important. I am very satisfied with our relationship and don''t want to jump to the next step until I am confident that I can buy the ring that she truly deserves and will be ecstatic about. I agree with you regarding the importance of the stone''s cut and also agree that cut should be my first priority. After cut, I know I don''t really want to go below an H color. With respect to clarity, based upon my research, my tolerance level is no lower than an eye-clean SI1. Other than that, I will attempt to find the largest stone possible based on my budget.

Do you think that is a proper order of importance? I appreciate any advice or opinion I can get!

 

[nycattny]

JulieN-

I found the designer at a small shop while on vacation in Italy. He does not have a website and I have been unable to find any information beyond what I learned from a brief encounter at the shop. He truly is a master who does all work by hand.

 

[nycattny]

While I do love the setting I found, and she really did love it when we saw it, I want everything to be surprise so the last thing I want to do is have a detailed discussion about this exact setting, etc. I know she trusts my judgment, which puts the pressure on! One thing I am certain about is that based on all of our talks in general, she definitely does not want a traditional pave ring. We both want a ring that will draw you in from every angle that you look at it from and one that will be truly memorable rather than something that numerous jewelers design variations of the same ring. I apologize if this sounds like I am knocking Leon Mege or any other designers of pave rings out there because that is not my intention and those designers create beautiful pieces. Those rings are very classy and, as you put it, 95% of girls would be thrilled to have one. But, I think I am working with that remaining 5%!

I had posted a picture of the setting yesterday but had it taken down out of respect to the designer. The designer was concerned about me having a picture of his ring to begin with and I felt that it was improper for me to even post in the first place. I wish I could have some additional opinions on the setting but I just don''t feel right leaving it on the board for just anyone to see. Nonetheless, if you did get a glimpse of it last night when I posted it, your opinions would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[JulieN]

I had wanted to see if there was a website so I could get a feeling for the general aesthetic of the designer. I didn''t really "get it" from that one picture.

 

[lisa1.01fvs1]

This may or may not interest u but since u are using fancies have u looked at

Dimaonds by Lauren?

They have quite a selection of intricate designs w/ incorporation of fancies.

For ideas of course since everything there is not only to die for but like a gazillion $$$$$!!!

 

[nycattny]

lisa1.01fvs1-
Thanks for sending me to that website, it is nice to see something different. While I like fancies, I only intend to use them as an accent rather than full side stones or center stone. In my opinion, since yellow sapphire often looks awfully close to a canary diamond I am reluctant to incorporate anything more than small accents of yellow. Nonetheless, since I intend to have the ring in yellow gold I think that some small canaries would add a nice touch.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 5/28/2008 12:16:04 PM
Author:nycattny
I am in my late 20s and have been with my girlfriend for over 5 years and it's about that time. Friends are starting to get engaged and the pressure is on! She has expensive taste and deserves only the best. That being said I have stepped up my budget beyond what any rational mind would advise. I already have a setting in mind that I love and plan to have custom made. As of today, my thoughts include a budget of around $30-35K, give or take a little, for the stone itself. I have decided that I want a stone of at least 3 carats with an ideal cut and was wondering whether to go for an H VS2 or H SI1 or a G SI1. I know that it all depends on the stone itself and have been told that some SI1 look nicer than certain VS2. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Ex choice!!

i'll take any one of these combo

will this setting cost more than the center stone?

 

[nycattny]

Dancing Fire-
Thanks for the opinion. I am hoping to spend no more than $5k on the setting. I will let you know how feasible that will be when I meet with my jeweler to have it made.

 

[Dancing Fire]

LOL....you should of married her 4 yrs ago when 3 ct stones were a lot cheaper.

 

[purrfectpear]

Considering your budget for the stone, I think you should budget a bit more for the setting. Any custom designer setting with additional stones is likely to be in the $4500 to $6000 range at least.

 

[purrfectpear]

If someone were choosing a large RB for me, I would run naked through Trader Joe''s for this one...

 

[nycattny]

purrfectpear-

Luckily, since I have a jeweler that my family uses he is able to give me a good price. I am actually having another jeweler make a wax mold of setting using a CAD (computer program) which can import a picture and then manipulate it to your specifications. The wax mold will cost me $400. I spoke with my family jeweler and he told me that, assuming the setting has 3 carats of small diamonds of very good quality, he thinks all of the diamonds for the setting will cost around $1300. I figure that it should cost an additional $2500 give or take for the gold and the labor to make the setting.