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H

hainer

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 9, 2012
Messages
4
Hi there,

I am in the market for an engagement ring for my girlfriend.

The problem is that I am currently posted in Santiago, Chile for business reasons and can’t make it back to the States for six months as I am incredibly time poor. I wanted to take my girlfriend to a jewelry store to see what she liked and see for myself what the diamonds looked like (size, shapes etc.) but couldn’t find one in Santiago that had western style rings. Traditionally, from what I understand Chilean’s only wear a gold band so there is no market here for western style rings.

We came to Buenos Aires for the weekend and we stopped by Tiffany’s today however due to some import restrictions (according to the sales lady) they don’t have any stock other than a .16ct diamond ring.

I know I am set on a plain-ish solitaire setting. My girlfriend has told me from looking at photographs she likes emerald and old style cushion shapes. I think I want about 1.8 cts but I don’t really know what that will look like on her hand. I want to spend between $16-18k, stone and setting, maybe a little more.

I don’t want to wait the six months until we go home to look at diamonds then wait to find the diamond, have it set etc. as my next trip to collect it won’t be for another 6-8 months and I don’t trust the ring to be fed-exed to me in Santiago.

So after all that back information…

Am I an idiot for even considering buying a ring without ever seeing a diamond of that shape/size/look in person? If it makes any differences I *think* I want to buy from Brian Gavin, I like the look of his work and have read very good things. I intend to pre-order the ring and then pick it up when I am in the States in approx. six months.

Thanks.
 
You're not an idiot for buying sight unseen! With a reputable retailer, they'll be able to get you videos and pictures. The only caveat is that your gf needs to try on rings to see what she likes. She may hate a certain style on her particular hand. Can you order some cz rings in styles she likes and have her wear that for 6 months while she decides? It's such a large and personal purchase, with so many variables that you should really 1. try on rings in person to see shapes you like on your hand 2. see diamonds in person to see what color preferences you have and 2. be able to see the actual ring within the refund period to decide if you really like it.
 
You are going be fine.
It sounds like she prefers larger facet rectangular stones.

Here are a few recommendations. I LOVE Brian Gavin. But I've never seen an antique cushion from him, and GOG is one of a handful of retailers that specialize in them.

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/8200/
or
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/8977/

I wouldn't give up performance for size and those are really lovely cushions. Both are some of the loveliest I've seen from GOG. They are a great size, exactly the antique cushion shape and pattern she wants.


You can have it sent to BGD for the setting, and you will get something amazing for her. If you want to work with BGD ask for Brian (speak to him) about antique cushions, but I suspect you will want to go with an Emerald Cut from him, and he can help you find a lovely one.

You are in great hands either way. I have bought from BGD several times myself and they are a class act through and through.
 
hainer|1336775811|3193433 said:
My girlfriend has told me from looking at photographs she likes emerald and old style cushion shapes. I think I want about 1.8 cts but I don’t really know what that will look like on her hand. I want to spend between $16-18k, stone and setting, maybe a little more.
Click to expand...

Please see if you can find rings with different shapes and sizes of any stones that your girlfriend can try on. Sometimes what looks good in photographs doesn't look as great on your own hand.
 
thbmok|1336790350|3193582 said:
Please see if you can find rings with different shapes and sizes of any stones that your girlfriend can try on. Sometimes what looks good in photographs doesn't look as great on your own hand.
Click to expand...

That is my problem, where we are right now (Chile) I cannot find the rings; it is just not the style here. I cannot afford the time with my work situation to go and see the rings, I had hoped we would be able to see some in B.A this weekend but it wasn't the case as my original post. My first choice would be for my girlfriend to try them on so both she and I could see them on her hand. I am kicking myself that we didn't go and look when we were back home (in the US) at Christmas but honestly I never thought finding a diamond store in Chile would be difficult.

Thank you for you input. I really like the look of the GOG diamonds, beautiful. From what I read on the pricescope FAQ's we cannot talk about CZ's but I think I might look into having my parents post me a couple to see the scope and scale.

If anyone has any other input I would greatly appreciate it.
 
The reason I recommended GOG and BGD to you is they both have great policies on trading in, returning, and upgrading on qualifying stones, and those antique cushions I linked to qualify. Any stone you buy, you should ask about the policies that apply to that stone (they are stone specific). If you buy a diamond and want to exchange it for something different, both vendors will give you your original purchase price back (if the stone qualifies).
 
Sorry Gypsy, I was just adjusting my post at the same time as you were posting as I had a few added thoughts. I loved the goodoldgold stones. I have been combing pricescope post for a while and Goodoldgold comes up time and time again as a great source of stones.
 
Here you go, this link will help you see the approximate size for ct weight of the shape diamond that you are considering. You can print it off, but make sure that you have it scaled properly. Hope it helps. Oh, the diamond will always look larger IRL because it will be 3D as opposed to a 2D picture on a piece of paper.

http://pics.bluenile.com/assets/chrome/pdf/diamond_carat_size_0810.pdf

There is also a chart somewhere that tells you approximately how much finger coverage a specific ct weight will be on a specific finger size, I'll see if I can't find that one for you as well.
 
GOG has a solid reputation and so does BGD, you really can't go wrong with either vendor. I have a preference for BGD's custom work and settings, in terms of CAD manufacturing, because I've seen a lot of their pieces and also own a few and know their quality is as good as it gets. They have found BEAUTIFUL emerald cuts before too. I normally wouldn't point you to a different vendor (and as posting consumer advocates we aren't supposed to)-- but because antique cushions are such a niche cut I just don't know that BGD can get them in for you and I wanted to give you a back up if you decided that you wanted the cushion over the emerald cut. My personal preference, if you are talking which I'd rather own and which looks best on my hand, is emerald cuts but I know that if your lady knows enough about diamonds to ASK for an antique faceted cushion-- she's probably been caught by them. And with something as special as an engagement ring-- she should get what her heart wants in terms of shape.
 
Thanks Christina, the link to the scale is really helpful.

Gypsy - I think you are right about the antique cushion shape, she does really love it and at the moment I think that is what I will buy. She only mentioned an emerald shape after seeing one in a Brian Gavin setting on his website. I has also thought that if I did go ahead and buy/collect unseen I could return it according to their policies (if the stone qualifies etc) so I am glad you have backed up my thought on that.

I am going to wait a few days to let her have some time to think about it, to be honest I think both shapes are really nice and just want her to have something she will love and be happy with.

Fingers crossed I will be back to ask a few more specif questions about stones soon.

Thanks
 
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