Buying the stone and setting... did you use the same place?

[kateh]

After reading through a lot of your posts, I noticed that many of you bought your diamond loose, and took it someplace else to be set. Is this the norm? I had mentioned this to my boyfriend, and he seemed to think it would be more of a hassle than it''s worth...


just an update... I went to GOG last night and was so incredibly impressed!! We met with Jonathan and I think I learned more in an hour than I have in the last month or so that I''ve been researching. Thanks to everyone who recommended him!!!

 

[Maxine]

Actually, there are some jewelers out there who don''t want to set a stone purchased elsewhere...others will. I don''t know if most people here buy elsewhere.....I think if the dealer has what they want, they often buy from the same place.....unless they are having something custom made by a particlular designer or something...............

Glad you had a positive experience at GOG....!!

 

[Maxine]

PS ??? Do you know what setting you like??? What shapes have you looked at so far???? Do you have a preference for a shape yet???? I think you said cushion ???

 

[widget]

Hi, Kateh!

It is my understanding that when possible, it is preferable to buy the stone and have it mounted in the same place. This assures you that you won''t have the hassle of dealing with fingerpointing and debate over responsibility should something go wrong in the mounting process (chipped or broken stone, etc).

Of course I say this inspite of having used different dealers to mount my stones, so far with no problems

. Knock wood!

widget

 

[kateh]

Maxine - I am debating between two settings... both with a cusion cut

cushion with two half moons
OR
cushion on an eternity band like setting - not pave, and not channel.


do most places do custom settings? I am a bit confused as to how that process works... I''ve seen some leon mege settings on this site that I love.

 

[Maxine]

I don''t have any experience w/custom....some places do it, and others don''t....

 

[Maxine]

Edited to add: when you decide on a stone, ask your vendor if they have something similar to what you want....they might have something, and then you could do everything in one place!!!

 

[denverappraiser]

It''s helpful to avoid fingerpointing issues if you can buy the stone, mounting and labor from the same place. If this doesn''t work out, try to buy the mounting and the labor from the same supplier.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ISA NAJA
Independent Appraisals in Denver

 

[AChiOAlumna]

If you can find a jeweler who can do the whole diamond and setting and mounting, that''ll be the easiest way to go.

I bought my setting first knowing exactly what type of center stone I wanted. When I bought the setting, the jeweler told me an emerald cut diamond could easily be mounted into the setting. I found another jeweler who had my EC of my dreams. When I showed him the setting, he also said it could be mounted. I handed over the setting and also asked it if could be resized (3/4 size smaller). He also said it was not a problem.

The next morning I got a call from the jeweler. The "not a problem" became a BIG problem!! Because they had accepted the job, they agreed to move forward, but they had to reset the ENTIRE setting due to the resizing and the EC almost didn''t fit. The jeweler was a master jeweler though and was able to create the ring of my dreams and size it properly...he had to work on it ALL DAY to get the perfect results!!

So had we used a single jeweler for the whole excursion, it may have been quite a bit less stressful...

 

[luvmysparklies]

Date: 6/17/2005 9:52:04 AM
Author:kateh
After reading through a lot of your posts, I noticed that many of you bought your diamond loose, and took it someplace else to be set. Is this the norm? I had mentioned this to my boyfriend, and he seemed to think it would be more of a hassle than it''s worth...


just an update... I went to GOG last night and was so incredibly impressed!! We met with Jonathan and I think I learned more in an hour than I have in the last month or so that I''ve been researching. Thanks to everyone who recommended him!!!

My beautiful stone and setting for my e-ring were bought from Jonathan (GOG). I loved the Vatche RC so, we just got everything there at GOG. They have in-house setting available where you can watch your stone being set, but since I went with a Vatche, they had to send my stone to Vatche to get set, so that the warranty on the ring would remain in place.
Luv

 

[Regular Guy]

Date: 6/17/2005 11:41:08 AM
Author: denverappraiser
It''s helpful to avoid fingerpointing issues if you can buy the stone, mounting and labor from the same place. If this doesn''t work out, try to buy the mounting and the labor from the same supplier.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ISA NAJA
Independent Appraisals in Denver

Neil,

Curious why you''d recommend plan B to be with the holder of the setting, rather than that of the diamond?

 

[denverappraiser]

Date: 6/17/2005 1:09:47 PM
Author: Regular Guy

Date: 6/17/2005 11:41:08 AM
Author: denverappraiser
It''s helpful to avoid fingerpointing issues if you can buy the stone, mounting and labor from the same place. If this doesn''t work out, try to buy the mounting and the labor from the same supplier.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ISA NAJA
Independent Appraisals in Denver

Neil,

Curious why you''d recommend plan B to be with the holder of the setting, rather than that of the diamond?

Ira,

The most common problem boils down to a decision about whether the stone will fit properly in the mounting. The very first thing the setter must do is agree to accept the job. If they sold the mounting, it is reasonable to demand that they should provide one that is appropriate for the stone or decline the job if this isn’t possible. This expertise is part of what you are paying them for. If they choose the size and details of the setting, it is very difficult for them to say that any problem isn’t their fault because this selection was done improperly.
The other problem is with the quality of materials used. After a problem arises, there is almost always an issue of deciding who to blame and two of the big targets are defective materials and/or craftsmanship (customer abuse is the third). By buying the diamond loose and getting it examined by a independent professional before setting, most of the problems about defects in the diamond have been identified and addressed. Separating the other two can be difficult. Did the stone come out because it was poorly set or because it was a crappy or inappropriate mounting? These are often the opposing sides of the finger pointing exercises and if these two components were supplied by the same vendor then it doesn’t really matter.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ISA NAJA
Independent Appraisals in Denver

 

[PhillipSchmidt]

Setters who are commissioned within the jewellery trade don''t take responsibility for any breakages.
Another issue for the setter, being the second last job, is that they might be required to improve the work of the mounter or ring maker.

Setters working for retail - which arn''t supplying the stone will usually be required to replace it in case of damage, unless of course you are paying a third party who is taking responsibility. There will be an added mark-up or a flat fee to insure your stone in most cases, though you should have no trouble in finding a shop that will waiver an insurance levy for round stones, emerald cuts etc.

If a setting was pefectly made (by hand), or bought in the exact fit, then the setting job is very minimal. If the setting is not quite right, extra care must be taken and this is a specialists job. In cases where the assembled casting is nice but not quite nice enough some vendors who take pride in the jewellery that they oversea, will insist to their tradespeople that certain things are created in certain styles or at least that the insides are always be polished, or the claws are fine etc.

Most setters are very good and the type of work being suggested here is rarely times taking as we are mostly talking about claw/prong settings.

Round stones in a well fitting cast or pressed setting are always a doddle.

When you go over to hand made, custom jewellery the whole things takes a different angle. For instance, there is a fine line between making a setting and setting a stone.

 

[burnban35]

I''m in Texas and I bought my SQH&A from GOG loose and it will arrive tomorrow....(I don''t know how I''ll sleep tonight). If I lived anywhere near GOG I think I would have let them do the setting as well. Christen and Marie were excellent and very patient in answering all of my questions as was Charlie who got a few stones in to analyze. I only chose to pick a setting locally so I could go in and try on various styles until I found one that I liked.

My last thread died...I decided on the .93 H VS1.

Good luck with your purchase no matter what you decide to do.

Michelle