Cartier Ballerine Emerald Setting? HELP?

[mrssalvo]

Date: 1/18/2006 6:39:11 PM
Author: Mara
It seems like lately it's been all about the designer stuff on here and how great it is made, when in reality I have felt multiple designer pieces, and find them typicall just as good as other custom pieces I have seen and tried on. To me designer doesn't mean that it does the laundry and cleans itself as well. Also, going custom does not have to mean cheap or that you are getting a hack to knock something off. I think that it's more 'gray shades' for both designer and custom than just blanket black or white.


By all means do your research on who can do good quality custom work and then decide for yourself what you love more, the design of a brand (and if you adore it, I agree, get the real thing) or if it truly is 'inspired by' but not exact (aka K's 20% notation), then find a good custom designer to create you something of your own with your own touches.

For me, i see a lot of "go custom for less" so i'm glad to see that some designers are getting the recognition they deserve. I agree that not all designer brands are anything to write home about. There are many out there that are not worth the metal used to make it. But I have also found there are a few designer brands that are exceptionally well made and worth the price tag to me. There are some amazing custom pieces I have seen as well, slammie's ring for example. I had a positive experience with my Quest project and was very pleased with how it turned out. I had another custom project that I was unhappy with from a highly repected company so it really can go either way. I agree with Mara 100% on doing research and finding out what is the best solution for you.

 

[mrssalvo]

smartblondie- it sounds like you have some good idea''s in what you would like to see. I''d suggest getting some pictures together or photoshop if you good at it, what you thinking and sending it to a couple of reputable jewelers for a quote. One thing to think about when creating your ring is the maintainance, there are a couple of Candians that have had rings made in the US and had a hard time finding a jeweler there who would touch their rings. Just something to keep in mind

 

[Kaleigh]

Date: 1/18/2006 8:56:35 PM
Author: mrssalvo
smartblondie- it sounds like you have some good idea''s in what you would like to see. I''d suggest getting some pictures together or photoshop if you good at it, what you thinking and sending it to a couple of reputable jewelers for a quote. One thing to think about when creating your ring is the maintainance, there are a couple of Candians that have had rings made in the US and had a hard time finding a jeweler there who would touch their rings. Just something to keep in mind

Very good advice!!!

Good luck smartblondie!!

 

[Mara]

I personally like to say 'go custom for less' because many times people don't realize there are other options out there than just going with a designer. I had no idea that we could even really go custom and when I heard 'make a ring for you' I thought wow that makes sense, mind you this was really before PS was as popular, so it was a novel idea, custom was not prevalent as it is around here now.

When we were shopping I just saw designer after designer ring, and it was all beautiful of course, but the idea of making something entirely unique and my own was really appealing, also the jeweler and hubby pretty much veto'd the whole pave eternity thing so I had to keep thinking. The design we were inspired by was my jeweler's wife's ring and even then we changed multiple elements.

And what people don't know most of the time is that you can go custom with great quality for less $$ than the typical designer ring. Or get more ctw for the same cost, etc. So that's just what I mean by people should do their research and educate themselves. There's a setting out there for everyone, whether you build it yourself or buy it off a shelf.

 

[smartblondie7]

LoL i dunno how the thing is even going to look on my finger....im nervous! never been ring shopping for myself before....
Mara.....y did they veto the pave on ur ring?
im still surfing websites for settings...hope everyone is having a good night

 

[Mara]

It was veto''d because the jeweler felt it wasn''t safe for daily usage on an engagement ring and hubby to be didn''t want the hassle (neither did I). I know some people have not had problems but some have with pave falling out or similar, the jeweler had some experiences where the same thing happened and/or rings were bent or crushed and pave fell out from alot of force on the ring etc. I am actually glad we did not go that route, my ring has a bit more metal so that''s kind of the price I pay...but I don''t worry about my melee at all.

 

[valeria101]

One more warning note about pave quality - it seems to be trendy, but it may not be the greatest idea to go for the latest mass manufacturing technique capable to churn out some pave look-alike

I am not saying go for the original or bust either: more like... look at the original and do not settle for anything that does not look at least as good down to small detail

Either style is farely sensible as far as pave goes - i.e. done right you should not have to worry about maintenance.

Those antique prices in which pave has endured nicely for a generation or two, at least demonstrate this can happen. And that fine pave work never goes out of style - as a bonus.

IMO, if you like pave you should get it.

My 2c

 

[valeria101]

I don''t know anything about this but, it came up and ''thought I''d mention regardless - counting on availability of appraisal and the harsh critique of this forum

Do you happen to like the Legacy rings too? LINK to one

 

[lindaAZ]

How is it that clothing and shoe manufactuers can make knock-offs of "designer" styles of clothing/shoes/purses etc? The only ethical/legal issue is that you can''t sell the copy as a genuine Cartier or Tiffany. etc. How can it be that there are probably hundreds of the classic Tiffany style settings available from manufactures that aren''t Tiffany - yet they call it a "Tiffany" style setting. I considered a custom setting and received several estimates for different designs - all copies of other designers and not once was I told that I had to change the design by 20%. How could you measure such a thing anyway? And who would police such a policy?