Comparing two Octavia Asschers

[SFGuy]

Good luck SFGuy!

Some more thoughts -

1. What sort of setting are you planning on? A very open setting will allow the viewer to see more of the stone's body colour, esp on the sides where it is most visible, whereas you can "get away with" a bit more tint with a closed design. A setting with lots of bright white full-cut melee right beside the stone also highlights slight tint to my eyes - not so with single cut melee, though.

I'm still working on the design of the setting (that will be a whole other thread), but here are some CAD renderings that I have so far:




There are side-stones, but they are pink diamonds. I'm also told that the large prongs for the basket will actually be smaller when cast. I thought about trying to obscure the sides more, but I'm not sure I want to hide it that much, particularly since (compared to some others I've looked at) a decent amount of the weight is in the pavilion. Worth thinking more about, however.

2. What metal are you planning on? slightly tinted stones can look quite different in colour depending on what metal colour you choose.

I'm going with Pt950/Ru.

3. What colour is her skin? My J looks much much whiter against my darker skin than it does against my best friend's very pale skin.

This is a tough question to answer objectively. I seem to recall there is some type of official scale of skin tones, but she might notice if I start holding color swatches against her arm. :p

We're both caucasian, but she definitely has lighter skin than I do. Here's a photo of her hand & arm that I cropped, perhaps it can help give you some idea:

 

[yssie]

That's a pretty design! And with pink diamonds - how decadent


I do think it's pretty open as it is - you can see the entirety of the paviliion from the side... but I should have been more precise - I think even a thin crossbar or suprise stone or something to distract the viewer from focusing on the contrast between the expanse of visible stone pavilion and bright white metal adjacent, and focus instead on the setting itself, would be sufficient (I put my 2ct I RB in a setting w/ such a distracting across-pavilion design, and the tint of the stone was something I literally never focused on, nor did anyone else looking at the ring). An I of that size is NOT so tinted that your viewers/admirers will look at it and see creamy/warm/tinted/yellow/dingy, especially once it's set, no matter what the setting - all they will see is sparkle, and "is that a princess?!" - so recognise that your angst and machinations are strictly for your/your SO's benefit The pavilion doesn't need to actually be close to fully covered, IMO, to achieve that distraction.. though of course this also depends on if/how much the colour actually bothers you/her! With the extra support of a crossbar? pave-encrusted crossbar? pink pave encrusted crossbar? the prongs could be thinned out a bit, if you wanted, as well.


Two comments on the pinkies - I think given the size you will want to pony up for quite saturated, vividly pink melee, esp. since you are setting them in white metal, not rose gold.

If your stone was more tinted (J/K+) I would toss out a warning about seeing before choosing pink diamond melee, as my pale pink diamond band actually looks kinda awful next to my larger J RB - the J is visibly pale yellow, the pinks are pale pink, and the combination just makes my J look muddy and the pinks look washed out, because the eyes adjust to seeing the pale pinks as "white", and so by that skewed scale the very light yellow of my J looks *brown*.. HOWEVER the band was lovely with my old I RB in plat (in the pic) - the I was "white" enough that instead of the eyes adjusting to seeing the pale pinks as "white", they saw the RB as "white" and the pinks as more pink -






Definitely pale by my (Indian skin) standards not as pale as my best friend though. Which is not much help to you! Is your skin about the same colour - or a friends'? Sibling/parent? How does the stone look face-up nestled between two fingers?

 

[SFGuy]

Sorry for the very long delay. And thanks to all of you who helped me with these questions. I really appreciate your feedback!

I was having a lot of problems coming to terms with the color in the 1.15ct. In the end, I took Kenny's advice after all and ordered in the original stone (1.07ct) from GOG. I'm very glad I did. The color difference was amazing. Even my jeweler couldn't believe how far apart the GIA I was from the AGS I. As a layperson, I cannot say that one is wrong, per se, but I will note that the GIA I (the 1.07) looked a lot more similar in color a GIA E that I was also considering than it did to the AGS I (the 1.15).

I was also fairly impressed with the performance of the 1.07. I know that folks here (and at GOG) liked the 1.15 better, but I think the fire/brilliance in the 1.07 is stunning.

So, all of that said, I'm returning the 1.15 and keeping the 1.07. In fact, my jeweler finished the setting of the 1.07 yesterday and I picked it up. I'll post some photos when I can get the chance (should I do that here or on Show me the Bling?).

Thanks again to everyone for your help!

 

[kenny]

Glad you got to see them side by side.
IMHO it's the ooooooooonly way to compare diamonds.

Can't wait to see your final project.
So this will be an Octavia surrounded by Fancy Intense Pink diamonds?

 

[Natylad]

Glad you got to see them side by side.
IMHO it's the ooooooooonly way to compare diamonds.

Can't wait to see your final project.
So this will be an Octavia surrounded by Fancy Intense Pink diamonds?

He,he,he! That will be a combination of everything that Kenny loves in one ring!

 

[yssie]

Congrats

Ditto - glad you got to play with them in-person, absolutely no chance of doubting your choice

 

[marcy]

I am too late to vote but I would have picked the one on the right too.

 

[lbling]

I would definitely go with the second one. It is bigger (always a bonus!) It is VVS2, has ideal and excellent cut and polish. This is exactly what you want when buying a diamond. I think this one is a knockout diamond! Even in the picture is has pizazz.

 

[Christina...]

I would have voted for the one on the left! I was watching the video and kept thinking that the left one looked like a little disco ball! So, I was pleasantly surprised when I got to the end of the thread and you picked the 1.07! Soooo, now I am patiently, or not so patiently waiting for pictures of your finished project! And of course you should post that beauty EVERWHERE! show me the ring, and in it's own thread, and I don't know...do we have a colored diamond thread somewhere? It should go there too... I absolutely love when you guys pick out your girls ring from start to finish all by yourselves! I'm too much of a control freak and had to offer guidance, ah who am I kidding, I picked it out myself , but anyway, how romantic! I'm very excited for you and Congrats, hurry and post some pics!

 

[TristanC]

Great news! I can't wait to see the end product, and that you're happier with the original choice! I loved the one on the left too, it has more smaller flashes, but it looked 'right' and the one of the right Did look yellower in the picture with the grey background.

Haha, I think in order to get everything that Kenny likes in one ring, you'd need a ring the size of a faberge egg... octavias, reds, pinks, oranges, greens, OECs, emerald cuts, blues, solasferas...

 

[kenny]

Haha, I think in order to get everything that Kenny likes in one ring, you'd need a ring the size of a faberge egg... octavias, reds, pinks, oranges, greens, OECs, emerald cuts, blues, solasferas...

Don't forget to put that Fabergé egg in a tension setting.

 

[SFGuy]

As requested, some photos. First, understand that this is one half of a wedding set (the e-ring only). To give you an idea of what the set will look like, here's the final CAD renderings:




And now, some photos of the e-ring:






I already own the complete set of pinks (plus a spare), and will be having the w-ring made after she says yes (hopefully!) and we get her sized.

I know the quality of my photos are no where near Kenny's, but I hope you can at least get a basic idea. I also had to reduce the size (and quality) dramatically to get them to upload to PS. BTW, there's a lot to love about PS, but the ICP is dreadful.

I am planning on proposing this Friday, so everyone keep quiet until then . I will see about more pictures sometime after the proposal, if people are interested. Also, anyone who wants to read about my proposal plans (and help me out with some advice), please feel free to have a look:

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/winery-proposal-plan.162594/

Thanks!

 

[SFGuy]

Wow, crickets? After all the requests for photos?

 

[yssie]

Eeeeep!!

The way the two rings fit together is such a neat design, too! Can't wait for handshots


I'm sure you'll get tons of responses in a few hours, give us down here in the peanut gallery some time to find the update
Or better yet start a new thread in SMTB, this ring certainly deserves one!

 

[kenny]

Well, if she says no I'll say yes.

Seriously, that's really an astonishingly fantastic ring set in every possible way.
If you are half as good as this ring she's a lucky girl!!!

Wow!

 

[kenny]

I also like that it will look incomplete until it is worn with the wedding band.
It's symbolic and very clever.

 

[slg47]

congratulations it turned out really nicely!

 

[Lula]

It's beautiful -- I love the pink diamonds. And the Octavia is throwing off sparkles even in the ring box! What an incredible cut. Best of luck to you on Friday -- please post an update after the proposal. And definitely start a thread in the Show me the Bling forum.

 

[Cehrabehra]

It's a great concept all put together beautifully!

 

[SFGuy]

Eeeeep!!

The way the two rings fit together is such a neat design, too! Can't wait for handshots


I'm sure you'll get tons of responses in a few hours, give us down here in the peanut gallery some time to find the update
Or better yet start a new thread in SMTB, this ring certainly deserves one!

I'll post more (including in SMTB) after the proposal. I wanted to give you guys an early taste since you've been so helpful.

 

[Rhino]

Gorgeous. Thanks for allowing us to be of service SFGuy. Congrats on your engagement!