Design help - yellow pear

[pierrotlunette]

Hi Folks,
A few weeks ago, several of you were very helpful when my fiance and I were looking for a yellow oval stone for the foundation of my engagement ring. After a pretty exhaustive search, ordering and comparing a number of different stones, we wound up with a beautiful fancy light yellow pear that we're in love with and are now trying to set (shout out, by the way, to Dani Ganz at Leibish, who has provided incredibly attentive and excellent customer service).

We don't live in an area saturated with reliable benches, so we will probably use a non-local designer. I have a price quote on the following settings from Leibish, which unfortunately comes out about $1K above our $1500 - $1700 setting budget. My preference is for the first setting, which I think works best with the sparkle of the modified pear and looks comparatively seamless. The second was kind of a lark - I was curious what a baguette and round setting would look like, but I think the first setting is more elegant.




The stone specs are as follows: FLY Pear, 1.09 carats, VVS1, 9.25 x 5.54 x 3.23.

The suggested setting for the first ring would be:
Two side diamonds, F+ preferable, Clarity – VS 1-2, Total weight: around .40 carats, or .20 carats each
Round brilliants, F+ preferable, VS1-2 clarity, estimated total weight .10 carats (.05 pointers, if I’m not mistaken).

I have reached out to a few jewelers - David Klass, Ilya Kunin at Ivy and Rose, and Jewels by Grace. Klass is away until the 23rd of August, but JbG and Ilya were both immediately responsive and came in within our budget. My instinct right now is to go with Ilya, but I have read a few posts on here about his settings being thinner than normal and that has me a little cautious. I am, however, really impressed by how immediately and thoughtfully he has responded to all of my questions and have the impression he'll be very easy to work with.

I'd appreciate any responses from those who know his work and could comment on it directly, particularly if comparing it to DK (a week's wait won't make a huge difference for us one way or another). I'd also welcome any input on the above designs, things to consider when going the custom route, etc. There seems to be such a HUGE range in designing a ring (in this case, $3k vs. $1.5k for the same ring) that I want to be certain I'm asking all of the right questions.

Thank you again to everyone here - you're a wonderful source of information!

 

[lovedogs]

I can't offer specific advice per say, since I am not one of the resident experts about going custom. However, I think both of the settings above are gorgeous. The first is more "classic", whereas the second is more "edgy". I like both, but I think for an engagement ring I'd lean towards the first.

In terms of DK vs. Ivy and Rose I've heard good things about both of them. I've had a few CS rings done by Ivy and Rose and have always found them responsive, fair, and helpful. I've spoken with DK a few times, but never worked with him. I've very rarely heard anything negative about him, so I wouldn't hesitate to do a project with him in the future.

It's definitely important to ask all relevant questions to make sure you get a piece that will last and be high quality, but I think you're going about this the right way and asking the right people for quotes. Hopefully others can chime in about the specific questions you should be asking!

 

[pierrotlunette]

I can't offer specific advice per say, since I am not one of the resident experts about going custom. However, I think both of the settings above are gorgeous. The first is more "classic", whereas the second is more "edgy". I like both, but I think for an engagement ring I'd lean towards the first.

In terms of DK vs. Ivy and Rose I've heard good things about both of them. I've had a few CS rings done by Ivy and Rose and have always found them responsive, fair, and helpful. I've spoken with DK a few times, but never worked with him. I've very rarely heard anything negative about him, so I wouldn't hesitate to do a project with him in the future.

It's definitely important to ask all relevant questions to make sure you get a piece that will last and be high quality, but I think you're going about this the right way and asking the right people for quotes. Hopefully others can chime in about the specific questions you should be asking!

Thank you for weighing in! You know, I spent a lot of time on here years ago (when it was Diamond Talk) and my (now) ex-husband and I were putting together my e-ring. I learned so much from these boards that made me a better educated consumer. In the ensuing years, though, I've learned that the devil really is in the details and that it's better to ask, ask, ask to be certain what you're paying for.

Re: the weight of a setting: my old e-ring is a Tacori type setting (it's not Tacori, but I'm not sure who designed it) in platinum that weighs a TON. In comparison, I have a Beverley K ring in white gold that probably weighs half of that setting, despite the fact that it's larger and has many more diamonds in the design. I much prefer wearing the lighter Beverley K one (although the Tacori-type one feels like it would survive an apocalypse).

 

[KKJohnson]

I would go with the 3 stone halo then see about getting a wedding band in the mixed stone shape style. Best of both worlds

 

[tyty333]

I would think that second setting would be more expensive with the baguettes. I like them both but the first one looks more like an ering to me.
I think the light weighted-ness people have talked about with I&R is more with their pre-made designs. If you're having something custom made you'll
be able to tell him how thick you want the bands etc. You need to see some pictures of rings they've done with halo to see how their pave work is.

 

[pierrotlunette]

I would think that second setting would be more expensive with the baguettes. I like them both but the first one looks more like an ering to me.
I think the light weighted-ness people have talked about with I&R is more with their pre-made designs. If you're having something custom made you'll
be able to tell him how thick you want the bands etc. You need to see some pictures of rings they've done with halo to see how their pave work is.

That's something I'd not considered. I'll reach out to Ilya and ask for some photos of other halos they have done.

 

[pierrotlunette]

Turned over another stone today - sent a request to Steven Kirsh. He came out at a full $3k above the Leibish quote - i.e., just the price for him to do the semi-mount was $5700. Back to the drawing board.