Diamond Stud Earrings for 1st Anniversary

[lugerxu]

Hello all!

I find this site very informative! I received much needed help when I was shopping for my now wife''s e-ring a year ago. Our 1st anniversary is coming up and I wanted to give her a pair of diamond stud earrings. However, we''re pretty conservative on how we spend our money and didn''t want to blow our budget

With that in mind, I was hoping to find a pair between .50 and .66 tcw on a 14K white gold setting.

My first question, Is that "too small"???

Secondly, how much should I expect to pay for such a pair?

My final question...I know I can be a bit less strict on the color & clarity vs. buying a diamond for an e-ring, etc...What would be the safe restrictions on the color/clarity for diamonds for earrings?

Thanks in advance!

 

[widget]

Date: 7/11/2006 10:26:15 AM
Author:lugerxu
I was hoping to find a pair between .50 and .66 tcw on a 14K white gold setting.

My first question, Is that ''too small''???

Hi!

I don''t think anyone can answer that question, since it''s so much a matter of personal taste.

If it were me, I''d first try to figure out what size your wife would like "in her dreams", set my budget, and then start the search for the studs.

I''m one of those who think that a LOT of compromises can be made in choosing diamonds for studs that one wouldn''t want to make for a ring.

I think the secret is to find WELL CUT stones (In my opinion not necessarily H&As). With good cuts, you can go way down in color/clarity.

I bought a pair of studs for my niece from a dealer who specializes in finding well cut, eyeclean ''imperfect'' stones....they were G/I-1s...and I CANNOT overstate how impressed I was with them. (and I admit to being an insufferable jewelry snob). I was quite shocked, actually, at how good they looked.

I found this picture of "Shiny''s" .50ctw earings for size reference. They look pretty nice to me!

Good luck!
widget

 

[blodthecat]

Hi lugerxu

0.50 - .60ct would be gorgeous for earrings!

Widget is right, in that it does boil down to personal choice....but what women would turn her nose up at a nice pair of quality diamond studs............EXACTLY!

Blod

BTW....for earrings I would go as far as SI2 - possibly I1 and colour I-J-K (earrings don't come under close scrutiny)

 

[Regular Guy]

These Expert Selection options, particularly the martini style (they sport three now!) have been popular...and it looks like, for the size you have in mind, they run $350 - $520 or so....oops no...$800 - $1175.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

The other consideration is that if you buy two individual H&A stones from somewhere like GOG or WF, they''d be able to be upgraded to larger stones later on. But if you buy the ready-set-go, they can''t be upgraded and you''d have to start over in order to get her a larger pair later.

 

[Regular Guy]

Date: 7/11/2006 11:59:32 AM
Author: diamondseeker2006
The other consideration is that if you buy two individual H&A stones from somewhere like GOG or WF, they'd be able to be upgraded to larger stones later on. But if you buy the ready-set-go, they can't be upgraded and you'd have to start over in order to get her a larger pair later.

Absolutely. At these points sizes, though, hard to clearly compare options. Looking at the search by cut db here, you can't get a single diamond below $400, and you can't touch a G color, in house, below $500, which the WF expert selections are. And that's for one, not two, and without earring apparatus.

I am sorry my wife doesn't have pierced ears.

Oops...my bad. Change expert selections to $800 - $1175 (fixed above). Review Diamondseekers advice again, sorry.

 

[Lorelei]

You can make some compromizes for sure with colour and clarity, as suggested above SI2 or even I1 clarity, lower in colour too would be fine. Get the best cut you can, not necessarily H&A but Expert Selection is a great choice or look around to find a well cut pair if you can - would require more legwork than pre set. The size you said is a nice size, is that the size your wife has in mind do you think? I always think the most important thing with diamond studs is to keep them clean as they attract dirt and oil so easily, so you might want to get your wife a jewellery spa to go with them!

ETA - here are the ones Diamondseeker was recommending. Check out this page for ideas for settings and prices.



http://www.whiteflash.com/Fine-jewelry/Diamond_Studs/Expert-Selection-Ready-set-to-GO_950.htm