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does anyone have either of these three tension settings?

A

anooshka

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 15, 2013
Messages
20
I need to get some perspective on how they actually look on the hand:


http://www.whiteflash.com/engagement-rings/solitaire/lilly-solitaire-engagement-ring-300.htm

http://www.briangavindiamonds.com/engagement-rings/spiral-of-love-platinum-5380p

http://www.jamesallen.com/engagement-rings/tension/platinum-spiral-solitaire-engagement-ring-item-1438

I am considering re-setting my 1.63 ct round brilliant engagement ring and I"m considering the above three as some options as well as the Shold semi-bezel (Ava). I just want something without prongs and don't want a full bezel.


Thanks for your help!
 
I have a tension setting similar to one of these but not the actual ones you picked. From what I can tell, all the ones you picked are not true tension setting, they have a piece of metal on the underside so the rock is not really held in tension.

Nothing wrong with that, just be aware that its more of a faux tension setting and it will be a little harder to clean the underside of the diamond as well as not letting in the maximum amount of light from all sides.
 
None of those 3 are tension setting because they all have metal under the diamond.
A tension setting has no metal under the diamond.
Only the diamond bridges the gap.

Why did you think these were tension settings?
None of those 3 vendors say they are tension settings.

#1, White flash calls that setting a "tension style setting".

#2 Brian Gavin Diamonds calls theirs a "tension design".

I think it is misleading that WF and BG use the term tension. :nono: :nono: :nono:

#3, James Allen calls it a, "unique, modern design" … but not a tension setting.

We have had three real tension settings for years.
Here are two of them.
I love them and they are a breeze to clean and a joy the behold and IMO are much safer for the diamond than prong settings are.
They also let more light into and out of all of the diamond. :appl:

The only companies I'd trust to make one of these specialized tension setting is those who specialize in them … Gelin Abaci, Boonerings, Steven Kretchmer and Niessing.

screen_shot_2013-11-11_at_3.png
 
You are all right, they are "tension style" and not a true tension. I did know that; I just wasn't specific enough with my question. I actually like that it's held on the underside with some more metal.
That said, I just mostly wanted to see some handshots of that style that I posted. I don't love the true tension styles because most of them have quite a wide band where the band meets the stone. Does that make sense?

So, any thoughts on this "tension style"?
Can anyone share hand shots of a similar setting?


Thanks everyone for your help and the above links.
 
kenny|1384169109|3554229 said:
None of those 3 are tension setting because they all have metal under the diamond.
A tension setting has no metal under the diamond.
Only the diamond bridges the gap.

Why did you think these were tension settings?
None of those 3 vendors say they are tension settings.

#1, White flash calls that setting a "tension style setting".

#2 Brian Gavin Diamonds calls theirs a "tension design".

I think it is misleading that WF and BG use the term tension. :nono: :nono: :nono:

#3, James Allen calls it a, "unique, modern design" … but not a tension setting.

We have had three real tension settings for years.
Here are two of them.
I love them and they are a breeze to clean and a joy the behold and IMO are much safer for the diamond than prong settings are.
They also let more light into and out of all of the diamond. :appl:

The only companies I'd trust to make one of these specialized tension setting is those who specialize in them … Gelin Abaci, Boonerings, Steven Kretchmer and Niessing.
Click to expand...


Kenny, thanks for the above. I do have a question regarding what you mentioned about the true tension setting letting in more light into and out of the diamond from all sides. I was under the impression that the brilliance of the stone was really only from the face up and how much light enters and leaves the stone from the top of the stone? Because otherwise, wouldn't a bezel diamond be completely blocked out? Thanks :)
 
hi anooshka - I own a ring that is similar in appearance to the ones in your links. It is a true tension-set by Gelin & Abachi.

I *love* the look of this style on the hand, it looks great with my .65 carat diamond, and I think the style would look *super* with a 1.63 diamond! Just as important to me as the looks is the comfort of the ring, it never spins, is weighty, and is perfect...and it gets me loads of compliments. If you put a well-cut larger stone like yours in this setting, it will look fab on your hand. I am with the others, if it is affordable for you, I'd go for the true tension set if you go this route. Here is my ring, it is 14K white gold. I am mainly a lover of antique, detailed settings which sit low on the hand, but there are a few modern settings which I love as much, and this is one of them.

gelin.jpg
 
anooshka|1384185342|3554318 said:
Kenny, thanks for the above. I do have a question regarding what you mentioned about the true tension setting letting in more light into and out of the diamond from all sides. I was under the impression that the brilliance of the stone was really only from the face up and how much light enters and leaves the stone from the top of the stone? Because otherwise, wouldn't a bezel diamond be completely blocked out? Thanks :)
Click to expand...

Yes, well cut diamonds direct almost all the light that enters the top back out the top.
Cut-rating tools like the HCA and the Idealscope only pay attention to light coming out of the top, or the face-up position.

BUT

95% of the time I see my diamond I didn't flip my wrist up to get a proper on-axis face up view.
I see it from off-axis or the side so the pavilion is visible.
When in the sun or under spotlighting the pavilion of the diamond also gives off plenty of fire and sparkle.
Since light entering the top almost all comes back out the top (if well-cut) it it seems reasonable to me that the fire coming from the pavilion also must have entered the diamond at the pavilion.

A tension setting allows more light to enter at the pavilion and get out the pavilion.

That lets me see more of the light show that I paid for, compared to a conventional setting.
A tension-setting-look setting may look like a tension setting from the top but that metal around the pavilion is blocking some of the light on its way and out of the pavilion.
Face up the light show coming from both settings should be the same, but again in real life the pavilion is also performing better in a tension setting.
You could think of conventional settings as having a shade that covers part of a window, a gold or platinum shade. ;)

With no metal in the way, tension settings are a breeze to clean.
20 seconds and it looks like it was professionally cleaned.
After wearing one for almost 10 years I'm a passionate fan of them.
 
Sky56|1384191956|3554361 said:
hi anooshka - I own a ring that is similar in appearance to the ones in your links. It is a true tension-set by Gelin & Abachi.

I *love* the look of this style on the hand, it looks great with my .65 carat diamond, and I think the style would look *super* with a 1.63 diamond! Just as important to me as the looks is the comfort of the ring, it never spins, is weighty, and is perfect...and it gets me loads of compliments. If you put a well-cut larger stone like yours in this setting, it will look fab on your hand. I am with the others, if it is affordable for you, I'd go for the true tension set if you go this route. Here is my ring, it is 14K white gold. I am mainly a lover of antique, detailed settings which sit low on the hand, but there are a few modern settings which I love as much, and this is one of them.
Click to expand...


Sky, that's really, REALLY helpful info and the picture is gorgeous. Thanks so much!! I just don't like the look of prongs, so either the Sholdt Semi Bezel or a style such as your seems to be the route I'd have to go with. I love that you mentioned it doesn't spin! I hate the fact that even though my current ring fits, it spins on my finger. Would you by any chance have any side shots of the ring on your hand? I'm curious to know how high the band sits and if any of the stone is visible from the side?
 
Kenny, thanks for that! I appreciate your thoughts. Do you happen to have any pictures of your ring? And as far as security, are tension set rings as secure as other settings?? My ring is ensured, but I'd like to get as secure a setting as possible.
 
A ring with no connection under the diamond is the usual way we say a ring is a pure Tension design. However, rings with a connector underneath our encircling the diamond from below also may be using the same direction of tension to hold the diamond in place. The downside to pure tension settings are the problems associated with re-sizing as such rings need to be returned to their maker for rather costly re-working. A semi-tension setting can likely be sized by pretty much any skilled bench mechanic at a much lower expense.

While I love the purity and simplicity of the pure tension designs, but they do have some negative features which must be properly serviced by experts. The slightly less sophisticated, semi-tension designs, may look identical on the finger to some pure tension styles and are somewhat less tricky in the long term. Like most stories, there are two sides.
 
anooshka|1384195139|3554389 said:
Kenny, thanks for that! I appreciate your thoughts. Do you happen to have any pictures of your ring? And as far as security, are tension set rings as secure as other settings?? My ring is ensured, but I'd like to get as secure a setting as possible.
Click to expand...

Tension settings look scary but IMO prongs are much more likely to fail than a beefy massive tension setting.
I can't count how many threads we've had from gals losing their diamonds and they have no idea how the prongs got bent.
Prongs can catch and bend while just putting on a sweater.

Bending a tension setting would require a major trauma like slamming your hand in a car door.
You'd know it!

If you like insurance, that may give you peace of mind, for either a prong or a tension setting.

Since you asked I'll get some pics up later.
 
Here are seven pics I dug up since you asked.

Platinum Gelin Abaci holding a 0.83 carat round.



Next 3 pics are a titanium Boonerings holding a 1.34 carat Octavia Asscher.

screen_shot_2013-11-11_at_11.png

screen_shot_2013-11-11_at_0.png

screen_shot_2013-11-11_at_1.png

screen_shot_2013-11-11_at_2.png
 
Left is a titanium Boonering holding a 2.26 carat asscher, right is titanium Boonerings holding that 1.34 ct Octavia Asscher.





Platinum Gelin Aabaci on left Titanium Boonring on right.

screen_shot_2013-11-11_at_12.png

screen_shot_2013-11-11_at_4.png

screen_shot_2013-11-11_at_5.png
 
Kenny, your rings are gorgeous!!! :love:

I love Boone's stone-set tension settings for their simplicity and elegant lines, and am hoping to have some made in the future for day time wear, got a pearl with sentimental value for the Helixx design as a starter.

DK :))
 
kenny's rings and pictures are always wonderful. I will try to post a side-view picture of my ring tomorrow or the next day. 8-)
 
hi anooshka - Here are two pictures of side views of my ring.

gelin_side_1.jpg

gelin_side_2.jpg
 
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