Does anyone have experience with Leigh Jay Nacht?

[takemymoney]

Has anyone purchased or tried on a ring from Leigh Jay Nacht? I love their designs, but while browsing their website, I noticed the settings in the photos sometimes appear a bit rugged and not as consistent or crisp as I’d expect. I’m curious about the quality or craftsmanship of their rings. Thank you in advance!

 

[glitterata]

Has anyone purchased or tried on a ring from Leigh Jay Nacht? I love their designs, but while browsing their website, I noticed the settings in the photos sometimes appear a bit rugged and not as consistent or crisp as I’d expect. I’m curious about the quality or craftsmanship of their rings. Thank you in advance!

If you're talking about their replica rings (not their actual vintage/antique rings), your assessment is right. Unless things have changed since I bought my setting there many years ago, the repro rings are pretty good, but they're lightweight, and they're cast, not hand engraved. The craftsmanship is not all that impressive. Everything's a bit blurry and blobby.

I had an heirloom diamond set in one of their Edwardian repro platinum settings back in the early 2000s. It was a cast of an original antique. It looked nice enough from normal viewing distance, a little crude close up or through a loupe, but not bad. I meant it to be a temporary setting until I figured out something better to do with the heirloom diamond. I ended up leaving the diamond in there for 20-some years. I wore it a lot, and the setting held up well, no complaints. Then I happened upon the perfect antique setting for my heirloom diamond, which left the Leigh Jay Nacht setting empty, so I put a lab OMC in it. I don't wear it very often. It feels ersatz to me--why wear a repro diamond in a repro setting, when I could wear the real thing?

I'm not sure if they still sell the replica settings on their own, without stones set in them. You might have to buy the stone from them too.

If you're looking for something exquisitely made, keep looking. I was looking for something cheap, yet good enough to tide me over until I found something I really loved, and it did that job very well for a couple of decades.