shape
carat
color
clarity

Emerald for engagement ring?

Venture

Rough_Rock
Joined
May 23, 2011
Messages
2
Hi all,

I have a question regarding emeralds. I want to buy an engagement ring for my girlfriend, I want to buy her
an emerald ring with diamonds either side. having done some reading around the stones, I have seen emerald
is only 7 -10 on the hardness scale, does this mean it's a bad idea to have for an everyday (and hopefully
for a long time) item of jewelery? Does it run the risk of getting damaged easily because it's not as hard?

Any other useful info on emeralds is also gratefully received, I don't want to spend my hard earned and saved
money on the wrong thing.

Thanks

Dave
 

kenny

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Apr 30, 2005
Messages
33,221
Yes, softer means it is easier to scratch so unless she is royalty and doesn't have to use here hands much I'd go with a harder stone, perhaps sapphire or Diamond for a lifetime of daily wear.
 

SB621

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Aug 25, 2009
Messages
7,864
You can also go with another green colored stone. I can think of at least 2 ladies on here who have wonderful green colored erings.
 

LD

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jun 29, 2008
Messages
10,261
My mother wore an Emerald ring with diamond sides for over 40 years. The only damage is a tiny chip to the girdle (it's mine now). However, she knew how to care for her Emerald and was incredibly light on her rings. She took every precaution.

Is it generally recommended as an engagement ring? No because it can chip and is more prone to this than a sapphire for example. Having said that, all gemstones including diamonds can fracture, break or chip if hit in the right direction at the right point.

The majority of people on this forum will only say that a diamond, sapphire, ruby or chrysoberyl are good for everyday wear. However, that discounts tons of gemstones. If you do buy an Emerald just read up on how to care for it and make sure it's properly insured so if anything happens you may be able to claim.
 

Pandora II

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Aug 3, 2006
Messages
9,613
I have a garnet (tsavorite) as my e-ring which is soft at a 7.5 on the Mohs, but unlike emerald it isn't brittle nor does it have cleavage.

I only wear it when I go out, otherwise it goes straight in a box as soon as I come through the front door.

If you are light on your jewellery and want to wear it the way I wear mine then I would say to go ahead. If on the other hand you want a ring you can wear most of the time then go ahead if you are prepared for a possible nasty accident. Some people get away with it, others don't. My cousin has an aquamarine e-ring and gave up wearing it after 6 years and two recuts as it chipped so often. Now she just brings it out for special occasions.
 

wakingdreams53

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jul 27, 2010
Messages
891
I second what everyone has said so far. But also, I've been wearing a .3ct antique emerald ring for over 2 years now (the ring itself is at least 60 years). I abuse it, take it everywhere- ocean, pool, shower, etc., and there has been no damage done. It's also about 7mm off my finger, so its not "low" and therefore protected. That said, if it were a bigger stone, it probably would be much more prone to damage.

As Pandora mentioned hardness and durability are two different things. Someone recently posted a great article on the matter.
Nonetheless, good luck with your search! Pricescope is an invaluable resource!
 

Venture

Rough_Rock
Joined
May 23, 2011
Messages
2
A big thank you to all of you for your expertise and support.
You have kind of confirmed in my mind that perhaps emereald is not ideal for my purposes (thank you for giving me hope LOVING DIAMONDS but she's not the careful type), I don't want her to have to be worried about taking off he ring or worrying about damaging it, for me I think that detracts from it's meaning if it becomes a chore not a pleasure to wear. I am now leaning towards a tsavorite as it has the same colour which I was after but is more durable and so a little more evryday.
I have found this site http://www.lapigems.com/tsavorite_buying_guide.asp and have read up on some of the other forum posts on pricescope regarding tsavorite which have all been really helpful. Now all I need to do is get to my jeweler and ask if he can get hold of some stones.
Thanks again for your help, I'll post a pic here once I have got the ring.
 

LD

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jun 29, 2008
Messages
10,261
Venture - you still need to be careful with Tsavorite. If you read back over Pandora's post you'll see that she has a Tsav engagement ring but is super careful with that also.

Hope that helps.
 

Pandora II

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Aug 3, 2006
Messages
9,613
Tsavorite is absolutely not a 24/7 ring. I am super careful with mine and even so it has a fairly big scratch that eventually I'll have polished out. I did an e-ring for a friend that had an oval tsav with a halo and she wore it 24/7 for 6 weeks... she chipped it and now says she wishes she'd listened to me and now takes it off when she gets home.

IMHO, no ring should be worn all the time as it's bad for the setting let alone the stone. You are unlikely to scratch a diamond but chipping the girdle is a risk. Sapphires stand up well to wear - but again there is wear and wear... my grandmother (having smashed up the first stone) has had a sapphire in her e-ring. Twenty years ago it was a faceted stone, after 20 years of wear (including gardening) it is now a cabochon... she has worn away every single facet on it!

To spell out how I wear my tsavorite: I wear it when I leave the house, but keep a box in my bag in case I am doing things like carrying heavy bags of shopping that could distort the setting. The only time I wear it at home is when we have people round for dinner, otherwise it goes straight in its box when I walk through the door. I agree that I may be obsessively careful, but I am sentimental about my e-ring and don't want to replace it if I can help it - plus it wouldn't be easy to find another stone the same as mine.

Unfortunately there isn't a 'green' green stone that is inherently wearable - green sapphires are normally pretty murky and even the best don't come close to a tsavorite. Demantoid is even more delicate than tsavorite. Chrysoberyl tends to be on the yellow side of green. Zircon is susceptible to chipping and abrading, chrome diopside is far too soft for an e-ring. Chrome Tourmaline is an option but will need the same care as a tsavorite...

If you do want to go with a tsavorite I would hazard a guess that you'll get a better choice and price online than you will going via a jeweller unless they really know their coloured stones. Most jewellers I go in to admire my lovely emerald... say no more! I would also go with a protective setting if she would want to wear it most of the time and be prepared to perhaps repolish every so often or potentially replace the stone if something awful happens.

Don't get the idea that it is like wearing a fragile piece of glass - it is a rock after all - but it isn't a stone that likes to be bashed about.
 
Be a part of the community Get 3 HCA Results
Top