Yes, I would get the matching band as well.
Engagement Ring Help
- Thread starter Matty23
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Thanks for your replies! I am hoping to stick with the I color and am checking on the eye clean status of the 1.923 to start. It seems that a lot of people think that would be a fine choice so I am leaning towards that as of right now!
Thank you for this information. It is very helpful to remind myself that carat is simply referring to the weight. I would completely forget about how important the dimensions are without you guys.Yes, definitely LOOK AT DIMENSIONS! Carat weight is deceiving. You have to remember carat weight is derived by taking both the length (L) and width (W) measurements from the horizontal plane and multiplying them by the depth (D) in the vertical plane.
That said, some of the weight is eaten up in the vertical plane that you never see. This is why there is hardly any visual difference between stones that are SIMILAR in carat weight.
When I bought my girl's diamond, I was trying to decide between two stones and actually chose the lesser carat weight (yet it had larger L x W dimensions). Very minor differences, but nonetheless, larger even though it had less weight. That had to do with a variation on angles, table size, etc.
Please reach out to DK and get a quote for him to build the ring. DK's quality is superb and his pricing is very, very reasonable.
Depending on his response, it may put you in budget for the bigger J VS2!
Agree about putting the 1.923 on hold. It's a good choice, assuming it's truly eye clean.
In fairness @SimoneDi, if we go by the OP's SO wants, the 1.923 isn't acceptable either as it's not > or = 2 carats.
More to the point, I never implied the 1.826ct was the same size as a 2 carat stone. I said, and stand behind, there is a very, very minor difference between the 1.826 and 1.923 stones. If the 1.923 doesn't work because of eye clean reasons, the 1.826 is still a good option that gets him CLOSE to budget and size preference and gives him VS2 clarity which he prefers. Assuming the 1.890 stone is eye clean, it is even closer to the 1.923 stone size although it drops him to SI1 clarity.
Today there is not anything closer to the 2 carat range in the OP's price range than the 2.108 J that I already posted. Dimensions on it are slightly larger than a true 2 carat, although the differences between a 2.02 ct and 2.108 carat would be minimal as well.
Either way, so that no further assumptions are made concerning size I am sharing another screen capture showing the worst case size differences of the actual dimensions of the 1.826 stone and the average dimensions of a 2 carat stone. However, to be even more transparent, here is what diamdb kicked back as the dimensions:
1.826ct = 7.81 x 7.83 x 4.84
2.000ct = 8.19 x 8.19 x 4.94
As we can all clearly see, there is a size difference. I would prefer the larger stone myself, and when compared side to side I do believe it's significant. However, if budget was killing me, I could live with a 1.826, 1.923 or 1.890 carat stone and be rather happy.
While the 2 carat is important to her- it was not as though anything less would be insufficient. If it is a negligible difference, we would both be more than okay going down a bit as I am leaning towards doing that.
Thanks again!
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I agree that the 1.923 I is a fabulous compromise. It will look like a 2 ct stone and be plenty white. I would certainly get a quote from David Klass on the setting and band. That would be a relatively easy style to duplicate (esp for DK, as he's done many Tiffany repros in the past... check out his IG page). I feel he could give you a better price and even tweak it a bit -- like make the shank narrower to give the illusion of a larger center stone, for example. But that's for another day. Ask about the 1.923 I first.
I agree that the 1.923 I is a fabulous compromise. It will look like a 2 ct stone and be plenty white. I would certainly get a quote from David Klass on the setting and band. That would be a relatively easy style to duplicate (esp for DK, as he's done many Tiffany repros in the past... check out his IG page). I feel he could give you a better price and even tweak it a bit -- like make the shank narrower to give the illusion of a larger center stone, for example. But that's for another day. Ask about the 1.923 I first.
So I have question about this. If DK is able to do a comparable setting... what would be the best way of getting the diamond and his setting put together? Would I order them separately or get one and send it to other? I was hoping to have this done within 2 and half weeks so I can propose right away but maybe that is not realistic!
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Totally agree @msop04. Skinny it up and smooth it out a tad and a totally sexy beast. Probably under budget too.
Fingers crossed the 1.923 is truly eye clean.
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WF can send the stone straight to LA to DK... then DK will send you the finished piece. I know it can sound scary, but DO NOT WORRY... it's done all. the. time.
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RE the time frame... If there is no real significance to the date you imagined you'd propose, then I'd just wait a few more weeks. No need to rush for rushing's sake, KWIM?? It will be worth it, I promise!
ETA: DK is pretty damn fast... esp for the great quality of his work. Should you use him, ask for his "uber bench"...
ETA: DK is pretty damn fast... esp for the great quality of his work. Should you use him, ask for his "uber bench"...
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I went through a similar process, except I bought my stone from BGD and had DK do a custom setting.
It was super easy. Bought & paid for the BGD stone. BGD held it in their safe until DK and I had completed the design process and DK needed it to set. BGD then shipped overnight directly to DK. At which point DK set the main stone and finished cleaning things up and then shipped the completed ring to me.
Ahh that makes me feel so much better. I really hope it is!
It can wait a few weeks. I just wish I didn't have to! But I agree, it would be worth it so no worries at all.
That is very reassuring. Okay, this is great info. I would have never thought to go this route. Even better if it saves some dough!
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I was planning on it as I want to save every penny I can- but thank you for the reassurance. That is good to hear as it is indeed a lot of money to send somewhere you have never physically visited!
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I think you will be very happy if you go this route. However, you should reach out to them now and ask for a price quote. You can simply send them some pictures of the setting.
Also, ask them to quote the ring in both platinum and their special white gold (WG)/palladium alloy. I ended up using their WG/palladium alloy for my girl's ring because she wanted the "shiny" of WG, but I couldn't stand traditional WG with rhodium plating, as it requires re-plating. The WG/palladium alloy DK uses is not plated and does not require re-plating.
The upcharge to platinum was only $200 more. Had my girl not wanted shiny and DK not recommended their WG/palladium alloy for structural reasons with her unique design, then I would have been all over the platinum option.
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@Matty23, I really believe that setting can be made much more refined. Small changes will give the same look, only elevated. She'll notice that it's not exactly the same in small ways... she'll see it's better. I don't want to get off topic too much, since this is a "diamond hunt" thread, but I urge you to come back and post CADs from DK, should you choose to go that route. Slimming the shank, cleaner lines, and a smooth transition from the head to the shank will make Tiffany & Co. wish they'd done it differently -- and we live for this stuff! HA!
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No problem. Glad to help.
If it helps any with your cash situation, DK did not charge me a dime until the design was complete and the ring was done. Amy @ DK sent me glamour photos and a video of it all together and said if it was acceptable then to complete payment and she would ship out that night. I was happy to oblige of course.
I thought this aspect was pretty cool of them because so many people seem to want you to pay upfront, or at least a decent sized deposit so you don't back out.
Wow, that sounds like excellent customer service. I like the sound of giving a place like that my business!
They came back with this as an alternative...
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3653229.htm
Obviously it is quite a bit more expensive but they said it is eye clean and faces up at 8MM.
My question to you would be if this is a beauty or not? If so, I could potentially ask my Dad for a friendly loan even though I was trying to avoid this route but it seems like there are not a plethora of options other than going to the 1.8 range or going down to J for color.
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3653229.htm
Obviously it is quite a bit more expensive but they said it is eye clean and faces up at 8MM.
My question to you would be if this is a beauty or not? If so, I could potentially ask my Dad for a friendly loan even though I was trying to avoid this route but it seems like there are not a plethora of options other than going to the 1.8 range or going down to J for color.
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Did they explain what the issue was? It looks super clean in the photo... ??
They said that the gemological team could pick up on the inclusions at 10 inches without magnification.
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Well, of course there's no question about this one... it's an ACA. All ACA's are eye clean.
The question is can you swing the extra $2K for it, assuming DK would be less expensive on the setting and band? Only you can answer that.
Okay, I may be mistaken about the "all ACA's are eye clean" part... don't quote me on that. LOL
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Bummer...
Would you be willing to have WF ship it to you so that could examine the stone with your girlfriend? You both may feel it's fine. If not, then you can simply send it back.
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Sorry to hear this! I know it can be frustrating and disappointing to hear that sort of news when you were getting excited about the option. Did they happen to give you details that you care to share?
LOL, by the way....that 1.957 is one I had also suggested earlier.
If you want to avoid the loan, you could consider the 1.890 carat. There is a difference of 0.06 x 0.09mm which isn't detectable to the human eye. It's your next best choice to meet your budget constraints assuming it's eye clean (which the WF page says "yes" it's eye clean -- still need them to pull and confirm though, IMO).
If that isn't satisfactory and you are considering a loan from dad that kind of puts the 2.108ct J VS2 back on the table too, although I understand your concern with color. Still, WF's gemologist could pull that 1.890, 1.957 and 2.108 and compare all 3 at the same time for some real valuable feedback.
Just a thought.
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FYI, the 1.923 was also an ACA.
Some of their ACA's aren't eye clean. You will see "inquire" in the Eye Clean box on their page when there are issues. But I do agree that a TRAINED gemologist is saying it's not eye clean. That is why I asked what they said specifically. It may be okay for the average Joe, if they aren't sensitive to inclusions. Still, their social circle may be more sensitive and see the inclusions. That is the issue I'd worry about.
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Not all ACAS are eye clean unfortunately. WF has a definition of eyeclean that a person with normal 20/20 vision cannot see inclusions at 10" under normal overhead lighting.
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Yeah, I realized that about 10 seconds after I posted. Honestly, I'm a little shocked that they'd brand a stone ACA that they didn't feel eye clean...
Past, Present, Future: The Meaning of Three-Stone Engagement Rings
Past, Present, Future: The Meaning of Three-Stone Engagement Rings - 04/14
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