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getting the most "bang" for your buck?

lulu66

lulu66

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
May 21, 2009
Messages
1,304
hi all! not in this neck of the woods very often but thought i would pose a question. my parents 40th wedding anniversary is approaching & my mother would like a piece of jewelry to mark the occassion. when i pressed my father for a budget, he said he doesn't want to go very much over $1,000. (is there an eyeroll emotie? LOL) i tried to tell him this is going to be tough because gold & diamond prices have risen so much, but he doesn't seem to want to budge. she has a 1cttw 5 stone band in yellow gold from their 25th anniversary. she has 1cttw diamond studs. she wears yellow gold, white gold, sterling, diamonds, rubies, semi-precious. her original "want" was a oval 3 stone w/ruby, emerald, and citrine (her & my dad's birthstone, plus citrine for their anniversary month) in white gold. after i told her this would look like a stop light she backed away from that idea. she loves my little white gold diamond stacker eternity band from LOGR. but i don't think it's "enough" for a 40th anniversary gift. i saw a white gold round diamond 1cttw eternity ring on dover for around our price range. but i've never dealt with them before.

just wanting to poke other people's brains for ideas. anything come to anyone's mind? i'd like it to be nice & in my dad's budget (i guess), but honestly she's not a diamond "snob" by any means (meaning she doesn't know much about them aside from what i tell her). TIA for any help/ideas!
 
DB or eBay, 2nd hand is the best bang.. Pawn shops?
 
Hello. Is buying used/vintage an option? Like maybe a piece that is about 40 years old? I think that maybe a way of getting more bang for your buck. First thought that came to mind. Have you checked Diamond Bistro?
 
Well I'm a colored stone lover, and an emerald, citrine and ruby ring sounds lovely. Depending on the size and quality of the stones it may or may not be prohibitive. A few years back I had Wink Jones make a grandmother's pendant that was in 14K gold with 4 mm round stones for what your budget is and I would highly recommend him.

If your mom likes diamonds and necklaces, perhaps a small diamond solitaire necklace? It would have to be on the small size however (1/3 carat?). Or a classic gold chain sans diamonds?

If you know your mother's ring size it wouldn't hurt to browse the preloved site or other sites.

Good luck I hope you find something your mother would love and fits the budget!
 
Perhaps a classic Cartier trinity ring? The presentation is beautiful and there are a few symbolic meanings to the design (past, present, future or friendship, love, loyalty) that work well for an anniversary.

Or, if I had a 1k budget, I'd get a 18k yellow gold pendant with a large colored stone. So, maybe an amethyst, tourmaline, zircon, morganite, etc. in that price range. Or a large South Sea pearl. :)
 
gms2011|1348978029|3276709 said:
Or a large South Sea pearl. :)
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That's what I would do. My mum recently ordered me one as a graduation gift, with the intent for me to wear it for life.

Either a white or golden south sea pearl would be beautiful. Something like these would fit in your budget nicely if you increase the size of the pearl as much as your budget allows (probably to 12-13mm), and be impressive:

http://www.pearlparadise.com/Romantic-Collection-White-South-Sea-Pearl--Diamond-Pendant1034.aspx

http://www.pearlparadise.com/Harmony-Collection-Golden-South-Sea-Pearl--Diamond-Pendant3615.aspx

http://www.purepearls.com/white-south-sea-glimmer-pendant-aaa.html

http://www.purepearls.com/gss-diamond-bezel-pdt-10-13-mm-aaa-18k.html

I've heard good things about both of those stores, however I like the advantage of Pure Pearls that you can get quite a few styles in 18k gold, and can easily choose your preferred overtone of the pearl.
 
Hello!
What about a locket on a long necklace with "40" engraved on the back and their wedding picture inside? :love:
 
Rubies-R-Me|1349014203|3276803 said:
Hello!
What about a locket on a long necklace with "40" engraved on the back and their wedding picture inside? :love:
Click to expand...


thank you for all the ideas! i'll check out diamond bistro...ebay generally intimidates me for jewelery purchases. i'm wondering about a diamond solitaire pendant, that could be lovely & classic. I LOVE the idea of the locket. my wheels are turning a bit now...

keep the ideas coming, though.
 
lulu66|1348956867|3276614 said:
...my parents 40th wedding anniversary is approaching...
Click to expand...
:appl: Congratulations to them!

lulu66 said:
...her original "want" was a oval 3 stone w/ruby, emerald, and citrine...
Click to expand...
Maybe a pendant with a small emerald at the top, then a tiny diamond, then a slightly bigger ruby, then another tiny diamond, then a bigger citrine at the bottom? You could have an even graduation in size, or have the citrine be large in comparison to the other gems.
It might look less like a traffic light to go green white red white yellow.

I like the pearl idea too. Love pearls.

The locket is a very nice idea. You could get a small ruby and emerald sunk into the front by a good jeweler.
 
thanks for all your idea!

i like the semi-bezel pendant for myself....focus, focus! LOL. i browsed through several places yesterday & think i might have found something my mom would love that is only slightly over budget. i have to run it past Dad & get the ok. i will def update this thread once we finalize.
 
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