Going to InterGem tomorrow - advice?

[hoofbeats95]

Intergem is in my area this weekend. We are going tomorrow. Thought about looking for a setting for my Tourmaline, but cash is a bit low right now. In anycase, any advice to get the most out of the show? I''ve been before but only to shop for beads! This stone stuff is all new to me!

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Ooo, exciting! Let us know how it goes! There''s one in Baltimore in May that I was thinking of driving to (I live in Philly), so I''d love to hear you experience with it and if it''s worth the trip!

 

[chrono]

Take your time, calm down and scout around. Ask questions and most of all, have fun!

 

[hoofbeats95]

I went to Intergem yesterday. Keep in mind I had been before but only for beads. The first half of the show was mostly beads and glass. I was hoping to find a setting for my tourmaline. So about 1/2 way through I started seeing some settings and higher quality jewelery. I put the stone in several settings. Some vendors had a jeweler on site and others didn''t. One place tried like heck to sell me a setting. This being the first time I had been through the setting process I wasn''t sure what settings "fit". I felt the ones I liked were too small. I wasn''t about to buy without a jeweler telling me it was ok. So I moved on. Ultimately I found a setting. Not sure I got the best deal. Not sure I got the best diamonds. I''m thrilled though as it was my first time. My future MIL was with me and was kind of getting tired of my indecisiveness! I was also getting tired as I was kind of overwhelmed by all the options. I adore the end result. The problem is the place I bought the setting from didn''t have a jeweler on site. So he said "I get the stone set for you - watch my booth" in his hard to understand foreign accent. Off he ran with my stone and setting. He came back and said come back in 1/2 an hour. We did and off he ran to go check. It wasn''t done. We went to lunch and came back. It was finished. I didn''t notice the stone is set crooked. Had I noticed I probably wouldn''t have messed with it. I have no idea which jeweler he ran to. Possibly one that had already seen me and my stone. I should have had it set at a local jeweler, but live and learn. I''m going to take it today to see if they can fix it. I think this guy did a really fast and quick setting job. Most people would never notice - but most people aren''t a PSer like me! I will post pics in a new thread once I get it straightened out. I do adore it and everyone who has seen it is in love. A lady at work asked me to sell it to her!

I got a TON of compliments on the stones. Most knowledgeable vendors/jewelers identified the stone right away. The first guy thought it was Pariba though. I got a lot of compliments on the color and the cut. After it was set one vendor thought it was a green amethyst, but she was also selling costume jewlery!

I saw a lot of stones. This was the first year I paid attention. I didn''t see anything was cut nice. All very dull with windows. The guy that thought mine was a Pariba had one in his case and it was $$$$. It didn''t look well cut, but I didn''t see it out of it''s box. I never asked to see a stone out of the box since they all looked pretty crappy in the box.

I will say that there are a TON of settings. They are all marked way up so they can drop the price for you! I mean like a 2K setting dropped to $500. You are not getting a deal. But I do think the dropped down price is pretty decent. I enjoyed having all the setting to plop my stone in. The hands on was FUN! And walking out with a finished ring was a blast! I think they come back to my area in the fall. So I might have to buy another stone in the meantime.

 

[T L]

HB,
Had I known you were going to get a setting there as well as setting a stone, I would have warned you against getting it set there. The benchmen there are in a huge hurry since they have several other projects being done at the same time as yours. They just do not have the time or the concern about doing a good job. Also, you have to be really careful about setting stones simply because they will easily chip them. Whenever I get a stone set, I go to a jeweler that takes their time and is very careful with my stones. At intergem, that simply is not possible.

I also always go by myself to these shows. It's more fun that way because you don't have someone riding your tails trying to get you to hurry up. You can go at your own pace. I haven't gone in years because #1) I have small children and I can't "escape" the house for more than 8 hours (that's how much time I'd like to spend there) and #2) last time I went, it was all fake designer handbags and ugly clothes. There was very little in the way of fine gems and jewelry. There was some, but not as much as a grand show like Tuscon (from what I hear).

In any case, I hope you get your setting fixed, and also make sure your jeweler inspects your stone for damage.

 

[hoofbeats95]

Thanks TL! I don''t think the stone is damaged. I looked at it with a loupe when I got home.

I already had plans to go with my future MIL. So there was no way I could back out on that and still get to go. There was no other day I could get there besides the day we had planned. I thought about trying to go a day before so I could look alone. But in anycase, it all worked out. I didn''t actually PLAN on buying a setting. I planned on popping it into a bunch to see what I liked. But this one was just the right one! And in all honesty it''s not that crappy of a job. If you aren''t a PS member you''d never notice. The setting has a tiny flaw, but it''s all good. The price was pretty decent and I don''t even think I could have gotten one online for this price. And definitely not the SAME setting. And when I find something I like I will never forget it and won''t settle for something similar and not quite right. I can''t wait to post pics. Knowing my taste no one on here will like it, but that''s ok. Going to the jeweler in about 30 mins to check what he has to say. And if he can''t do anything I will be just fine with it. Cause it''s a pretty small details. I think everyone knows how anal I am! In this case I''m pretty proud of my first time setting a stone! It''s a learning process for sure. But I don''t feel like I totally screwed up. I do need to learn how to tell if a stone will "fit" into a setting. With that info I would be ready to hit the next show in the fall.

TL - since this is my thread I''m going to hijcak it. Your old avatar - what/who is that? Cause I miss it! I always imagined that was YOU! I had a blast with that avatar. Crazy huh?

 

[T L]

Date: 3/23/2009 1:58:30 PM
Author: hoofbeats95
Thanks TL! I don''t think the stone is damaged. I looked at it with a loupe when I got home.

I already had plans to go with my future MIL. So there was no way I could back out on that and still get to go. There was no other day I could get there besides the day we had planned. I thought about trying to go a day before so I could look alone. But in anycase, it all worked out. I didn''t actually PLAN on buying a setting. I planned on popping it into a bunch to see what I liked. But this one was just the right one! And in all honesty it''s not that crappy of a job. If you aren''t a PS member you''d never notice. The setting has a tiny flaw, but it''s all good. The price was pretty decent and I don''t even think I could have gotten one online for this price. And definitely not the SAME setting. And when I find something I like I will never forget it and won''t settle for something similar and not quite right. I can''t wait to post pics. Knowing my taste no one on here will like it, but that''s ok. Going to the jeweler in about 30 mins to check what he has to say. And if he can''t do anything I will be just fine with it. Cause it''s a pretty small details. I think everyone knows how anal I am! In this case I''m pretty proud of my first time setting a stone! It''s a learning process for sure. But I don''t feel like I totally screwed up. I do need to learn how to tell if a stone will ''fit'' into a setting. With that info I would be ready to hit the next show in the fall.

TL - since this is my thread I''m going to hijcak it. Your old avatar - what/who is that? Cause I miss it! I always imagined that was YOU! I had a blast with that avatar. Crazy huh?

Well, I''m glad you had a very pleasant experience in any case. I can''t wait to see pictures of your Afghan tourmaline in the setting.

My old avitar was a picture of Greta Garbo. In case you don''t know, she was one of the most famous movie stars of all time, especially from the 1920''s through 1939 (she retired early from film in order to have a more private life). She is considered to be one of the most elusive, fashionable and beautiful women that every graced the silver screen. That picture was from a film called "Mata Hari." Sorry you miss my old avitar, maybe one day I''ll change it back to Greta. I love Greta Garbo and I have several of her silent films and several books on her.

 

[T L]

HB, just for you. Greta Garbo - my old avitar.

 

[hoofbeats95]

Tl - I ADORE that Avatar. I will admit to not knowing who that was. I am familiar with the name though. When I joined I was immediately drawn to your posts and the "character" of your posts seemed to fit the avatar picture so well. I was really disappointed when you changed. However - wasn't this your old avatar?

As an update I took my ring to the jeweler yesterday. He doesn't think the stone is perfectly symmetrical and that from one angle it will always look crooked. I told him I don't think so and he is going to straighten it. He was sure he could make it better but warned me against perfection. I am also having the ring sized down. He mentioned that the setting is fairly well made. He would have liked it to be heavier. He said that he has seen all kind of crap from bulk produced places like India and China - diamonds that were glued in and such. He warned me about being careful with micro-pave which I already knew. I don't think he would ever sell a pave ring if given the choice. Overall he said I did good. I asked him if I could hire him to attend the next intergem with me! My biggest issue was making sure I got decent quality but also how to tell if my stone would fit. He is back logged and won't get to my ring till Thursday. I have an off site meeting at work, so it's likely I can't even pick it up till Friday.

So no pics till the weekend probably.

 

[T L]

Date: 3/24/2009 10:03:12 AM
Author: hoofbeats95
Tl - I ADORE that Avatar. I will admit to not knowing who that was. I am familiar with the name though. When I joined I was immediately drawn to your posts and the ''character'' of your posts seemed to fit the avatar picture so well. I was really disappointed when you changed. However - wasn''t this your old avatar?

As an update I took my ring to the jeweler yesterday. He doesn''t think the stone is perfectly symmetrical and that from one angle it will always look crooked. I told him I don''t think so and he is going to straighten it. He was sure he could make it better but warned me against perfection. I am also having the ring sized down. He mentioned that the setting is fairly well made. He would have liked it to be heavier. He said that he has seen all kind of crap from bulk produced places like India and China - diamonds that were glued in and such. He warned me about being careful with micro-pave which I already knew. I don''t think he would ever sell a pave ring if given the choice. Overall he said I did good. I asked him if I could hire him to attend the next intergem with me! My biggest issue was making sure I got decent quality but also how to tell if my stone would fit. He is back logged and won''t get to my ring till Thursday. I have an off site meeting at work, so it''s likely I can''t even pick it up till Friday.

So no pics till the weekend probably.

I can''t wait to see pictures of your ring. Can you give us an idea of the style of it?

You''re right, the link you posted was my old avitar, but I thought this pic was close enough, and a bit different. I draw pencil portraits (well I used to) and I actually drew that photograph since it''s one of my favorites. These are a series of pictures she posed for from famed MGM photographer C.S. Bull. He was the only one she allowed to photograph her when she became a huge star. These were publicity stills for the film Mata Hari. Thanks again for the kind words on my avitar.

My new avitar shows off the math/science geek in me.

 

[hoofbeats95]

TL - I like the pic of with her arms crossed. Very relaxed with an air of authority. Just how your posts came across to me when I first joined! I think when I read your posts I pictured her talking. Ha ha. I''m a geek I know.

The ring - ok it''s white gold. It has a square double halo. The shank is split with a cross over. Micro-pave (I guess - the jeweler said sort of pave/bead set. Very small though so I assume that''s micro? He said micro just refers to the size) set diamonds. I think only a 1/4 carat. But in the right light they sparkle like a disco ball! Most people love the ring because the round stone in a square halo. I can''t wait to post pics.

 

[T L]

Date: 3/24/2009 11:04:38 AM
Author: hoofbeats95
TL - I like the pic of with her arms crossed. Very relaxed with an air of authority. Just how your posts came across to me when I first joined! I think when I read your posts I pictured her talking. Ha ha. I''m a geek I know.

The ring - ok it''s white gold. It has a square double halo. The shank is split with a cross over. Micro-pave (I guess - the jeweler said sort of pave/bead set. Very small though so I assume that''s micro? He said micro just refers to the size) set diamonds. I think only a 1/4 carat. But in the right light they sparkle like a disco ball! Most people love the ring because the round stone in a square halo. I can''t wait to post pics.

The ring sounds very elegant. I can''t wait to see it. Micropave also means that the stones were set with the aid of a microscope since they are very small.

Greta had a thick Swedish accent and deep voice. Check her out on youtube and you''ll hear what she really sounded like. There is a movie of hers called Ninotckha where she sounds very authoritative but unrelaxed!! Ha!! One of her famous sayings is "I vant to be let alone" (the "vant" is how she pronounced "want" in English). She was very reclusive by nature. She was bigger than any star there is today. Picture putting Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie and Princess Diana into one person, and that would be how famous Greta was.

 

[hoofbeats95]

TL - your old avatar is now my wallpaper! There is something about this picture that just speaks to me. I did look on youtube. I didn''t find anything of her just talking. The Ninotchka clip I found is of her laughing! I found a lot of clips that are just pics put to music. I will have to keep looking. She''s definitely interesting.