Having diamond custom-set by local jeweller - advice needed

[hellocamy]

Hello everyone,

I just purchased a 3.0 carat marquise diamond for my gf. After doing a good amount of research, I decided that my best option is to have an ER custom-made locally. Keep in mind that the setting I am looking to make is a marquise halo with micropave side diamonds about half way around the band. As such, I would like advice on a couple of things:

1. Although all of my friends recommended having the setting made in platinum, I am opting for white gold since I am 100% sure that this is my gf's preference aesthetically. Should I opt for 14 K or 18 K?

2. What steps / precautions should I take to ensure that I get the right diamond back after having it set by the jeweller? I have the GIA report and I provided a copy to the jeweller (per his request). According to him, he can draw up the CAD and create the setting without keeping my diamond. All I would have to do is leave it with him for 1-2 days after the setting is made to have it mounted. Even so, I'm a bit apprehensive (nothing personal against the particular jeweller, but mainly because this is the biggest purchase I have ever made and will feel nervous leaving it with anybody). Since I have never done this before and since all my friends have bought their diamond and ring from the same place, I have no idea what protocol there is for ensuring that I don't get caught in a mix-up where I end up with the wrong stone.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

 

[GeorgeStevens]

Re: Having diamond custom-set by local jeweller - advice nee

The easiest defense against diamond-switching is to deal with a reputable jeweler who has been in business for a long time and who handles stones bigger/more expensive than yours on a regular basis (so yours doesn't stick-out). Also for a stone of that size, be sure it's on your homeowner's insurance policy. There's a very very slight but nonzero chance that the store gets destroyed by a fire or tornado, gets burglarized, or closes down while your stone is in their possession and the inventory disappears. These are all highly remote risks, but they have all happened before - a lot of jewelry and gold were destroyed in bank vaults in the twin towers on 9/11.

Or buy an SI2 stone where you can find the inclusion with your naked eye! This is how I check my wife's e-ring whenever it goes in for service.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Re: Having diamond custom-set by local jeweller - advice nee

I agree about using high end jewelers. I would be very cautious about having a local jeweler make a custom halo ring unless you know a lot about pave rings and can assess their quality from looking at sample rings. You don't need to worry about them mixing up a marquise. They probably do not sell a lot of them in the first place and they certainly do not look the same even if they were close to the same weight.

I'd make the ring in platinum, and if she doesn't like the color, just rhodium plate it and it will look like white gold! However, it will have the weight of platinum and the longevity of platinum. Gold wears away over time in places where it has wear such as prong tips and the bottom of the shank.

 

[msop04]

Re: Having diamond custom-set by local jeweller - advice nee

1. Although all of my friends recommended having the setting made in platinum, I am opting for white gold since I am 100% sure that this is my gf's preference aesthetically. Should I opt for 14 K or 18 K?

Please, for the love... do NOT set it in 18K WG.

14K, okay, but not 18K (18K is 75% gold, so once the rhodium starts to wear off, it will appear more yellow than if in 14K) -- I am always needing to replate mine and it gets old. I vote for 14K or platinum for a solitaire.

 

[msop04]

Re: Having diamond custom-set by local jeweller - advice nee

Nevermind, it's a halo... your vendor will most likely not want to use 14K for pave work, as it is more brittle, so it looks like platinum is your best bet.

 

[hellocamy]

Re: Having diamond custom-set by local jeweller - advice nee

Thank you so much for the advice! I ended up going with a high-end jeweller, invested in a rhodium-platinum setting, and I feel very confident that my girlfriend will love the ER.

Now for the proposal...