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HELP! jeweler Quoted $10k for halo eternity setting

M

morrikl

Rough_Rock
Joined
Nov 11, 2012
Messages
10
We went ahead and purchased the H color VVS2 2.5ct cushion cut from Blue Nile that we posted about here which has the gia:
https://www.pricescope.com/communit...additional-not-shown-in-vvs2-gia-view.181742/


The diamond looks amazing so now we are working on getting a custom halo setting with an eternity band . The jeweler we thought we were going to go with has some CAD renderings ready but we have not received them yet. He told us that the setting would cost between $8-$10k... Needless to say our jaws hit the floor. the design we want is fairly simplistic, the requirements we have for the setting are:

Platinum only
halo style
diamonds on the side of the halo
diamonds on the prongs
eternity band
diamonds on all three sides of the band
H color stones


i have included photos of the look we are wanting. What do other custom halo settings cost based on the photos i have attached? We were expecting to pay $4-5k for the setting but $8-10k seems utterly ridiculous.

_27.jpeg

_28.jpeg

_29.jpeg
 
You could get a CAD/cast custom halo from one of the PS vendors for $3k-$4k. Not sure about handforged, but I would guess $5k-$6k.

ETA: Just reread that you're looking for 3-sided pave on the shank which would increase the price. $10k seems rather exorbitant though.
 
I'd contact Victor Canera for a quote. His work is impeccable and I believe his (stunning) version of the HW "The One" is $5k.
 
$8 to $10k for a setting is ridiculous!! :shock: You can definitely get a nice custom halo mounting cheaper than that.
 
If you like that Diamonds by Lauren setting, why not just have Diamonds by Lauren make it for you? It looks like one of their handforged settings and I've heard those prices are reasonable for the quality. Which what you were quoted likely was not.
 
That's way too much!

Victor, Leon, Steven are between $4 to $5 K. I would go with one of them no question.

ERD is my next choice after them. You can get it between $2500 to $4000 depending on style and method.
 
based on your intial post it seemed the eternity band was included in that 10k. is that the case?
 
bgray|1354153044|3317921 said:
based on your intial post it seemed the eternity band was included in that 10k. is that the case?
Click to expand...
I thought you meant by eternity band that you meant diamonds all around the band. Was I wrong? Your getting 2 rings? Hmmm. I still say ERD, I think they are beautiful and very good value

ETA this one is probably more like you request
http://www.engagementringsdirect.com/kate-3-row-diamond-halo-engagement-ring-bpid-133-15.html
but i wouldnt put melee on the side unless you dont plan on having a wedding band
 
Yeah, that seems nuts. I think you could definitely get hand-forged with the budget you have. As the others suggested, get in touch with Leon Mege, Victor Canera, Steven Kirsch, Diamonds by Lauren, and Engagement Rings Direct.
 
thank you for all the great feedback.

we had another local jeweler contact us last night about his quote for the same setting. His came in at $3200 and had a 1.65ct for the setting. We contacted another jeweler we found on the internet and based on what we described and showed to him he came back at $3100 but his total ct weight was only .95ct. we are going to see the wax mold of the local jeweler for $3200 today. i am waiting to hear back from Victor Canera still and i have not contacted Diamonds by Lauren, Leon or Steven yet.

in regards to what we are looking for we are wanting the eternity style band with diamonds around the entire ring. originally we wanted the diamonds on all three sides but we have heard from several jewelers that in order to do that they would need to do a pave style and show more metal which we don't want. so based on our discussions we believe the right look we want is to go with is "U" Pave on the band all the way around, no diamonds on the sides of the band. we also want them to use shared prongs to minimize the amount of metal showing on the entire setting and keep those diamonds set tight against each other so all you really see is diamonds. right now we are just quoting out the engagement ring. we will be doing a wedding band but we have been told that due to the style we are wanting she will not be able to wear the wedding band on the same finger as the engagement ring, so she will wear the wedding band on the other hand when that day comes.

one question:

what should we want for the diamonds in the setting. we were thinking keep them all H but what clarity should we go with since they are small? one jeweler said they only use G, VS stones for their settings. we are thinking that since our center stone is an H color and the side diamonds would be a G color it could make the center stone look more yellow or the side stones take away from the center stone and make it look less white. will that one color grade be noticeable from H to G? our center stone also has faint fluorescence in it which we have been told is not an issue. But the $10k setting jeweler said because its an H color and has faint fluorescence, the flourescence is actually causing the stone to look more like an I colored stone. we have scoured the internet and have found no findings to back what appears to be his ridiculousness claim up. If that is correct could someone please provide an explanation. We have read that nearcolorless stones G, H, I with faint fluorescence could actually make it appear whiter.
 
G/ h isn't going to be a problem they usually say to stay within one color of your stone for the melee. Which you are. So that's fine.
Also if you aren't putting diamonds all around the band just in the top side she could wear a band, just might have to put a little spacer in between. All those places make great rings. But you aren't going to check ERD? Not pushing or anything because if you go with Leon or Steven it'll be beautiful. Just know that they are reasonably priced and there rings are to die for


[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-harry-winston-inspired-rb-halo-from-erd.168484/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-harry-winston-inspired-rb-halo-from-erd.168484/[/URL]
 
It is definitely possible to have a 3 sided pave ring and if you go with handforged, there will be very little metal showing. Shared prong is a good style for a single sided diamond band. You are well advised that she should not wear her wedding band together with this ring on the same finger.

G VS is perfectly fine for the melees. They are so incredibly small and all you'll see is sparkle anyway. It will not make your H look yellower nor take away from your center stone. With G next to H on the colour scale, you will not see any face up difference. The faint fluoro will also not be an issue. If anything, many people look for strong blue fluorescence in lower coloured diamonds because it makes the diamond appear whiter, or rather blue white at times. In your case, faint fluorescence will have zero impact.
 
HI All,
morrikl - there's so much misconception about how rings are made.
A hand forged shank is round- therefore unsuitable to three sided pave- which requires a cast or die struck shank with a rectangular or square cross section. This is a different look than hand forged.
Placing diamonds on the prongs rules out claw prongs.
Basically, what I sense is that you're mixing styles in a way that might cost $10k to make- but really, a designer should discuss all these aspects with you to clarify them.
I am really a proponent of consumers getting ring and diamond together for these reasons.
In some cases center stone selection is affected by the design of the ring.

Basically, a discussion which gets a person from 0 to a complete ring, as opposed to leaving them with a loose diamond wondering where to set it seems better for the buyer to me.

What I would suggest is that you look online and find photos of a ring that looks like what you have in mind- because giving all these instructions and allowing a jeweler to make it up as they go along could lead to a very costly ring you don't love.
 
Have you seen your local jewelry do pave? Before you base everything off of pricing you should really check that. Pave is an art form and just because your local guy can do it, doesn't mean it is done well. Personally for me, I would only trust 4 jewelers with a pave halo as I have seen their work and know they do a wonderful job. They are already mentioned, Leon mege, Victora Canera (i have a halo by him), Steven Kirsch and Mark at ERD.

I know many people perfer to go to their local jewelr as they like the comfort of a B&M store as opposed to purchasing online, however once again if you want a pave ring done well I would stick with the masters. I would think for what you want it would come in closer to 6-8k for both rings. Mark's pricing would probably be at the lesser end while VC and LM would be closer to the higher end of the range. I would still request quotes from ALL of them before I sign with anyone though.
 
 
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