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Help me decide on a five stone vs eternity ring

LuvThatBling

Shiny_Rock
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It's been a while since I've been here or bought any jewelry at all, but I'm back with a new project. DH and I have a 25th wedding anniversary coming up (sidenote: my god, where did all of the time go?!? it really does fly when you're having fun) and he wants me to get a great piece of jewelry to celebrate. I started trying on eternity bands to wear as a RHR, and DH went with me on another browsing trip this weekend. I tried on a 3 carat by myself, which I liked the size of but it was round, and I'm more of a fancy shape girl.

With DH alongside, I tried on a 6+ carat asscher and 7 carat emerald this weekend. I really liked the asscher (pic attached) more than the emerald but I thought the size was a little too big. DH OTOH loved it. He says bigger is better and that I can pull it off :lol: He's probably right: I have a 5+ carat sapphire in a three stone ring as a ER and a 3+ TCW sapphire/diamond ballerina ring that I wear on my right hand now. I am very careful with the ballerina ring and save it for short-term wear like evenings out. I was hoping that this new ring would be one I could wear more on a daily basis.

Now I would never wear any of my rings to do something like dig in the dirt, play with chemicals or bust rocks so I'm talking along the lines of going out shopping, working on the computer, walking in the neighborhood, meeting friends for coffee. One of the reasons DH thinks I should go eternity is because I've recently lost a lot of weight and am back at a ring size that I haven't seen in a very long time. My other rings are at the jeweler right now going from 8.25 to 6.5. He said that getting me a fabulous ring that can't be resized is the best thing he can do to support me in keeping the weight off :lol: and another reason to celebrate. The man has a point, but I don't want another occasional wear only ring. Thoughts? I'm probably overthinking this and driving him crazy in the process, but I want to get this right. Even if it wasn't for our 25th, I don't trade jewelry generally or have a lot of it. I try to invest in a few great pieces so I can enjoy them forever.

TL;DR: to wear daily, would an eternity ring or a five stone ring be best?
IMG_2681.jpg
 
Last edited:

MaisOuiMadame

Ideal_Rock
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Congratulations on your 25th anniversary!
Opinions vary so much on this topic, so it all comes down to personal preference.
I have a very active lifestyle, yet I'm wearing a 18 x 0,33 ct full eternity as a RHR most of the time. It's low set in a u style setting and it doesn't bother me at all. I visually prefer the full eternity and don't find it uncomfortable. My ring size hasn't changed through my pregnancies and the related huge weight fluctuations, so this was a non issue for me as well...
Many others cannot wear full eternities because they find them uncomfortable though. Many don't think it's worth the money to pay for diamonds on the palm side on the hand.

If I had to re-do my eternity, I'd probably buy it 1/2 size bigger with sizing breads, as finger size tends to go up with age for almost everyone.

My right is about 3/4 of a size bigger than my left hand, so I know that I can most probably still wear my eternity IF my RH gets much bigger...

The ring in your picture is gorgeous!
 

tyty333

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I wear a 1.4 ctw 7 stone as an everyday ring in my area. I find them more low-key then an e-ring. Sort of an understated classic.
I think either a 5 stone or eternity would work for you. If you do eternity you might consider making 1 stone a sizing bar or do
like kipari said above go a 1/2 size bigger and use sizing beads (just to give you a pinch more room if needed).

That asscher band looks really nice on you!

Congrats on your 25th!!!
 

marymm

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I really like the look of the asscher band on your finger, but FWIW I do not think that particular band properly fits your finger and would be too loose-fitting particularly for a ring you hope to wear on a daily basis.

For your budget, I'd suggest having one made to fit you; and if it were me, I'd request the eternity be crafted such that it would be slightly resizable (smaller or larger). I'd probably ask Victor Canera or Steven Kirsch to make it. To make it resizable, they'd either leave out one of the stones, or otherwise choose and place stones such that there'd be a small expanse of metal (which I'd ask to be engraved to better blend with the stones).
 

LuvThatBling

Shiny_Rock
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Feb 6, 2006
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122
Congratulations on your 25th anniversary!
Opinions vary so much on this topic, so it all comes down to personal preference.
I have a very active lifestyle, yet I'm wearing a 18 x 0,33 ct full eternity as a RHR most of the time. It's low set in a u style setting and it doesn't bother me at all. I visually prefer the full eternity and don't find it uncomfortable. My ring size hasn't changed through my pregnancies and the related huge weight fluctuations, so this was a non issue for me as well...
Many others cannot wear full eternities because they find them uncomfortable though. Many don't think it's worth the money to pay for diamonds on the palm side on the hand.

If I had to re-do my eternity, I'd probably buy it 1/2 size bigger with sizing breads, as finger size tends to go up with age for almost everyone.

My right is about 3/4 of a size bigger than my left hand, so I know that I can most probably still wear my eternity IF my RH gets much bigger...

The ring in your picture is gorgeous!

Thanks for the well wishes and the advice--I really appreciate both. I found the ring comfortable. I guess that could change if I'm wearing it for hours at a time, but I think it'll be fine. I'm used to wearing heavy rings. The rings that I'm wearing now while mine are resized are so light that they make me uncomfortable. I'm constantly looking down to see if they're still there because the weight is off. The eternity bands I've tried on are like my other rings---a solid presence.

Yeah, even the lady at the jewelry store mentioned that people object to paying for diamonds that go around the finger. I can understand it actually, but the eternity band has a beautiful look that I don't think a five stone ring may be able to match--I haven't tried any five stone rings on because I haven't found any locally that aren't really small. Maybe I haven't looked in the right places.

The 6.5 is a half a size up--I should have mentioned that. I actually wear a 6-6.25 and the jeweler recommended a 6.5 to resize my other rings because it's winter now, I live in the humid South, and I like my rings on the looser side.

ETA: Your eternity band sounds beautiful. Are there any pictures of it that I can see?
 

LuvThatBling

Shiny_Rock
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Feb 6, 2006
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I wear a 1.4 ctw 7 stone as an everyday ring in my area. I find them more low-key then an e-ring. Sort of an understated classic.
I think either a 5 stone or eternity would work for you. If you do eternity you might consider making 1 stone a sizing bar or do
like kipari said above go a 1/2 size bigger and use sizing beads (just to give you a pinch more room if needed).

That asscher band looks really nice on you!

Congrats on your 25th!!!

Thanks for the congratulations. I think that your seven stone ring is beautiful! I looked at your pear too and I love it--I really dig the fancy shapes.

I guess I should try to find some five stone rings to try on but I didn't really see any in the stores that I was in that weren't a lot smaller than what I'm thinking. The ones I've seen are .10-.30 and I'm thinking .40-.60 since I want it to completely cover my finger.
 

LuvThatBling

Shiny_Rock
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Feb 6, 2006
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122
I really like the look of the asscher band on your finger, but FWIW I do not think that particular band properly fits your finger and would be too loose-fitting particularly for a ring you hope to wear on a daily basis.

For your budget, I'd suggest having one made to fit you; and if it were me, I'd request the eternity be crafted such that it would be slightly resizable (smaller or larger). I'd probably ask Victor Canera or Steven Kirsch to make it. To make it resizable, they'd either leave out one of the stones, or otherwise choose and place stones such that there'd be a small expanse of metal (which I'd ask to be engraved to better blend with the stones).

Yes, it was a little loose and my finger was swollen from trying on so many rings too. Like I said above, my actual ring size is 6-6.25. I like 6.5 because I don't like tight rings and my fingers do swell a little in the summer.

Thanks for the suggestions on where to go for the ring. I was thinking IDJ but I'll keep those in mind too as I get further along. It's been a long time since I've bought any jewelry and there are lots of new vendors on PS that I know little about.
 

cflutist

Ideal_Rock
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You can't go wrong with either ... 3, 5, or 7 stone.
However I think that the Asscher Eternity band looks absolutely gorgeous on your hand.
Asschers have such an elegance to them.
 

chloe88

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I had the same dilemma but decided I would go for a five stone ring b/c my weight has fluctuated.. I figured I could always convert the five stone to a full eternity once my weight stabilized. It didn’t seem that eternity bands offered much flexibility as far as resizing goes, maybe 1/4 size up or down?
 

Allisonfaye

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Where's the asscher?
 

AprilBaby

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I have had both styles and I far prefer the eternity. They both spin and I don’t worry about the gold underside showing.
 

LuvThatBling

Shiny_Rock
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You can't go wrong with either ... 3, 5, or 7 stone.
However I think that the Asscher Eternity band looks absolutely gorgeous on your hand.
Asschers have such an elegance to them.

Thanks. I like the asschers myself. I do think that eternity might be the way to go.
 

LuvThatBling

Shiny_Rock
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I have had both styles and I far prefer the eternity. They both spin and I don’t worry about the gold underside showing.

Thanks for sharing that--the gold showing was actually one of DH's objection to not going eternity.
 

LaylaR

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I'd prefer a 5-7 stone. It will be easier to size if your weight fluctuates in the future. You'll risk stone damage if you keep the stones to the top of your finger. And you'll be able to larger stones across the top of your finger. But if rings spins on your finger too easily then, maybe an eternity would be okay.
 

rockysalamander

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My mom favors eternity bands and she has, in fact, damaged quite a few stones by daily wearing. Her ring size really has not changed, but her knuckle has gotten quite a bit larger. This has necessitated rebuilding a number of rings to accommodate getting over her finger. So, they are actually a 3/2 size larger than necessary. For non-eternities, she has a hinge. For her eternities, she has a spring sizer installed. You might have a look at your mom/grandmothers fingers and talk with them about how their finger changed over time.

Like this one I found on PS.
upload_2018-2-7_6-59-4.jpeg
 

motownmama

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I have BOTH 1/2 an full eternities. The plusses and minuses have been detailed above. In Oct for our anniversary I got the 7-stone 1 ctw Tiffany Embrace for a RHR. It doesn't spin much and I've rarely taken it off. I guess being right-handed I could potentially see smacking the bottom of an eternity. I REALLY prefer my eternities with my ER, however, bc if one ring swings one way and the other swings the opposite it bugs me. My right hand ring finger is more uniform in circumference , whereas my left hand gets skinnier near the hand and rings can really spin over there. Good luck deciding and let us know!!!!! Congrats on 25 years!
 

tfc_diamondlvr

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I have BOTH 1/2 an full eternities. The plusses and minuses have been detailed above. In Oct for our anniversary I got the 7-stone 1 ctw Tiffany Embrace for a RHR. It doesn't spin much and I've rarely taken it off. I guess being right-handed I could potentially see smacking the bottom of an eternity. I REALLY prefer my eternities with my ER, however, bc if one ring swings one way and the other swings the opposite it bugs me. My right hand ring finger is more uniform in circumference , whereas my left hand gets skinnier near the hand and rings can really spin over there. Good luck deciding and let us know!!!!! Congrats on 25 years!

I'm so curious about the Tiffany embrace! What made you decide to go with a Tiffany's over having another company make a similar ring? I've been eyeing that embrace for awhile now! Congrats on the OP's anniversary and yours as well motownmama!
 

AprilBaby

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I have been wearing mine for 4 years and haven’t had any damage. I would also size up 1/2 size especially if you are younger.
 
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