Help! Retailers that specialize in “unique” settings and rings?

[Excell]

Hi guys,

Still on my quest for the perfect ring.

I had almost undoubtedly decided on a setting from BlueNile, but I think I’m changing my mind again. I need help locating retailers with non-traditional settings. My girlfriend loves “chunky” very thick rings with a lot of weight to them. I’m certain she would love a ring that may not be a “traditional” engagement ring. I’ve looked at probably 1000 different settings in person and online, and I’ve not found any that I think are perfect. I want the setting to be equally as stunning as the diamond(s) I put in it. Are there any online retailers who specialize in non-traditional rings?

Here are a few examples of the styles I''ve seen that "tweak" me, but none of them are perfect:

(minus wedding band)

Notice how "clean" the rings look with lots of polished metal showing? That''s the look I''m looking for. Not like the "antique" looking rings that have a lot of detail, small diamonds, etc., which are very beautiful, but not what I''m looking for.

1) I want white gold or platinum, but prefer white gold for cost efficiency.
2) Settings that do not have a large, primary stone (like with several smaller stones) is okay!
3) Second-hand and estate is okay.

Thank you!

 

[JulieN]

If the mind can conceive it...

There is probably no retailer that specializes in such a style; it would be business suicide.

But designers. Yes, there are designers who specialize in such. You might check out Pearlmans'' Jewelers; they carry many designer lines.

 

[Excell]

I looked all of Pearlmans settings and found one that I really liked, but I think it''s just a little too far off of an engagement ring:

But a great suggestion!

 

[SuzyQZ]

Excell:

I am really diggin'

the style of ring you are looking for! I love the sleek, weighty, polished modern lines. Definitely my kind of ring! That first design you posted is to die for! I love it.

I've had to go custom for both my wedding ring and RHR as we were not able to find everything we liked in any one design. I've always been a fan of Claude Thibaudeau a canadian designer, he has many different styles, all are substantial and very unique. Here is his link.

http://www.claudethibaudeau.com/

Also, someone here on PS has a ring from Makers Mark an Australian jewelry designer that is modern and sleek. Here is the website link.
http://www.makersmark.com.au/

Pearlman's is a great place to see a lot of different designers on one website.
http://www.pearlmansjewelers.com/jewelry-designers/

Also do you like tension settings? Check out Gelin Abaci if you do.

I'm sure others will chime in. Good luck

 

[Diamond*Dana]

I just wanted to say that I also love the first ring...what a gorgeous setting!

 

[MsP]

I love most of the rings you''ve posted! Have you looked at tension settings? I am really on a tension kick right now and I thought I''d point out some styles from boonerings.com... these are just some that I like. They''re titanium not gold but there are many other manufacturers that do them in platinum.
...Pear w/ wedding band and some others.

and these from other websites...

...Gelin Abaci
...steven kretchmer is another popular designer.

Good luck!

 

[SuzyQZ]

Speaking of Kretchmer, Check this ring out. Probably not what you are looking for, but a cool design nonetheless.

Here is the description:
The "Jupiter Ring" features a tension setting by Steven Kretchmer for a 2.5-ct. radiant-cut diamond and platinum with 18k multicolored mokumé gané and 24k gold inlays. Copyright 1993 S. Kretchmer. U.S. Patent Nos. 5,084108 and 5,188,679.

 

[kev_800]

If you''re into tension settings, this is by far and away my fave: Too bad its Georg Jensen and would require a second mortgage....

 

[pricescope]

http://www.etienneperret.com/gallery/engagementrings/

 

[SuzyQZ]

Here''s another cool design from the Etienne Perret website.

 

[Excell]

Hi guys,

Yes, thank you very much for the ideas so far! It's awesome to know I'm (she's) not the only one who likes to break from the traditional.

The first setting I posted is the one from BlueNile, which I love. But I've decided it's too thin, only being 4.1mm. I got out to look at a ton of settings today from some of the smaller, custom jewelers in town and I've decided on 5mm as being the minimum I'd like. Wider if I can get it. I actually found a setting today that I love, but it will need some custom work. I'll try and find a picture similar to it online today.

Actually, the very first setting I liked when I started looking in November

was a tension setting by Gelin Abaci. I do love them, but I'm very afraid of them because my girlfriend is HARD on rings. Very hard. So I've decided to stay away from them.

Please keep the ideas coming.

 

[SuzyQZ]

Can''t wait to see a picture of what you found that you like so much!

You said your GF is hard on her rings. Did you know that there are many tension "looking" rings that are not true tension settings? They usually connect the shank under the diamond so visually it looks practically the same. Something to think about if you like the look of tension settings but are nervous about the safety and durability.

 

[dolphingirl22]

Here is the link to my jeweler...he does a lot of unique stuff.

http://www.jalbrechtfinejewelry.com/

 

[SuzyQZ]

Date: 2/21/2007 1:31:29 PM
Author: dolphingirl22
Here is the link to my jeweler...he does a lot of unique stuff.

http://www.jalbrechtfinejewelry.com/

Great website, some really cool custom work/CADDs.

 

[SuzyQZ]

this is nice too.

 

[SuzyQZ]

.

 

[mercoledi]

I thought I'd chime in here since I have a 5mm not-really-tension setting (also very hard on rings)...

One thing to consider is what you (both) want for a wedding band. I have short fingers so any sort of substantial wedding band plus my e-ring equals 1 cm of heavy metal. Thus mine aren't worn together. You might want to look at the total profile and heft of sets that you like, since hopefully that e-ring won't be hanging out on its own for long!

Niwaka is a Japanese designer that does really beautiful and unique stuff, check out the non-bridal sections.

 

[SuzyQZ]

Date: 2/21/2007 1:53:54 PM
Author: mercoledi
I thought I''d chime in here since I have a 5mm not-really-tension setting (also very hard on rings)...

One thing to consider is what you (both) want for a wedding band. I have short fingers so any sort of substantial wedding band plus my e-ring equals 1 cm of heavy metal. Thus mine aren''t worn together. You might want to look at the total profile and heft of sets that you like, since hopefully that e-ring won''t be hanging out on its own for long!

Niwaka is a Japanese designer that does really beautiful and unique stuff, check out the non-bridal sections.

Good point.
I have a thick wedding ring shank (5mm) and wear my ring alone without a wedding band. I never wanted a wedding band, just the one ring was enough and I liked the look as it was. If you want a wedding ring set, take into consideration the width of both rings together so they are not too much for your GF''s finger.

 

[litebrite]

I love the pave sapphires on the side! I really like a lot of the designs by Keith Farley, he does a combo bezel-channel setting that looks like the tension setting: http://artwork-inform.com/jlryngpt1.htm

 

[SuzyQZ]

Litebrite:
Cool designer. I like how he has the wedding rings (with surprise diamonds) that can be word separately from the engagement ring. They fit together like a puzzle to make another ring. Cool!

 

[SuzyQZ]

just wedding rings puzzled to make a new stand alone ring

 

[Excell]

Date: 2/21/2007 1:46:56 PM
Author: SuzyQZ

Date: 2/21/2007 1:31:29 PM
Author: dolphingirl22
Here is the link to my jeweler...he does a lot of unique stuff.

http://www.jalbrechtfinejewelry.com/

Great website, some really cool custom work/CADDs.

WOW! Some AWESOME settings on that site! WOW! Exactly what I was looking for. I was instantly attracted to this setting as well:

The setting I saw today that I liked is a 3/4 bezel/channel set in white gold, palladium, or platinum. Here is the photograph of the actual setting I saw today that inspired me:

I want to change the stone to a round diamond and delete the side stones. Then add a line of small, channel-set diamonds on both sides of the diamond but under the bezel (similar to the first setting in my original post, but not right next to the diamond).

I attached a crude photoshop I just whipped up of what I''m thinking. It makes it look sort of "manly" but that''s not what I''m going for. You''ll have to use your imagination.

What do you think?

 

[Excell]

P.S. I''m not worried about the wedding band. I''ll bet she probably won''t want one. She''ll want one ring.

 

[SuzyQZ]

Excell:

Yeah, I can see where you are going with the photoshop. It does look manly, but channel setting like your first example will feminize it a bit. Looks like you''ll be going the custom route. Find a good designer that can incorporate your ideas into a ring that is substantial but not manly. I''m sure it can be done. You''ve got a lot of food for thought with all these designs.

Are you going to include your GF future fiance in the design aspect? I hope so. There''s a fine line between manly and magnificent. I''d recommend you get her input into the final design. My husband brought home a wax of my wedding ring that I just hated, then he had the designer tweak it with my input and I loved it. It was a merging of what he wanted and what I wanted and the end result was perfect!

Yeah, I''m with you and your GF on the one ring only idea too

. I think a substantial ring makes a statement all by itself.

Good luck and keep us posted on your quest for the perfect setting!

 

[mercoledi]

OOh, I like your mock up. I would guess that a ring that substantial with that many side stones would have to be about 7-8mm, minimum, but maybe someone knows better. I believe that works out to a 1-1.2 ct round?

Your mock up is similar to the Etienne Perret that SuzyQZ posted above, only the EP has a flat, smooth bezel insead of the slight ridge on the one you posted. Personally, I prefer the flat bezel, but then again, I''m biased to flat half bezels! Maybe it would be worth contacting him to do it? Personally I think I would be great with colored 1 pointers or 00s along the bezel.

 

[Excell]

I do like the flat bezel. It certainly looks more feminine, which is great. I might try to photoshop it in a bit.

I want to involve her in the selection, but she is very classic and doesn''t really want to be involved. She wants to be surprised. So I''m pretty much on my own. Believe me, this is tough. I''m an IT network engineer by day, and an engine/race car builder by night. Rings and diamonds are a whole new ball game.

Personally, I LOVE the sapphire side stones. But I don''t think she''ll dig it because they don''t go with all of her jewelry/outfits and that won''t bode well.

So I''m going to stick to diamond sides.

Thanks for the all of the advice and help so far! I love this forum!

 

[SuzyQZ]

Date: 2/21/2007 3:51:10 PM
Author: Excell



I do like the flat bezel. It certainly looks more feminine, which is great. I might try to photoshop it in a bit.

I want to involve her in the selection, but she is very classic and doesn't really want to be involved. She wants to be surprised. So I'm pretty much on my own. Believe me, this is tough. I'm an IT network engineer by day, and an engine/race car builder by night. Rings and diamonds are a whole new ball game.

Personally, I LOVE the sapphire side stones. But I don't think she'll dig it because they don't go with all of her jewelry/outfits and that won't bode well.

So I'm going to stick to diamond sides.

Thanks for the all of the advice and help so far! I love this forum!

Yeah, I hear you on this one too. My husband wanted to suprise me too. He did all the initial legwork, picking out the diamond and getting his design ideas into a wax model. He brought me home the wax model and there were things I just didn't like about it on the first try. I told him what I wanted changed and he took it from there. I never saw it again until it was put on my finger.

Let me tell you that seeing a wax is nothing like seeing the final completed ring. I was glad that he ran it by me for a "status check" and that I had an opportunity to tweak it. I was TOTALLY surprised and blown away when I saw the final product. It literally took my breath away. I thought I knew what to expect, but I didn't really. So he did 99% of the work (picked out the style of ring and diamond) and I just did a last minute edit to make it perfect!

I assume you will have the element of surprise on your side, she won't know when you are asking her. I'm sure she will be blown away by all the time and effort you put into it.

Good luck and keep us posted as you begin your journey towards the perfect ring!!!

 

[mercoledi]

Ok, I did a ghetto mock up in powerpoint. I think this project is really cool! Hope you don't mind... I also think you and my husband must be brain twins- when I asked him why my ring is diamonds instead of another stone, he said exactly the same thing, he was worried it wouldn't always match my outfit and that therefore I wouldn't wear it. Personally, I'd have worn any stone all the time. But I think that's funny. I was a non-involved recipient as well, and kind of regret that now that I know the process is so fun.

I would go with some sort of smooth bezel and hammer or gypsy set side stones to maintain the flow of the ring. Here's a mock up based on one of the EP rings, and a pic of my bezel.

 

[SuzyQZ]

Date: 2/21/2007 3:51:10 PM
Author: Excell

I do like the flat bezel. It certainly looks more feminine, which is great. I might try to photoshop it in a bit.

I want to involve her in the selection, but she is very classic and doesn''t really want to be involved. She wants to be surprised. So I''m pretty much on my own. Believe me, this is tough. I''m an IT network engineer by day, and an engine/race car builder by night. Rings and diamonds are a whole new ball game.

Personally, I LOVE the sapphire side stones. But I don''t think she''ll dig it because they don''t go with all of her jewelry/outfits and that won''t bode well.

So I''m going to stick to diamond sides.

Thanks for the all of the advice and help so far! I love this forum!

Yeah, I prefer all diamonds too. They go with EVERYTHING!!!!

Love your Avatar.. vrooom!!! vrooom!!!

 

[Excell]

Yea! That''s what I''m leaning towards! That smooth bezel + the side diamonds that kind of "halo" it. That''s definitely what I''m going for!

To tell the truth, I''m having a lot of fun with this. As frustrating as it is, heck I''ve been looking since November, I''m having a lot of fun. Especially now that I''m considering a custom designed setting. It''s been fun looking at all of these settings and getting great ideas. But it increased in excitement now that I''m tweaking and changing and making the setting. Knowing that it''s something *I* created is awesome.

If I do end up going custom, I think I''ve found the local jeweler that I want to create it. They''re not the cheapest in town I''m sure, but they''ve been in business 30 years and they''re from my home town. I''m going to try and nail this down a little further and pay them another visit with my thoughts and see where I end up. Of course, they''ll set any diamond I bring them as well, which is great so I can shop online.

Thanks for keeping the ideas flowing!