Help with LOGR Setting

[faegrace]

I just purchased a beautiful Tanga garnet from Barry, for my mom. She doesn't want to go the custom setting route and has already chosen this LOGR as the home for her first loose CS.

I have no experience purchasing a setting this way, so I am hoping to get some advice from seasoned PSers.

This is what I would like to know:

* This particular setting comes standard for a 6mm center stone. I need it to fit an 8.6mm gem. Does LOGR customize for different size center stones?

* Though she likes the shape of the setting, my mom is open to upgrades; it is housing one of Barry's beauties after all. Out of the upgrades available, what would you suggest? (She likes both Y and WG; what do you think?)

* How does one go about finding someone to set the CS once the semi mount arrives? What is a reasonable price to have a jeweler set it?

Thank you VERY much in advance, for any and all advice. I am admittedly nervous about screwing this up somehow.

~ faegrace

 

[Atwater]

faegrace, I has not purchased a LOGR but I did ask them some questions when I was considering one of their settings two months ago.

They do customize the setting for different size center stones. They quoted me $30 for both customization and resizing the ring and $10 for just resizing the ring. So the customization should be $20. (The size difference between your stone and the setting is a little big; I am not sure whether that has any impact.)

I decided on a Lanbo4 setting instead and I asked about the price of setting the stone in the mount here in US. I think it was Arcadian who replied that the price would be around $45. I called three of the local jewelers (who also do repair work); one of them quoted me a minimum of $100 after I described it in detail and the other two won't give me a quote unless I bring the stone and semi mount in. I think $45 is reasonable but one has to first find the right local jeweler. I ended up shipping the stone (my mint garnet) to Lanbo4 for a free setting. It was kind of scary and I feel lucky it worked out without any damage to the stone.

Good luck.

 

[bluegirl123]

Make sure you are comfortable with the jeweler.

I had a local jeweler set my tourmaline slightly lopsided and with scratches.

 

[faegrace]

Atwater and Blugirl~

Thank you for responding. I haven't contacted LOGR yet because I don't want to sound like a complete idiot. I don't have a jeweler I work with locally. (The one jeweler I trusted with my wedding ring botched it so badly I had to spend a fortune having it repaired elsewhere! ) So, I guess I should shop around for someone to set it first, or desperately plead with Michael E.

~ faegrace

 

[LD]

Faegrace - when you speak with LOGR you need to say that you need the setting adjust to fit a 8.6mm stone HOWEVER I'm assuming it's a round cut? If it's not, the setting may not be adjustable.

Tanga Garnets will look good in either white or yellow gold so this really would be down to what your Mum actually wears. Most people have a preference.

Other upgrades, such as gold carat weight is down to personal preference. I very rarely upgrade with LOGR from 14k to 18k unless it's for a really great stone.

Diamonds I will upgrade however. Ask him how much it would be to upgrade the diamonds and then decide whether it's affordable or not.

To find a local jeweller it may be sensible to tell us where (generally) you live. Hopefully a PS'er lives near and can recommend somebody.

 

[faegrace]

LD ~

Thank you! Yes, it's a round garnet. If I ask for upgraded diamonds, what might I say? Do I specify to VS or a different cut or ???

I live near Santa Barbara, CA. Unfortunately, we run into the misperception of affluence and things priced accordingly. (I had a particularly hard time reading a recommendation for the jeweler who not only screwed up my wedding ring, but my mom's ammolite ring as well; it was on another PS thread.., but I digress.) I would love to find someone here who is both skilled and honest. Affordable too.

Again, thank you so very much for the advice, LD.

~ faegrace

 

[faegrace]

BTW, how long does it typically take to hear back from LOGR? I haven't received anything from them.

 

[faegrace]

LOGR did get back to me. Here is the run-down and PLEASE, I need feedback as to whether or not their fees are reasonable:


* $100 to increase size to acommodate a bigger center stone (6mm to 8.6mm)

* $30 non-refundable labor fees

* $268 to upgrade the diamonds from Si to VS

So, close to $400 extra when all is said and done, obviously not including what it will cost to have Michael set the garnet.


Thanks in advance for your opinions.

~ faegrace

 

[T L]

LOGR did get back to me. Here is the run-down and PLEASE, I need feedback as to whether or not their fees are reasonable:


* $100 to increase size to acommodate a bigger center stone (6mm to 8.6mm)

* $30 non-refundable labor fees

* $268 to upgrade the diamonds from Si to VS

So, close to $400 extra when all is said and done, obviously not including what it will cost to have Michael set the garnet.


Thanks in advance for your opinions.

~ faegrace

I find his custom costs to be very expensive, and so I have been going with lanbo a lot. I know diamonds and gold have gone up significantly, but that seems rather expensive on top of the base fee. You will probabaly save a great deal of money finding a pre-made 9mm setting for the stone from LOGR or lanbo4.

The lanbo4 stores are

beyondjewelry3
leejewelry
lan.b04
jewe2004
jewelryhoo

and I'm probably forgetting a couple, but I would search through those.

 

[faegrace]

TL ~

Thanks so much! I got my mom to go through some of the settings (beyondjewelry3) and inquired about customization per her desires. I appreciate your feedback and again, I am grateful to hear from those with experience.

~ faegrace

It is stressful because jewelry is such a personal thing and I want her to love it....

 

[ked123]

I just purchased an 8mm legacy replica setting from LOGR a month or so ago. They were very good about communication- they always answered my emails within 24 hours or less.

I upgraded the diamonds to full cut H VS ($75) and also to 18K white gold for the setting. I do not know if I would upgrade the metal again as I don't know if there is much difference between their 14K and 18K.

Overall, I am very pleased with the quality of the setting for the price I paid, and would use LOGR again. They did make a slight error on the original setting (forgot milgrain on the outer edge) and rectified this by sending another setting within a week's time.

I am on the look out for a fanta orange spessartite to put into the setting. Finding a local jeweler to do this is going to be a pain, I am sure of it. I preliminarily asked around in the diamond district here and got some pretty rude responses. It seems that jeweler's are not keen to work with me if I did not buy the stone or setting from them. Maybe if I had a previous purchase history with them things would be better.

 

[faegrace]

Lanbo4 got back to me with a much more reasonable quote (approximately $600 less!) So, again, TL, thank you.

One last question, maybe I should start a new CS setting thread for this, but do you think rose gold would pair well with Barry's Tanga? My mom mentioned it but I am unsure having never used it before.

 

[T L]

Lanbo4 got back to me with a much more reasonable quote (approximately $600 less!) So, again, TL, thank you.

One last question, maybe I should start a new CS setting thread for this, but do you think rose gold would pair well with Barry's Tanga? My mom mentioned it but I am unsure having never used it before.

For that, I think high karat buttery 18K yellow gold would have a stronger impact. It would make the red stand out more. Pretty stone!! Congratulations, glad that lanbo was able to quote you a better price.

 

[Anonymous]

I don't lurk here that often anymore b/c it was causing too much envy...but I had to stop in and say WOW that's a *beautiful* stone! I just might have to pop in again to see it if you post pics once it's set.

 

[faegrace]

TL ~

Thank you for the advice.


Tammy ~

Thank you for the compliment. It's actually a gift for my mom. She's an earth angel.

~ faegrace

 

[LD]

Faegrace - I think you'd be safe with either white or yellow gold for that stone. I have a similar one in white gold (with diamonds) and the contrast is beautiful. It doesn't make the stone look cold either. If I were you, I'd get what will be worn more. You won't be wrong as both will be lovely.

 

[faegrace]

LD ~

Thank you for the guidance as well.

My mom wears both equally. After speaking with her, I think she wants to highlight the pinks and purples in the garnet. Not sure which way to go then....

~ faegrace