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How many bling Booboos have you made...

Mayk

Mayk

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Feb 12, 2011
Messages
4,808
I seem to be one that makes mistakes... When it comes to jewels. I saw Phoenix say she had a few and another thread on Hangout about regrets... I have a few too!

1. My first engagement ring with DH and how I found PS it was an EGL....graded G VS2...came back as a J SI1 and an awful cut..
2. Then a 14kt WG setting for that EGL diamond I didn't love with two matching 18 kt WG bands... Whoops
3. Then the same setting in 18kt WG.. It still wasn't for me...and a new AGS000 G VS2 (feel sorry for my husband about now) but I kept one band sold the other one and my setting with JbEG.. New Sareen setting for the AGS.. Now happy...
4. Then (DS can say she told me so)... My five stone setting was too high.. So I had it reset using the same metal in a lower setting... Ouch! :nono: Now it's perfect... I should have listened!
5. NOW I have this platinum French Cut Spphire band I love but it's a little big about .25 size and the channel set edges rub the pave' basket in my e-ring and that is exactly where I wanted it to wear it....and I was WAY outside the return window... When I finally realized it... :roll:

I'm learning but these lessons are painful. ;(

Anybody else have a few to share so I don't feel so dumb?
 
Basically the main one is just buying my e-ring before I knew about PS. My center stone is *fine* (H/VS2 based on independent appraisal) but it's not certified and I have no idea how it measures up as far as cut is concerned. I'm sure I could have done much better and obviously if I ever upgrade, I'll go with GIA or AGS with a superior cut.

My husband made a HUGE booboo with some .75 ctw. frozen spit princess studs he bought for me at the mall...on sale... (read, non-returnable). The IGI certificiation ( :eek: ) says they are J color, I2-I3 clarity ( ;( ;( ) I was told I could trade them in toward something else, but that it would have to be twice the value, and he paid $1,000 so I wasn't about to spend $2,000 at this place. He was so proud of himself :nono: We had a gentle talk afterward about how while I "lovvvvvvved" them, for such a big purchase, he should consult me next time. I kind of screwed myself out of getting surprise jewelry from now on, but at least he won't be taken for a ride again.
 
I love my CS stones but 2 settings I bought from offshore eBay sellers have lost melee already - :shock: yeah, not really so shocked after all. :roll: Took one of them apart and had DanielM reset it and it's perfect now! The other...myeh..I wear it but not in love with it. Live and learn...you get what you pay for.

The other super huge mistake was the B&M 3 stone that was an issue from the get go.

My original ering would not be a booboo per Se, but I just didn't know then what I know now, nor did we have the money 28 years ago!
 
My first ER was maul crappola....then I upgraded it to the same crappola (just a little bigger) and still had problems with it (go figure). To be done with it I traded in one last time and got a nice (but overpriced) bracelet. For all the money we spent by the end of it I could have had a slammin ER the first time :P

Other than that, it was all impulse buying errors. I wish I would have focused on buying everyday staple items (nice studs, simple solitaire pendant, ect) instead of several impulse rings.

The last three years I have been focused on paring down my collection and attempting to correct previous errors. I have sold most of my oops jewelry through consignment and I'm glad to say I haven't lost much money except for the original ER and upgrades.

Now I'm focused on more classic staple pieces, no regrets in the last few years so yay for that!
 
I feel kind of like that about my Maytal oval ring. I love looking at it, and it's made amazingly well, but it just doesn't look great on my hand for some reason so I haven't worn it much at all. :(sad
 
I upgraded my first engagement ring to my current one, but I still don't think of it as a bling booboo. I knew when we purchased the original e-ring that I was probably going to want an antique cushion instead, but I still loved that ring when I had it.

I'm thinking I don't buy enough bling to make booboos! Going to have to work on that . . .
 
Ha ha, my booboos are mainly to do with buying smaller items (despite DH's objections) only to end up not wearing them and then either selling them or giving them away; this with the exception of the bracelet for which I overpaid but am still wearing it and loving it. I am pretty certain it was the only time I overpaid, but thinking about it makes me cringe! ;(

That DH knows a thing or two about my bling buying behaviour and now I listen to him, better late than never, heh?! :wink2:

Ya'know, the funny thing is I am MUCH smarter when it comes to buying other things, like designer clothes (almost never pay full price), designer shoes and handbags (same as clothes), real estate/ property (at which I am waaaayyy better than DH's) and other investments (again much better than DH). And for these, I think about them long and hard before shelling out any money. Just as well cuz otherwise we'd be in BIG trouble! :tongue:

I guess the difference is with bling, for me it's more of an emotional purchase; whereas with the other items, every time it's a COLD HARD LOGICAL trade. Just have to shift my thinking and behaviour about bling, lol!
 
Ugh I have made three booboo if counting separate items.

- My biggest booboo, and one where I didn't learn, was my e-ring setting. My stone is an OMC so the shape is a very soft cornered elongated cushion that needed a custom setting. I was cheap and the setting did not come out right. Did I learn my lesson? Of course not, I let them remake it instead of cutting my losses. Brought the remade setting to my jeweler for them to remove the thick bezel (I had asked for a thin one) and put in prongs. It was first when I received it back that I realized why the setting had such a thick bezel (yet still didn't manage to hold the stone securely) and weird unfinished spaces in the corners between the bezel and the halo. The bezel was done for an oval and in order to fit my stone that is an OMC the bezel was bigger than my stone so only the corners of my OMC touched the setting. Putting in prongs has left the setting much more secure but it really looks like I just shoved in an OMC in a too big oval setting ;( . I hate it. I wish I had realized the problem before going through this a second time. (I don't want to name the maker).

- In the midst of the setting drama I bought a ring just because it's setting fit my stone. I then sold it at a loss which I regret.

- Third boo boo: I wanted an OEC for a pendant but I am cheap so I kept loosing out. I found an I1 with an eye visible black inclusion :errrr: but the cut was wonderful. I bought it since the inclusions won't be noticeable when I wear it. I later discovered that it did bother me, thankfully I realized this before setting it.
 
I think the biggest booboo I ever made was upgrading from our original wedding bands to "maul" diamond bands a number of years ago. DH wears his everyday and while I thought about getting the band from JA that matches my ER I decided against it. When DD started showing an interest in jewelry I decided that I want to purchase quality items that will be heirloom pieces. Soon to add some huggies to the mix.
 
I bought a "Maul" pair of diamond earrings for my daughter when she turned 16. I knew enough that they should be certified, but not enough to know that everything certified is not necessarily great. Diamonds have 70% depth???? Could have bought something better and cheaper if I had found Pricescope earlier.
 
Several.

Biggest one was the stone I bought to replace my original ering. The vendor (not a PS vendor) was a shark and we got totally taken advantage of...overpaid for a sub-par stone with a visible inclusion. In the end, I have my dream ring, but I try not to think about the $$$ we threw away.

I've bought several items that I thought I'd wear and don't. Can't seem to sell them, so there's more $$ down the drain.

I have one project underway and then I'm DONE (for a long while at least!)...
 
I think my biggest problem is wanting more than one thing and not having unlimited money to do it all!

I guess my biggest mistake since joining PS was letting a sales person at a very nice jewelry store convince me with his adamant opinion that I should get my rings in white gold. That is where I ordered my Memoire. Later I discovered that I LOVE platinum much more, and it bugs me a lot that I still have that one ring in wg. Not that anyone else would ever know.

My other mistake was buying another ideal cut round before I sold the first one, because by the time the first one sold (last week!!!), I had decided I wanted an AVR instead. But I love my Tiffany repro setting, so do I keep the rb in that setting and get an AVR in an antique style setting??? It doesn't make sense to have two round solitaires to me, though. So I am having trouble figuring out what to do. Also, the advantage of setting an AVR into a plain setting is that there are two bands I really want..a french cut one by Victor and also an alternating baguette sapphire and round diamond milgrain band such as the one by BK.

Soooo, I can never be sure I am getting the right thing because I like too many things!!!

Oh, and I never know what size diamonds...I either think they are too big for me or too small!!! :twirl:

(Mayk...I am glad you were able to get your 5 stone ring fixed to be lower and am glad you are happier with it!)
 
My original engagement ring. It's pretty and classic, but it sits too high and it isn't me. Rather than wearing a higher narrow setting, I now wear a chunky, low profile setting and love the way it looks on my hand. The stone I wear is smaller, but the wide setting is so flattering on me.

An eternity band I bought on ebay. I still own it. It was inexpensive and I wanted one for a long time. It looks great with my original engagement ring. It looks good on my finger, but something is missing. I'll probably try to sell it eventually.

I do worry about the height of the earrings I just had custom made, my first ever custom piece, but so far I seem to do okay with them.

I think that's it. I don't own much jewelery and I don't spend much on what I do have.
 
I swear I'm not feeling sorry for myself here, but I can't think of one time when I've gotten stones set when I haven't made mistakes. It has really scared me off setting stones recently. Either the stone darkens too much in the setting, or it doesn't look good on my hand, or I don't like the stone when it goes muddy in some lights...my list goes on and on. Silly me. Now I just look at the stones I have in my tray and imagine them set - far more gratifying! :bigsmile: :love: Crazy, I know.
 
Luckily, no expensive mistakes (>$300) so far. Although I'm a bit concerned that the necklace on the aquamarine pendant is on the thin and delicate side and may require replacement in the future.
 
I have made a lot of changes in my bling but I only have one I would call a mistake.

Back when I first joined PS I bought EC side stones and reset my original engagement sapphire into a three stone. It was lovely, but no sparkle. I bought the diamonds from a B&M and overpaid. I regreted it very quickly when I learned more on PS. I traded my EC sides for a single RB for a pendant a few months later. It was too small and I did not like the mount. And lost money on the trade in. I sold that diamond to my BIL and my SIL now proudly wears it as her engagement ring. But we sold that for a loss too. So. That was my mistake.

The rest I chalk up to fun and games.
 
None really. All of the settings I bought and ended up not liking were able to be returned, so I didn't waste any money on them fortunately. I guess the only one I can think of is I switched my ring from white gold to yellow gold after DH proposed, and wore that ring for 3 years--now I really dislike yellow gold and wonder what I was thinking. But it served me well for 3 years, and it wasn't too expensive so it's not really a mistake per se.
 
I don't think I have too many boo-boos ... I mean, yeah, a little too much junk jewelry, but it either tends to serve as a souvenir of a place or time when I couldn't quite afford the real thing, OR as a sample that either told me that, yes, I wanted to sink major buckage, or, no, it would look awful on me (coughfivestonebandcough). And there ARE a few pieces I'm thinking of selling - mostly gifts that have gone completely and totally unworn (a couple of Henry Dunay brooches from my folks which were a nice thought, but ... I was fifteen, and not so big on the fancy brooches). But the three I really regret are:

- a Lucien Picard watch for my 29th birthday. I wanted it to be a long-term grown-up watch: instead, the finish wore off and it looks AWFUL, and I doubt it would have any resale value in this shape. Bah.

- a pendant I exchanged - my husband had gotten a very schmaltzy one because he didn't recognize it was a stylized heart (he was as aghast as I was when I diffidently mentioned it), which I swapped for a more elegant one, which I still don't wear because while it doesn't have bad memories, it doesn't really have any good ones, either

- the ring my parents gave me for my 30th b-day/Ph.D. graduation: I designed the damn thing with my dad, and somehow in the space it took to make it it went from having a tight halo of bezeled stone to have a broad set of lacey prongs. Paraiba and alexandrite wasted, because my folks are violently opposed to my resetting it, and I'm violently opposed to wearing it. Alas ....

Thinking about it, I might have to start a thread in Pre-Loved!!!
 
My wedding ring.
I wanted alternating white and (irradiated) blue diamonds gypsy set halfway around the ring. And I got it. But the small blue the jeweler showed me and the small blues I got were two very different shades. I wanted a darker more sapphire blue, and what I got was a lighter obviously irradiated blue colour.
When we picked up the rings a few days before the wedding, all I could say was 'oh'. Because I wanted to cry.
My lovely hubby said nice things about it, and about how we should just be happy about getting married, etc. I didn't tell him at the time how I really felt because he was so happy. He's so cute. :praise:
Anyway, I haven't worn the thing for a while. It's not ugly, and I tried to convince myself for years that it was OK, and to wear it, but I just don't want it to be my wedding ring. I actually quite like it as a RHR.
But that damn thing is a disappointment and I don't want to look at my wedding ring and think 'oh'. :(sad
So, I am getting a lovely eternity band and I'm going to do a tiny informal vow renewal. :D

For a significant birthday I was given the choice of two (small) diamond and sapphire necklaces. Tough life huh? Well, I didn't love either of them, so I took the less ugly one. Stupid. I wish I had just waited for something I really liked.
But, I'm fairly sure I can take it apart and get it made into something nice. It will just take some ca$h, and I have other priorities. Like my e-ring upgrade. :Up_to_something:

My most recent blunder was in trying to buy my upgrade stone through a vendor who took so much bloody time with emails and weekends that my lovely lovely diamond sold! Grrrrrrr! :angryfire:
They were great for a recent custom project, but I'll never buy a loose stone from them.

diamondseeker2006 said:
I think my biggest problem is wanting more than one thing and not having unlimited money to do it all!
Click to expand...
I too have this terrible affliction. We need to start a FB support group with a PayPal donation button so others can help alleviate our suffering. :lol:
 
My biggest boo boo's revolve around buying rings before losing all my pregnancy weight. One I can fix with sizing beads (too afraid to size it). The other is an eternity ring which flew off my hand and sailed across my office, I thought the width would make up for the fact it is a half size too big. Need to get it put back up for sale.
 
diamondseeker2006|1346177600|3258643 said:
I think my biggest problem is wanting more than one thing and not having unlimited money to do it all!

I guess my biggest mistake since joining PS was letting a sales person at a very nice jewelry store convince me with his adamant opinion that I should get my rings in white gold. That is where I ordered my Memoire. Later I discovered that I LOVE platinum much more, and it bugs me a lot that I still have that one ring in wg. Not that anyone else would ever know.

My other mistake was buying another ideal cut round before I sold the first one, because by the time the first one sold (last week!!!), I had decided I wanted an AVR instead. But I love my Tiffany repro setting, so do I keep the rb in that setting and get an AVR in an antique style setting??? It doesn't make sense to have two round solitaires to me, though. So I am having trouble figuring out what to do. Also, the advantage of setting an AVR into a plain setting is that there are two bands I really want..a french cut one by Victor and also an alternating baguette sapphire and round diamond milgrain band such as the one by BK.

Soooo, I can never be sure I am getting the right thing because I like too many things!!!

Oh, and I never know what size diamonds...I either think they are too big for me or too small!!! :twirl:

(Mayk...I am glad you were able to get your 5 stone ring fixed to be lower and am glad you are happier with it!)
Click to expand...

DS, you can send that ring back to Memoire and have the stones reset in platinum. They are happy to do this but of course there is an upcharge.
 
I bought a large 4+ carat alexandrite that was brownish green (not attractive to me) to red thinking it was valuable. lol The up side is the setting is now worth what I paid and I can swap the stone sometime in the future.

I have sold tons of things on DB and Ebay for far less then I should have because I bought something else and wanted funds.

I put a large color shift chrysoberyl ring on the window sill before bed and the puppy chewed the ring and ate the stone. The stone did not have the best cut but it really was pretty.

I bought an I2 1.5 carat diamond because it was big and sparkly but was lucky enough to trade it for an .80 VS diamond which I later sold.

I lost a really nice Alexandrite- who knows what the heck happened to it.

I once asked for claw prongs on a ring but got triangle prongs and did not complain. :((
 
When I first found PS I would buy tons of CS stones and have some set. The problem was I liked a lot of them and the settings but not loved them. I have since sold many of them off and only kept the few pieces that make my heart sing. Instead of quantity I have turned to quality. My other big mistake is I bought smaller CSs because they were more budget friendly but didn't wear them. I really don't like anything under 8mm so now I make sure that any projects I start are actually somethign I really want.
 
My biggest mistake was selling all my beautiful jewellery. I wasn't well and at a really bad place in my life and felt that I was using the jewellery to patch up the health/relationship issues.
 
Buying smaller stones because now I'm used to bigger ones and will not wear stones under 1 ct. :lol: DSS isn't just limited to diamonds.
 
So many booboo's. When I think of all the money I've spent I could have waited until I knew what I really wanted and put all the money I've spent in the "one perfect ring", instead I've had many e-ring's and lost a lot of money. Looking back I seemed to be in a hurry, not sure why.
My husband proposed with a basic white gold 6 prong setting....knowing what I know now I would have done things sooooo different. Also at this time, I did not know about this site.....that would have really helped.
 
MissGotRocks|1346593726|3261234 said:
diamondseeker2006|1346177600|3258643 said:
I think my biggest problem is wanting more than one thing and not having unlimited money to do it all!

I guess my biggest mistake since joining PS was letting a sales person at a very nice jewelry store convince me with his adamant opinion that I should get my rings in white gold. That is where I ordered my Memoire. Later I discovered that I LOVE platinum much more, and it bugs me a lot that I still have that one ring in wg. Not that anyone else would ever know.

My other mistake was buying another ideal cut round before I sold the first one, because by the time the first one sold (last week!!!), I had decided I wanted an AVR instead. But I love my Tiffany repro setting, so do I keep the rb in that setting and get an AVR in an antique style setting??? It doesn't make sense to have two round solitaires to me, though. So I am having trouble figuring out what to do. Also, the advantage of setting an AVR into a plain setting is that there are two bands I really want..a french cut one by Victor and also an alternating baguette sapphire and round diamond milgrain band such as the one by BK.

Soooo, I can never be sure I am getting the right thing because I like too many things!!!

Oh, and I never know what size diamonds...I either think they are too big for me or too small!!! :twirl:

(Mayk...I am glad you were able to get your 5 stone ring fixed to be lower and am glad you are happier with it!)
Click to expand...

DS, you can send that ring back to Memoire and have the stones reset in platinum. They are happy to do this but of course there is an upcharge.
Click to expand...

Thanks, MGR! I did not see this at the time. First I need to be sure of what my e-ring diamond is going to be :loopy: , and then if it is going to be worn with this band, I can price the reset! Great idea!
 
My worst booboo was losing my diamond studs and my favourite pink tourmaline. I have no idea where they are and it kills me.

Buying booboo, however, has to be the alexandrite ring. The stone is just awful (muddy green, huge window because of the pancake cut). The setting is nice but overly ornate for me. I got it just as I was starting to get some decent jewelry for myself. I should sell it but I am embarrassed to even list on DB or similar site.
 
I'm bling boobooing right now. I got my setting back when I first joined PS. But now I feel that I am a totally different person when it comes to jewelry.

So, I'm selling my setting and wedding band and got quotes from Victor Canera and Barett Salzmann to design a ring. Just need to sell my setting... Which I've never done before. Don't really know where to start... Consign it private sale....
 
buying a bunch of smaller pieces many years ago when I was in college (the bling habit started when I was very young). Now I wish I had saved the money and used the money for more substantial pieces instead!

Wasting money on a custom setting without thinking through or researching if that would look good in real life, and jeweler did not update us along the way - once the custom piece was made I realize I disliked it. But it was too late! I hate wasting money on settings since it is so hard to sell plus it's a huge loss :(( So no more!
 
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