HW micropave or solitaire? - Help appreciated!

[fantasia7]

I'm split between getting a Harry Winston micropave cushion and the round brilliant solitaire...really loved the bling of the micropave but the matching wedding band seems to look a bit thin on its own. Plus I'm not really sure if it would look strange if I wear a diamond wedding band and my bf wears a plain one?

It's such a difficult decision... any suggestions??
HW micropave cushion 1.02 ct


HW round brilliant solitaire 1.02 ct


both together now

 

[LibbyLA]

The plain bands won't require babying like the micropave ones will and you won't have to worry about losing diamonds.

There are options other than the two you mention, though. You could use a plain band with the micropave ering or you could get a plain band to wear alone when you don't want to wear your wedding ring and ering. That would give you a chance to get a pretty engraved band of you like it, or a slightly wider plain band than you'd wear with your ering.

liz

 

[Lotus99]

If you like the micropave, you could always get a plain band, in addition to the set. That way, you can wear the micropave ring and the plain ring on days you don't want to wear your engagement ring, and you have something that coordinates with your future husband's ring. Just a suggestion. Plain bands aren't very expensive in the grand scheme of things.

 

[Enerchi]

The plain bands won't require babying like the micropave ones will and you won't have to worry about losing diamonds.

There are options other than the two you mention, though. You could use a plain band with the micropave ering or you could get a plain band to wear alone when you don't want to wear your wedding ring and ering. That would give you a chance to get a pretty engraved band of you like it, or a slightly wider plain band than you'd wear with your ering.

liz

+1

Also--- you could have a 'wrap' made to sit next to the solitaire, giving the illusion of a 3 stone (Check out BLISS's thread on this...)

It is not necessary for your wedding band to match your FF's wedding band. Go with what you love. You could also purchase a thin wedding band, then use it as a spacer if you ever receive an eternity band in the future...

Just ideas! (But I like the wrap on the solitaire! )

 

[fantasia7]

The plain bands won't require babying like the micropave ones will and you won't have to worry about losing diamonds.

There are options other than the two you mention, though. You could use a plain band with the micropave ering or you could get a plain band to wear alone when you don't want to wear your wedding ring and ering. That would give you a chance to get a pretty engraved band of you like it, or a slightly wider plain band than you'd wear with your ering.

liz

I think I've read somewhere before that micropave ones are delicate but didn't know you could potentially lose diamonds?
Quoted from another website:
"Some micro pave designs may have 100-200 diamonds, which using simple arithmetic, gives many more opportunities for a diamond to fall out"...
"it is not uncommon for professional cleaning methods (specifically, ultrasonics and steam cleaners) to dislodge micro pave set stones."
...so, how much more babying will I need to do?? and how likely is it for a micropave to lose diamonds? The SA lady at HW told me that she never knew any customers who had problems with losing stones...maybe the solitaire is a safer option then??

 

[LibbyLA]

fantasia,

The solitaire will be a lot "safer", no doubt about it. You could still do a plain shank with a halo if you like that look. That would be compromise that might be less delicate but would give you more bling than a plain solitaire.

I like the three-stone idea, too.

BTW, unless you and hubby are joined at the hip, not many people will be paying any attention to the fact that your rings do or don't match, and it doesn't matter whether or not they do. Wear what you like.

liz

 

[CharmyPoo]

I would take the micropave one any day. I wouldn't take that one though ... I don't like the cushion diamond they have in it. HW sets all types of cushions in their settings so picking the right one is important.

 

[Mayk]

Love the micropave... but i am biased...

 

[distracts]

The amount of babying depends on your lifestyle, but you shouldn't wear it when you sleep, shower, swim, work out, do any manual labor/yardwork or anything where your hands might get banged around. I'd do that for a plain solitaire as well as for a micropave ring. You can get away with not taking a solitaire ring off for those activities because it's more durable, but really should be taking it off anyway. For a micropave ring you need to be even more careful about avoiding bumps or pressure on it. The tiny prongs that hold the pave stones in are the delicate part - they are strong, yes, but much weaker than the big momma prongs that hold the center stone, and so it takes less damage to cause a stone loss. I know lots of people on here who have micropave rings where the pave goes all the way around worry about things like gripping doorknobs or steering wheels, opening car doors, holding heavy bags, etc. I'm not sure how much that is really warranted, but as long as you're aware that you shouldn't be knocking or pressing it into things and take it off when that's a risk, it should be fine. And because of the pave, DEFINITELY don't do anything like knead dough or put lotion on with your ring on - it's a little harder to clean than just a solitaire. But it's totally manageable, and you'll still be wearing it everywhere it will actually get seen by other people (well, assuming your work isn't manual labor and your social gatherings don't get tooooooo crazy). The main biggie with a micropave ring, I think, from stories I've seen of people who've lost stones, is to remember not to wear it when you sleep. You actually managed to put a lot of pressure on your hands in the night, and while that's no problem with a plain band, and not a whole lot of one with a solitaire (though still not advised), the little prongs in the micropave can't put up with much of it.

Personally I like either the micropave e-ring with the plain band, or the plain e-ring with the micropave band (but with two bands - one for either side of the solitaire!). I agree with CharmyPoo that the cushion in that particular micropave ring is not the best performer though. It doesn't look like the worst choice, but Harry Winston can do better.

 

[fantasia7]

Thank you all for the super helpful posts!! I really appreciate everyone's suggestions. And thanks distracts for the detailed tutorial on babying the ring
I think I'm leaning towards the micropave...and maybe follow Lotus99's suggestion to get the set plus a plain band
Sorry I'm such a newbie here and this might be a very stupid question, but CharmyPoo and distract, do you mind explaining why you not like the stone in the micropave? The SA told us it was a D color VVS1, and obviously we will be paying quite a premium on the brand and I really hope that it is a premium worth paying!!
The micropave was the only one in the London HW store that fits out desired specs (1.0-1.25 cts, D or E) and the SA said she will check if there are other ones from other stores, so if we don't like this one we can hopefully get another one with similar specs. But I was just wondering what should I look for besides the obvious 3Cs? Thanks all for your help!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

You would be massively overpaying for D VVS! An F VS1 or VS2 is going to look just the same and save you a lot of money. I would NOT buy that particular ring. Paying the HW premium may be worth it if the brand means that much to you (because you can have an equal quality one custom made for less), but no way would I overpay for a diamond that was D VVS. Wait until they can find one or make one for you with a more reasonably priced cushion.

If you did go with the solitaire, I'd certainly buy a diamond wedding band to go with it. I just would do a more durable one than micropave.

 

[Sparkly_Girl]

Welllll..... as you can see, I'm partial to micropave! in fact, the HW served as inspiration for my Oscar Heyman custom designed ring. I don't know anyone who has the HW, but I can tell you that I feel very secure wearing my ring all day, every day. Oscar Heyman has an excellent reputation for craftsmanship, so I haven't been worried about losing stones from my ring. That is not to say, however, that I will take ANY chances. I intend to bring my ring into the jewelry store we purchased my ring through for regular inspections. I'm sure with rings that may be of lesser construction quality or that use less metal than is in mine, losing stones may be a very real concern.

As for style of your wedding band. I would suggest what others have... wear your HW with a plain platinum band. And I don't think it's necessary to match your ring to your spouses. (thank goodness or either my STBH or I would be really bummed....)

 

[distracts]

Okay granted I am only judging that diamond based on two pictures, and don't have video or my own eyes on it to see how it reacts, but it looks like it has a more dead spot in the center and in one of the corners in both pictures. The corner spots look like they move but the center doesn't. It's not a bad cushion. It is, in fact, a very good cushion. It is not an ideal, excellent, amazing, knock-your-socks-off cushion. And for Harry Winston prices, that's what I'd want. For a $7000 cushion, I'd think that was probably fine, though if you could find better, get it. At Harry Winston I'd imagine you're paying at least twice that, so if the diamond does have the problems I think it may, and if it doesn't absolutely blow you out of the water when you look at it, I'd hold out for a better-looking one. And as I said at the start of this paragraph, it could be that the stone doesn't actually have those problems when you look at it in real life and they're just because of how the picture was taken or something.

I'd say throw all that out the window if you love the stone - but I get the idea that you've never really looked at diamonds before and don't have a firm concept of what you like. There are many different kinds of cushions and they have different personalities. That particular one has lots of tiny little facets. I prefer ones with bigger facets, and occasional dead facets doesn't bother me as much in those as it does in the ones with smaller facets. So poke around in the Show Me The Bling forum and do maybe look at some Diamondinfoman videos on youtube about cushions and see what you like. I've seen HW rings with bunches of kinds of cushions, so I know they have them (like these two: [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-anniversary-ring-is-here.84652/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-anniversary-ring-is-here.84652/[/URL] and [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/loving-my-harry-winston-cushion-pave-ering-part-ii.74219/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/loving-my-harry-winston-cushion-pave-ering-part-ii.74219/[/URL] ). It is possible that you'll look at all this and still like that particular ring the best - and if so, that's fantastic. It is beautiful. I just think you could eke a little bit more beauty out of it, and for HW prices you should try to. I also want to be sure that you're getting what you'll be happiest with, since it's a big and important purchase.

Here's some links with tons of info and eye-candy:
https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/diamond-cut/
https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/cushion-cut-diamond
[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/a-cushion-by-any-other-name.36001/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/a-cushion-by-any-other-name.36001/[/URL]
[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/cushion-cuts-a-collection.135031/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/cushion-cuts-a-collection.135031/[/URL]
[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/post-your-cushion-halos-here.88177/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/post-your-cushion-halos-here.88177/[/URL]
[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/the-forum-engagement-ring-folder-eye-candy.5429/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/the-forum-engagement-ring-folder-eye-candy.5429/[/URL]
http://www.youtube.com/user/DiamondInfoMan?feature=watch

Agh I feel my post sounded big and scary. I didn't mean it to. You can't go WRONG with a Harry Winston, it's just I feel you maybe could get it a little bit more right.