I think I'm about to burst!

[Calliecake]

Trekkie, Congratulations! I'm so happy for you. It was obviously love at first sight!!!! I can't wait to see this stone set.

I thought this was going to be a post saying you bought the wallet you had your eye on. A diamond is much more exciting!

 

[marym]

It looks beautiful! How about some more pics, say outside under a leafy tree.... Pretty please!

 

[Trekkie]

marcy, I honestly feel that way!

Thank you sooo much yennyfire! Yes, it was a good deal and thankfully I've been saving for years just in case such a deal presented itself and I'm so glad it finally did!

Thank you so much girlyglam!

LLJsmom, thank you so much! More pics are coming soon!

rainydaze! You know what, it's been a few hours now and I'm still excited! I woke up this morning thinking, I have a one carat diamond!

rainwood, that's hilarious, thank you! I actually messaged a friend of mine this morning saying that he is no longer my favourite Greek boy, he's been demoted in favour of a Greek hottie who sources me 1ct old cuts! His response? "#gutted This is... Over!" Seriously though, he was hot but very professional.

Calliecake, ha! I still want the wallet, but I think a part of me is sated... for now! I feel like my iwantititis is kinda under control for the foreseeable future. Also, I could use the wallet money towards my OMC's forever home, so there's that! I also kinda think the reason I was obsessing over the wallet is because it was attainable, and it would be an easy, instant way to gratify my covetousness (is that even a word?). Don't get me wrong, I still want the wallet, but at this point, I think I want a forever home for my diamond more.

Marym, it's a beautiful winters day out here and we even have a bit of sunshine, so more photos will be forthcoming soon!

Thank you all sooooo much for sharing my excitement!

Recently susief said something on another thread which as stuck with me,

Don't discuss expensive purchases with non-enthusiasts. They spoil all your fun. That's what specialist forums are for.

It makes me super glad to have found you all! I feel so understood! I've found my tribe!

 

[Scandinavian]

That is wonderful! The stone looks amazing!!

 

[Trekkie]

That is wonderful! The stone looks amazing!!

Thank you sooo much!

Prepare for a picture avalanche!

 

[Trekkie]

So while I was outside taking photos of my new preciousssssss one of my students ambled by.

"Trekkie? Trekkie. What are you doing?"



Fortunately she obliged and helped me take a few photos!

Please note these hands carefully, soon they'll be wrapped around a CNN microphone.

 

[Trekkie]

I absolutely loved taking photos of her, but she just would. Not. Sit. Still! She was throwing off so many rainbows the poor camera couldn't focus! What a nice problem to have!

I also enlisted the help of Mr Spock with the photography. He had some wisdom to share with me:

"After a time, you may find that having is not so pleasing a thing, after all, as wanting. It is not logical, but it is often true".

Seemed particularly relevant to me and that lil iwantititis problem I have. BUT! So far this hyooooooooooge rock is more than living up to the wanting!

 

[Queenie60]

It's beautiful Trekkie - thank you for sharing.

 

[monarch64]

It's a beautiful stone, love the Star Trek pics! Congrats, and thanks for sharing!

 

[marym]

It's really lovely and bubbly! Can't wait to see what you do with it!

 

[Gypsy]

Lovely high crown, small table and beautiful pastels from the facets, PLUS lovely fire. Looks like a winner!

Wear it in the best of health and with the greatest joy!

 

[Ally T]

It's beautiful! The fire, the brightness - it just looks pretty perfect!

You did well to follow your gut & wait it out. How exciting! How will you set it??

 

[missy]

Ooh it is GORGEOUS!!!
LOVE it! Congrats on a super purchase and cannot wait to see how you decide to set her. Just amazing!

 

[Trekkie]

Thank you all so much for your kind words about my new diamond. You are all so lovely. I wish I could just sit down with you all and have tea and crumpets and chat about diamonds.

I am on my way back home now after seeing the jeweller in the city and am feeling quite despondent. They had quite a few readymade settings but absolutely nothing that wowed me. Overwhelmingly, the quality was just ok, and the accent diamonds weren't very good quality at all. They were meant to be G-H/VS but they clearly had flaws and/or were poorly cut. They shimmered almost like white marcasite (if there even is such a thing) rather than diamonds, and this was under jewellery store lighting. I think Pricescope has turned me into a snob.

It also wasn't helped by how the sales lady (whom I usually adore) insisted on testing my diamond because it was "just too clear" and kept going on about how it was impossible for such an old diamond to be VVS. Well, joke's on her because my diamond actually 1) is a diamond and 2) bloody is bloody VVS.

I just wanted a cheap solitaire for now, $300 max, just something I could wear so that I could actually get to enjoy my diamond while getting to know her before putting her in her forever home. But everything I liked was either $1000+ with poor quality diamonds or negatively emphasised her creamy tint.

It also wasn't helped by how walking in there with a 1ct diamond kinda gives the impression that one has a lot of money. In my country 1ct of reasonable quality costs about R100 000, which is a hell of a lot of money - nearly a year's salary for a teacher or a nurse. So I kinda felt like I was getting, "you have all this money to buy a diamond, what do you mean you don't want to spend $1000 on this Tacori/Cartier/Harry Winston knockoff?"

I dunno, hey. This has kinda sucked a lot of the joy out of this purchase.

I'll be contacting another jeweller tomorrow and hope he'll have better news.

Until then, hope you're all doing well!

 

[junebug17]

Oh please don't let this experience diminish your happiness and excitement trekkie! I find that some jewelers don't have great things to say about a diamond that wasn't purchased through them, sour grapes, so don't let her insensitive comments bother you.

Don't worry, I'm sure you'll find a setting that will work for you, again, don't let that bum you out. I've been on PS for 5 years and I'm embarrassed to admit I'm not sure how things work, but I'm wondering if you could just purchase an inexpensive setting from James Allen and have a local jeweler set it for you. I know there will be taxes and fees but I'm just throwing it out there. Someone more knowledgable than me can chime in on this.

Fingers crossed the other jeweler will have better options for you - Don't be discouraged, this will work out!

 

[Dee*Jay]

Oh Trekkie, don't let this suck the joy out of your gorgeous new diamond! F those people. They obviously aren't dealing with an educated consumer who knows what she wants and they don't deserve your business. You will find a great setting to put your new spectacular gem in, I'm sure of it!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I would just make it clear you are looking for the least expensive temporary setting so that you can take your time deciding how you want to set it. I am so happy you found a stone you love!

 

[Trekkie]

She's being set this week!!! I gave the jeweller a few pictures of what I liked (all cathedral solitaires), told him I want delicate prongs and a 2mm shank and he said I'm crazy, I need a 3-4mm shank and thick, strong prongs with such a large (Ha! ) stone and I literally said, first of all, thank you for calling my stone large but nope, I know what I want, please make it happen. So now I wait. Collecting her on Saturday and I can't wait!!!

I ended up going to a different sales associate, and I'm so glad I did. The price she quoted was a bit high, so I politely asked if that was her best price. She turned to her boss, who made a few sums and asked me if I had any gold to trade in (I did) and he responded with a price that was reasonable and within my budget.

Two days after I handed over my stone, my usual favourite sales associate responded to an email I had sent the previous week with a bunch of pictures and prices of what PS vendors would charge. She just said nope, sorry, can't do any of that for less than [literally double what the other sales associate quoted], because those are all hollow settings ( ) and poor quality ( ). I'm still too annoyed to respond. Not only did she keep me waiting for a week, I feel like she inflated the price because she thinks I am made of money.

I have to say I'm a tiny bit nervous that the jeweller will 1. disregard my request for a 2mm shank and delicate prongs and 2. just copy the design on the picture I indicated as my favourite. Because that's what we do out here. Copyright? What copyright? And it won't even be a copy of the same quality, it'll be hamfisted and poorly executed and just ugh. And I'll be sad. But it's been handed over so it's too late now, I'll have to wait and see!

Five more sleeps!

 

[marym]

Did you get your ring back from the jeweler, and if so did it meet your expectations? Can't wait to see!

 

[AnnaH]

Congrats on your find, lovely! Anything over a carat is considered large in most circles. Your beautiful stone deserves the setting you want.

 

[Trekkie]

Did you get your ring back from the jeweler, and if so did it meet your expectations? Can't wait to see!

Thank you! I have the ring but nope, it is nothing like I wanted. I'm writing an email detailing everything that's wrong and will take it back when I return to the city at the end of this month.

No the meanwhile, I'm enjoying the sparkle! (As long as I don't look at the Frankenclaws )

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Trekkie]

Congrats on your find, lovely! Anything over a carat is considered large in most circles. Your beautiful stone deserves the setting you want.

Thank you soooo much! <3

 

[marym]

Oh no, I'm sorry to hear this. How frustrating! I hope they can fix the ring to your liking. It looks lovely on your hand! So bright and sparkly!