Inherited rings and looking for new setting ideas

[TheElms]

A while ago now I inherited my mother's engagement ring and my grandmother's engagement ring and a few other rings. (Apologies for the terrible pictures, I took them quickly before putting them in a safe deposit box. And everything is in dire need of cleaning.) These are a mix of colored stones and diamonds so I'm not sure if I should post here or in another forum, but I feel like I know you guys so here I am.

Finally, I know next to nothing about the jewelry so the first thing I think I ought to do is have everything appraised (and cleaned!) This is what I do know --

Rings on the top row: Grandmother's engagement ring (right) and wedding band /eternity ring (left). I believe they date from the early 1930s.

Rings on the middle row: Mothers engagement ring (left). Dates from 1977 I think. Ring my father gave my mother that was bought on the Concorde in the early 1990s (right).

Ring on bottom row: Grandmother's ring. One stone for each of her children. Dates from the 1950s I think.






While the pieces are lovely they aren't really "me" for the most part and I'm thinking about having some of them reset. But I'd love some opinions both on whether to reset at all and if so, how.

I would like to reuse all the stones. My initial thoughts are as follows:

I think I will wear the Concorde (flower shape) diamond ring that is set in gold, so no change.

I think the pear diamonds in my mother's engagement ring might make nice drop earrings.

For the 3 colored stones and the center diamond from my grandmother's ring I was thinking I could do some kind of 5 stone bezel set RHR ring (and find another blue stone to match the one blue stone). My other thought was to maybe have them bezel set individually and wear them as stacking rings.

That leaves my grandmother's wedding/eternity band, which I have no thoughts about and that bothers me.

All thoughts and suggestions welcome.

 

[chrono]

Is your grandmother's band curved? I love the concord "flower" cluster ring. It is feminine without looking common. A good cleaning is a must, starting with a good overnight soak in hot soapy water (not boiling but temps your hand can withstand). This is just precaution in case anything is filled, sensitive to ammonia or other harsh chemicals. Once cleaned up, inspect the prongs for wear and tear, and any loose stones. Take your time, there should be no rush to reset. The right ideas will come soon enough.

 

[TheElms]

Chrono - yes my grandmother's band is curved and fits around the e-ring.

 

[CharmedOne]

I agree with Chrono. Give them a nice cleaning. You may like them more after that. Take turns wearing them as they are for a few days and then see. I'd hate to have you reset them and regret it later. They are all lovely and you are so lucky to have heirloom pieces. Enjoy them

 

[Starzin]

That leaves my grandmother's wedding/eternity band, which I have no thoughts about and that bothers me.

Perhaps consider using them with the pears if you do go ahead and reset them.

However, do clean them before anything else because I think you might get quite a surprise.

 

[TheElms]

That's a good ideas to use the diamonds in the band with the earrings. I hadn't thought of that.

I will clean everything before I make any decisions. But I guess my concern is that nothing is coming to me. It's been more than 5 years since my mother passed away and much longer than that for my grandmother. I hate that they sit in the box and I don't wear them. (Other than the flower ring none fit on any fingers -- too big for my pinky and significantly too small for any other finger.)

So I guess what I'm asking is if they were yours what would you do with them?

 

[FrekeChild]

I'd clean the heck out of G-ma's wedding set and get those rings sized! Antique jewelry is very IN right now, but even if it wasn't, those are beautiful pieces and they deserve to be shown off, and enjoyed.

The others are not really to my taste.

I spent my childhood thinking that I would be getting 3 rings of my mothers - beautiful antique pieces. Turns out I didn't get any - she thought it was best that they go to the oldest sister's oldest daughter, instead of staying with me. My dad had a few pieces too - a GORGEOUS filligree diamond pin, and his father's wedding band (had a big antique diamond in there). He sold them for scrap.

Now, I can't say I didn't get anything, but I did get a bunch of Native American jewelry I don't have any interest in and a larger princess cut diamond ring. Which I'm always considering resetting because I'm just not a yellow gold girl, and it's modern - I helped pick it out. But I really loved those antique pieces and I'm so disappointed I didn't get any.

(My dad bought me a pin that was very similar to my G-ma's when he found out how upset I was.)

 

[innerkitten]

Nice rings Those drops would make awesome earrings! I love the diamond flower. What are the pink and blue stones?

 

[Starzin]

I'd clean the heck out of G-ma's wedding set and get those rings sized!

I agree...I'd start here and see how you feel after wearing them for a while.

 

[chrono]

Please clean them up first. You need to see them at their best before any ideas will start flowing. Who knows, once they are sparkly again, you might enjoy wearing them as they are. You mentioned that they are too big for your pinky. What about the other pinky? Depending on the sentimental value attached, I might not reset the stones because it would take away from the memory of seeing my mother / grandmother wearing that exact ring. I am not adverse to resizing in order to be able to wear it though.

 

[TheElms]

OK, so I can take a hint you all like them as they are I will try and make time to get them out of the safe deposit box and clean them up and get them appraised so I feel comfortable keeping them at home.

Innerkitten -- sadly I have no idea what the pink and blue stones are and no one is left to ask. I assume they are real something because of how my grandmother's family was, but I could be wrong. It something I plan to ask when I take them to be appraised. Anyone have any thoughts on what they might be?

 

[chrono]

It's not that we all like them as they are, only that it is easier to take the rings apart than to put them back together later, should you change your mind. You also cannot predict if you will like the rings better than before once they look sparkly again.

The blue and pink stones could be anything. There are plenty of blue and pink stones from many different gem families but if you can get someone to check the refractive index, it will narrow down the possibilities.

 

[FrekeChild]

What Chrono said. You really need to clean them up before anything else. If you got them sized to fit any fingers, would you wear any of them? What is your style?

 

[TheElms]

I tend to like modern things, simple and not to ornate. I do like some of the art deco rings that you see around but not the "busy" ones. I pretty much only wear silver jewelry ( even though on my skin tone gold probably looks better).

 

[innerkitten]

I tend to like modern things, simple and not to ornate. I do like some of the art deco rings that you see around but not the "busy" ones. I pretty much only wear silver jewelry ( even though on my skin tone gold probably looks better).

I still say do earrings with the drop shapes!

 

[jstarfireb]

I agree with cleaning them first, but none of the designs are really my style, so I understand the desire to reset them and would have no problem doing so.

I would have a good jeweler look at the colored stones to help figure out what they are. They could be glass for all we know! Which might affect your desire to reset it vs. keep in your jewelry box as an heirloom (personally I wouldn't take the time and expense resetting fake or lab-created stones and might give the 3-stone ring to a younger female family member to play with).

I also like the dainty flower ring and would wear it as is. But I might consider rhodium plating the gold because I too prefer white over yellow metals.

For the rest, I agree with the pear earrings and would also use some of the diamonds from your grandma's ring leading down to the pear drops. Or instead sell your grandma's wedding set (or just the engagement ring) on the secondary market, since antique styles are really in right now. Or maybe turn the engagment ring into a Diamonds by the Yard-style necklace with the center stone on a drop and the melee stones scattered around the chain in bezels. Or take the melee stones and put them into an Etoile-style scattered diamond band if they're small enough and do something else with the center stone.

You have a lot of great possibilities here!

 

[TheElms]

I didn't know you could rhodium plate yellow gold. Is that advisable? I worry about durability.

I like the idea of putting the stones from the band in an etoile style band. But I also like the earlier suggestion of using them as part of drop earrings with the pear stones.

Thanks for the excellent ideas!

 

[chrono]

Rhodium plating will not affect the durability of the metal. The only downside is that depending on your body chemistry and how hard you are on the rings, they may need to be replated every few weeks to every few months or even every year.