It looks like I found my jeweler (And ring)!!

[Christmas Eve Proposer]

Man...

This round versus square or rectangle thing is really bothering me. Only because I like round (And oval) but don''t like square or rectangle.

And...I''m not exactly sure that when she said she liked those, and not round, she was talking about Engagement Rings for sure or not. She might have been ONLY refering to regular rings...Which is what we were looking at. "Engagement" didn''t even come-up. Mostly because I didn''t want to tip my hand. (But damned if she didn''t mention "Marriage" a few times after our paruse through the Kay''s magazine. Not that she hasn''t before, but that kind of made me hope I didn''t let too much out of the bag. But then again...To add another twist to this soap opera...She started happy-crying Saturday night while we were falling asleep on the couch while her kids were doing the same in the love seat and chair. Becasue "We''re so so much like a family, all falling asleep together)...

Anyway...

At this point, I think I''m going to go with the Pear. She said she liked those and so do I. It might be the safest bet.

One thing I do know for sure...And I pretty much knew this before our discussion, be she confirmed it by saying so...

She likes "Different" stuff.

Just venting, more than anything...

 

[jlc0604]

Hi CEP,

I''m new to this site and have been reading all about your issue with the ring. Just wanted to add my two cents.

Are you sure she likes pears? You mentioned in one post that she couldn''t remember the name of the cut that she liked - and you thought it was pear. I would just make sure about that. Pears are beautiful and they are different (and it sounds like she likes different stuff). But since she mentions square cuts so often, I''m wondering if she''s not leaning towards a cut that is square - you may want to consider princess, emerald, and radiant cuts.

I think square cuts are becoming more popular for today''s brides. I know lots of friends that have gotten either princess or emerald cuts. I think they''re beautiful. It seems like the old standard of the round cut solitare isn''t as prevalent anymore.

And one thing on the rounds - if she said she does not like round cuts, then I''d take her word on that and assume that she means for engagement rings also. Women are tricky - we''re always dropping hints, and we know better than to give mixed signals when talking jewelry!! If she said she does not like them, I''m pretty sure she would not want one for her e-ring. I feel the same way about rounds - I just don''t really care for them, at least not for me. So I''d forget rounds all together and focus on the princess, emerald, or radiants, or the pear if you''re sure that she likes those.

After all this hard work, you''ll end up with something fabulous! She''ll be thrilled!

 

[headlight]

I''m so confused. And I think you are as well, as everything you were so certain about turns out is not the case. I think you need to do more "researching" with her. SHE, herself, needs to see diamonds because I don''t think even she knows what all the shapes are called and therefore cannot provide you with adequate info. Also, she needs to be more specific -- rattlilng off three of four shapes means, to me, that she doesn''t know what she likes. So, you either can just get her a ring and she''ll love it because it is from you or you need to involve her in the decision-making process.

Also, FYI, "princess" is a shape (cut) of diamond, and does not refer to pears, marquise, ovals, etc. -- those shapes, basically anything other than a round stone is called a "fancy" shape.

"Radiant is also a shape (cut) of stone. Radiant does not refer to its appearance (sparkly, shiny, bright, etc.).

As for the "square" shaped stones (and this doesn''t necessarily mean they are square, as they can be rectangular, it just gives one a reference point as to it not being rounded. The most popular and well-known of the "square" family would include asscher, emerald, radiant, princess... but there are now a plethora of branded (proprietary) cuts in this realm that are too many to list.

You said she liked the oval (but I still question whether or not she knows what an oval shaped diamond is) and you stated from the beginning of your quest that you liked the oval -- perhaps this is the stone???

 

[Christmas Eve Proposer]

Date: 11/8/2004 12:57:47 PM
Author: jlc0604

Hi CEP,

I''m new to this site and have been reading all about your issue with the ring. Just wanted to add my two cents.

Are you sure she likes pears? You mentioned in one post that she couldn''t remember the name of the cut that she liked - and you thought it was pear. I would just make sure about that. Pears are beautiful and they are different (and it sounds like she likes different stuff). But since she mentions square cuts so often, I''m wondering if she''s not leaning towards a cut that is square - you may want to consider princess, emerald, and radiant cuts.

She called it "Tear Drop". And said: "Kind of like an Oval". I can only assume that''s a Pear?

 

[chrono]

Tear drop sounds like a Pear cut.

It also sounds like she''s not really sure what shape she likes best; more like anything BUT round. This is going to be hard because there are so many fancy shaped diamonds and they all sparkle differently. It is best to try to narrow the choices down as much as you can.

 

[Christmas Eve Proposer]

Date: 11/8/2004 2:34:36 PM
Author: headlight

I''m so confused. And I think you are as well, as everything you were so certain about turns out is not the case. I think you need to do more ''researching'' with her. SHE, herself, needs to see diamonds because I don''t think even she knows what all the shapes are called and therefore cannot provide you with adequate info. Also, she needs to be more specific -- rattlilng off three of four shapes means, to me, that she doesn''t know what she likes. So, you either can just get her a ring and she''ll love it because it is from you or you need to involve her in the decision-making process.

Also, FYI, ''princess'' is a shape (cut) of diamond, and does not refer to pears, marquise, ovals, etc. -- those shapes, basically anything other than a round stone is called a ''fancy'' shape.

''Radiant is also a shape (cut) of stone. Radiant does not refer to its appearance (sparkly, shiny, bright, etc.).

As for the ''square'' shaped stones (and this doesn''t necessarily mean they are square, as they can be rectangular, it just gives one a reference point as to it not being rounded. The most popular and well-known of the ''square'' family would include asscher, emerald, radiant, princess... but there are now a plethora of branded (proprietary) cuts in this realm that are too many to list.

You said she liked the oval (but I still question whether or not she knows what an oval shaped diamond is) and you stated from the beginning of your quest that you liked the oval -- perhaps this is the stone???

Hi Headlight...Thanks as always.

Actually, I''m not too concerned, believe it or not. I''m leaning towards the Pearl (Which is cool, because as you remember it was my first choice) and know she''ll be OK with it. She wasn''t quite as all over the board as I made her out to be. She actually knew the names of stones and just couldn''t remember the word Pearl". As stated above, she called it "Tear Drop".

Me doing all this and buying everything special will mean the world to her (I''m keeping a journal of all this so she can read it later and know what''s been going on all this time...She''ll like that).

And I can''t really get her anymore involved. I''m convinced doing so would blow it! As a matter of fact, I''m a little suspicious she caught-on this weekend. But I played it off pretty good. Even went so far as to tell her I might buy her jewelry for her birthday and/or Christmas since she doesn''t have any good jewelry.

This will give you a little insight to her...

She was married to a guy who turned into a real idiot...Of EPIC proportions!!! And they were married young (And "Had" to get married) and she got a ring from Service Merchandice...And SHE picked it out. I told her that I felt sorry for her and that one day I would make it up to here. And even with all that, and MUCH more that I won''t list here, she said: "It wasn''t so bad. Service Merchandise has a jewelry counter, it''s not like it''s Wal-Mart".

So anyway...When I say she''ll be happy with a rock from my backyard, I mean it. But she deserves the BEST!!

 

[katbadness]

OK.. let me throw this option into the mix.

You said, you like RB, but she prefers square stones... there is a shape that satisfies both of these requirements.
It''s the cushion.

How about this as another option?

 

[jlc0604]

Yep - sounds like she was referring to a pear with the ''tear drop'' statement. I agree that it also sounds like she doesn''t have a definite idea of what she wants - or, she would be happy with several cuts.

You could take her shopping and see what she prefers - but of course this will sort of ruin the ''surprise''.

Another option - do you know a girl friend of hers that might be able to help? Perhaps if you talk to one of her friends they might have a better idea of what she likes, or they could try to find out in a sneaky way. It''d be much easier for one of her g-friends to bring up the ''what kind of ring do you like?'' question without arousing suspicion. If she has a good friend that can keep a secret, this might be another option to keep the element of surprise.

 

[Christmas Eve Proposer]

Date: 11/8/2004 3:28:44 PM
Author: Chrono

Tear drop sounds like a Pear cut.

It also sounds like she''s not really sure what shape she likes best; more like anything BUT round.

Exactly.

 

[Christmas Eve Proposer]

Date: 11/8/2004 3:35:39 PM
Author: katbadness

OK.. let me throw this option into the mix.

You said, you like RB, but she prefers square stones... there is a shape that satisfies both of these requirements.
It''s the cushion.

How about this as another option?

What''s "RB" and what''s "Cushion"??

 

[katbadness]

Sorry... I should have explained it better..

RB is shortcut for Round Brilliant.
And a cushion - well, you''ll see it for yourself. I''m attaching a pic of a cushion cut diamond with this post.

The cushion cut has the rounded corners of a round, but has the straight edges of a square stone.. Take a look..

 

[Christmas Eve Proposer]

Date: 11/8/2004 3:36:44 PM
Author: jlc0604

Yep - sounds like she was referring to a pear with the ''tear drop'' statement. I agree that it also sounds like she doesn''t have a definite idea of what she wants - or, she would be happy with several cuts.

You could take her shopping and see what she prefers - but of course this will sort of ruin the ''surprise''.

Another option - do you know a girl friend of hers that might be able to help? Perhaps if you talk to one of her friends they might have a better idea of what she likes, or they could try to find out in a sneaky way. It''d be much easier for one of her g-friends to bring up the ''what kind of ring do you like?'' question without arousing suspicion. If she has a good friend that can keep a secret, this might be another option to keep the element of surprise.

1) She''ll like whatever I get her. I think I''m just doing this all mostly for me. I just want to make sure I''ve done as much as possible to get her the best ring I can. And remember, I am an extreme novice here.

2) I can''t risk telling anyone. This message board and the jeweler I''ve went to are the only ones who know.

 

[katbadness]

And here''s a side by side pic of 2 cushions and a round..

 

[Christmas Eve Proposer]

Date: 11/8/2004 3:47:42 PM
Author: katbadness

Sorry... I should have explained it better..

RB is shortcut for Round Brilliant.
And a cushion - well, you''ll see it for yourself. I''m attaching a pic of a cushion cut diamond with this post.

The cushion cut has the rounded corners of a round, but has the straight edges of a square stone.. Take a look..

Hey...Now that''s a pretty good idea!! I like it!

And as a reminder...Remember part of my frustration...

She said in one breath that she likes the ovals, pears and even marqies, but then said she doesn''t like the ones with points because they catch on stuff.

ARRRRRRRG!!

And remember too...

We were looking at regular rings, not engagement rings. She might have been refering to ONLY those, for all I know...

 

[katbadness]

Well, it seems like your gf likes things that are different than the norm, though, right?
I even understand why she likes the heart-on-black-chord jewelry. It's not the heart part, it's the black chord that makes it different.

Anyway... round brilliant diamond is the traditional shape for engagement ring, but considering she likes something that's "different", I'm willing to stick a limb to say that if you get something that is *not* a round (and non-pointy), it'd probably be received well.

Well, there are quite a few choices that will work with those requirements.. you have all the square stones - radiant, princess (though pointy, the corners can be covered by prongs), Asscher, emeralds, and the ones with rounded edges - cushion and oval.

 

[marriahlyn]

I think you should go with a square cushion.

No I haven''t heard of the jeweler you speak of and I have yet to find an honest jeweler with good prices in this area. I have bought every single one of my diamonds online.

 

[katbadness]

Date: 11/8/2004 4:47:36 PM
Author: marriahlyn


I think you should go with a square cushion.

Or Jubilee.. Incidentally, both of these 2 stones are somewhat faceted more like a round brilliant. They both show a Hearts and Arrow symmetry.

Just adding more into your option pot!

 

[marriahlyn]

Looks like GOG doesn''t have much in his size and color range. Also GOG prices are not listed so I can''t see what''s in the price range. I would have considered the square cushion but I had no idea what premium they carried and didn''t feel like taking the time to send the emails asking tons of questions.

 

[katbadness]

The one on the left is the Jubilee... the one on the right is the Square Cushion.

 

[Christmas Eve Proposer]

Well, those are pretty cool!

But I''ve got to be honest here...

I''ve not seen a bit of difference in any stone I''ve seen here. I guess I just don''t have an eye for it.

And I''ve not really seen much of a difference in any stones I''ve seen live either. (Except for under special lights and with special backgrounds, or under a loop, of course.) And I''ve seen $25,000 stones and $1500.00 stones.

Kind of makes it hard to make an informed decision...

 

[valeria101]

Date: 11/8/2004 7:12:22 PM
Author: Christmas Eve Proposer

I''ve not seen a bit of difference in any stone I''ve seen here.
And I''ve not really seen much of a difference in any stones I''ve seen live either.

What does this mean ? I can''t believe there weren''t two diamonds different enough among a bunch of marqs, ovals and pears you may have inspected between 1.5 and 25 k !

 

[Christmas Eve Proposer]

Date: 11/9/2004 3:41:14 AM
Author: valeria101

Date: 11/8/2004 7:12:22 PM
Author: Christmas Eve Proposer

I''ve not seen a bit of difference in any stone I''ve seen here.
And I''ve not really seen much of a difference in any stones I''ve seen live either.

What does this mean ? I can''t believe there weren''t two diamonds different enough among a bunch of marqs, ovals and pears you may have inspected between 1.5 and 25 k !

I meant as far as "Fire" or "Brilliance" or whatever goes. The "Look" of the diamond. I just can''t see much of a difference.

Of course I can recognize differences in shapes or sizes.

In other words, I don''t think I would recognize a good cut from a bad cut. All other things being equal. But then again, I''ve not seen these two extreme examples side-by-side.

 

[chrono]

CEP,

I believe what most are saying here is that each cut shaped diamond will sparkle differently. Say you have one of each type: marquise, oval, round, pear, emerald, princess and radiant. All are the same colour and clarity. All are cut to ideal proportions. All will have a different KIND of sparkle. Some will have large flashes, some will have pinpoint flashes, others will have a mixture of the two and etc. The question is which is the LOOK she (and you) prefer? Look at these different SHAPES side by side and observe how differently they reflect the light back at your eyes.

Once that is decided, then we can move on to the cut quality. Until then, the first step is to decide for 100% sure which shape she will love.