Looking for a 3.5-4 ctw diamond eternity band.

[mishka]

Dear pricescope members,

Thank you for the generous sharing of information and knowledge; I have spent many hours reading through different posts and have loved every minute of it!!
My dilemma is the following:
I am looking for a 3.5-4 ctw diamond eternity band ( depending on the height of the setting), but after visiting 2 local reputed jewellers to gain more insight on what I exactly want, I am still left with some questions.

The setting u-prong vs shared prong:
What is the advantage of one setting vs the other, and is one better that the other?
Only one of the rings that I saw had a u-prong setting, but it was not the nicest one.

Diamonds:
I am looking at approximately 16 individual stones of 0.23-0.25 ct each (F-G, SI1); when buying an eternity band would all diamonds be certified? If not, how would I know that the diamonds are of an excellent cut?
Except for them being eye-clean is there anything else that I need to consider?

Vendors:
What vendors would you recommend for eternity bands?
Are there recommended vendors with a wide selection of bands ready made? I would prefer seeing the bands in advance and do not mind travelling.

My other project is to upgrade my earrings to approximately 3 ctw G-H (VS2-SI1), and it would be great if I could get it all done through the same vendor at the same time.

I have not been able to find any threads on eternity bands through the search engine, any links would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance for all your help and input.

Warm regards,

Mishka.

 

[LALove]

Dear pricescope members,

Thank you for the generous sharing of information and knowledge; I have spent many hours reading through different posts and have loved every minute of it!!
My dilemma is the following:
I am looking for a 3.5-4 ctw diamond eternity band ( depending on the height of the setting), but after visiting 2 local reputed jewellers to gain more insight on what I exactly want, I am still left with some questions.

The setting u-prong vs shared prong:
What is the advantage of one setting vs the other, and is one better that the other?
Only one of the rings that I saw had a u-prong setting, but it was not the nicest one.
Hi Mishka I dont think one is "better"- I think it is a matter of personal preference. I love uternity or u prong bands but found that a shared prong just looked better on my hand. Normally diamonds sit lower in a u prong setting so the ring won't sit as high off your finger. But many jewelers can also make shared prong bands sit low if you request it. Also, with a u prong you can see diamonds from the side. I don't have a u prong so maybe someone who does will let you know of any other benefits or things they like with that setting.
Diamonds:
I am looking at approximately 16 individual stones of 0.23-0.25 ct each (F-G, SI1); when buying an eternity band would all diamonds be certified? If not, how would I know that the diamonds are of an excellent cut?
Except for them being eye-clean is there anything else that I need to consider?
They won't be certified unless you pay for certified stones, which will increase the price considerably. To ensure you get what you're told you're buying I'd do research here and use a recommended vendor who has a good track record of delivering what they promise. Re "eye clean"-- it's very important to discuss with whomever will be making your band exactly what your definition of that is to ensure you're on the same page. I have seen (and had made) some pretty sub par eternity bands so when I was having mine made I spoke with the jeweler (and sent him an email since it's good policy to have things in writing) and specified these points: all diamonds to be the same mm and not necessarily the same exact carat weight, table size to be approx same on each stone, spacing between the diamonds to be the same and the ring to sit low. Most of these are probably obvious but better safe than sorry.
Vendors:
What vendors would you recommend for eternity bands?
Are there recommended vendors with a wide selection of bands ready made? I would prefer seeing the bands in advance and do not mind travelling.

My other project is to upgrade my earrings to approximately 3 ctw G-H (VS2-SI1), and it would be great if I could get it all done through the same vendor at the same time.

I have not been able to find any threads on eternity bands through the search engine, any links would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance for all your help and input.

Warm regards,

Mishka.

 

[LALove]

Oops I'm on my iPhone and I accidentally hit submit before I was done.

Re vendors- I just had a gorgeous 5.6 carat FG SI1 shared prong eternity band made by ID Jewelry (idjewelryonline.com) and had an exceptional experience- I have a thread over in SMTB with pics and a full review. I've heard other good reviews from PSers on Whiteflash, Brian Gavin and Facets but found IDJ prices more competitive. I'd get several quotes if I were you.

I'm not sure about pre made eternity bands- you'd have to ask.

Re the search tool- it's not so good. But there is a link to an old thread with a bunch of eternity band pics in the "helpful threads" section in the SMTB forum. You can also google this: site:pricescope.com eternity band - and it should pull up a bunch more recent posts.

Hope this helps! Good luck

 

[mishka]

LALove,

Thank you for your reply and all the great info. Your eternity band is to die for, I have been admiring it....

Mishka.

 

[LALove]

No problem

One last thing- you said you're looking to get .23 or .25 carat stones but did you realize that .23 is 3.9mm and .25 is 4mm? You're not going to be able to see the .1mm size increase, IMO, but will pay more for a higher carat weight. If how it looks size-wise is what you're looking to accomplish instead of hitting a certain ctw I'd go by stone face up size (mm) and not carat. I was going to use 45 pointers until I realized they are only .1mm larger than 40 pointers and the price went up quite a bit for no visual difference. Also, you generally pay for the number of diamonds used- I couldve gotten a low set u prong setting with 11-12 diamonds instead of 14 and that also would've lowered the price some while giving almost the same look.

Carat to mm conversion chart:
http://www.myjewelz.com/diamond_carat_to_mm_size_chart.asp

 

[mishka]

Hi LALove,

Thank you for this great link.
It is my first time buying an eternity band, and all the points you mentioned are of tremendous help!!!!! They might be logical, but frankly speaking, not something I had thought of. I will definitely put it all to use when working with a vendor.

Mishka.

 

[LALove]

No problem good luck!!