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Mark Morrell and Good Old Gold

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BlueDevil

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Sep 30, 2002
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Here''s my ring story. I began looking in October of last year and got tons of great information from this and other forums. However, the information from Jonathan''s website was in my mind the best, and I really appreciated his upfront, fact-based approach to purchasing stones. I never could get 100% comfortable with buying a stone sight unseen, so I drove down to Long Island to see Jonathan in January. I had reserved a stone that I had seen on his site that I liked. While I had originally wanted something around a 1.5 - 1.7 carats, I ended up going w/ a 1.3 carat stone that was thousands less and -- to my eye -- not too much smaller. What I did find interesting was that I perceived a big difference in color -- an "F" color, which I had originally planned on, was simply not white enough for my taste, so I ended up choosing a D. Throughout this, Jonathan was fantastic and never pressured me or encouraged me one bit to go with the more expensive stones. After 3 hours, I had made my choice.

Dave Atlas did the appraisal, which came out perfect. If I had to do it over again, I might not necessarily go w/ an appraisal because of the quality of information provided by Jonathan (and his reputation, which he''s not going to blow by trying to screw one customer). It was a nice to have, but I’m not sure it told me anything I didn’t already know.

Mark Morrell was absolutely wonderful to work with in designing the ring. I live close to Concord, MA, and it was easy for me to meet with him in person. The man is truly gifted. He listens well, and he designs to create a great ring / diamond combo, not just a beautiful ring that then overwhelms the diamond. He made several fantastic suggestions and overall was just a pleasure to deal with. He is busy and if you''re under a time crunch he might not be ideal, but if you have the time I highly highly recommend him. He absolutely will be designing the wedding bands and maybe some other things for me. He also was great at translating my incoherent ideas into an output that I was pleased with, and his attention to detail is beyond what I''ve ever seen. Not enough nice things to say about him.

I also purchased a Rucinni turtle box for the ring, which was a big big hit. In terms of "bang for the buck", the turtle box went a long way. Website is here: http://www.lotofleather.com/rucminturbox1.html

The actual asking part was quite nerve wracking but ended up wonderfully...we''re both grad school students and met at school, so I proposed on the steps of the library. She happily accepted and we''re both thrilled.

Thanks again for the people here for your help and guidance...it''s amazing what you can learn by lurking!

Oh, and details of the stone: H&A, 1.3 carat "D", VS2. More details on it can be found on Jonathan''s website here: http://www.goodoldgold.com/1_30ct_d_vs2_h&a.htm

Hope this is helpful to others! More pictures to follow...

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BlueDevil

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2002
Messages
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More pictures...

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BlueDevil

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2002
Messages
8
More pictures....

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BlueDevil

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2002
Messages
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More pictures.

By the way, all credit for the pictures goes to Mark Morrell, who is also a gifted photographer, as you can see.

Philip-002.jpg
 

BlueDevil

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2002
Messages
8
Last picture.

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gg

Rough_Rock
Joined
May 25, 2002
Messages
18
Congratulations BlueDevil,

That's a beautiful ring, very unique with the 3 prongs. Mark's workmanship cannot be faulted, he's definitely the best!

Your fiancee sure is one lucky lady. All the best.
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bostonlawstudent

Rough_Rock
Joined
Feb 20, 2003
Messages
13
Blue,
Great message and beautiful ring! I have Mark designing something for me right now for a stone I got from Robin and Todd. I is reassuring to hear what you have to say. Mark has been WONDERFUL to work with so far.

Now I am working out the proposal details also.

Where did you go to school? I live in Boston also and have a very similar plan . . .
 

BlueDevil

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2002
Messages
8
Where did you go to school? I live in Boston also and have a very similar plan . . .


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Both my fiance and I are at harvard business school. As you might know, MBAs are not very intensive users of the library....in fact, one of the funniest emails I received was from a classmate who congratulated us and then said that he was happy that Baker library was finally useful for something!

Best of luck with your engagement...let me know if you have any other questions.
 

Mara

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Oct 30, 2002
Messages
31,003
Verra nice!! I have loved all the pix I have seen of MM's rings...too bad I can't have more than one or else I'd have him creating one and Juan at VG creating one..and and..well the list goes on.

What is that 'space' on the one side of the ring shoulder filled with....is it an open space or glass or something? It's hard to see from the pix.

Congrats to you both!
 

Giangi

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 23, 2003
Messages
2,530
One of the most beautiful rings I've ever seen! CONGRATS!
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BlueDevil

Rough_Rock
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Sep 30, 2002
Messages
8
----------------
On 4/14/2003 12:56:35 PM Mara wrote:

What is that 'space' on the one side of the ring shoulder filled with....is it an open space or glass or something? It's hard to see from the pix.


----------------

The "space" is actually a groove that starts at the fork formed by the two prongs and goes all the way around the ring, until it ends just prior to underneath the diamond. This was the main idea that Mark Morrell and I talked about while designing the ring, and I think the thing I like best about it. For my fiance and I it has great symbolic meaning, with the two prongs merging and becoming one strong prong, and the groove aids in accentuating that theme.

Mark did a fantastic job of making the ring smooth, flowing and graceful -- the groove has a nice tapered end to end. You might also notice the thickness of the band varies along the ring, going from thicker near the stone to thinner at the bottom. Not hugely noticeable, but aids in the "flow" of the ring. Throughout the entire ring there are no edges or points, just a smooth melding of platinum and a great form. Obviously I totally biased on this one, but I love it.

By the way, Mara, your posts are the best and you're an exceptionally helpful participant on the forum -- keep up the good work!
 

Mara

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Oct 30, 2002
Messages
31,003
BD..thanks for the kind words. The forum is great!
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The design is very unique! One of the reasons I love my ring is that I have not seen anyone else with something similar. It's not a typical e-ring..which makes it much more fun!
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Hest88

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 22, 2003
Messages
4,357
That is an incredible ring. Congratulations!
 

rhodelc

Rough_Rock
Joined
Feb 6, 2003
Messages
18
Congratulations BlueDevil. All I can say is wow, that is definitely one very beautiful ring.

Lynn
 

Colored Gemstone Nut

Ideal_Rock
Trade
Joined
Nov 21, 2002
Messages
2,326
WOW! VERY UNIQUE LOOK WITH THE 3 PRONG STYLE. VERY ELEGANT RING WHICH EXHIBITS SMOOTH CONTOURS WHICH ADD TO THE OVERALL PRESENTATION. IN ALL THE RINGS I HAVE VIEWED IN THE PAST YEAR, I MUST SAY THIS ONE IS ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL. I AM GLAD YOU HAD A GREAT EXPERIENCE WITH JONATHAN. HE IS TOP NOTCH..

-JOSH RIOUX
SITKA, ALASKA
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Rhino

Ideal_Rock
Trade
Joined
Mar 28, 2001
Messages
6,340
Thanks for sharing Blue and greatly appreciate the kind words. Mark never ceases to amaze me which is why we do not hesitate to recommend him. The 3 prong is absolutely incredible and compliments the very special diamond you got.

Peace & thanks,
Rhino
 

Richard Sherwood

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Sep 25, 2002
Messages
4,924
That ring appears to be of exceptional manufacture and workmanship, with an incredible finish (polishing job).

Very, very, nice.
 

Rook

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 4, 2002
Messages
294
Absolutely wonderful. I too am following closely in your foot steps. I purchased a diamond from Jonathan, appriasal from Dave, and Mark is working on the ring this and next week. One of the best combinations you can find, IMO. I am glad to see everything has worked out for you and the ring is georgeous.
 

chas

Rough_Rock
Joined
Jan 23, 2003
Messages
68
BlueDevil,

What a wonderful looking ring! Mark has done you well! Mark my friend, as always, you have raised the bar again for others to follow.

Chas
 
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