"Matching" wedding band thinner than ER setting...normal?

[DiamondDense]

i ordered a wedding band to match the setting exactly (same maker, model #, etc.).

as you can see, there's a difference. however slight, it bothers me. is this difference normal or should they match perfectly?

 

[rockysalamander]

There is no standard I'm aware of. Some match, some less so. But, ask the vendor.

 

[FL_Sol]

When I ordered my ring from Brian Gavin they said in order to make a perfect wedding band match they would have to have me send my E ring back into them.
I get nervous about sending pricey stuff through the mail so I went my local jeweler and they told me they would have to keep my ring there to match it the best they can, too.
Did they have your ring in heir hands while fabricating the wedding band?

 

[rockysalamander]

When I ordered my ring from Brian Gavin they said in order to make a perfect wedding band match they would have to have me send my E ring back into them.
I get nervous about sending pricey stuff through the mail so I went my local jeweler and they told me they would have to keep my ring there to match it the best they can, too.
Did they have your ring in heir hands while fabricating the wedding band?

If you want an exact match, yes. Many settings have different sized stones for different sized heads. When a diamond is set, there is some variation in how high they set the stones (and how high you want the head of the ring).

When I had a custom-ering made, I mailed them my wedding band so that they could be 110% that the swoops of the setting would not touch my wedding band. I have my rings insured through Jeweller Mutual, so they are covered during transit and setting. The biggest risk, to me, is that my stones are antiques and would be hard to replace. For a local jeweler, they could be able to make a wax of your ring and then use a reverse cast to make a model (assuming they are an actual fabricator and use these "old school" methods). Many jewelers are not actually fabricating the ring. They are taking measurements and it is fabricated elsewhere, so that adds to the risk of not getting a ring "just right."

Have you told your jeweller that you are not happy?

 

[sledge]

As @rockysalamander noted, there is no industry standard.

I'm not sure the designer, but if its Vatche for instance you could call and ask them what width both bands are supposed to be. I guess it's possible one slipped out the door that wasn't in compliance with internal QC measures. Either that, or they may tell you the e-ring is 3mm and the wedding band is 2.5mm. **All designers and values made up for the sake of this conversation.**

And @JrJ, it shouldn't be necessary to mail a ring back for a simple flush sitting band. If your e-ring is 2mm wide then it should be easy enough to say you want 2mm wide. Where it gets complicated is if the band has to twist, etc to fit around the e-ring head, or you have a unique design.

For instance my girls e-ring requires either the original CAD or the actual ring to make a wedding band that sits "flush" due to the unique design.

 

[sledge]

If you want an exact match, yes. Many settings have different sized stones for different sized heads. When a diamond is set, there is some variation in how high they set the stones (and how high you want the head of the ring).

When I had a custom-ering made, I mailed them my wedding band so that they could be 110% that the swoops of the setting would not touch my wedding band. I have my rings insured through Jeweller Mutual, so they are covered during transit and setting. The biggest risk, to me, is that my stones are antiques and would be hard to replace. For a local jeweler, they could be able to make a wax of your ring and then use a reverse cast to make a model (assuming they are an actual fabricator and use these "old school" methods). Many jewelers are not actually fabricating the ring. They are taking measurements and it is fabricated elsewhere, so that adds to the risk of not getting a ring "just right."

Have you told your jeweller that you are not happy?

We posted about the same time. You went into more detail, but yeah ditto, lol.

Sorry for the overlap

 

[FL_Sol]

As @rockysalamander noted, there is no industry standard.

I'm not sure the designer, but if its Vatche for instance you could call and ask them what width both bands are supposed to be. I guess it's possible one slipped out the door that wasn't in compliance with internal QC measures. Either that, or they may tell you the e-ring is 3mm and the wedding band is 2.5mm. **All designers and values made up for the sake of this conversation.**

And @JrJ, it shouldn't be necessary to mail a ring back for a simple flush sitting band. If your e-ring is 2mm wide then it should be easy enough to say you want 2mm wide. Where it gets complicated is if the band has to twist, etc to fit around the e-ring head, or you have a unique design.

For instance my girls e-ring requires either the original CAD or the actual ring to make a wedding band that sits "flush" due to the unique design.

Well, mine was just the fishtail pave by BGD and I know what they told me, to have it made at the same time as the E ring or send it back....for an exact match.

 

[Winks_Elf]

Not sure who your ring design is from, but in the case of Stuller pieces, it's wise to check the measurements of both engagement ring and "matching band" (and I use quotations because I've seen a few "sets" where the band is a different width than the engagement ring) prior to selection of the engagement ring.

Personally, I like it when the band is a little bit wider than the engagement ring because there are times that it's not safe or practical to wear the engagement ring. It makes the band stand out more when worn solo. There is no standard for "matching sets" as they all can vary by craftsman and casting house or designer. Wear what you love!

 

[DiamondDense]

Not sure who your ring design is from, but in the case of Stuller pieces, it's wise to check the measurements of both engagement ring and "matching band" (and I use quotations because I've seen a few "sets" where the band is a different width than the engagement ring) prior to selection of the engagement ring.

Personally, I like it when the band is a little bit wider than the engagement ring because there are times that it's not safe or practical to wear the engagement ring. It makes the band stand out more when worn solo. There is no standard for "matching sets" as they all can vary by craftsman and casting house or designer. Wear what you love!

i wouldn't mind at all if the band was wider. but, oddly, it is thinner as you can see in the photos.

 

[HappyNewLife]

your rings are lovely. I'd probably take the wedding band back to be changed to match better. Do you have a return window?

I think a thinner wedding band can make the engagement diamond pop, but since your bands are identical in design, it looks a bit "off"

 

[MamaBee]

It’s a very slight difference..but i agree that if it’s the same make and is supposed to match..I would be unhappy too. Would you be happy with exchanging it for a wider slightly different band so they don’t totally match? If you don’t want to do that you would have to remake the band. If you are like me and you feel this way now..it will always bother you. They will definitely need to have your engagement ring to make sure the widths are the same.

 

[AnastasiaBeaverhausen]

I think if they weren't ordered/made at the same time as a set, then it's understandable that there's slight variations between an e-ring and a w-band, because there's all these measurements like height, depth, angles, etc. to account for. Add me to the group of people who got their e-ring first, then had to custom order a w-band to fit.

In terms of fixing this though, if it was a stock piece, would you be able to exchange it at no cost to see if maybe a new one will match better?

 

[DiamondDense]

so a relatively interesting development.

i headed back to the jeweler this weekend - who has been great by the way - to see what our options were.

he sent the ring to Vatche who told him there are three options:
1. he can make the ER setting smaller at no charge (uh, no thanks)
2. he can make the band matching but it will cost $500
3. he can make the band matching and eternity for $1000

i am sort of surprised this wouldn't/couldn't be fixed free of charge, but what do i know?

 

[Octo2005]

Are the stones in your band and ring different size or is it just me? It appears that the wedding band is set with smaller stones as well as the width being smaller.

That might account for the price difference, but I agree if you ordered at the same time and requested matching band, they should have matched to begin with. If that was an increase in price to use the same size stones then it should have been mentioned upfront.

 

[DiamondDense]

Are the stones in your band and ring different size or is it just me? It appears that the wedding band is set with smaller stones as well as the width being smaller.

That might account for the price difference, but I agree if you ordered at the same time and requested matching band, they should have matched to begin with. If that was an increase in price to use the same size stones then it should have been mentioned upfront.

honestly, i thought that too. they might very well be.

and yes, it was supposed to match exact to my ER - a Vatche 1533 setting.

 

[kindred]

I don't mind the look but if it bothers you now it will probably always bother you. I would want an explanation of why this wasn't mentioned prior to the ring being made before I paid another $500 to have a wider band made.

 

[Maisie]

Are the rings the same finger size? I wondered if you had chosen a size smaller for your band.

 

[aussiemel]

I'm having my engagement ring custom re-set at the moment, I gave the jeweller one of my wedding bands to get everything to match up with the diamonds but purposely asked for the engagement ring to be 1mm wider than my wedding bands. I like the engagement ring a bit wider as that is the ring I want to stand out the most. My wedding and eternity bands are both around 2mm and the engagement ring will be around 3mm when it's finished.

I guess it depends on what you like but if you asked for it to match then yes I agree with you, it does look thinner. The other option would be to get another one for the other side so it looks like a set. If you specifically asked for it to match I would speak to who you bought it from and see what they say.

 

[DiamondDense]

I don't mind the look but if it bothers you now it will probably always bother you. I would want an explanation of why this wasn't mentioned prior to the ring being made before I paid another $500 to have a wider band made.

pretty sure if we decide just to get the true matching band made the jeweler would eat the $500 (Vatche made it).

it would potentially cost us $1000 to upgrade it to a full eternity if we so desired.

 

[DiamondDense]

Are the rings the same finger size? I wondered if you had chosen a size smaller for your band.

yes, both the same size (6).

 

[tyty333]

Whiteflash carries Vatche so I checked their website. Both the bands say they are 2 mm.
https://www.whiteflash.com/engageme...ve-diamond-engagement-ring-by-vatche-1657.htm
https://www.whiteflash.com/wedding-rings/vatche-1533-charis-pave-diamond-wedding-ring-3691.htm

I tried to check the Vatche website to see what it said but I was getting errors. It did not appear to be loading all the info.
http://www.dvatche.com/

If the website says they are both suppose to be 2mm and your wedding band is not, then I would try
to fight it. However, could it be the wedding band is the right measurement and the ering is off?

 

[DiamondDense]

Whiteflash carries Vatche so I checked their website. Both the bands say they are 2 mm.
https://www.whiteflash.com/engageme...ve-diamond-engagement-ring-by-vatche-1657.htm
https://www.whiteflash.com/wedding-rings/vatche-1533-charis-pave-diamond-wedding-ring-3691.htm

I tried to check the Vatche website to see what it said but I was getting errors. It did not appear to be loading all the info.
http://www.dvatche.com/

If the website says they are both suppose to be 2mm and your wedding band is not, then I would try
to fight it. However, could it be the wedding band is the right measurement and the ering is off?

it certainly could be that the ER is actually slightly wider than 2mm but that is an issue as well.

i actually emailed Vatche and they responded saying both the setting and the band are 2mm.

 

[DiamondDense]

any other thoughts?

 

[scarsmum]

Yes.

So the manufacturer is saying “oops we made a mistake. You can just pay for us to fix it.”

No
Unacceptable

 

[DiamondDense]

Yes.

So the manufacturer is saying “oops we made a mistake. You can just pay for us to fix it.”

No
Unacceptable

well, their argument i suppose is that i should have given them my ER so they could match it exactly and since they're "hand made" there are going to be variances.

probably should have been made clear ahead of time.

 

[Octo2005]

A bit put off by their response. 2mm is 2mm. I would not expect the room for variation to be as large as in your setting.

Looking at enlarged photos of your rings, I feel like your e-ring has a good bit more metal in the prong work that is making it bulkier than the band.

 

[DiamondDense]

A bit put off by their response. 2mm is 2mm. I would not expect the room for variation to be as large as in your setting.

Looking at enlarged photos of your rings, I feel like your e-ring has a good bit more metal in the prong work that is making it bulkier than the band.

i know! i am so confused by the whole situation. they're supposed to match exactly - a set - from what i understand.

they quite obviously don't and trust me, in real life the difference is even more stark than in the photo.

that aside, and considering the strange response, i am curious if +$500 from my pocket is a "deal" or "fair" for them to remake the ring to exactly match as WELL AS add diamonds all the way around (full eternity)?

again, to be specific, this is a VATCHE 1533.

thanks!

 

[FL_Sol]

i know! i am so confused by the whole situation. they're supposed to match exactly - a set - from what i understand.

they quite obviously don't and trust me, in real life the difference is even more stark than in the photo.

that aside, and considering the strange response, i am curious if +$500 from my pocket is a "deal" or "fair" for them to remake the ring to exactly match as WELL AS add diamonds all the way around (full eternity)?

again, to be specific, this is a VATCHE 1533.

thanks!

$500 may be fair. My husband recently ordered me the wedding band version of my engagement ring and it is a 3/4 pave but he upped it to a full eternity and it was $150 more, but my ring size is 4.75 and so I don’t know if that has anything to do with it.

 

[DiamondDense]

well this is quite an odd dilemma.

so the long and short of it is we ordered a Vatche 1533 but apparently the 1533 does not accept oval diamonds so it needed to be custom made (slightly bigger with bigger stones) to accommodate. this was unbeknownst to me.

then, when we ordered the matching 1533 band, the jewler and/or Vatche did not realize i was the customer who had the "custom 1533" made for them and this i received the stock 1533 which is why it looks so much thinner than the ER.

i have two options:

1. pay $500 for them to remake the 1533 to match the custom size of the ER

2. pay $800 for them to remake the 1533 to match the size of the ER AND make it eternity style

3. pay nothing and have them make the ER smaller.


yeesh!

 

[Octo2005]

So sorry you are going through this.

My inclination would be to have them remake the ER, because it shouldn't cost you anything more to get exactly what you ordered. The being said does one of the rings appeal to you more? If the ER look is more appealing it might be worth it to spend the extra $300 to turn into an eternity. At least then you won't like you just throwing money down the drain.