My First Post: We want to buy a ring but....

[swaragirl]

Hello everyone!

After lurking on the forums for some time, I thought I would finally join and ask some actual questions. I have greatly enjoyed reading everyone''s posts!

Here is my question:

My boyfriend and I want to get married as we are very much in love (we just hit our one-year anniversary in April.) Once he proposes, we would be engaged for two years, as some very important milestones happen two years from now (he graduates from college, my car will be paid off, etc.) However... we need a ring! (And I get to pick it! He knows I love jewelry.)

The problem, of course, is that we have no money to speak of. Currently our budget is - at the outside - maybe $500. I realize that a lot of stores offer credit and so on, but neither of us wants to go into debt for a ring: when he buys it, he will pay for it in full with the money he has available at that time. We might then upgrade the ring later (for example, in two years when he graduates and starts his career, or perhaps for a future anniversary.)

So my question is: is it possible to buy a diamond ring for $500? I would like a diamond big enough to see with the naked eye, and I would also like one that is sparkly. I realize that this might be too much to ask for this price range, and we might be better off going with CZ''s.... but he so has his heart set on getting me a "real" diamond.

To make matters worse, I have very large hands, and cannot wear rings that are too dainty (a $500 ring is sure to be dainty, sigh.) We have considered buying a ring from, for example, Ebay... but I don''t know how to make sure we are getting a good diamond for our price. I want one that sparkles, which means getting a stone with a good cut... I don''t know if that is feasible at all for $500. I have also thought about less expensive possibilities, such as a "champagne" or "cognac" diamond, which seem to be less expensive, or perhaps a different center stone entirely (sapphire?) with diamond accents.

Do I have any chance for a real diamond or should I just give up and go on to CZ''s? And did anyone else do this sort of thing when they were engaged (getting a small, inexpensive ring for the engagement, then upgrading it later, I mean?)

Jennifer

 

[chialea]

One option you might want to think about is a route that I would have loved to have taken, but my hands are so small that it looked really funny on me (and I think it would look great on you

) -- get a band which is set with small diamonds in an interesting pattern. My favorites are the art deco bands, but that's just my taste, there are all kinds.

I can't seem to get the image to work, but here's a link. This one is actually just $35, but I thought it was pretty. I love sapphires with diamonds.

This one is just a bit over your budget, at $565, but there are quite a few different ones there (this is estate jewelery)

This one is $325, and there are other styles

This one is on sale for $175, but is usually $300. There are also more modern channel-set rings within your price range.

I'm not sure if you were looking for the more "normal" solitaire ring, but I think you might be better off going this way. You can get soemthing beautiful and interesting (which is certainly on my criteria list) for well within your budget, and since you were worrying about the ring looking out-of-proportion, you can get a ring in a wider size to assuage that worry. Worst-case, someone sees the ring and thinks you're married instead of engaged -- since you're going to be married anyway, it's not a big deal in my book!

These were just a small sampling of the rings I found that I liked best. If you want help looking, just let me know what you like and I'll go hunt a bit.

 

[phoenixgirl]

It really depends on what you think a good sized diamond is.

I wore a promise ring for four years before getting engaged, and we got it off of ebay. The center stone was 1/6ct., and it really was set very nicely and didn't look like a piece of dust. Some people thought it was an engagement ring. I even have one friend who had to wear it every time she saw me and who insisted that's exactly what she wants for her engagement ring.

However, if you are looking for something bigger than probably about 1/4ct., then a diamond may not be for you. You will need to budget some money for the setting, after all.

Here are some examples to give you an idea of price ranges:

Diamonds

0.34 J SI1 GIA cert non-ideal for $339

0.24 I SI1 AGS cert H&A for $390

0.26 J SI2 no cert for $210

0.35 H SI1 GIA cert for $457

0.27 E SI2 GIA cert non-ideal for $291

Settings:

18K White Gold 4 prong for $225

14K Yellow Gold 4 prong for $80

18K White Gold Half Bezel for $250

Diamond set rings:

Platinum and 18K White Gold wide band with 1/6ctw diamonds for $500

18K yellow gold thin band with 1/4ctw channel set diamonds for $450

White gold, diamond, and ruby floral ring for $400

18K white gold cross over 1/5ctw diamond ring for $300



Just remember that if you do consider eBay, there are really no guarantees. The ring turned out to be a great purchase (it was only $125, and I wore it happily every day for four years), but I bought diamond earrings once from somebody with hundreds of positives -- and they were five shades yellower than advertized. I had a miserable time returning them (basically had to harrass the seller), and in the end I was out a pair of earrings, shipping costs both ways, and all the time and energy spent calling and filing complaints until I had my money back. But probably I was just lucky to get the purchase price back.

 

[finchuck]

It's possible to get a decent half-carat solitaire on eBay for about $500 or a little less. If you're not obsessed with cut, this may be the best route for you considering everything you've said. But beware, it's a long and tedious journey to find a decent engagement ring on eBay. I spent almost a year doing so, only to give in and buy a 0.62ct H&A solitiare from DI. I spent more than double what I would've spend for a similiarly sized (and most likely horribly cut) on eBay. It was worth it to me though.

 

[Daniela]

I second the idea of getting a diamond band. The antique style ones really are lovely. Also, if you're shopping on ebay for a diamond band, then people on this forum have had very positive experiences with the seller Signedpiecesinc who has another store with lots of bands under the name of Facets wedding rings or something like that. They would have some smaller carat weight bands that would be in your price range, in gold. I actually just checked their ebay store, and they don't have anything listed at this moment in gold (the lowest priced one is the half carat platinum one at $650), but they seem to have a half a carat band in gold (white or yellow) on their site from time to time. It's bound to be in your price range if the platinum one is $650. If you emailed them, I'm sure that they would either have one kicking around that just doesn't happen to be listed right now, or could scare one up for you really quickly.

Otherwise, I like the suggestion of some of those stones set in the half bezel mounting. Half bezels are not wimpy mountings and do look substantial. I think that would be positively lovely.

Don't worry, you will be able to find something beautiful. Lucky you for being so much in love and so reasonable about finances!

Daniela

Edited to add the link to their ebay store:

http://stores.ebay.com/Facets-Wedding-Rings

 

[swaragirl]

OK, this is fun! I ran a search on one of the websites suggested. Here is an example diamond:

++++

Stock Number: 2044857
Laboratory: GIA
Carat Weight: 0.38
Color: K
Clarity: SI1
Shape: Marquise

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

Depth: 62.3%
Table: 58%
Polish: GD
Symmetry: GD

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

Culet:
Girdle: -
Fluorescence: Strong
Measurements: 7.79x3.58x2.24

Cut: Ideal
These diamonds have been grouped together because they represent diamonds that have been cut to maximize light return over all other factors. Round diamonds in this group have "Ideal" Proportions, along with Polish and Symmetry ratings of either "Very Good" or "Excellent". Regardless of shape, all of the diamonds in this category represent the finest cuts available, regardless of cost.

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

Color: K
This diamond will show the slightest amount of color when mounted in jewelry. Diamonds in this color grade are extremely affordable, but do look slightly tinted, especially when compared to diamonds of "J" or better in color.

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

Clarity: SI1
SI diamonds (which stands for "Slightly Included") have inclusions that can be seen fairly easily under 10x magnification. SI diamonds are the trickiest to purchase, since some SI diamonds are completely clean to the naked eye and others are not. Generally speaking, however, most SI diamonds will not contain any inclusions that can be located without using magnification.


+++
This one looks pretty good to me but I am not fully sure of what I am looking at. Are the measurements in millimeters? If so, this stone is a very long, very thin marquise shape? There are numbers for depth and table - is this the 60/60 thing I keep reading about but have never quite managed to grasp the significance of?

I picked it as my example for its "strong flourescence" factor: I like the idea of putting my ring under a black light and having it go, POW!!!!!

Jen

 

[melsc1]

http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-630805.htm

A bit more than you wanted to spend (although there is a small discount for Pricescope members). If you upgraded in a few years, you could always turn this into a pendant or as half a set of earrings. We just upgraded my old stone after 8 years of marriage, but I held on to my original stone in hopes of doing something like that.

Hope you have a successful search!

Melissa

 

[chialea]

----------------
On 5/29/2004 12:12:58 PM melsc1 wrote:

http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-630805.htm

A bit more than you wanted to spend (although there is a small discount for Pricescope members)
----------------

That's a bit more than she wanted to spend, and that's not even taking the setting into account... Being conservative, a simple setting is $100+, right?

 

[foundnemo]

First of all, congrats!

Secondly, as you've seen, YES it's possible to get a diamond ring with your budget.

But, I'm just wondering what you would really like to do: have a real diamond ring now, or save up for a few more months or a year or two and get a diamond ring of the size you want, if you would like to get a bigger diamond. You can be engaged without a ring for a while.

I'm just suggesting the option to wait a little to get the ring, if you'd like a *bigger* size diamond.

Oh, and plenty of people do upgrade their ring (even if their first ring is not small to begin with

). So that is another option.

Whatever ring you choose, I'm sure you'll enjoy wearing it.

 

[phoenixgirl]

Is marquis what you're looking for?

If so, then http://www.gemappraisers.com/ has a page called "AGA Cut Grade Charts and Rules" with guidelines for the different fancy shapes. The table, depth, and length to width ratio are all within the range for an ideal cut, although without knowing the crown height you can't really judge a stone from these numbers. But a 2:1 length to width ratio (plus or minus 0.25) is what AGA recommends. This stone is at 2.17:1, so it's fine, just a little thinner than some.

Good luck!

 

[computerguy]

Ok, I'm going to get in trouble posting this one....

Have you thought about something with sapphires instead? I find them quite beautiful. They are a whole lot cheaper as well.
RWW

 

[valeria101]

----------------
On 5/31/2004 12:43:08 AM computerguy wrote:




Have you thought about something with sapphires instead?

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

Such as... THIS ? It may be that diamonds outsparkle sapphire, but most diamond shapes would be more brilliant than a marquise.

And just thought you might find these settings (LINK) interesting (this, if you like those older styles).

 

[quaeritur]

how fun, getting to shop for your ring! and good job finding this forum, you'll get wonderful advice here.

when you mentioned having big hands, it made me think of something like this:

http://weddingband.com/xen11043.html

i'll get in trouble for suggesting such a small stone, set in stainless steel, with no assurance of cut quality, but i have one i got for valentine's a couple of years back and love it. you could always turn it into a right-hand ring later on (that's where i wear it), or use it as a wedding band later. the stone is visible to the naked eye, and i get comments on how cool of a style it is. you should realize that your money would be going to the designer factor rather than the diamond, but this might be an alternative worth considering, especially if you prefer more contemporary and substantial styles. mine came from nordstrom, and was around $400-450 if memory serves.

best of luck, and most importantly, enjoy!

 

[valeria101]

Why "get in trouble" - these words are by now twice mentioned on this thread!

And it would be greta is cut quality would be all that makes those pieces on Ebay read "2 cartas, $500" - there is also fraud and gross missgrading to worry about.

Bands with one diamond set in them? I think those are great - and also very popular as soon as you cross the Atlantic. It would make a beautiful choice - at least according to my taste (only this is not my ring, of course).

Here's one example I definitely liked allot LINK

 

[Giangi]

Yes, it's possible to get a nice looking diamond ring in your budget range. I have a few suggestions: first, in this case, DON'T get a GIA cert. It's really not necessary on a $500 stone, especially because your goal is to get a decent size diamond, and it'd add about $100 to the bill. Second, don't be afraid to consider lower colors and clarities --in the smaller sizes the effect is not really very visible. I ran a little search and I found a few interesting stones:
0.37 J/SI 1 Pear Shape - Really Cute Stone!!
0.35 G/SI 2 Pear Shape - Pretty Too!
0.34 E/SI 2 Marquise
0.45ct J/SI 2 Round 62% table, 59.5% depth

Best of Luck!

 

[glitterata]

http://dirtcheapdiamonds.com/diamond_detail.cfm?did=1442594
http://dirtcheapdiamonds.com/diamond_detail.cfm?did=1229903
http://dirtcheapdiamonds.com/diamond_detail.cfm?did=2536587
http://dirtcheapdiamonds.com/diamond_detail.cfm?did=2052184
http://dirtcheapdiamonds.com/diamond_detail.cfm?did=2294949

As Giangi said, don't be afraid of low color and clarity. They won't be as apparent in a stone smaller than (say) half a carat. If you pick a well cut stone with inclusions on the edge, you could probably get away with an I1, and if you set it in yellow gold you could go way down in color, too. I have a 1.65 carat K/L set in platinum, and it looks beautiful to me--warmer than my 1.4 carat F, of course, but still beautiful. And the color will show much less in a smaller stone.

I'd call the nice folks at DirtCheap and ask them which of the above stones looks nicest. Explain your situation and see what they recommend.

Another way to go is used--ebay, pawn shops, flea markets. If you're careful, you can get something really nice for not very much money.

 

[glitterata]

If I were in your shoes, I would find this pearl ring very tempting:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=45405&item=2641371269

It would look substantial on your hand, and at that price, it wouldn't take much of a bite out of your budget. Pearls don't last forever, but it would probably hold up until you were both working and could afford something more permanent. And to me, pearls have a lovely bridal feel.

 

[glitterata]

A few more tempting ebay bargains. I don't know anything about these sellers, but I think these rings are pretty:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=45399&item=2667744609
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=58555&item=4111274080
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=45399&item=2661417923
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=52566&item=2686239353

 

[baltneu]

Swaragirl--
I am a financial planner. This means that I help people with their money. I meet people with a little bit of money to save and people with lots of money to save and invest.

No matter which end of the spectrum you are in, financial problems hurt marriages. People on this forum have told you that $500 will buy something, but I am not sure that is what you want. You said you have large fingers so a small stone would be lost and not look right.

I think I vote for waiting it out until you are both in a better financial position, and at that point you can get what you want and not cause financial strain on the marriage.

Some people put away money each month for college education of their children, some people put away money each month for retirement, you get the point. How about putting away money with your fiance each month, call it the "Ring Fund" or whatever name works for you. When you have enough, you can buy the ring you want and not have any financial pain. Since you both contributed, it might signify a great milestone in your relationship.

Good luck whatever you decide.

 

[WhitneyLaine]

Hello, Congrats on your engagement. I had been looking for a ring in the same price range. I finally found one on ebay. I'll attach a pic. It's a three stone princess. 1 carat total weight. The center stone is .50 and the 2 side stones are .25 each. The clarity is SI1 and the color is H/I. I paid $700 dollars with free shipping. I was worried buying a diamond ring off ebay but when I got the ring I was extrememly happy with it. The diamonds are clean and very white, even through a loupe; great sparkle. The company offers a money back guarantee also so if you don't like it for any reason you can send it back. The name of the seller is coraldiamonds. They are not selling anything right now though. Just make sure you the seller has positive feedback and offers a moneyback guarantee. With your budget I would definetely go with ebay. Good luck...

 

[purduephotog]

I just saw a ring down in St. Thomas that was actually 5 or 6 smaller diamonds pushed together to make one large looking one.

You had to look really close to see that they weren't one diamond set deeply into the ring.

The cost was still high, but that's because everything was 30% higher than what it should have been (and thats 'duty free')

Nothing wrong with colourless Sapphire as listed- or even moisannite if you want something very bright!