- Joined
- Aug 14, 2009
- Messages
- 27,263
A couple of years ago I re-purposed my engagement stone for a pair of studs, which left me without a diamond centerpiece ring. I'd initially thought I wouldn't miss having one, as I so rarely wore the one I'd had, but my feelings on not having that solitaire-style cornerstone in the jewellery box shifted quickly! A few months later I bought a 3.5ct K - a beautiful stone but not quite right for me, and I took PS advice to return and start again.
I knew I wanted a 10mm stone. I knew I wanted a J to match my studs. I didn't know that somewhere around the 4ct bound it apparently becomes exponentially more difficult to find well-cut lower-colour stones!! Dearest Grace (of JbG) chased a stone from virtual inventory around the globe for several weeks for me, to no avail... I then reached out to a couple of vendors about having one custom cut: the pricing in both cases was very fair but I wanted a higher crown/shorter main combo than those vendors' signature line standards permit. A couple more weeks passed, I made no more progress, and I resigned myself to possibly waiting several months... and this specimen popped up in Blue Nile's listings the next morning; one last sanity check with Grace, and I pounced
I'd call this stone the quintessential near-H&A. I can see slight deviations in optical symmetry in-person under the scope, but she's such a firecracker!! I'd have loved to not have to choose between my preferred proportions and precision-cutting though... maybe one day!
GIA 4.01 J VS1, EX/EX/EX
10.04 x 10.11 mm
56/62.9, 36.5/40.6, LGF 75
No fluor
(H&A pics not from BN)
I knew I wanted a 10mm stone. I knew I wanted a J to match my studs. I didn't know that somewhere around the 4ct bound it apparently becomes exponentially more difficult to find well-cut lower-colour stones!! Dearest Grace (of JbG) chased a stone from virtual inventory around the globe for several weeks for me, to no avail... I then reached out to a couple of vendors about having one custom cut: the pricing in both cases was very fair but I wanted a higher crown/shorter main combo than those vendors' signature line standards permit. A couple more weeks passed, I made no more progress, and I resigned myself to possibly waiting several months... and this specimen popped up in Blue Nile's listings the next morning; one last sanity check with Grace, and I pounced
I'd call this stone the quintessential near-H&A. I can see slight deviations in optical symmetry in-person under the scope, but she's such a firecracker!! I'd have loved to not have to choose between my preferred proportions and precision-cutting though... maybe one day!
GIA 4.01 J VS1, EX/EX/EX
10.04 x 10.11 mm
56/62.9, 36.5/40.6, LGF 75
No fluor
(H&A pics not from BN)
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so all I've got are three undeservedly-sub-par phone pics of the setting and one deservedly-sub-par phone pic of the (presumed) guilty party...
I had a very specific "look" in mind for this piece: large center flanked by accent-sized sidestones, and I'd already bought said sides, and discussion started down the custom Margot-inspired three-stone path. Over the course of several emails it became clear, however, that the aesthetic I wanted - specifically no overhang of center + sides past finger width - was simply not possible 
Erika called it a 'stones-to-finger size problem' that no amount of fiddling with design or sidestone angle and "tuck" was going to resolve. And if Erika didn't think it was possible... well, it just wasn't going to be possible!
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