need advice

[J S Machine]

Hello all, I am new to the forum and I have been researching and finding out all I can about diamonds for the past couple of weeks. I''m glad to see that I have found a forum where I can get some real answers. Its funny how when you call a jeweler to ask a question, it always turns into a sales pitch coming from them. How that happens I will never know, but it has happened about 3 times. It''s like going to "look" at cars.

I have a girlfriend and one day I will most likely pop the question. I don''t want to be one of the guys that just gets his girl a typical ring. I want it to be something special, something that I can make or have a hand in making. More on that....

I am a tool maker by trade and I work with metals all day every day. Kind of like a glorified machinist if you will. I am no stranger to many aspects of metalurgy and working with my hands. However, one thing I want everyone who responds to this to understand - I am not a jeweler. I just have a big problem with thinking that I can do anything if I try, which can be good and bad,

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I have tried my hand at making some jewelry and I actually had some diamonds left over from when my father passed a couple of years ago. Most of the jewelry he left was not really anything important, so I scrapped the gold and kept the diamonds. I have made several things - I''m sure I did it all wrong - but it looks great. I made a cross to wear on a chain around my neck and it has an old european cut diamond in it. I had busted the synthetic stone in my class ring, so I made a piece of stainless in the shape of the stone and set a diamond in the center of it. All of my stuff has held up well, although I know it is not made exactly thew way a jeweler makes it.

As far as my girlfriend goes, I want to make her a ring. If it is out of my knowledge and skill range, I understand that completely, and I will step back and let someone else do it that knows what they are doing. However, a lot of the reason I like to do things myself is for the cost savings. I have not been able to find any insight into that with jewelry though

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Diamonds are awefully expensive, and I''m not being rude here guys but I am just not going to pay what jewelers and certain stores charge for them. I feel like with enough research and looking in the right place, I can get a deal. I want a certain thing, and I''m not afraid to say I am picky.

I want a platinum band, and I want it to be a three stone ring. I don''t want white gold or sterling silver, and she doesn''t like yellow gold. I want all three stones to be princess cut. It should be noted that I say " I want" in the context that I know what she likes. The center will have to be at least .5ct and the two on either side will have to be .25ct or less but not too small. The girl that this will be for is not picky. She has never had anything really and she would be happy with a .1ct small cheap ring. She is worth way more than that to me, and I want her to know that she is special. I understand that what I am inquiring about can be very expensive, but I also know that if I take the right avenues, I can find it for way cheaper than the prices I have seen.

Some thoughts on that: The diamonds don''t have to be perfect D color. As long as they are good enough where they don''t alarmingly show tint, they will be fine. As far as clarity goes, why are so many people so worried about inclusions? I understand that they greatly affect the price of the diamond, but to me, a diamond with an inclusion will never be noticed. I mean with all the facets and light hitting it all at once, you really have to look to see them if you ask me. Most people don''t carry around a loupe in their pocket, including my girlfriend, so that really doesn''t matter as long as there is not a chip broken off or something. I have tried the avenue of looking for loose stones, but the chances of me buying 3 different stones from different sources and them looking good beside each other is probably slim to none. BEsides that, all the avenues I have found for loose stones seem to be the higher end ones and they seem to be too expensive

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I have also looked at all the other alternatives to diamonds, and I have pretty much come to the conclusion that it would just be an insult to my girlfriend if I bought her something that was anything but a diamond. I also feel like I will spend a fortune and exhaust myself trying to "make something into a diamond" that really isn''t. I would appreciate yall''s opinions on what I have said, and please offer some advice. I want to be involved with a big part of the assembly and final product and I need to know where I can look for answers. Thank you in advance.

 

[Dee*Jay]

JS Machine, hello and welcome!

I want to help you but I need to be clear on what you're asking. You say that you want diamonds but not at the price ANY vendors charge for diamonds PERIOD?

Or are you saying you want good stones at the best possible price, and not at the price that maul stores or higher end luxury brand stores charge? If THAT'S the case then the good folks here at PS will do their best to find you some options. What is the budget you're working with?

 

[mrssalvo]

i''m a little confused too. are you wanting a plat. 3-stone ring with a .5 princess center and .25 princess sidestones? there are several vendors here would could easily put that combo together for you. Best just to call a few and get some quotes and see if they fall inline with your budget.

 

[J S Machine]

The second thing you said Dee*Jay...

It''s not that I am not willing to pay for a diamond. I (as well as others I''m sure) just have a hard time swallowing what people will actually pay/and the markup that diamonds have.

I''m wanting exactly what you are saying mrssalvo. I just don''t want to have to let someone else do it. To e honest I want to stay away from that if at all possible. I want to be able to be involved with the design for the simple reason that I can say "I made it" or "helped make it". I know I am being stuborn about the issue, and it kind of seems unreasonable, but you all would be surprised at what I am able to do with things.

For instance, I wanted a certain kind of pocket knife, and no one had one like I wanted. One day I got sick of looking and decided to make my own. I nailed the first shot at it, and I have had 4 different people (custom knifemakers that know what they are doing) offer me well over $1500 for it. I am not bragging, just merely offering an example of my determination to figure things out. I have always been the kind of person that wants to do things on my own. I don''t want to have to let someone else do things for me.

What would really just impress me, is if I could find a beat up platinum ring, and a couple of oddball diamonds, and a little time. I''m not guarantee''ing anything, I''m just saying I really want to do the work myself and take a shot at it.

I am not going to lie here folks. I thing it is absolutely rediculous to pay anywhere from $1000 to $3000 for what I''m looking for. I don''t have any money really to be spending on this, but I could come up with it or save it up if it was a last resort. Maybe you all follow where I am going and don''t think I''m crazy

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I fully understand that platinum is about as exclusive as you can get, and I understand that there is really nothing I can do about the price of diamonds. But, if I could get a good deal on some old beat up stuff or maybe some stuff that wasn''t necessarily wanted by someone else, I think I just might be able to pull something off.

 

[mrssalvo]

well, I guess I really do appreciate the thought and effort you are wanting to put into her e-ring but may I suggest you go the more traditional method of buying something already perfected by an experienced jeweler and maybe trying your hand in jewelry design with a pendant or something else that can be worn. It's just many women, no matter how non-tradional they appear to be, still have some type of concept of what/how their engagment ring should be. Unless you are getting direct input from her that this is exactly what she wants (and they very well may be the case) i wouldn't recommend doing it for her ring that she is to wear forever. also, you'd be surprised how many men think they *know* what their gals like and are suprised to find they were a little off base. I read a lot of "I want's" in your post, which is great you are so thoughtful, just be 100% sure it's really what she wants

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[chrono]

JSM,
I am really more concerned with how you plan to set the diamonds yourself without chipping them. Princess cut stones are notoriously famous for chipping since they have 4 pointy corners. Even seasoned jewellers have chipped the tip while setting them. Please leave the setting of diamonds to the experts. I can understand wanting to say "I did it" so I recommend just sticking to designing the ring.

 

[canuk-gal]

Date: 12/19/2007 3:36:17 PM
Author: Chrono
JSM,
I am really more concerned with how you plan to set the diamonds yourself without chipping them. Princess cut stones are notoriously famous for chipping since they have 4 pointy corners. Even seasoned jewellers have chipped the tip while setting them. Please leave the setting of diamonds to the experts. I can understand wanting to say 'I did it' so I recommend just sticking to designing the ring.

HI:

Beat me to it, Chrono. Very expensive materials to be "testing" novice skills on. Breakage and replacement materials would need to be factored into the overall cost, which might be more should you have someone skilled in manufacturing/hand making/setting to begin with. Altho I love your sentiment, it just might not be as practical/simple/easy as you imagine.

I too love a great value when it comes to diamonds and have my share. Can we assist you in buying some spanking top made diamonds in perhaps a clarity and color that would suit your sensibilities?

cheers--Sharon

 

[J S Machine]

Thank you for all your replies. Maybe I underestimated the skill required to setting these stones. I would be happy to let an experienced jeweler set them, but I do want my hand in the design.

Like I said before, the "i want" in my post above is referring to what she wants, just my way of depicting how I will go about making it happen

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Diamond quality is something that is not of the greatest concern to me. I want her to have a good looking ring, and it is ok if it is not perfect quality. She will not care one bit, because she is one of the few girls I''ve met that is not picky. She was raised to appreciate everything and not question things. I have had some discussions with her and I know that she likes princess cut stones. she asserted that to me one night. The point I''m trying to make is that i am sure of what I''m looking for.

I do have some questions though.

Why are the rings in walmart so much cheaper than comparible rings found in jewelry stores? The ones in walmart looked awesome to her.

Why are pawn shops such a bad thing? I have a good friend that works at a pawn shop and she is very knowledgeable about jewelry. I did see the post on the main page about pawn shops. Let me make one thing clear. You all may not be for buying from a pawn shop, and you all may be concerned with the history of the diamond. We are not. It doesn''t matter to me where the diamond has been or what it has been through. It will be our creation after we design it and put it in a new ring, not the people who used to own it.

I guess what I am trying to say here is that while I think perfect or near perfect diamonds are beautiful and very respectable, we are not as concerned. A mediocre diamond will work for us (or 3 in this case) and we (she) will be perfectly happy. I think it would be safe to say that anything past "M" in color would be unacceptable. Anything up to there would be fine. As fas as inclusions, as long as they are not obvious from arms length (i.e. a chip or black spot) they will be fine.