New and totally lost! Help me surprise my fiance-to-be

[TheProfessor89]

This post is rather long giving background info and the like, so I'll post a summary of facts at the top and you can feel free to skip out the story below.

Budget: ~$4-5k - not set in stone
Surprise: Yes
Ages: low/mid twenties fresh out of college
Ring size: 6.5 - 7
Shape: Round
Tentative diamond characteristics are:
Carat: ~0.8
Cut: Very good or better
Clarity: SI1
Color: H-I

I'm hoping to get some tips on how to narrow searches better and get the best value/$ for my purchase. Possibly even some specific recommendations on diamonds and/or settings if possible. This community is great and I'm looking forward to getting some help. I didn't imagine it would be so hard on my own!

.........You can skip to the bottom now if you don't want to read the rest of the post with our background.........


Well I'm completely new to the diamond world and feel like I'm going in circles here. I'm from Minneapolis, MN so I started out (like most other clueless males in MN) by heading to the Mall of America. Big mistake - didn't see anything I liked and everything was way overpriced. Discouraged, I decided to do a bit of internet research and read all about the four C's and other basics. I read some reviews about buying online and checked out bluenile but didn't quite know what I was looking for. I couldn't trust myself to pick out the correct diamond and setting from so many choices so I headed out to a local jeweler. There were a couple "ok" pieces but nothing really stood out to me. Since I'm an accountant and always trying to get the best value for my money I headed back online and stumbled upon these forums. The last 2 days I've been reading these forums, looking at pictures, and trying to wrap my head around the process to find a perfect ring that she'll love and still fit it close to the budget.

I really want it to be a surprise for her, but I have no idea what she wants. The only clues I have are from checking out her "pinterest" page and finding these 2 rings that she'd liked:

http://media-cache-ec3.pinterest.com/upload/141581982006126435_7coLtDsc_c.jpg
http://media-cache0.pinterest.com/upload/91690542383117805_EUXYXUem_c.jpg

I also bought her this cheap jewelry outlet ring awhile back that she likes quite a bit:
http://assets.shadora.com/products/1257/product/JS-2JSRING.jpg?1316011675

For the setting:
Based on her pinterest likes I'm assuming she want a solitaire ring with a twisted or separated band (Sorry i don't know the correct terms). I'm leaning towards platinum based solely on other people's opinion online. Should I be looking at white gold instead? The last ring I got her was a cheapie that was stated as size 7 and it seems to fit. I've asked her several times if size 7 fits right, and she always says yes so I'm sticking with that.

For the diamond itself:
Again, I'm basing it off of her pinterest likes (all 2 of them) that she would like a round diamond. This is the safest bet anyways because it always looks good. She has an eye problem that prevents her from seeing small things even when looking very close (e.g. can't read subtitles at a movie theater) so I think the most important attributes for her would be the size and the sparkle. Based on my budget and the research it looks like I'd want the following specs, but correct me if I'm wrong - I admit I still know next to nothing about diamonds! If these characteristics are a bit unreasonable for my budget please let me know what I should cut down on.
Carat: ~0.8
Cut: Very good or better
Color: H-I
Clarity: SI1 (she'd still want it to be eye-clean to show off to friends/family even if she couldn't see any flaws herself)

If you made it through this whole post then congrats . I truly appreciate the help!

 

[JulieN]

What do you mean she can't see small things, even when close? A movie's subtitles are not small, but very far away...

For example, can she read normally? Can she see things up close but needs to concentrate very hard? Many of the components of "sparkle" are very small... For example, pave increases the cost of a ring quite a bit, but would it add any utility for her?

I don't mean to be rude, I am interested in ocular health.

 

[TheProfessor89]

What do you mean she can't see small things, even when close? A movie's subtitles are not small, but very far away...

For example, can she read normally? Can she see things up close but needs to concentrate very hard? Many of the components of "sparkle" are very small...

Good point I said one thing and gave a bad example!

She can read a book but has to hold it very close and concentrate very hard. Throughout college she would have the textbooks read to her by computer software since it was so difficult. A lot of finer detail tends to blur together and it worsens with age.

As far as "sparkle" I guess I meant sunlight hitting the diamond and having dancing light rays. Twirling around the diamond and seeing the brilliance from different angles, etc. Sorry I'm not quite sure how else to describe it.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Welcome! We'd be happy to help you! That first ring is by Tacori and would be very expensive. But there is another maker that has some similar designs to that and the other ring.

http://www.gabrielny.com/engaged/style/ER7544W44JJ

http://www.gabrielny.com/engaged/style/ER6669W44JJ

http://www.gabrielny.com/engaged/style/ER8001W44JJ

http://www.gabrielny.com/engaged/style/ER7493W44JJ

http://www.gabrielny.com/engaged/style/ER6989W44JJ

I included a couple of halo settings because I think with her finger size, a halo around the diamond would make it look larger on her finger. So that is something you can consider. The last ring is very much like a Tacori setting even though it doesn't have the split shank. And yes, I would do platinum, personally. The prices will be higher than the 14k white gold prices listed.

I'll see what diamonds might work.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Good Old Gold carries Gabriel and Company and also offers a lot of information on their stones. Here is a nice stone:

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/9959/

ID Jewelry also carries Gabriel and Company and can also call in some stones within your budget. Just tell them you are from PriceScope and that you want an excellent cut stone.

I gotta say, that was brilliant to look for ring ideas on her Pinterest pages!

 

[TheProfessor89]

Haha I suppose the hours of her scrolling through pinterest have actually paid off.

Thanks for these suggestions! When it comes to jewelry I'm lost so this gives me a great head start. If all goes well I plan to surprise her with the ring the 2nd weekend of December.

Quick question: Is it normal to spend 1/3 to 1/2 the budget on the setting in my price range?

 

[JaneSmith]

Congratulations on the upcoming proposal!
I don't mean to be rude, and I do apologise if I am being so, but your fiancé-to-be has seen these rings as very large images on her computer, and that tiny detail may be lost on her due to her disability. Unless it would please her to know such detail was there, even if it was not something she could see, I would go for a plain split shank (like that second pinterest photo but without the tiny diamonds) and get a bigger diamond that will send as much sparkle as possible to her sweet eyes. And then get her a sparkly wedding band like the one in that same picture. Or a simple halo for the e-ring as diamondseeker suggested, to give the size a boost and add sparkle.

Please do not compromise on cut. Get an ideal cut round brilliant. 'Very good' is a synonym for 'all right' in diamond terms. You don't propose with 'all right'.
Is her left ring finger a size 7? Because if you are going by a right hand ring, the sizes are often different due to the dominant hand getting more use. Also, sneak that cheapie ring to any jeweler and have them slide it onto their sizing mandrel, just to be sure.
You're proposing in two weeks?! You need to get a move on with this ring!

 

[mdmc]

I know you want to surprise her but if it was me I would want to help pick it out. There is another thread just below this from a woman who really dosen't "love" her engagement ring and now 3 months later wants to change it. Just my 2 cents

 

[TheProfessor89]

I know you want to surprise her but if it was me I would want to help pick it out. There is another thread just below this from a woman who really dosen't "love" her engagement ring and now 3 months later wants to change it. Just my 2 cents

She loves being surprised and when I take the initiative on things like this so I think I"m going to chance it and just go with it. I figure I'll be able to tell within the 1st week if she doesn't like it. If she decides 3 months down the road she doesn't like it then so be it, but I think the surprise will be worth the risk.

Congratulations on the upcoming proposal!
I don't mean to be rude, and I do apologise if I am being so, but your fiancé-to-be has seen these rings as very large images on her computer, and that tiny detail may be lost on her due to her disability. Unless it would please her to know such detail was there, even if it was not something she could see, I would go for a plain split shank (like that second pinterest photo but without the tiny diamonds) and get a bigger diamond that will send as much sparkle as possible to her sweet eyes. And then get her a sparkly wedding band like the one in that same picture. Or a simple halo for the e-ring as diamondseeker suggested, to give the size a boost and add sparkle.

Please do not compromise on cut. Get an ideal cut round brilliant. 'Very good' is a synonym for 'all right' in diamond terms. You don't propose with 'all right'.
Is her left ring finger a size 7? Because if you are going by a right hand ring, the sizes are often different due to the dominant hand getting more use. Also, sneak that cheapie ring to any jeweler and have them slide it onto their sizing mandrel, just to be sure.
You're proposing in two weeks?! You need to get a move on with this ring!

Thank you! And no worries, nothing said was rude! I appreciate the input to avoid the very good cuts. That cuts down the search significantly. I'm not sure about the left ring finger, I never even thought they might be different sizes. I'll have to sneakily get it sized somehow....shouldn't be too hard to snatch it though. My plan is 2 weeks, but of course if I don't have the perfect ring it can be delayed a little bit. Preferably before Christmas season though.

Have you guys bought anything from b2cjewels.com before? I'm using the pricescope diamond search and they consistently have lower prices for similar priced diamonds. I found this one that seems to be an especially good value: http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-3292815...m_medium=referral&utm_campaign=pricescope.com
GIA certificate: http://www.b2cjewels.com/Certificate.aspx?StockNo=3292815

They have a 30 day return policy and 1 free resizing if needed too. I could also pair it with this split shank halo setting: http://www.b2cjewels.com/Diamond-Ac...o-Diamond-Engagment-Ring-Platinum-5733-1.aspx for a grand total of just over $4600 including tax/shipping.

or this split shank solitaire and either the same or slightly larger diamond: http://www.b2cjewels.com/Diamond-Ac...agement-Ring-Platinum-(1-4-cttw.)-8239-1.aspx

Thoughts?

 

[JulieN]

Ok, I get it. Must concentrate very hard to read.

I'm wondering if a colored gemstone would be to her liking?