new ering resetting (before and after)

[erica k]

i''m just a poor grad student who got married last june with a .50ish ctw ering. my mom gave me her new diamond to re-set while i was home in california last month. she felt that it was too ostentatious for her (original ering is .33ctw) and knew that i really wanted a 1.0 ctw ring. i called my husband and he said he didn''t care if i got a new ering, since we''d already discussed the possibility of upgrading in 10 years. i figured you can''t say no to a free diamond or ring. so i decided to go with the matching setting to my white gold wedding band, which is by Jean-Francois Albert. unfortunately i don''t have the specs or documents on the stone because my dad apparently can''t find them and doesn''t see what the big deal is. i''ll have to get the diamond re-certified for insurance purposes. however, the jewelry store did a superficial certification for their own insurance needs when sending the diamond out for re-setting. on paper it looks pretty good, but having been on pricescope for a while now, i can tell that the cut isn''t as nice as my ideal cut RB. i think it might be a little deep, and the arrows don''t match up as well as they could. that said, it''s eyeclean and very sparkly now that it is out of its hideous former setting.
estimated specs: 1.04 ctw, VS2-SI1, H-I.
my first ering is .52ctw, SI2, F, ring size 6. the color doesn''t bother me too much because there are so many other little sparkly diamonds to look at, but i still prefer my first diamond in terms of cut quality and color (the inclusions never bothered me).

here is the original setting:

 

[erica k]

side view. shudder.

by the way, the original setting was in platinum. my mom is going to reset the smaller princess cut diamonds in a simple eternity band.

 

[erica k]

my first ering is so much better cut.

 

[erica k]

new ering

 

[erica k]

i didn''t think i''d like prongs, but there''s something cartoonish and modern about these that i really love.

 

[erica k]

i really love the unique shape of the Jean-Francois Albert ring. it's similar to a euro shank, but is squarish rather than perfectly round both on the inside and the outside, which i find incredibly comfortable to wear.

 

[erica k]

general handshot. on a size 6, which i think is pretty normal, it doesn''t look particularly large. but for me and my financial situation, i think it''s plenty big. i''ll probably grow into it, which i guess is the opposite of ring shrinkage syndrome.

 

[Dee*Jay]

The setting on your "new" e-ring with the matching w-band is really wonderful!

What are you going to do with your original e-ring? Maybe wear it as a right hand ring?

 

[Skippy123]

Gorgeous. I am a little confused. Was the first pic your mom''s ring and then the second your original ering and then the 3rd the reset ring with your moms diamond??

Either way all the pictures look gorgeous

 

[gailrmv]

I'm a little confused too - did you trade rings with your mom? I love your new set!!! It is awesome! I love those prongs too.

 

[DMBsGirl]

lovely reset!

 

[kcoursolle]

Cool new setting, the work looks really nice on your ring!

 

[erica k]

thanks for all the comments!
the back story is pretty confusing i guess.
here''s a quick summary:
my mom was always annoyed that she only had a .33 ctw ering. my parents have been married for over 30 years, and she has always asked my dad to buy her something larger. so, a year ago, she finally got her wish. unfortunately, as you can see in the picture, my dad picked a rather unattractive setting for the 1 ctw. my mom decided to give me the diamond because my father is being ordained a deacon this year and she felt a large diamond, even re-set in something more tasteful, would be unbecoming of a deacon''s wife. i was pretty shocked that she would give up something that i had always believed was her lifelong dream. so, i offered to swap rings with her, since a .50ctw ring is hardly ostentatious, but she refused. my mom likes to give me things because she knows i''m poor but have expensive taste. now i have two erings, and i''m not sure what i''m going to do with the original one. i might save up and buy a matching stone for earrings, or i might continue to wear it since i still really love the design and it offers a different look.

 

[FireGoddess]

Great redo - I think it looks fabulous on your hand.

 

[4bugzinarug]

What a huge difference the right setting makes! Congratulations, it is just gorgeous!