Please help me communicate with my jeweler

[Scooba116]

I recently upgraded my center stone and had to have my ring remade to accommodate it. Since I was already paying to have a new ring made, I decided to get larger baguettes as well. I decided to go with a local jeweler (the only one in town that I know of who will set an outside stone and custom make a ring) who initially said he would set my new stone in my old ring but then said that would be so much work it would be better to just make a whole new ring and he could make the new ring exactly like my old ring. When I went in to see the cad cast today, I felt it was much different than my old ring but I struggled to explain to my jeweler why it looked different. He thought it look almost exactly the same and the only differences were because of the size of the new stones.

Here is my old ring:









Notice that there is a V shape in between the shank and the baguettes and that the basket is sort of rounded at the bottom.

I did a terrible job trying to photograph the new model but here is what I got:



I know the photos are really bad, but can you kind of see in the second and third photos how boxy the basket is? And how the area between the shank and the baguettes is rectangular rather than V shaped?

I think he understands that I want the baguettes set higher, but I'm still not sure I was able to describe what I want with the basket. I have told him I was the corners of the basket more rounded, less angular, less harsh. He should me a catalog of basket heads and they were all pretty boxy. I found a setting for a princess cut in his store with a more rounded basket but he just said that is for a totally different stone and a different ring. I'm just not sure how toexplain what I want. He said he would make me one more model and if I don't like it I will have to take my business elsewhere, but I don't have anywhere else to go! I think he said he is going to taper the prongs, but I'm not sure that will fix how I feel about the large basket.

I can't find any pictures online of emerald cut settings with tapered baguettes that have such a large basket, so I know I'm not crazy. He has seen my old ring, has seen the pictures of it I posted above, and took some of his own pictures because I had to send the old stone back. Any thoughts? Advice on the right words to use to describe how I want the basket to look? Or example pictures of baskets I can send him?

 

[rockysalamander]

Not sure if I've got it right, but I think if the box over the top of the shank was smaller, they the prongs would flare outward to meet the horizontal support. It would allow them to thing have implied curve like this SK.

Too wide at bottom


Narrower base

I think your baguettes are will end up a bit more like this angle relative to the main stone. The cross-bar under the baguettes meets the crossbar of the main stone along the bottom.

Your ring has a straight tail prong, but a nice detail to add is the tail prong that has metal built up. I have this on my pear side stones and I find it allows me to keep the ring from spinning better and I don't hit the pokey prong.

 

[drk14]

He thought it look almost exactly the same and the only differences were because of the size of the new stones.

I apologize in advance that my feedback is not constructive (I did not have time to study your pictures), but I wanted to explain that part of the problem is that both you and your jeweler may be "right", and that the problem may be due mostly to the contraints of geometry.

Your brain will perceive the new ring to look exactly like the old ring only if the proportions and angles of every feature of the ring remain identical. For this to happen, if you double the diamond carat weight, then every dimension in the new ring will have to increase by 26%. This means that a size 5 ring will have to become a size 10 ring (to preserve the proportions). This is obviously not what you want, but if you then decide to scale up some proportions (e.g., prongs, basket), but not others, then the angles of the design must change (just like changing the length of two legs of a triangle while keeping the third side at a fixed length will change the angles in the triangle).

Thus, there is no perfect way to match the new setting to the old, if the size of the stones has changed. The only solution is to decide which geometric angles, proportions and lengths are most important for capturing the "essence" of the original design. There is no single correct answer to this question. You have to look at the original setting and determine what aspects of its shape appeal to you the most.

Good luck!

 

[rockysalamander]

Another picture affirming what you know. Base of basket too big. Look how tiny this is relative to the shank!!

http://jeandousset.com/jewelry/engagement-rings/halle/




This really shows how they can narrow the base to nothing and then the angle of the prong goes up steeply to the cross piece.

http://jeandousset.com/jewelry/engagement-rings/lauren/

 

[totallyfree]

Taking into account the above advice on different proportions, I think you want to ask for the base of the basket to be much smaller and angled out to meet the edges of your stone.

You could also ask to have the main stone set higher (or the outside of the baguettes lower) to increase the angle of 'swoopyness'.

And I think that for the outside ends of the baguettes you want to have shoulders that swoop up to meet the baskets, and taper in to be as narrow as the stones...

Hope this helps

 

[EC8]

Hi,
like others have said, you want the base of the basket to be smaller in length and width than your EC diamond; this will force the prongs to be at an angle rather than straight up and down.
I had a very similar ring made last year; as an example the length of the basket base is 5mm, whereas my stone is 7.75mm.
For the baguettes, it looks like the CAD has them also flat/parallel with the band vs. a steeper angle like your original ring. To do so, he might have to raise the bar where they meet with the center stone (which is what the center stone rests on) so will mean your center diamond sits higher.

 

[Scooba116]

Thank you for all the replies. I emailed the jeweler and explained that I want the base of the basket to be smaller. I am going to see a new model this afternoon. I am still concerned it won't be right though and thinking maybe I should explore other options.

Can anyone recommend and online jeweler who might be able to make this ring? What would it cost approximately? It's platinum and the center stone is 8.46 x 5.8, my ring size is 5.75.

 

[EC8]

BE (Brilliantly Engaged) made my ring, in platinum.
The stones were my own, although the main stone was an emerald (emerald cut).
I would suggest reaching out to them (I worked with Chris) to get a quote; I would think they can quote pretty quickly with a picture (your original photo) and stone size info.

 

[tyty333]

Why couldnt he do a wax to get it right instead of going straight to metal (unless this is hand fabricated)?

David Klass would be a good option. You will have to go through the same fine details with him but he usually works the
CADs until they are exactly what you want. It does take a while though to do the back and forth. Hopefully you could
explain all of this to DK on the first go around so there wont be a lot of back and forth. Price wise if you bring all your
stones I would think it would be below $1500 in 14k. Maybe closer to $1200. All you have to do is call and request a
quote on what you want done.

Other options (hand fabricated so more expensive)
http://stevenkirsch.com/
https://www.victorcanera.com/