Helloooo PreRaphaelite!
Wow wow wow!!! I have never seen this thread before. I am bowled over by the breadth, the depth and the absolute gorgeousness of your collection!
You have such unusual, classic and lovely taste and each piece is museum worthy.
Thank you for the tour of your precious finery.. it's just stunning.
New stone, who dis?
I bought this planning to harvest the center stone and scrap the setting, as white gold is not optimal for my skin. I expected the stone to be very coloured based on the seller photos, but in person she is very pale indeed, and not nearly as deep/warm as I'd hoped. Best guess is about V-W colour, no fluor.
Terrible photo below is for puffy crown and frosted girdle illustration purposes. The videos herein show the best capture I could get on her tint.
Plan to reset the center stone remains in play, but the setting is actually lovely and substantial, and worth salvaging, so the melee Mine cuts will stay in situ, and I'll find a warm pearl or pale topaz to mount in its place. It's very much a Wedding style necklace and not something for daily wear. The back is actually prettier than the front as the lace effect really shows. But then, one wouldn't wear it backwards.
I'm struggling to think what colour gold to mount her in; choices include David Klass's 14k "antique" blush gold or un-plated 18k white, or the ever-popular oxidised silver. I originally planned to use rose gold, but I suspect that wouldn't work after all. Either way, it'll be prongs not bezel, because I just love to see a frosted girdle.
Also she needs a name! "Oatmeal" is accurate, but unflattering! Was thinking maybe "Evalyn" (after the elder Mrs. McLean, of course).
Chart source: https://www.gemsociety.org/diamond-advice/the-4cs-color/
Another week of procrastination. Another fit of pique today! The ball must be moved! Progress, not perfection.
Charlotte has for several years worn this faux-Georgian silver collet, a local bench's begrudging effort, by which I was never thrilled. Finally after much frustration and indecision, I'd had enough and took matters into my own hands. The cost is sunk, past is cast aside, and we move forward.
Today, she's denuded of the old mount, and cleaned, weighed, measured. Estimated I-J colour, a respectable .90ct, 5.7mm x 5.8mm. Now, the inclusions on one side, and the chip on the other, add up to make her look almost oval in shape. So she's set rather landscape-ish, east-west as it were, in her new temporary mount, a 14k former-cz-holding thrifted $35 necklace, 18 inches and weightless.
After careful examination, actually she's a great candidate for a recut. However, since gemstones generally must be pried from my fingers only under great force (or threat of painful demise), she'll be with me for a while yet.
This style of necklace doesn't fit into any of the capsules, so eventually I'll get annoyed again. But for a carefree summer of casual bling in the back garden, what the heck. Three cheers for imperfect stones! Happy weekend everyone!
Oh wow, that puffy crown! She NEEDED to be added to your collection!
For a name, what about Wilhelmina (trying to stay with the V-W names)? Also, I believe Wilhelmina means "helmet." And I think there was a queen of the Netherlands with that name. A royal name would be fitting for this beauty!
Send nudes? I thought you'd never ask.
This is the 1.15ct weight, unnamed Old Cut center stone from the Edwardian wedding necklace, freed like a Libertine, and basking in her own creamy blush skin, with an indented "natural" fully visible on her frosted girdle for all the world to see.
She's luscious and lively, and that colour is so pretty. Once she was released from the white gold mount, I tried her in several different styles and colours of gold settings and all of them were "meh" until...
The scrap Georgian-inspired collet that once held Charlotte was on hand, and while it is far too small a dress for her, once I shimmied it loosely around her just to see, she lit up like a new bride. She was blushing and winking, and flirting with me shamelessly, and her visible tint was even more flattering with the contrast of blackened silver set between her and a scrap gold chain. Her complexion made her look even better in the collet than Charlotte had. I knew right away that she would become my daily necklace and now I'm budgeting for her reset. Thinking maybe a vintage dusty-blushy-rose gold chain, if I can find one.
Now, some people do not care for lower colours in diamonds, and I respect that opinion. I have some white ones, and they're lovely. Yet this depth of colour is exactly what I needed for this project. A white stone is less convincing somehow when you need a sultry, hedonistic, smoky, far-away romantic look.
I do think it will be worth it to send her to GIA for grading, in case I decide to have her matched and set as drop earrings, someday, but a daily melancholic layering necklace is my primary need. I'm super excited about this project and can't wait to get started.
Send nudes? I thought you'd never ask.
This is the 1.15ct weight, unnamed Old Cut center stone from the Edwardian wedding necklace, freed like a Libertine, and basking in her own creamy blush skin, with an indented "natural" fully visible on her frosted girdle for all the world to see.
She's luscious and lively, and that colour is so pretty. Once she was released from the white gold mount, I tried her in several different styles and colours of gold settings and all of them were "meh" until...
The scrap Georgian-inspired collet that once held Charlotte was on hand, and while it is far too small a dress for her, once I shimmied it loosely around her just to see, she lit up like a new bride. She was blushing and winking, and flirting with me shamelessly, and her visible tint was even more flattering with the contrast of blackened silver set between her and a scrap gold chain. Her complexion made her look even better in the collet than Charlotte had. I knew right away that she would become my daily necklace and now I'm budgeting for her reset. Thinking maybe a vintage dusty-blushy-rose gold chain, if I can find one.
Now, some people do not care for lower colours in diamonds, and I respect that opinion. I have some white ones, and they're lovely. Yet this depth of colour is exactly what I needed for this project. A white stone is less convincing somehow when you need a sultry, hedonistic, smoky, far-away romantic look.
I do think it will be worth it to send her to GIA for grading, in case I decide to have her matched and set as drop earrings, someday, but a daily melancholic layering necklace is my primary need. I'm super excited about this project and can't wait to get started.
Send nudes? I thought you'd never ask.
This is the 1.15ct weight, unnamed Old Cut center stone from the Edwardian wedding necklace, freed like a Libertine, and basking in her own creamy blush skin, with an indented "natural" fully visible on her frosted girdle for all the world to see.
She's luscious and lively, and that colour is so pretty. Once she was released from the white gold mount, I tried her in several different styles and colours of gold settings and all of them were "meh" until...
The scrap Georgian-inspired collet that once held Charlotte was on hand, and while it is far too small a dress for her, once I shimmied it loosely around her just to see, she lit up like a new bride. She was blushing and winking, and flirting with me shamelessly, and her visible tint was even more flattering with the contrast of blackened silver set between her and a scrap gold chain. Her complexion made her look even better in the collet than Charlotte had. I knew right away that she would become my daily necklace and now I'm budgeting for her reset. Thinking maybe a vintage dusty-blushy-rose gold chain, if I can find one.
Now, some people do not care for lower colours in diamonds, and I respect that opinion. I have some white ones, and they're lovely. Yet this depth of colour is exactly what I needed for this project. A white stone is less convincing somehow when you need a sultry, hedonistic, smoky, far-away romantic look.
I do think it will be worth it to send her to GIA for grading, in case I decide to have her matched and set as drop earrings, someday, but a daily melancholic layering necklace is my primary need. I'm super excited about this project and can't wait to get started.
@PreRaphaelite I greatly enjoyed your nudes in bed this morning. She’s certainly a sultry little thing.
You’re a wonderful writer. I always enjoy your posts. If you write a book I’ll queue to read it!!
And you’re right, she dances in the collet. Her faceting lights up - she looks crisp and contrasty there!! And stylistically it’s a perfect fit, of course. Love the idea of a peachy chain
Re. Sending to GIA - in lower colours the ranges are so broad, and the undertones can come through so strongly… And the proportions tell you so little about real world faceting.. You’d have to see any potential mates in-person anyway, and further down the scale those potential matches could easily be one or two split grades higher or lower. So I’m not sure there’s all that much convenience value to getting a report to be honest. Would you consider allotting those funds to her dress instead?
New stone, who dis?
I bought this planning to harvest the center stone and scrap the setting, as white gold is not optimal for my skin. I expected the stone to be very coloured based on the seller photos, but in person she is very pale indeed, and not nearly as deep/warm as I'd hoped. Best guess is about V-W colour, no fluor.
Terrible photo below is for puffy crown and frosted girdle illustration purposes. The videos herein show the best capture I could get on her tint.
Plan to reset the center stone remains in play, but the setting is actually lovely and substantial, and worth salvaging, so the melee Mine cuts will stay in situ, and I'll find a warm pearl or pale topaz to mount in its place. It's very much a Wedding style necklace and not something for daily wear. The back is actually prettier than the front as the lace effect really shows. But then, one wouldn't wear it backwards.
I'm struggling to think what colour gold to mount her in; choices include David Klass's 14k "antique" blush gold or un-plated 18k white, or the ever-popular oxidised silver. I originally planned to use rose gold, but I suspect that wouldn't work after all. Either way, it'll be prongs not bezel, because I just love to see a frosted girdle.
Also she needs a name! "Oatmeal" is accurate, but unflattering! Was thinking maybe "Evalyn" (after the elder Mrs. McLean, of course).
Chart source: https://www.gemsociety.org/diamond-advice/the-4cs-color/
Well, sort of.
As for names, I keep drawing a blank. I'm still convinced that she needs an oxidised silver mount, on an old gold chain. So, maybe "Georgiana" would stick. I think once she's set, a name will crystalise.
Speaking of, the quote I got for making a collet necklace for her wasastronomicalabove budget, especially given that I was supplying the stone and the chain. Would have been cheaper to order a whole necklace with new diamond from a PS vendor. I was disheartened. I fully interpreted it as the vendor not wanting the job. Perhaps it was beneath him.
But I'm not giving up. At this point I'm searching endlessly (possibly in futility) for an existing mount that might hold a paste.
Meanwhile, I contacted another bench for some small repairs and resets, and he is fair-priced (and so much more polite), so I'm dipping my toe in the water with the Aegis:
If it comes back well-done, I'll escalate the big jobs to him, including the new girl. And I'll share his contact info in the forum.
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