Ritani Endless Love Princess Alternatives

[JollyMon]

I''ve been lurking for awhile now and want to thank everyone for the education. Without this forum I would be totally lost.

After 1.5 years with my sweetie, I''ve decided it time to get her the ring she so deserves. We have taken some trips to a bunch of stores to get a feel for what she likes and her favorite always seems to be the Ritani Endless Love with a princess stone. Link

There is quite a premium on the Ritani setting so I ended up looking elsewhere and ran across a similar setting at Knox Link Very reasonable price for the setting but there are a few issues. Knox recommends a .5 caret diamond and I was hoping of going a little bigger with the center stone. I don''t want to go too big as my GF has smaller fingers and hands (5.5 ring size) and we both feel that a 1 caret stone in this setting is simply too much for her tiny hands. On the other hand, a perfect stone at .5 carets is less than I budgeted for.

I guess what I am looking for is a setting similar to the Ritani that would fit a stone in the .75 range. I haven’t inquired with Knox, but I''m sure they could do this size diamond. My concern is, that the halo/crown (I think this is the correct terminology) is too large with the Knox ring with this slightly larger stone. Does anyone have a recommendation for a setting that would fit a .75 stone with a slightly smaller crown than the two aforementioned rings?

Much thanks in advance for the help!

 

[mrssalvo]

you''re right in that Ritani does have a bit of a premium on the settings but I have also found their workmanship to be well worth the price. All pave rings are not created equal and many times you''ll get what you pay for. All of the Ritani owners here have been very happy with the durability and quality of the rings so if there is any way to get her the real thing, I''d suggest doing that. As for pricing you might try looking online and solomon brothers or pearlmans. Both carry Ritani and their prices beat what the local retails have marked. It never hurts to ask to negotiate the on the price, especially if you''re buying the stone from the same place.

as for something similar, I''m not that familar with knox, although they have many happy customers here so that might be and option for you. Do you like the space between the stone and the halo? the ritani doesn''t have that space.

You might also try looking at www.precisionset.com. Goodoldgold carries the line.

http://www.precisionset.com/product.php?pid=25&line_id=1

 

[neatfreak]

I agree with mrssalvo. While there are literally hundreds of alternatives for the ritani endless love rings, there is nothing that I have seen that is quite like it in delicateness and quality.

If you do decide to buy something online, make sure all the measurements are similar to the ritani rings, including the size of the pave (I think the ritani rings have 3/4 pt. stones). They are much more delicate than anything else I have seen out there.

I should know...I spent MONTHS looking for rings. The first thing I saw that I loved was the ritani endless love w/o halo. I looked at literally thousands of other options in person and online, and in the end, we're getting the endless love setting because I couldn't find a good alternative for me. I couldn't find anything else that was well made AND delicate. Remember also that the endless love ring is only like 1.8mm wide, which is really really hard to find, so if she liked that piece of it, I would just spring for it.

If you're looking for a way to spend more $, I would just get the perfect .5 diamond (NOT from Ritani), and put it in the endless love setting. My fingers are roughly the same size as your GF's and I thought that a .5 diamond in the haloed ritani looked gorgeous on my hand.

From experience, I can tell you that jewelers are more than willing to work with you on the price of the ring itself and will often drop it 10-15% if you just ask or tell them "I really love it...but it is a little out of my pricerange. Is there anything you can do?"

Good luck!!!

ETA: If a "perfect" stone in the .5 size PLUS the endless love setting is too much, feel free to get an excellent cut stone at maybe G VS2. The cut is the most important piece and you can safely drop clarity and color, especially at that size. The pave stones are usually at least F-G, so a D diamond might look "too white" if that makes sense.

 

[JollyMon]

mrssalvo & neatfreak

Thank you both for the input.

Both of you suggest possibly getting the diamond separate from the stone. I was under the assumption that most jewelers who bezel set stones require you to use one of their stones. Can I purchase the stone and Ritani setting separately? I didn''t think this was an option so I didn''t even consider it. Anyone have a ballpark price for this Ritani setting w/o stone?

 

[mrssalvo]

I think you will probably get a better deal if you buy the setting and stone from the same vendor. However you can purcahse your stone someplace else and then go though the vendor who carries the ritani for the setting. I would however make sure that vendor sends your stone to Ritani for them to set it, which should be the case with the bezel setting anyway, but you never know. I''d email pearlman''s (they are a PS vendor) on the cost of the setting and see what stone''s they can find you that would work in your budget. If you are clear with what your budget is on the front end, that will help them to be able to search in your price range.

 

[Lady Lulu]

Hi there! I found a couple of very nice alternatives at Facets. They get pretty high marks around here. Check these out and see what you think. Both are very reasonably priced.....Good Luck!

http://www.thefacetscollection.com/item.cfm?item_id=2741

http://www.thefacetscollection.com/item.cfm?item_id=2740

 

[kohdy]

Date: 3/26/2007 10:43:58 AM
Author: JollyMon
mrssalvo & neatfreak

Can I purchase the stone and Ritani setting separately? I didn''t think this was an option so I didn''t even consider it. Anyone have a ballpark price for this Ritani setting w/o stone?

Hello JollyMon,

I have purchased a ritani setting a few weeks ago from Bailey Banks & Biddle in Santa Clara, CA to fit my 1.81ct princess cut diamond. The price I paid for the setting is $3600 + tax (8.25% here in CA). The sales person and the manager of the branch swear that this is the best price I will get for the setting. The price, however, will vary a little for different sized stones. Ritani has my stone now, and I think it will be just a few more days until I get it back. I cannot wait!!!

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 3/26/2007 7:39:14 PM
Author: kohdy

Date: 3/26/2007 10:43:58 AM

Author: JollyMon

mrssalvo & neatfreak


Can I purchase the stone and Ritani setting separately? I didn't think this was an option so I didn't even consider it. Anyone have a ballpark price for this Ritani setting w/o stone?

Hello JollyMon,


I have purchased a ritani setting a few weeks ago from Bailey Banks & Biddle in Santa Clara, CA to fit my 1.81ct princess cut diamond. The price I paid for the setting is $3600 + tax (8.25% here in CA). The sales person and the manager of the branch swear that this is the best price I will get for the setting. The price, however, will vary a little for different sized stones. Ritani has my stone now, and I think it will be just a few more days until I get it back. I cannot wait!!!

That price sounds about right for that size stone. A setting for a smaller stone will be a bit less. Pearlmans is a great bet. Baily, Banks, and Biddle will also sell you the setting and for a $100 charge will send your stone purchased elsewhere off to Ritani for setting. So theoretically you could purchase from any vendor you like and then send the diamond off to be set. Princess cut stones should be easy as they aren't too weird of a shape. I know that Ritani prefers that your stone be an "even" number and that it will take a lot less time if it is (e.g., .5, .75, 1.0).

If you're not on a tight timeline BB&B often has sales where they mark down their store 10-15%, so if you can wait, you could get the setting for a discount there as well.

ETA: It is also worth calling around to other PS approved vendors. Some vendors who can't advertise Ritani can get it...and get it for a good price.