Setting princess cut diamond

[JinJean]

Hi everyone, I've been lurking here for a while so this will be my first post! Gonna buy a signature princess diamond around from BGD but hoping to have it set by a local jeweler due to ease of service because I want a few customised things such as milgrained edge and detailing on the side; I figure this will be easier since I'm from Melbourne (Australia). I'm pretty scared though that they will chip/damage the diamond somehow, especially as it's a princess cut. The jewelers I have spoken to have said they don't guarantee anything as it's not one of their own diamonds. I was wondering if anyone else has been in a similar situation? Did it go OK? Who did you use if from Melbourne?

I was thinking of getting jewellery insurance but am not sure if they even cover this type of scenario! Not sure if I'm being super irrational/fearful about this or not.... Some advice/personal experiences would be appreciated!

 

[MollyMalone]

An excerpt from one of my posts a week ago : - )

most jewelers (here in the US and in Australia) will not assume liability for loss/damage to an "outside" stone while it's in their shop awaiting the setting & being mounted. And unlike what is possible for US & (non-Quecbec) Canadian residents, it seems there is no Australian insurance company who will offer insurance on loose stones, they won't cover anything other than completed jewelry pieces. (This topic has come up several times in the past year, most recently as several weeks ago.)

Alistair Kelsey is the 1 Australian jeweler who's been named here on PS whose insurance will cover an outside stone (meaning one supplied by the customer, not purchased from him) while it's in his shop as he fabricates the setting & mounts the center stone. I don't have any idea re his prices and whether his aesthetic will appeal to you. But he has developed quite a following & there's no downside to exploring this option:
http://www.alistairkelsey.com

I understand your apprehension, especially since it's a princess cut. I wish I had good news for you re either insurance coverage you yourself could get or names of other jewelers in Australia whose insurance policy covers outside stones.

So let me ask you this: have you asked Brian Gavin for a price quote for a setting like what you have in mind? Based on the pics I've seen here on PS, BGD's millegraining looks nice. E.g.,
https://www.pricescope.com/communit...-brian-gavin-halo-rings-with-milgrain.200684/

 

[rockysalamander]

@MollyMalone gives good advice. Just get BGD to do the work if similar in budget. If anything goes wrong during setting, they have stones on hand with the same superb cut to replace them. Let them take the liability. Any stone with pointy edges has some risk while setting. That said, I have heard nothing but great things about Alistair Kelsey's clean aesthetic and designs.

Rings often need resized due to lots of things. With engraving, that detail can be lost/interrupted. So, you might work out a design only 2/3 down the shank with a plain section, or with a pattern that has a clear way to "break" the pattern. Many of the more swirly designs can be odd looking when cutoff unless the jeweler who is working on the ring can free-hand the engraving to better end the pattern.

BGD has a good engraver too...

 

[JinJean]

Hi everyone thanks for the responses. Sorry I thought I searched the forum but must have overlooked the posts from a few weeks ago.

Unfortunately, I am in Melbourne so getting a stone set in Sydney is not much different to me than getting it done in America lol, except for slightly quicker and cheaper postage!

My main reason for wanting to get it set locally was to have a face to face contact and be able to try the ring on before I sign off on it; if there's little issues I feel it would be more quickly sorted. If there are issues with sizing or something 'not quite right', I would need to send the ring back to BG and wait weeks for it to be fixed etc... Just seems like a hassle :\

BG settings are beautiful actually, I quite like the Melissa (https://www.briangavindiamonds.com/engagement-rings/solitaire/melissa-5366) but I want a fine milgrain edge along the band as pictured in the above poster's ring and V prongs and am waiting to hear back from them re: a quote and turnaround time. But it does state on their website up to 4 weeks for custom designs.

I'm guessing the risk of damage to round diamonds is far less than princess cuts?