Should I match color grades between my e-ring and a potential tennis bracelet?

[BirdLovesRocks]

Hello, lovely PSers! This is my first post, but I’ve been lurking around here for about a year, and in that time I’ve learned so much about diamonds!

I want to buy a tennis bracelet (likely from Whiteflash) and am curious whether I ought to be trying to match the color grades and proportions of the diamonds in the bracelet to my engagement ring. Currently, I have a lovely 0.889 J VS1 ACA in a platinum solitaire setting, so I’m wondering if a tennis bracelet (I’m debating between 3 and 4 cttw) made with Whiteflash’s F/G melee would clash if I wore the bracelet on my left hand. Would any of you recommend asking them to source H/I melee instead, or in your experience does the color grade not matter as much for melee in the 5-8 pointer range?

I’m also a bit unsure what the proportions should be between a tennis bracelet and a solitaire. I’m tempted to go for the bigger 4 cttw (I love sparkles, hehe), but I want to wear the bracelet every day and not have it look overwhelming compared to my e-ring. This won’t be an issue if I ever get around to upgrading, lol, but I need to wait before I start buying all the diamonds all at once. I’d love to hear anyone’s thoughts on this!

Thanks all.

 

[dk168]

Welcome to PS!

IMHO, it depends how colour sensitive you are.

My H-colour 5cttw tennis bracelet is very white when set in white metal.

My other G/H stones when set in white metal are also very white.

HOWEVER, I can see a tint in them when they are pitched right next to my E VS1 Emerald Cut diamond.

I don't wear an engagement ring on my left hand, just one ring in coloured stone or pearl only. And only a watch, no bracelet.

My ring with the E VS1 EC is a Right Hand Ring, and I regularly wear 3-4 stacking bracelets and a bangle containing G/H stones, and it does not bother me.

You would need to decide on your "mind-clean" spec, and that varies from one PSer to another.

Some would not accept any stones less than D IF the best available precision cut even in the smaller stones, whereas I am happy with G/H VS/SI as long as they are sparkly and do not resemble frozen spits.

Personal preferences and all that.

Good luck with your purchase.

DK

 

[tyty333]

I would advise going larger (4ctw) vs smaller. The diamonds will be much smaller than your Ering. You don't want DSS setting in.

As far as color, smaller diamonds almost always look whiter than their same color larger counterparts. You just don't see the
color in them as much as you do with a larger stone. I personally would not worry about the color difference between a
bracelet and an Ering (but that's me). You could ask them if they have any pics of lower-color tennis bracelets.

 

[BirdLovesRocks]

Welcome to PS!

IMHO, it depends how colour sensitive you are.

My H-colour 5cttw tennis bracelet is very white when set in white metal.

My other G/H stones when set in white metal are also very white.

HOWEVER, I can see a tint in them when they are pitched right next to my E VS1 Emerald Cut diamond.

I don't wear an engagement ring on my left hand, just one ring in coloured stone or pearl only. And only a watch, no bracelet.

My ring with the E VS1 EC is a Right Hand Ring, and I regularly wear 3-4 stacking bracelets and a bangle containing G/H stones, and it does not bother me.

You would need to decide on your "mind-clean" spec, and that varies from one PSer to another.

Some would not accept any stones less than D IF the best available precision cut even in the smaller stones, whereas I am happy with G/H VS/SI as long as they are sparkly and do not resemble frozen spits.

Personal preferences and all that.

Good luck with your purchase.

DK

Thank you DK! This is very helpful. It’s interesting to know that the tint in the smaller H-color diamonds in your tennis bracelet is still visible contrasted against your solitaire - as a newbie I just didn’t know how much tint actually can come through in the smaller diamonds! I am color sensitive in that I can *see* the tint, but it doesn’t bother me, at least not when contrasted with white metal or a white background. It’s good to know there are folks out there wearing a range of different color grade diamonds on the same hand/wrist - matching color grades between pieces is something I might be slightly OCD about for the moment just because I don’t yet have a good reference point for how things look IRL. From my limited experience, though, it seems the sparkle factor is the most visible and important to me.

 

[dk168]

Thank you DK! This is very helpful. It’s interesting to know that the tint in the smaller H-color diamonds in your tennis bracelet is still visible contrasted against your solitaire - as a newbie I just didn’t know how much tint actually can come through in the smaller diamonds! I am color sensitive in that I can *see* the tint, but it doesn’t bother me, at least not when contrasted with white metal or a white background. It’s good to know there are folks out there wearing a range of different color grade diamonds on the same hand/wrist - matching color grades between pieces is something I might be slightly OCD about for the moment just because I don’t yet have a good reference point for how things look IRL. From my limited experience, though, it seems the sparkle factor is the most visible and important to me.

If possible, I would advise visiting mall and B&M jewellery stores and the likes of Costco, to try on their TBs for research purposes.

DK

 

[BirdLovesRocks]

I would advise going larger (4ctw) vs smaller. The diamonds will be much smaller than your Ering. You don't want DSS setting in.

As far as color, smaller diamonds almost always look whiter than their same color larger counterparts. You just don't see the
color in them as much as you do with a larger stone. I personally would not worry about the color difference between a
bracelet and an Ering (but that's me). You could ask them if they have any pics of lower-color tennis bracelets.

Ah yes, DSS. Yikes, lol. I will say that with the tennis bracelet I’m already thinking, “But what if I want something bolder than the 3ctw?” So I probably will go for the larger size. I am also a bit worried that if I do it’ll accelerate DSS for my e-ring - but as you say, the melee in the bracelet would be much smaller than the solitaire, so maybe not, plus the difference between 3 and 4ctw might not be as obvious IRL as it is in my mind. I probably just have to see these sizes in person or get a CZ bracelet to test drive and see if this happens.

That’s a great point about just asking Whiteflash if they can send photos of lower colored tennis bracelets. I’ll have to do that. Thanks

 

[Lookinagain]

the color difference wouldn't be an issue for me. I'm not really color sensitive however. I think the suggestion that you go try on bracelets for size and perhaps color too.

 

[RunningwithScissors]

... I am also a bit worried that if I do it’ll accelerate DSS for my e-ring ...

But you could always upgrade the diamond in your e-ring later if you want. You can't upgrade the melee, you're stuck with whatever size you select now.

I agree with the folks who say you should go as large as you can now.

 

[BirdLovesRocks]

But you could always upgrade the diamond in your e-ring later if you want. You can't upgrade the melee, you're stuck with whatever size you select now.

I agree with the folks who say you should go as large as you can now.

Ohhhhh, I hadn’t realized the melee isn’t upgradable. It makes sense now that I think about it though. Very good to know, thank you!

 

[oncrutchesrightnow]

Hi there! Well I have a somewhat similar situation but there are a few differences. I have a 0.85 K earth OEC solitaire set in 14k gold, and a 3 ctw tennis bracelet that are off-the-rack F-G lab MRB diamonds in 14k white gold from James Allen. YES I can totally see the difference. I do not wear the K every day but I do wear the tennis bracelet regularly and although I will wear them together on occasion, if they were my only choice of ring-bracelet combination, I would be self-conscious about it.

You situation is a little different because your J is higher color than a K, your ACA J will face up much whiter than my OEC K, and my OEC K is set in yellow gold, which adds contrast to my white gold bracelet, whereas both your ring and bracelet will be white metal. So you may see less contrast in your combo than what I see in mine. But you asked for experience/opinions so this is the experience I have to offer

3 ctw vs 4 ctw… I love my 3 ctw for everyday wear but I am not a blingy person. IMHO a 4 ctw tennis bracelet would be fine to wear with most any outfit. ETA most of the center diamonds in my rings are under a carat and I wear them all with my 3 ctw bracelet. IMHO neither a 3 ctw nor a 4 ctw bracelet would look disproportionate with a .8 ct center stone.

Happy bracelet hunting and come back with pics!

 

[BirdLovesRocks]

Hi there! Well I have a somewhat similar situation but there are a few differences. I have a 0.85 K earth OEC solitaire set in 14k gold, and a 3 ctw tennis bracelet that are off-the-rack F-G lab MRB diamonds in 14k white gold from James Allen. YES I can totally see the difference. I do not wear the K every day but I do wear the tennis bracelet regularly and although I will wear them together on occasion, if they were my only choice of ring-bracelet combination, I would be self-conscious about it.

You situation is a little different because your J is higher color than a K, your ACA J will face up much whiter than my OEC K, and my OEC K is set in yellow gold, which adds contrast to my white gold bracelet, whereas both your ring and bracelet will be white metal. So you may see less contrast in your combo than what I see in mine. But you asked for experience/opinions so this is the experience I have to offer

3 ctw vs 4 ctw… I love my 3 ctw for everyday wear but I am not a blingy person. IMHO a 4 ctw tennis bracelet would be fine to wear with most any outfit. ETA most of the center diamonds in my rings are under a carat and I wear them all with my 3 ctw bracelet. IMHO neither a 3 ctw nor a 4 ctw bracelet would look disproportionate with a .8 ct center stone.

Happy bracelet hunting and come back with pics!

Thank you, that’s very helpful! I do like to hear what people’s personal experiences are, it helps me get beyond the sterile sort of sales pitch I can get elsewhere. Your answer actually reminded me that my mother has 0.2 - 0.7 F (I think) MRBs in her wedding rings, and I can definitely see a bit of difference between her stones and mine. I’m ok with melee looking whiter than my solitaire just by virtue of them being smaller, but if there’s an additional component to it where the undertone of the solitaire looks noticeably different against my skin than F/G melee, I’m not sure if it would set off my OCD. It will be fun to research this.

I’m also glad to know someone else has a bracelet/ring combination of 3 ctw and under-1 ct center stones, and that this works well for you! Besides, I have longish fingers and kind of big hands so dainty bracelets can get lost on me, and I’m looking around for folks who have already forged a path I could follow.

 

[chere]

I have a 4ctw tennis bracelet from Costco with 6 point stones. It’s a nice size next to my 6mm square cushion.

I wouldn’t go smaller but as large as you can.

 

[BirdLovesRocks]

Thank you, that’s great to know! Is your cushion about the same color grade as the stones in the bracelet, or is there a difference?

 

[chere]

Thank you, that’s great to know! Is your cushion about the same color grade as the stones in the bracelet, or is there a difference?

My cushion is an F and my bracelet is EFG. There’s a hint of color since it’s a fancy cut.

I really like wearing my bracelet with my matching F color MBR band. I have a GH princess cut band that shows a lot of color. I don’t wear it with my bracelet. The color difference is too much for my liking.

 

[lulu_ma]

I have a HRD M OEC and I'm getting an bracelet with G-I OEC's I will try to post some pics of you next week. I'm hoping the color difference won't bother me!

 

[BirdLovesRocks]

I have a HRD M OEC and I'm getting an bracelet with G-I OEC's I will try to post some pics of you next week. I'm hoping the color difference won't bother me!

Ooh, a bracelet of OECs sounds beautiful! I’m so curious to see how they look together!