So my Jeff White sapphire is all boxed up.....just gotta figure out who to send it to....some feedba

[Cind11]

Your stone is gorgeous! I can''t wait to see what Leon come up with. You must be so excited!

 

[LostSapphire]

HEY!

Well, how exciting is THAT??? woo hooo new BLUE BLING before JUNE??!!

Keep us posted! Will Leon give you a sketch or anything, or, are you leaving it entirely up to him?

LS

 

[DianaBanana]

Yup, hopefully before June!

I''m not sure if he''ll give me a sketch or not...he says we''ll firm up the design once he has the stone in hand. I''m afraid to keep bugging him in case he turns on me like in Seinfeld...NO SOUP FOR YOU!!!

Ha ha!

I''m expecting that he will send me some side stone choices so hopefully I''ll have some juicy pear pictures to post for you.

Stay tuned my fellow Canadian sapphire lover.......

 

[arjunajane]

Hey Diana,

I''ve only skipped over this thread - and don''t want to be a Debbie Downer - but just wanted to say please please for the love of God
get every single thing written down in a work order with specific costs for labour, materials as much as you can with Leon.
Any changes - get them added in writing!

I know you chose to go with him partly because his quote was lower - but there have been some examples of Leon
going waaayy over quoted price on a ring or two- and also not doing things that were agreed upon as he forgot to add them
to the work order - and the customers just had to eat it.

Yes, he''s eccentric and yes he does amazing work and I know your ring will be a stunner - I just don''t want
you to have any nasty surprises is all

I hope you don''t feel like I''m raining on your parade or anything, I''m honestly telling you this to help!

Can''t wait to see the finished product

 

[DianaBanana]

Thanks AJ....great points! We''ve had a couple of lively discussions on budget and I found him pretty flexible in that regard....I told him flat out what my budget was and asked if he could do what I wanted within that budget and he said yes. I would imagine business is a little slower than usual, especially considering his lead time has gone from about 8 weeks to 3.

Don''t worry...you''re not raining on my parade! I''m secretly looking forward to some Soup Nazi antics from him, it will make for a great story!

 

[arjunajane]

Date: 4/29/2009 12:21:05 AM
Author: DianaBanana
Thanks AJ....great points! We've had a couple of lively discussions on budget and I found him pretty flexible in that regard....I told him flat out what my budget was and asked if he could do what I wanted within that budget and he said yes. I would imagine business is a little slower than usual, especially considering his lead time has gone from about 8 weeks to 3.

Don't worry...you're not raining on my parade! I'm secretly looking forward to some Soup Nazi antics from him, it will make for a great story!

Sounds good - maybe the *slight* slow down in business has softened his ego just a tad? lol..

Regardless, I (personally) would still be relentless about that work order - the other clients had a friendly r'ship with him too - until

Very interesting that you have found him flexible and accomodating on budget - he's not The Most Expensive one, but those words aren't
usually a part of his rep, lol..

Very exciting, does that mean you will have it within 3 weeks?!

 

[Gypsy]

Interesting information on Leon. I agree with getting everything in writing, it''s just a good practice when dealing with anyone, long distance or otherwise... but especially long distance.

Diana, your ring is going to be flat out amazing.

 

[icekid]

Excited to hear you''re going with Leon- he would have been my choice as well! I am dying to see this ring; it is going to be amazing.

 

[cushioncutnut]

AJ... I am glad you brought that up as I was a liason between my nephew (my family members come to me for advice and who to purchase diamond/erings from) and Leon...........he quoted me one price and it was $200 more on the work order. Luckily my nephew mentioned what he quoted me and Leon honored it. Also, the pear shaped sidestones that he showed my nephew were also out of budget. My nephew asked him if he could show him another pair for a bit cheaper. Leon came through and my nephew stayed within budget. I think Leon is very sensitive to peoples budget, however, like AJ said, you definately have to stay on top of him. I can''t wait to see what design he comes up with! I know you will be breathless when it is finished. OH, BTW, it may take a bit longer for your ring to be finished as it took about 5 weeks for my nephews ring and he was quoted 3 weeks. It will be worth the wait I am sure!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[chrono]

It''s going to be a stunner with pear sides in a Leon setting.

 

[DianaBanana]

Just wanted to chime in and thank everyone for your posts...I was feeling some ''setting'' anxiety.....again!!!..... and your kind words helped bolster my confidence in my choice of setting and designer. Even if he charges me an arm and a leg, I''m pretty sure Leon won''t disappoint, and that is my main concern, that I LOVE my ring!

The stone is in the mail...YIKES!!

 

[LostSapphire]

So VERY exciting!!!

We can''t wait. Keep us posted!

LS

 

[arjunajane]

Date: 4/30/2009 7:03:58 PM
Author: cushioncutnut
AJ... I am glad you brought that up as I was a liason between my nephew (my family members come to me for advice and who to purchase diamond/erings from) and Leon...........he quoted me one price and it was $200 more on the work order. Luckily my nephew mentioned what he quoted me and Leon honored it. Also, the pear shaped sidestones that he showed my nephew were also out of budget. My nephew asked him if he could show him another pair for a bit cheaper. Leon came through and my nephew stayed within budget. I think Leon is very sensitive to peoples budget, however, like AJ said, you definately have to stay on top of him. I can''t wait to see what design he comes up with! I know you will be breathless when it is finished. OH, BTW, it may take a bit longer for your ring to be finished as it took about 5 weeks for my nephews ring and he was quoted 3 weeks. It will be worth the wait I am sure!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey CCN,
thanks for the example, this is exactly what I mean.
I gather from reading on here that LM is the type of person that "keeps it all up here" *taps index finger to temple*

But as we all know, sometimes that method can let us down..so yep, keeping on top of it was just what I was trying to impart to
Diana

Soooo exciting Diana, yes you''re right no matter what LM will create something amazing for you - I for one can''t wait to see it,
and am totally envious!

 

[whitby_2773]

dianabanana -

i am SO excited for you!

you know i''m looking for a sapphire myself (no progress as yet - check back in 3 months!) - and i am planning to go to leon for the setting also. i already have a pair of fat pears (1 ctw) and am looking for a nice sapphire to put in between them. will then send to leon for something minimalist in platinum; he really is the guy, isnt he?

i love your plans and designs - good luck with it all!

 

[Gailey]

Diana,

I think your ring will look lovely and I hope that all goes well with Leon for you. I think some of my comments and questions earlier in your post were quite polarising. If I hadn''t been beset with internet issues, I would have posted this earlier:

I just want to give a bit of a shout out for Ocean Pearlman in all of this. I have been in contact with her recently about a project and she has been helpful, creative, gracious and just a pleasure to deal with. Now, we hadn''t gotten to discussing price yet, so I can''t comment on her pricing. I have seen examples of her work, which appears from the photos she sent to be top notch. I wasn''t quite in the same position as you because I didn''t source other quotes. I did a ton of research on PS about different designers and peoples views and as a result of that I picked Wink/Ocean for my project. I did this largely because of her pavé work. I feel badly because perhaps I helped to create an impression that pavé was in someway superior to filigree and therefore would expect filigree to cost less. I shouldn''t have said that, because truly I have no idea what''s involved in either process.

I have no doubt that Leon with create a beautiful ring for you Diana, and I am sure you are going to be delighted with it when you get it and like everyone else, can''t wait to see it.

 

[DianaBanana]

Date: 5/1/2009 9:16:14 AM
Author: Gailey
Diana,

I think your ring will look lovely and I hope that all goes well with Leon for you. I think some of my comments and questions earlier in your post were quite polarising. If I hadn''t been beset with internet issues, I would have posted this earlier:

I just want to give a bit of a shout out for Ocean Pearlman in all of this. I have been in contact with her recently about a project and she has been helpful, creative, gracious and just a pleasure to deal with. Now, we hadn''t gotten to discussing price yet, so I can''t comment on her pricing. I have seen examples of her work, which appears from the photos she sent to be top notch. I wasn''t quite in the same position as you because I didn''t source other quotes. I did a ton of research on PS about different designers and peoples views and as a result of that I picked Wink/Ocean for my project. I did this largely because of her pavé work. I feel badly because perhaps I helped to create an impression that pavé was in someway superior to filigree and therefore would expect filigree to cost less. I shouldn''t have said that, because truly I have no idea what''s involved in either process.

I have no doubt that Leon with create a beautiful ring for you Diana, and I am sure you are going to be delighted with it when you get it and like everyone else, can''t wait to see it.

Hi Gailey, thanks for your comments - I agree, Ocean is a pleasure to deal with and her work IS top notch from the examples I''ve seen. I contacted her again about a week ago to see what changes we could make in order to fit the project into my budget (about $5K) - I haven''t heard back from her, perhaps she saw or heard about this thread and was offended?

Ugh...I really hope not, she is such a lovely person and I really want to work with her at some point in the future.

As for the pave'' and filigree - it would be nice to know a bit more about the process, maybe a filigree gallery takes twice the amount of time that it would to set 20 melee into a simple gallery?

I chose Leon because I tend to waffle back and forth on setting ideas, I really want someone who can take all of my different ideas and pull them together - get rid of the bad and keep the good. Knowing myelf the way I do, I was worried about getting exactly what I asked for and being less than pleased with the results....I KNOW Leon won''t let me muck up the design!

 

[DianaBanana]

I hope you guys aren't getting tired of this thread! Leon received the stone yesterday and he's already come up with a couple of side stone choices. He likes it when the side stones touch the center and the halo goes around them instead of the center stone being completely halo'd.....I'm not sure.

Any thoughts?


P.S. - I'm really hoping that's dust or a finger print on the sapphire and not an inclusion I missed!

ETA - I am still liking the pears

 

[DianaBanana]

And just to prove that I am indeed neurotic and indecisive...here is another collage of ideas.....

 

[icekid]

I am surely not tired of this thread. Pears all the way for me, too. They look really lovely.

So Leon doesn't want a complete halo around the sapphire, but rather one large halo that will go around the sapphire and the pears? Is that right? hmm.

eta- just looked at the second set of photos. I think if you go with that one big halo, I like it a bit better with the shields. What a hard decision- I am sooo indecisive about these things. Too many (amazing) options!

 

[Gypsy]

Hi Diana, I''m here. Let me take some time to see what all you''ve got going on. Then I''ll let you know what I think.

 

[DianaBanana]

Woo hoo!

 

[Gypsy]

Okay so, I'm liking the sheilds, which is surprising to me. They just seem to fit a little better. It could be those particular pears are just not doing it for me. I don't like that pair of pears very much.

Of the below looks, I'm with you on the Lost Sapphire look. That red ring, bottom right is stunning. With the shields and your sapphire in the center! I'd do smaller melee in the halo personally-- slightly larger than the melee in the sapphire ring at the bottom left (proportionally, not in actual size), but as you said, smaller than the ones on the red ring (again proportionally), so that it highlights the square shape of your stone and doesn't go too round. I like the sidestones without the halo best, of the looks below (like the red ring bottom right). I totally agree with your instincts. Stick to them!

 

[Fly Girl]

The shields look better just laying there with the squarish sapphire. But I''d go with the pears. You''ll get better sparkle and by the time everything is haloed, the pears will look great. I''m sure of it.

Fun project, BTW!

 

[geckodani]

I''m with Gypsy on all of it.

I''m not a fan of the all-around halo. It looks... I dunno what it looks like, but it looks off to me for some reason. I''d totally due it a la the BLUEBERRY and halo the sapphire, and have the shields or pears transition into the shank. I like the shields too for some reason.

 

[DianaBanana]

Thanks everyone! I''m feelin'' what you''re saying, I think I am trying to cram too many things I love into one design - halo and pears....it''s just not coming together like I hoped.

Maybe Lost Sapphire will chime in and let me know if she minds if I use the BLUEBERRY as my inspiration???

 

[Stone Hunter]

I really like the halo around the center stone only. Like Lost Sapphire''s ring. But don''t we all like her ring? The color just pulls me in.

I also really like the shields, even though I like your sketch with the pears. Oh and I''m not tired of this thread, you just keep positng those lovely photos.
Good Luck whatever you decide it will be FAB!

 

[secondhandnews]

Been absent lately but I''ll just jump in here and put in my 2 cents. I think what you are seeing in Leon''s pictures is a reflection and not a missed inclusion.
As for ring choices, I am not fond of the halo around all the stones. You looked long and hard for a cushion stone and I think the shape of the center stone gets lost in the all around halo. I also would vote for something similar to LS''s ring. I like the idea of smaller stones. I would want to show off the pretty blue of the stone and not detract from the shape of the sapphire. So, my opinion at this time is only what I wouldn''t pick. Although I am curious as to what it would look like to use shields and smaller halo stones in something similar to LS.

 

[Spirit]

You must be so excited but I''ll bet everytime you concentrate on this it''s giving you a headache! ( but a good headache, not a bad one).
I like the halo surrounding the sapphire, and then the diamonds on the side. I do like the shields a lot, but if you will always regret not having the pears, then go with that. Maybe he could offer a different set of pairs to compare?
Lucky both options are beautiful so really you can''t go wrong either way!
Good luck!

 

[DianaBanana]

Date: 5/6/2009 3:18:45 PM
Author: Spirit
You must be so excited but I''ll bet everytime you concentrate on this it''s giving you a headache! ( but a good headache, not a bad one).

Yup, you nailed it...this is very frustrating although I''m not complaining!

 

[LostSapphire]

Date: 5/6/2009 2:44:06 PM
Author: DianaBanana
Thanks everyone! I''m feelin'' what you''re saying, I think I am trying to cram too many things I love into one design - halo and pears....it''s just not coming together like I hoped.

Maybe Lost Sapphire will chime in and let me know if she minds if I use the BLUEBERRY as my inspiration???

Help yerself!!

I''m at work but will post more later.

I''d be happy to sketch something up for you on my CAD. Can you give me the size of the cushion again? I''m sure it''s somewhere but I''m lazy today....maybe if I can draw something for you it would help visualize.

I also really don''t like the style where LM outlines all 3 stones in the halo. It doesn''t do anything for me, design wise. Especially when it''s done in a 3rd colour....but that might just be me.

LS