lovetodream
Shiny_Rock
- Joined
- Jan 3, 2018
- Messages
- 179
I'm *just* dipping my toes in fine jewelry, which is so fun but I have SO.MUCH. to learn! I need help from you experts. (warning: this post is a word vomit of my questions and thoughts, so please hang in there.)
I want some drop platinum earrings using antique diamonds. So, I've started The Search for The Perfect Ones for me. And I'm curious to hear from those of you who start from scratch, rather than purchasing things already made. Do you buy loose diamonds? Diamonds that are set in settings that you have your bench jeweler remove? If you do that, how do you make sure that what you bought can be removed without messing up the diamonds? And then would you resell the setting, or have them melt it, or what? I see a lot more vintage diamond rings up for sale than loose pairs of diamonds available, and wondered if I should consider buying a ring with two stones and use them for earrings, or if I'm just getting distracted by shiny objects and need to keep my eyes focused and options narrowed. (I've already figured out that I'm not advanced enough to buy one diamond and then try to find a matching one down the road).
And is all of this too advanced for me as a first project? The thrill of the hunt is a ton of fun and I thought the earrings would have more meaning if I designed them on my own. And, to be real, the other reason for a project is budgetary - I thought if I collected the four diamonds over time, rather than pay the full amount up front, the price wouldn't sting so badly (read: so my husband doesn't notice as much haha). But in doing that, combined with my lack of expertise, I'm kind of all over the place in decision making and I'm scared to ever pull the trigger - first, it's harder to find matching diamonds, much less antique matching diamonds. Second, I fluctuate on the shape when I'm out searching (see above comment about distraction of shiny objects), although old mine diamonds are what get my heart to pitter-patter the quickest. I also like funky-shaped diamonds, but those usually aren't vintage. And third, I still don't have a great instinct on what's a good deal vs what's a scam so I can't ever pull the trigger quickly enough before what I want is gone (mostly on Instagram).
Here's my inspiration piece - if I had almost $10k to drop today on something, I'd buy these in a second. But how much less expensive is it to do a piece-meal project? Will I end up spending close to the same amount at the end of the day?
Thank you for suffering through what's going on in my head!
I want some drop platinum earrings using antique diamonds. So, I've started The Search for The Perfect Ones for me. And I'm curious to hear from those of you who start from scratch, rather than purchasing things already made. Do you buy loose diamonds? Diamonds that are set in settings that you have your bench jeweler remove? If you do that, how do you make sure that what you bought can be removed without messing up the diamonds? And then would you resell the setting, or have them melt it, or what? I see a lot more vintage diamond rings up for sale than loose pairs of diamonds available, and wondered if I should consider buying a ring with two stones and use them for earrings, or if I'm just getting distracted by shiny objects and need to keep my eyes focused and options narrowed. (I've already figured out that I'm not advanced enough to buy one diamond and then try to find a matching one down the road).
And is all of this too advanced for me as a first project? The thrill of the hunt is a ton of fun and I thought the earrings would have more meaning if I designed them on my own. And, to be real, the other reason for a project is budgetary - I thought if I collected the four diamonds over time, rather than pay the full amount up front, the price wouldn't sting so badly (read: so my husband doesn't notice as much haha). But in doing that, combined with my lack of expertise, I'm kind of all over the place in decision making and I'm scared to ever pull the trigger - first, it's harder to find matching diamonds, much less antique matching diamonds. Second, I fluctuate on the shape when I'm out searching (see above comment about distraction of shiny objects), although old mine diamonds are what get my heart to pitter-patter the quickest. I also like funky-shaped diamonds, but those usually aren't vintage. And third, I still don't have a great instinct on what's a good deal vs what's a scam so I can't ever pull the trigger quickly enough before what I want is gone (mostly on Instagram).
Here's my inspiration piece - if I had almost $10k to drop today on something, I'd buy these in a second. But how much less expensive is it to do a piece-meal project? Will I end up spending close to the same amount at the end of the day?
Thank you for suffering through what's going on in my head!