Love Street
Shiny_Rock
- Joined
- Mar 29, 2003
- Messages
- 422
OK, so now that I've found the perfect pair of .3's for my first set of diamond studs
, I'm having a minor dilemma regarding WHICH martini setting to get! Please help me figure this out - I think I'm just overworking things because I'm procrastinating on schoolwork
1. I'm on a budget, so platinum is PROBABLY out of the question - looking at WG
2. I plan to rarely take these off (only to clean them)
3. I have a pool and am in CA so I like my recreational chlorine baths - so a little worried about a) deterioration and b) discoloration - though the latter is minor.
4. I plan to upgrade in ~5 years so the setting just needs to get me that far - but doesn't need to be an heirloom piece.
I found this thread about swimming with white gold very helpful, as well as some other threads that discuss various alloys and their properties. However, most of these relate to e-rings which take more of a beating than studs, and the e-rings prongs hold bigger rocks than the little martinis I'm considering.
First of all, is chlorine deterioration (of solder/prongs) in a small martini setting worth worrying about and spending extra $$ to mitigate? (I'm more worried about prong damage than any discoloration on a setting that shows so little metal).
I'm getting the diamonds from James Allen so getting the setting there would be preferable, EXCEPT their WG martini setting is handmade and thus $$$ ($325). They use a nickel alloy, but can use palladium by request for an extra $50, bringing the setting price to $375 - nearly as much as I paid for the diamonds! And more than I wanted to spend by about $150. Your thoughts - is it worth it?
If I was going to spend that much, I could buy Wink's nice-looking, well priced platinum martinis for $385. But then I would either a) spend $100 on a setting fee at JA or 2) spend $100 on shipping to/from Wink's if they were to set the stones. (JA would have to ship the stones to me first, then I'd have to ship them out; it doesn't sound like they'd ship to someone else directly).
To go the less expensive route (but more expensive in the long run???) I could buy Wink's nice-looking, well priced martini in WG, which is only $120, and again pay an additional $100 either for JA to set it or shipping to Wink.
ETA: Finally, a minor consideration: JA's settings are 18k; the others (incl WF's) are 14k - if this makes any difference which, from reading alot, it probably doesnt - except price lol!
Arrgghh What to do?
Am I worrying too much about summer swimming with these little studs? How FAST would deterioration occur, if it did at all? I'd love your thoughts - and sorry to be so long winded! Thank you inadvance!
OK back to studying
1. I'm on a budget, so platinum is PROBABLY out of the question - looking at WG
2. I plan to rarely take these off (only to clean them)
3. I have a pool and am in CA so I like my recreational chlorine baths - so a little worried about a) deterioration and b) discoloration - though the latter is minor.
4. I plan to upgrade in ~5 years so the setting just needs to get me that far - but doesn't need to be an heirloom piece.
I found this thread about swimming with white gold very helpful, as well as some other threads that discuss various alloys and their properties. However, most of these relate to e-rings which take more of a beating than studs, and the e-rings prongs hold bigger rocks than the little martinis I'm considering.
First of all, is chlorine deterioration (of solder/prongs) in a small martini setting worth worrying about and spending extra $$ to mitigate? (I'm more worried about prong damage than any discoloration on a setting that shows so little metal).
I'm getting the diamonds from James Allen so getting the setting there would be preferable, EXCEPT their WG martini setting is handmade and thus $$$ ($325). They use a nickel alloy, but can use palladium by request for an extra $50, bringing the setting price to $375 - nearly as much as I paid for the diamonds! And more than I wanted to spend by about $150. Your thoughts - is it worth it?
If I was going to spend that much, I could buy Wink's nice-looking, well priced platinum martinis for $385. But then I would either a) spend $100 on a setting fee at JA or 2) spend $100 on shipping to/from Wink's if they were to set the stones. (JA would have to ship the stones to me first, then I'd have to ship them out; it doesn't sound like they'd ship to someone else directly).
To go the less expensive route (but more expensive in the long run???) I could buy Wink's nice-looking, well priced martini in WG, which is only $120, and again pay an additional $100 either for JA to set it or shipping to Wink.
ETA: Finally, a minor consideration: JA's settings are 18k; the others (incl WF's) are 14k - if this makes any difference which, from reading alot, it probably doesnt - except price lol!
Arrgghh What to do?
OK back to studying
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