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The Great Diana Ring Search

lovedogs

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Ahhh, dang. I didn't catch that they were lab created. Are there any other places I should be looking? I feel so in the dark here! :confused:

Diamonds by lauren (already linked) is a great option. And asking dolly from the bijoux box (which it sounds like you did). Beyond that I think its just going to be really hard to find a large natural sapphire in a diamond halo for less than 1k. Which is why if lab grown is an option then I would strongly suggest it
 

sunflowerstate

Shiny_Rock
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Jun 5, 2020
Messages
113
Diamonds by lauren (already linked) is a great option. And asking dolly from the bijoux box (which it sounds like you did). Beyond that I think its just going to be really hard to find a large natural sapphire in a diamond halo for less than 1k. Which is why if lab grown is an option then I would strongly suggest it

I really like the Diamonds By Lauren ring, but it doesn’t feel like the ‘one’ if that makes sense. I am fine with a lab stone if it’s high quality, but I still don’t know where to look for those either? Plus, then this will be moved over to FFJ and I feel like I’ll lose all guidance! I know that sounds silly, but I need help, LOL.
 

lovedogs

Super_Ideal_Rock
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I really like the Diamonds By Lauren ring, but it doesn’t feel like the ‘one’ if that makes sense. I am fine with a lab stone if it’s high quality, but I still don’t know where to look for those either? Plus, then this will be moved over to FFJ and I feel like I’ll lose all guidance! I know that sounds silly, but I need help, LOL.

Haha I'll come help you, I promise! There are multiple vendors who sell high quality lab stones.
 

sunflowerstate

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Jun 5, 2020
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113
"Report concern" then when it asks why just write that you want it moved.


The 2nd color sapphire is what I think you want. Deep blue but not black

Yes! Love that deep blue. Now once I buy the stone, is the process going to be extremely daunting finding a setting? Oh lord. :lol:
 

lovedogs

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Yes! Love that deep blue. Now once I buy the stone, is the process going to be extremely daunting finding a setting? Oh lord. :lol:

Fingers crossed it won't be.
Is this what you want in terms of the overall setting? https://loveaffairdiamonds.jewelers...commendationSource=SearchRedirect#/set-stones

EDIT. click on "view 360" to see it with the halo stones (that way it won't look like random metal without stones haha)

Looks like the price would be about $1350ish for the setting with diamonds (for a 9x7 center stone).

Obviously a jeweler would likely charge you to set the stone itself, but theoretically not a ton.
 

elizat

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Mar 23, 2013
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4,000
Look at Ivy and Rose for settings. They have some that could work. The mountings are too light in metal weight for my preference, but if you want to stay in a particular budget, they are a great choice.
 

MillieLou

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Feb 27, 2020
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Just to say I previously enquired about the Diamonds By Lauren lighter sapphire, as I wanted to buy it without the setting, and David was willing to sell the two separately at the time. Just in case you wanted to explore him putting a darker sapphire of similar size in.
 

joelly

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Apr 21, 2009
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2,378
Hi, all! I am so EXCITED to finally be posting to this forum. I have been a lurker for many years and have ooohed and ahhhhed over all of your beautiful jewelry. I come to you in search of the ring nearest and dearest to my heart, the first piece of jewelry to put a twinkle in my eye.... Diana’s sapphire. I know it’s quite dark and has a bit of a tainted past, but I can’t help myself, I’m still in love with it after all these years!

I do not know much about colored stone buying and even after perusing this forum for ages I still feel at a loss. My budget is extremely low, probably around $2,000, and I’m looking for something to scratch the itch of this ring. I have looked at natural stones, lab created, etc and I’m not for sure how to get the best bang for my buck. I am not against going over by budget a bit to find something that really tickles my fancy, but alas, I am only 24 and do not have a ton of funds to my name. This is a gift to myself for graduating from grad school, so it is quite special.

I would appreciate any help you lovely folks could offer me. I am not opposed to pre-loved! :)

This is a possibility:

 

sunflowerstate

Shiny_Rock
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Messages
113
Just to say I previously enquired about the Diamonds By Lauren lighter sapphire, as I wanted to buy it without the setting, and David was willing to sell the two separately at the time. Just in case you wanted to explore him putting a darker sapphire of similar size in.

There is another sapphire on the website that I’m wondering if it would fit in the setting. It’s a beautiful ring, but the stone just seems too light for me. The halo is perfect though.


Fingers crossed it won't be.
Is this what you want in terms of the overall setting? https://loveaffairdiamonds.jewelers...commendationSource=SearchRedirect#/set-stones

EDIT. click on "view 360" to see it with the halo stones (that way it won't look like random metal without stones haha)

Looks like the price would be about $1350ish for the setting with diamonds (for a 9x7 center stone).

Obviously a jeweler would likely charge you to set the stone itself, but theoretically not a ton.

I would like for the stones to all be the same size around the stone. :)


This is a possibility:


I love the color of that one, but I don’t want a cab.
 

sunflowerstate

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Jun 5, 2020
Messages
113
Thoughts on this MoCo one? I could afford getting the 11x9 in platinum for $2k.

 

whitewave

Super_Ideal_Rock
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I don’t like moissanite because it gets oily. Smeary. Have you had moissy before?
 

lovedogs

Super_Ideal_Rock
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I don’t like moissanite because it gets oily. Smeary. Have you had moissy before?

Imho the new moissy rough doesnt tend to get as oily. Also, I haven't had any issues with smaller stones getting that oily look (even the older rough). I had it worse with my OEC, likely due to the large facets. But I think with newer rough and small side stones OP should be fine.
 

elizat

Ideal_Rock
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Mar 23, 2013
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Thoughts on this MoCo one? I could afford getting the 11x9 in platinum for $2k.


I would go with a sapphire rather than moissy, but that's me. I would prefer a smaller natural stone v created.
 

lovedogs

Super_Ideal_Rock
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I would go with a sapphire rather than moissy, but that's me. I would prefer a smaller natural stone v created.

Just fyi the center stone isn't moissy its lab sapphire. But totally understand that lab grown isn't for everyone
 

elizat

Ideal_Rock
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Just fyi the center stone isn't moissy its lab sapphire. But totally understand that lab grown isn't for everyone

Oh! I thought it was a blue moissy and white moissy. The description isn't totally clear.

But, yes, preferences and all win!
 

voce

Ideal_Rock
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May 13, 2018
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Yeah, I think this one is a win, too, if you are fine with a lab sapphire.
 

lovedogs

Super_Ideal_Rock
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I have a 2 carat MoCo solitaire and it hasn't got oily fortunately. I have really enjoyed the year I have had it.

I think if you have purchased from them before and been happy then this might be a good way to get a lot of "bang for your buck". My only concern is inconsistency in the sapphire color. From the IG videos, some look great while others look dark.
 

sunflowerstate

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Jun 5, 2020
Messages
113
I think if you have purchased from them before and been happy then this might be a good way to get a lot of "bang for your buck". My only concern is inconsistency in the sapphire color. From the IG videos, some look great while others look dark.

Do you recommend any other vendors that may have something premade? I certainly don't want a dud. :)
 

lovedogs

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Do you recommend any other vendors that may have something premade? I certainly don't want a dud. :)

I might just contact moco directly to ask about it. They dont make the sapphires, they come from Chatham (I think). So you could request one that doesnt "black out "
 

strawrose

Brilliant_Rock
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May 24, 2014
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Chatham comes in different shades. 664753
Here’s mine in what I believe is the “standard” ones they give you.
 

whitewave

Super_Ideal_Rock
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12,331
You should contact David at Diamonds by Lauren and see if he can switch that sapphire out. Unless you ask, you don’t know.
 

sunflowerstate

Shiny_Rock
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Jun 5, 2020
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Chatham comes in different shades. FB459BD7-37F0-4267-A2D2-42D205D3F249.jpeg
Here’s mine in what I believe is the “standard” ones they give you.

Is this from MoCo or did you order straight from Chatham? That is a beautiful stone. The color is PERFECT.
 

strawrose

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
May 24, 2014
Messages
1,102
Is this from MoCo or did you order straight from Chatham? That is a beautiful stone. The color is PERFECT.

it was from Africagems. I heard that MoCo uses the same brand, but it’s best to ask them directly.

You can have a bit of fun customizing stuller rings here with the Chatham sapphire:


they have a moissanite side stone option, too.=)2 The only caveat is that these settings seemed to have really jumped in price over the years.
 
Last edited:

swaye2010

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Nov 16, 2015
Messages
1,194
I would not go with moissanite if you want the dark blue of the Diana ring. It just won’t look the same. I have the Diana type sapphire from my English MIL and I have also had blue moissanite before. It would be a much better choice with a lab sapphire. Too bad you didn’t ask at Christmas. My jeweler in LA was giving them away free with a ring purchase. I know he has done a version of the Diana ring in the past. Something like this with a 2 carat is a little over budget. They will look through all the sapphire’s until they find you the perfect one though.


I am going to guess you are in the US but one of my favorite websites for colored gemstones is Katherine James in the UK. Her IG looks like gemstone candy and she always has natural sapphire’s in diamond setting’s. The exchange rate isn’t too bad right now and the prices are typically pretty good for what you get. She might offer some payment options.


If this is something you want to keep for a really long time, I would try to find the perfect sapphire for you and then save for the setting or put a lab sapphire in a setting for now and change it for a natural one down the road. If it is important to you, you want it to be special.

Here is my dark sapphire. It does kind of go black in dim light.
25063AEB-1132-49A3-8A52-D5AD32B1543E.jpeg 2852BBD3-5AFA-4EAF-8D4A-3B22F80CAC42.jpeg
 

lovedogs

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
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Messages
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I would not go with moissanite if you want the dark blue of the Diana ring. It just won’t look the same. I have the Diana type sapphire from my English MIL and I have also had blue moissanite before. It would be a much better choice with a lab sapphire. Too bad you didn’t ask at Christmas. My jeweler in LA was giving them away free with a ring purchase. I know he has done a version of the Diana ring in the past. Something like this with a 2 carat is a little over budget. They will look through all the sapphire’s until they find you the perfect one though.


I am going to guess you are in the US but one of my favorite websites for colored gemstones is Katherine James in the UK. Her IG looks like gemstone candy and she always has natural sapphire’s in diamond setting’s. The exchange rate isn’t too bad right now and the prices are typically pretty good for what you get. She might offer some payment options.


If this is something you want to keep for a really long time, I would try to find the perfect sapphire for you and then save for the setting or put a lab sapphire in a setting for now and change it for a natural one down the road. If it is important to you, you want it to be special.

Here is my dark sapphire. It does kind of go black in dim light.
25063AEB-1132-49A3-8A52-D5AD32B1543E.jpeg 2852BBD3-5AFA-4EAF-8D4A-3B22F80CAC42.jpeg

Just a note that OP wasn't considering blue moissanite. The ring from moissaniteco is a lab sapphire center with moissanite as the halo.
 

sunflowerstate

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Jun 5, 2020
Messages
113
I would not go with moissanite if you want the dark blue of the Diana ring. It just won’t look the same. I have the Diana type sapphire from my English MIL and I have also had blue moissanite before. It would be a much better choice with a lab sapphire. Too bad you didn’t ask at Christmas. My jeweler in LA was giving them away free with a ring purchase. I know he has done a version of the Diana ring in the past. Something like this with a 2 carat is a little over budget. They will look through all the sapphire’s until they find you the perfect one though.


I am going to guess you are in the US but one of my favorite websites for colored gemstones is Katherine James in the UK. Her IG looks like gemstone candy and she always has natural sapphire’s in diamond setting’s. The exchange rate isn’t too bad right now and the prices are typically pretty good for what you get. She might offer some payment options.


If this is something you want to keep for a really long time, I would try to find the perfect sapphire for you and then save for the setting or put a lab sapphire in a setting for now and change it for a natural one down the road. If it is important to you, you want it to be special.

Here is my dark sapphire. It does kind of go black in dim light.
25063AEB-1132-49A3-8A52-D5AD32B1543E.jpeg 2852BBD3-5AFA-4EAF-8D4A-3B22F80CAC42.jpeg

Your ring is lovely. I am honestly feeling so conflicted. I have yet to find anything that I truly love, so I haven’t made any decisions. I don’t want to waste my money on something that doesn’t make my heart sing. I’m certainly going to keep looking. I did find something on Etsy- round sapphire that was the prettiest shade, but unfortunately it was about $3.9k. So definitely out of my budget. The search continues!
 

sunflowerstate

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Jun 5, 2020
Messages
113
Just a note that OP wasn't considering blue moissanite. The ring from moissaniteco is a lab sapphire center with moissanite as the halo.

Thank you, Lovedogs, for continually reiterating this for me!
 
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