Hi, I'm planning on proposing to my gf of 4 years this summer, and have been researching diamonds. I found this one at James Allen that seems very good. For some background, I know she likes princess cuts, and she likes rings that are really shiny, so I went for higher cut and clarity over size. My budget for the entire ring is about $8k, and about $1-1.2k will probably go towards the setting. She likes pave settings, and I'm strongly leaning towards this one if I end up choosing the diamond I linked or another from James Allen. From everything I've heard and researched the specifications are pretty much exactly what I'm looking for, and the price seems right around average for a similar diamond. How did I do so far, are there any obvious alternatives that I'm missing?
Also, it'd be great to hear about opinions between white gold or platinum for the setting. I had previously intended to get fully platinum or white gold band with platinum prongs, since my gf works in an area where she might bump the setting occasionally. But further research says that platinum isn't as durable as I thought, especially with bending, and 14k white gold is actually fairly durable. I know that white gold will have to be re-plated after a while to keep from turning yellowish, but I also heard that platinum also dulls over time. So over time it seems a white gold band with platinum prongs would end up having different colors, which could look bad. Do you guys have any preference/opinions between the two?
Thanks in advance for any help! This rabbit hole has been much deeper than I expected and any help would be greatly appreciated.
Also, it'd be great to hear about opinions between white gold or platinum for the setting. I had previously intended to get fully platinum or white gold band with platinum prongs, since my gf works in an area where she might bump the setting occasionally. But further research says that platinum isn't as durable as I thought, especially with bending, and 14k white gold is actually fairly durable. I know that white gold will have to be re-plated after a while to keep from turning yellowish, but I also heard that platinum also dulls over time. So over time it seems a white gold band with platinum prongs would end up having different colors, which could look bad. Do you guys have any preference/opinions between the two?
Thanks in advance for any help! This rabbit hole has been much deeper than I expected and any help would be greatly appreciated.