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Tiffany Oval Soleste remake help!!

MGP

Rough_Rock
Joined
Feb 19, 2017
Messages
11
Hi all! Long time lurker and posted once before.
Full disclosure here - embarrassingly enough I have had my ring reset 5 times if you can believe it. I am extremely detail oriented and “picky” for lack of a better word and I have been struggling to find a jeweler that pays attention to the same detail I do.

This all started in 2015 when my husband and I were looking for engagement rings years and I tried on the Tiffany Oval Soleste. I fell in love, but my husband refused to pay the Tiffany markup so we decided to have it recreated. Thats where it's been difficult - no one has been able to do it. The Soleste ring has such thin platinum metal along with extremely minimal metal show so the ring is very airy and delicate, like its floating on your finger. One jeweler was able to get very close but unfortunately left a large gap between the halo and the center stone. I lived with it from 2017 until
now but can’t get over that airline gap. I recently started to look into getting it remade again and found a jeweler in NYC that swore up and down that she could do it. It turned out worse that the original.

Ive just been told it can be done SO MANY TIMES and then I end up disappointed. I will attach pictures of the versions of my ring that did not work out. Obviously it can be done bc Tiffany can do it, but why can’t I find that jeweler?! I will also admit that I am extremely detail oriented so I will pick up on subtle differences. Of course I understand no two pieces can be identical but wow how happy I would be to even get to 90%!!

any advice would be so appreciated! I live in a suburb of Chicago if that helps

below are all the versions I’ve had that don’t come close. The split picture is the current version I have on the left and the Tiffany version on the right


3A15522C-F120-4F0F-8E3D-C0E5208BB34A.jpeg 8AF2A727-9629-4148-9879-A49C45506233.jpeg AC076713-D507-4373-B067-AF97A3D705DE.jpeg 4D564A21-883F-4F9E-8DCC-D1FA5781C752.jpeg 53EA8CF8-A15C-4E39-A827-E2E33208C435.jpeg
 

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SandyK

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Apr 9, 2016
Messages
697
Your stone is beautiful!!

I think you should reach out to Maytal Hannah for a quote and to discuss what you are looking for. She does hand-forged work and specializes in micropave settings and halos---she has done similar settings before and can definitely create an impeccable Soleste-style setting.

Also, Maytal is just incredibly sweet and really cares about making her customers 1000% happy, so I think she would be a great fit given your focus on attention to detail, etc.

 

yssie

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Aug 14, 2009
Messages
27,239
I have a very strong suspicion that nothing but the original is going to make you 100% happy. And that’s okay. I note that you said your husband didn’t want to pay the markup, not that we didn’t want to pay the markup.

May I suggest talking with your husband about just going to Tiffany for an anniversary, say? After five failed resets surely he must be as tired as you are of throwing good money after bad. The alternate jewellers that we might recommend for this sort of work will charge multiple thousands for setting alone.
 
P

Petalouda

Guest
I’m not a halo person but the Tiffany soleste could easily convert me to one because of how delicate and well done the halo is. The best halos I’ve seen on Pricescope were made by Victor Canera. They seem so seamless and delicate.

i also agree with Yssie about looking into buying the actual soleste. If the markup is still too much, perhaps consider a preowned soleste?

best of luck to you!
 

SandyK

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Apr 9, 2016
Messages
697
Ah, I didn't realize that Tiffany will set an outside stone! @yssie 's point above is well made.
 

yssie

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Ah, I didn't realize that Tiffany will set an outside stone! @yssie 's point above is well made.

No, Tiffany won’t set an outside stone (outside of very exceptional circumstances). It would have to be a whole new ring.

Those originals are all very nice minimal-metal rings. That tells me that this is not a workmanship problem. It’s strictly taste, and what is and isn’t mind clean, and that’s going to be extraordinarily difficult to quell.

I truly don’t believe anything but the original will satisfy. In this situation, from the details we’ve been given.
 
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Crazie4Cuts

Brilliant_Rock
Premium
Joined
Oct 9, 2014
Messages
551
I agree with @yssie response and hope you will discuss this with your husband. It really seems you have your heart on the original Tiffany Soleste and after 5 resets, I also think you won’t be completely satisfied with your wedding set no matter if you have still another jeweler try to recreate the setting for you. I believe the aesthetic of the original really makes your heart sing, so perhaps you just needs to come to terms with that.

Tiffany won’t set your diamond into their setting as stated above, so if you decided to bite the bullet you may need to sell your diamond or engagement ring to fund the Soleste.

-C4C
 

Lookinagain

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
May 15, 2014
Messages
4,410
To me, most of your settings in the photos look very well made and very close to the Tiffany, although from the photo at least, the current ring appears a bit bulkier than some of the others. So I agree, that for whatever reason, nothing is going to make you happy but the original Tiffany. Not knowing your situation, I assume you'd have to sell the current ring to help fund the Tiffany, and of course you will take a loss on that, especially after so many resets which added to the original cost of your ring. So I think you really need to evaluate your finances and figure out if buying the Tiffany is a viable and reasonable alternative. If not, I would hope you would either keep what you have, or do no more than one more reset which might get you a bit closer than the current setting, and then be happy with what you have. It's a lovely ring and you should enjoy it. We can almost always find some small thing that isn't just perfect if we examine a piece over and over again. You might even find the same thing if you buy a Tiffany. I doubt any piece is ever really 100% perfect.
 

MGP

Rough_Rock
Joined
Feb 19, 2017
Messages
11
No, Tiffany won’t set an outside stone (outside of very exceptional circumstances). It would have to be a whole new ring.

Those originals are all very nice minimal-metal rings. That tells me that this is not a workmanship problem. It’s strictly taste, and what is and isn’t mind clean, and that’s going to be extraordinarily difficult to quell.

I truly don’t believe anything but the original will satisfy. In this situation, from the details we’ve been given.

Hi! I might agree that the Tiffany ring would of course be my ultimate but I do understand that nothing will be exact. We have the diamond so unfortunately purchasing from Tiffany at this point wouldn't be possible :( but very good thought and I wish I could! The renditions are actually not as nice as they appear as the first one had misaligned stones (so much so that people would tell me I was missing diamonds!) and the last remake the jeweler left imprints on the metal and metal sticking out of the burr holes as pictured below. I know I am very picky but I would be happy with at least a more refined version that pays more attention to detail do I very much appreciate the recommendations!!

C3B68BA8-6EC6-451C-B5CD-9009782CB16E_1_201_a.jpeg 56176351-3A01-4269-B873-CC3677EDB098_1_201_a.jpeg
 

mommylawyer

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jan 27, 2020
Messages
502
I am sorry that you're having such a frustrating experience, and I hope you can get a new setting that makes you happy.

Terry at Imperial Jewelry in Chicago has always given me perfect pieces of jewelry, and he's very easy to work with. He's located on Wabash.

 
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Kim N

Ideal_Rock
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Joined
Oct 6, 2005
Messages
6,375
If you really can't get an original Tiffany, I think Victor Canera or Steven Kirsch might be good choices. But I will echo the others that it seems the best thing to do at this point is to sell your current ring and save up for the Tiffany.
 

lambskin

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Aug 22, 2012
Messages
3,049
I‘m all for a bargain but you won’t be happy unless it is the Tiffany setting you want. Especially if you are “picky“. Or, go for a different design now and wait to upgrade at an anniversary. I would do a beautiful solitaire, use the setting for a colored stone or use diamonds for another piece.
 

MGP

Rough_Rock
Joined
Feb 19, 2017
Messages
11
Your stone is beautiful!!

I think you should reach out to Maytal Hannah for a quote and to discuss what you are looking for. She does hand-forged work and specializes in micropave settings and halos---she has done similar settings before and can definitely create an impeccable Soleste-style setting.

Also, Maytal is just incredibly sweet and really cares about making her customers 1000% happy, so I think she would be a great fit given your focus on attention to detail, etc.


Thank you so much, I will reach out to her!
 

MGP

Rough_Rock
Joined
Feb 19, 2017
Messages
11
Did you show this to your jeweller? This should be an easy fix. Agree it should never have been sent to you like this!!

I did, she agreed this shouldn’t have happened. She also said that to get what I am looking for I would need to find someone that handmakes the ring as opposed to using a cast so that’s what I’m on the hunt for!
 

MGP

Rough_Rock
Joined
Feb 19, 2017
Messages
11
I am sorry that you're having such a frustrating experience, and I hope you can get a new setting that makes you happy.

Terry at Imperial Jewelry in Chicago has always given me perfect pieces of jewelry, and he's very easy to work with. He's located on Wabash.


Thank you!!
 

yssie

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Aug 14, 2009
Messages
27,239
You know that Tiffany is casting the Soleste, right? That’s not a handforged/“handmade” mount…

If you do want to try a remake - in no particular order -
Victor Canera
Leon Mege
Steven Kirsch
Maytal Hannah

But really, do consider selling your current and buying anew.
 

MGP

Rough_Rock
Joined
Feb 19, 2017
Messages
11
You know that Tiffany is casting the Soleste, right? That’s not a handforged/“handmade” mount…

If you do want to try a remake - in no particular order -
Victor Canera
Leon Mege
Steven Kirsch
Maytal Hannah

But really, do consider selling your current and buying anew.

Oh really? They state that each piece is handmade for the specific diamond. I had no idea they cast it! Thanks for the info!
 

kb1gra

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jul 6, 2012
Messages
1,118
Oh really? They state that each piece is handmade for the specific diamond. I had no idea they cast it! Thanks for the info!

You can cast a piece to specific dimensions. That’s not the same thing as handforging from metal stock.

my version of the double halo cushion Soleste actually came from Adiamor and it was one of the closest cast copies I’d ever seen. It was reasonably priced as well.

I think I’ve posted pics of it before but I’ll see if I can find any and post them.
 

prettypaper01

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Aug 3, 2021
Messages
184
Victor Canera

I would second this - except when I had him make a custom halo he refused to do straight stems vs. curved (T&C is straight). He thinks the straight ones aren't elevated and cheapen the design. But the straight ones might be a part of the puzzle that is missing for you?
 

MGP

Rough_Rock
Joined
Feb 19, 2017
Messages
11
I would second this - except when I had him make a custom halo he refused to do straight stems vs. curved (T&C is straight). He thinks the straight ones aren't elevated and cheapen the design. But the straight ones might be a part of the puzzle that is missing for you?

Sorry I’m not familiar with the terminology - what are the stems?
 

tyty333

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Dec 17, 2008
Messages
27,195
These are stems...I guess if you are trying to get a look more like Tiffany, Canera do the straight stems so could be an issue for you.

stem examples.png
 
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