to go custom, or not?

[Gypsy]

Okay I looked up Bauer online and WOW does his stuff come at a premium. I can understand the issue.
IF you DID go custom. The only designer I would recommend for this (other than MWM) is Ettiene Perret because he is reasonable (I''ve goten a custom qoute from him) and his style would adapt well to this setting. I would give him a quick call just to cover your bases, he''s VERY nice... but beyond that I would go with a stock setting.

 

[enbcfsobe]

I found this out about Bauer as well. I''m 99% sure my FI paid less for my custom setting, which was way more complicated than the Bauer I liked (a simple 4-prong with split shank), for less than the Bauer would have cost. I agree that Vatche seems to offer more intricate designs (love that wirework!) at a much more reasonable price. Maybe it is the German engineering, but whatever it is, it is mucho expensive for being a fairly plain platinum setting!!

 

[diasurfer]

Thanks for all the input. I think I need to take a breath and see if something she really likes emerges. I''m not going to go custom on anything until we''re feeling really good about it.

Maybe part of the reason the Bauer settings are so expensive is weakness of the dollar relative to the euro?