Updating Dated Marquise Engagement Ring

[KKJohnson]

Hello! This is the second posting for this ring, I mistakenly posted under the incorrect forum.
This is the ring currently and a close up of the stone, at this time I would like to have the cutlet closed up as much as possible but that depends one the stone once removed from its current setting (it was suggested that the current setting could be affecting the cutlet)

Estimated 4.45 center stone, color O-P, clarity VS2, cut is a marquis brilliant but I've been told it could be an Old European Cut as well due to the cutlet






So far this is the design I have come up with.
A U prong band that protects the side diamonds (still trying to decide what shape for the side stones, round/emerald/asscher). Going down the photos on the right side; top is how the prongs will sit on the center stone with a hidden micro pave halo, middle is how I wish the center stone to side on the band (I don’t want it sitting tall/high), and lastly the v prongs for the center stone (I want the side prongs to be a bit more pointy than the photo)


Please let me know what you think or if you have any suggestions. I am not looking for just a plain band (I know the center stone is large and would be fine standing alone but it's not what I want)

 

[doberman]

Chicken has cutlets; diamonds have culets.

Glad you're looking into getting it recut. I would keep the setting as simple as possible, but that's me. Pave diamonds may accentuate the color of the stone which is neither good nor bad. How do you feel about that?

 

[tyty333]

I love the head you've picked out. I think since you are doing pave on the basket that you should stick with rounds in the shank. I would probably
go with a pave similar in color to your marquise (maybe a tad whiter).

I'm not sure what you mean by a U-prong band that protects the side diamonds means? U-prong pretty much expose a lot of the girdle while allowing
you to see a fair amount of the stone. So as far as protection...if that's what you want, I dont think you'll get it with a U-prong but you will get a nice
side view.

Here is a picture of a small asscher band that you can use to cut out and paste a picture of your marquise over to get a feel of how you like
asschers with your stone (you have to use your imagination).


Here is a picture of an emerald band to paste your marquise on

And of course round...none of these are uprongs but just trying to get you to see the top view when looking down on it.



Edit...have you thought about going all metal with the marquise band (pave on basket) and then doing a
wedding band with whichever kind of stone you like?

 

[KKJohnson]

Chicken has cutlets; diamonds have culets.

Glad you're looking into getting it recut. I would keep the setting as simple as possible, but that's me. Pave diamonds may accentuate the color of the stone which is neither good nor bad. How do you feel about that?

The jewelry I spoke to said he will try and match the side diamonds with the current center stone color which I like the idea of doing. Both my husband and I have November birthdays so it would be a play toward yellow topaz. The current white side stones we might get made into a matching wedding band with some micro yellow diamonds thrown in, just not sure yet

 

[KKJohnson]

I love the head you've picked out. I think since you are doing pave on the basket that you should stick with rounds in the shank. I would probably
go with a pave similar in color to your marquise (maybe a tad whiter).

I'm not sure what you mean by a U-prong band that protects the side diamonds means? U-prong pretty much expose a lot of the girdle while allowing
you to see a fair amount of the stone. So as far as protection...if that's what you want, I dont think you'll get it with a U-prong but you will get a nice
side view.

Here is a picture of a small asscher band that you can use to cut out and paste a picture of your marquise over to get a feel of how you like
asschers with your stone (you have to use your imagination).


Here is a picture of an emerald band to paste your marquise on

And of course round...none of these are uprongs but just trying to get you to see the top view when looking down on it.



Edit...have you thought about going all metal with the marquise band (pave on basket) and then doing a
wedding band with whichever kind of stone you like?

My actual engagement ring was a solitaire with a plain band and I really didn't like it so that is why I'm thinking side stones, about 5 on each side, but I have also thought about just the more classic look with tapered baguettes or trapezoids. It is very difficult to choose, I've been thinking about this for about 9 months lol

 

[tyty333]

Its really a special stone with lots of personality so it deserves just the right setting...hard to figure out what that is though.

I love split shanks on longer stones. I also think that since this looks like an older cut marquise that a nod to vintage would go nicely
(but may not be your taste). I think something like this would be pretty (far from what you're looking for though)
https://www.brilliantearth.com/ring...fMBugv0USkc_lf_F6mbUeC4rjwULywhIaAteDEALw_wcB

https://www.google.com/search?biw=1...i30k1j0i13k1.Q6TG778HzQc#imgrc=nKQEXma7-JAH0M:

I would also check out Singlestone to see what kind of settings they may have that could be made to go with a marquise.
https://www.singlestone.com/single-stone-collection_c2/

 

[Austina]

I've got split diamond set shank on my marquise, because I only like to wear one ring per finger, and it gives me the coverage I wanted.

 

[KKJohnson]

I have very short fingers so doing a split shank is out the question, right now the ring takes up the entire knuckle and I would like to wear my wedding band. Something slimmer is what I am going for.

I have tried on split shanks and wasn't too keen on it for me, the question is really should I simplify the band some more? The side diamonds I am thinking of would only equal a carat or just over that so they would not be very large but my husband also does not want the ring to be gaudy and I want to make him happy since the ring belonged to his mother. I have to get this right because he would not like it if I wanted to change the setting in the future.

 

[naivemelody]

Yay! Seems like you've thought about this a lot and know what you like, so mainly my "advice" is stick to your guns

Do think about how you want your wedding band to go, though. Looks like it'll have to slide underneath the stone (since it's so big! ) which unfortunately means you'll have to set the stone high enough to make room. Your second picture on the right of the collage looks like it would fight with a band, but the third picture might be close. Maybe something like the third picture, but raise the head up a little, and/or cut a notch in the underside of the top prong to accommodate the band. Is the same jeweler going to make both engagement and wedding ring at the same time? Hopefully they can mock up how the two rings will fit together.

I think it's a great idea to match the melee with the center stone color. I think round melee will look more cohesive with the hidden halo and all - just personal pref that marquise and emerald/asscher don't always look right together. And for what it's worth, I'd think small O-P rounds would be easier to find than the same color in another shape. Although if we're talking about harder-to-find options, I think single-cut melee (simpler/older cut with fewer facets - like the vintage cut of your stone) could look killer in this setting. Not sure how findable that'd be in the right color, but thought I'd throw it out there.

What kind of metal are you going with? Platinum is always a classic, but I think unplated white gold would be a lovely color - white but not too white. If you're considering yellow gold, I'd just float the idea of green gold (gold alloyed with silver - on the far left in this pic) instead - the warm yellow of gold just looks a tad odd to me with the cooler yellow of the stone, but I think a cooler green gold would look really pretty with it.

Fun! Keep us updated!!

 

[KKJohnson]

Yay! Seems like you've thought about this a lot and know what you like, so mainly my "advice" is stick to your guns

Do think about how you want your wedding band to go, though. Looks like it'll have to slide underneath the stone (since it's so big! ) which unfortunately means you'll have to set the stone high enough to make room. Your second picture on the right of the collage looks like it would fight with a band, but the third picture might be close. Maybe something like the third picture, but raise the head up a little, and/or cut a notch in the underside of the top prong to accommodate the band. Is the same jeweler going to make both engagement and wedding ring at the same time? Hopefully they can mock up how the two rings will fit together.

I think it's a great idea to match the melee with the center stone color. I think round melee will look more cohesive with the hidden halo and all - just personal pref that marquise and emerald/asscher don't always look right together. And for what it's worth, I'd think small O-P rounds would be easier to find than the same color in another shape. Although if we're talking about harder-to-find options, I think single-cut melee (simpler/older cut with fewer facets - like the vintage cut of your stone) could look killer in this setting. Not sure how findable that'd be in the right color, but thought I'd throw it out there.

What kind of metal are you going with? Platinum is always a classic, but I think unplated white gold would be a lovely color - white but not too white. If you're considering yellow gold, I'd just float the idea of green gold (gold alloyed with silver - on the far left in this pic) instead - the warm yellow of gold just looks a tad odd to me with the cooler yellow of the stone, but I think a cooler green gold would look really pretty with it.

Fun! Keep us updated!!

I do like the idea of trying to find stones cut in a similar fashion for the melee, I will discuss with the jeweler if he has any options.

As far as the metal goes, I was thinking of going with platinum since that is classic and doesn't complicate things I definitely bring it up with the jeweler and see what he says over possibly mixing it up and going with a yellow basket. I also agree with wanting the center stone up high enough to clear the wedding band. Should be easy since I have the ring already.

 

[KKJohnson]

If I went more vintage, it would be this route. Simple & classic but I feel that it is also popular and not very unique. Is this too simple? I'm thinking of asking the hubs which he prefers but I feel like that could be a loaded question because he will ask which is cheaper lol

 

[naivemelody]

I would do the tapered baguettes unquestionably, but it's not my ring To me the size, shape, and vintage cut are so unique and unusual that I wouldn't be worried about choosing a more popular setting as long as I loved the style - and I do love the subtle flash and sleek lines of tapered baguettes. (Might have gone for that myself, but like you I wanted to see what my husband thought, and he put in his vote for solitaire, haha)

 

[KKJohnson]

I would do the tapered baguettes unquestionably, but it's not my ring To me the size, shape, and vintage cut are so unique and unusual that I wouldn't be worried about choosing a more popular setting as long as I loved the style - and I do love the subtle flash and sleek lines of tapered baguettes. (Might have gone for that myself, but like you I wanted to see what my husband thought, and he put in his vote for solitaire, haha)

Hahaha! I'm not even going to put a solitaire in the table for him to pick! I have to get another ring repaired so I'm going to try on the different styles this weekend and see how I feel.

 

[valeria101]

I do not remember a 'Sophia' ring with a marq.

Perhaps ...

 

[KKJohnson]

I think my issue is that I look at so many rings it makes picking something very difficult. If I could get baguettes like this pear then I could definitely live with it lol

 

[valeria101]

Interestig fit of old school fancy brilliants & baguettes ...

The setting is a classic. A pair of tappered baguettes of the right size & colour should be a couple of phone calls away for your ring maker. Else, DBL does 'sides' for a living, it would seem; only half joking - there are simply many kinds in stock, always. The same can discuss recut, methinks, if you still want it.

 

[MollyMalone]

Since you're considering the possibility of baguette side stones, see what you think of using shields as the side stones: more elegant, and much less common, than trilliants/trillions, but like trilliants/trillions, the shields' V-tips would echo the V-prongs on the north-south tips of the marquise. Available either step-cut or brilliant-cut. Here's one example from Lang:
https://www.langantiques.com/3-39-carat-e-internally-flawless-antique-marquise-diamond-ring.html

 

[KKJohnson]

Since you're considering the possibility of baguette side stones, see what you think of using shields as the side stones: more elegant, and much less common, than trilliants/trillions, but like trilliants/trillions, the shields' V-tips would echo the V-prongs on the north-south tips of the marquise. Available either step-cut or brilliant-cut. Here's one example from Lang:
https://www.langantiques.com/3-39-carat-e-internally-flawless-antique-marquise-diamond-ring.html

Step cut bullet and shields are nice but for the ring I would pick either tapered trapezoids or baguettes. Royal shields do look at rather nice as well and are very unique; chevrons are nice as well! Too many options, that's the problem

 

[KKJohnson]

Ok so I just tried on a taper baguette (with a 7 carat oval attached ) trapezoids, and U prong settings of which I really like the baguettes. Like the saying "keep it simple, stupid" that will be the direction the ring will go. Husband is very happy to keep it simple and classic

 

[KKJohnson]

I would do the tapered baguettes unquestionably, but it's not my ring To me the size, shape, and vintage cut are so unique and unusual that I wouldn't be worried about choosing a more popular setting as long as I loved the style - and I do love the subtle flash and sleek lines of tapered baguettes. (Might have gone for that myself, but like you I wanted to see what my husband thought, and he put in his vote for solitaire, haha)

You are absolutely right when talking about the subtle flash from the baguettes, they do give off some nice fire. I will definitely look into getting some nice quality ones for the setting

 

[drk14]

Here's another vote for tapered baguettes (and a vote for not recutting)....

 

[naivemelody]

Yes! It's gonna look amazing! Definitely the right call to try different settings in real life - only way to make an informed decision. I actually think the proportions with the baguettes are going to come out pretty similar to the pear inspiration photo you posted, so I think you'll be pleased! Can't wait to see it

 

[Acinom]

A vote for tapered baguettes or shields as in the Lang example. I hope you will not recut the stone. Your stone is truly unique.

 

[KKJohnson]

A vote for tapered baguettes or shields as in the Lang example. I hope you will not recut the stone. Your stone is truly unique.

I'm really hoping that once out of its current 80s setting that the cutlet isn't as bad. I just can't imagine a cutter doing that to any stone. I've been browsing Leon Mege three and five stone settings this morning and the shields/bullet side stones are really nice. Next week when I talk to my jeweler I'm going to discuss the different stones. Might just go ahead and have the stone removed from the setting as well and then take it back to the appraiser and have the proportions updated.

 

[KKJohnson]

Here is what I am thinking of doing, I really like the lotus basket with the two tone metals but depending on what it does to the center stone it might not work out well.

 

[drk14]

In case the culet continues to bother you...

A creative approach to deal with an open culet is to set a colored stone into the donut:

(@Haven's 2.30ct OMB Antique Cushion upgrade)

More traditional approaches include foil-backed baskets or reflective plates or cups (see this post by @Circe).

 

[KKJohnson]

In case the culet continues to bother you...

A creative approach to deal with an open culet is to set a colored stone into the donut:

(@Haven's 2.30ct OMB Antique Cushion upgrade)

More traditional approaches include foil-backed baskets or reflective plates or cups (see this post by @Circe).

I like the idea of adding an stone or highly polished foil to help the cutlet; once it is removed from the setting it will help give an idea of how the stone looks.

 

[KKJohnson]

So I contacted Leon Mege today and I spoke to someone about getting a quote and he told me that I would have to mail him my ring then he would remove the stone to match up to matching baguettes then give me a price quote...I found this odd. I understand what the meaning of an estimate is so I did not understand why even a ballpark figure could not be given. Is this normal for custom work? I am wondering because if so then I am better off not inquiring outside my own state (Texas).

 

[valeria101]

I couldn't swear why & how ...

Matching sidestones could be a delicate task. Not sure how much price variation there is among options - likely surprisingly allot, since these will be not-small specialty cut diamonds.

Idea: perhaps tell them that the ballpark does not need to be too precise - then, they may dare to give one ...

 

[KKJohnson]

I am so digging these baguettes but I have a feeling they are a tad too big...seller wants 3k for them so I'm really starting to think my original budget of 3-4K might not be high enough. Ant wait to talk to my jeweler this weekend