Upgrading engagement ring - emerald cut diamond - help me choose!

[jerseypeach]

Hi all,

For our 7 year anniversary (I love odd numbers and this is a lucky one) I'm upgrading my engagement ring. I have my heart set on something emerald cut (though also do love a radiant) and likely am wanting to do something simple and classic regarding the setting. Either baguettes or step-cut trapezoids. Though I also do love a slightly more intricate antique vibe setting.

Anyways, the other days I saw what I thought seemed like a great deal on a 2.5 Emerald cut through James Allen and wanted to know everyone's thoughts on here. Given the return policy, I ordered it but am now a bit concerned giving it's an IGI diamond.




Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!!

 

[ALH]

Hi all,

For our 7 year anniversary (I love odd numbers and this is a lucky one) I'm upgrading my engagement ring. I have my heart set on something emerald cut (though also do love a radiant) and likely am wanting to do something simple and classic regarding the setting. Either baguettes or step-cut trapezoids. Though I also do love a slightly more intricate antique vibe setting.

Anyways, the other days I saw what I thought seemed like a great deal on a 2.5 Emerald cut through James Allen and wanted to know everyone's thoughts on here. Given the return policy, I ordered it but am now a bit concerned giving it's an IGI diamond.




Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!!

Congratulations on your upgrade (and your anniversary)! I’m an emerald cut girl . What I learned after looking at dozens of emerald cuts in person is that a great cert doesn’t always mean a great stone (visually). I wouldn’t get too hung up on the cert. I would see what you think of it in person (and in lots of different lighting!). That aside, the cert looks great overall. The only thing that stood out to me is the color. I have a GIA I color and that’s the lowest I’d go for me personally but I’m EXTREMELY color sensitive. Again, color is very subjective and many prefer some warmth to their stones while others don’t even notice it how do you plan on setting?

 

[jerseypeach]

Congratulations on your upgrade (and your anniversary)! I’m an emerald cut girl . What I learned after looking at dozens of emerald cuts in person is that a great cert doesn’t always mean a great stone (visually). I wouldn’t get too hung up on the cert. I would see what you think of it in person (and in lots of different lighting!). That aside, the cert looks great overall. The only thing that stood out to me is the color. I have a GIA I color and that’s the lowest I’d go for me personally but I’m EXTREMELY color sensitive. Again, color is very subjective and many prefer some warmth to their stones while others don’t even notice it how do you plan on setting?

Thank you!!! That makes me feel better I had been initially looking at 'I' or better, but my mom (who is quite jewel obsessed) mentioned that the slight fluorescence can actually help to counter any yellowness from the stone. I guess we'll see once I get it in person!!

Regarding setting - I feel like I like two polar opposite styles. Either something extremely minimal and simple. Basically a plain band with either step-cut traps or baguettes. I've been looking at the Ring Conceriage online and I love their whisper thin settings with these side stone options but have heard mixed things around their customer service. Alternatively, I absolutely love something intricate and antique-ish with milgrain, pave, etc. My original engagement ring looks a lot like this though so I'm thinking the simpler ring provides more variety!

What are the specs on your ring?! I absolutely love how it looks in your profile pic.

 

[ALH]

Thank you!!! That makes me feel better I had been initially looking at 'I' or better, but my mom (who is quite jewel obsessed) mentioned that the slight fluorescence can actually help to counter any yellowness from the stone. I guess we'll see once I get it in person!!

Regarding setting - I feel like I like two polar opposite styles. Either something extremely minimal and simple. Basically a plain band with either step-cut traps or baguettes. I've been looking at the Ring Conceriage online and I love their whisper thin settings with these side stone options but have heard mixed things around their customer service. Alternatively, I absolutely love something intricate and antique-ish with milgrain, pave, etc. My original engagement ring looks a lot like this though so I'm thinking the simpler ring provides more variety!

What are the specs on your ring?! I absolutely love how it looks in your profile pic.

The fluorescence will definitely help!

You can’t go wrong with either setting but I do love the idea of going with the simpler setting (then again, I’m biased ).

My ring is 4.04 center stone that faces up closer to 4.3/4.4. I color. No fluorescence. VS1 clarity. 1.45 ratio. Traps are roughly .36 TCW. More pictures can be found here: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/where-to-find-the-best-emerald-cuts.260208/post-4860006

We actually met with Ring Concierge because we loved her setting but I would not recommend. I wasn’t impressed by their customer service or our initial consultation and to me they really are more of a jewelry design company, they aren’t the ones setting the rings like a lot of other NYC jewelers. Also, one of the jewelers we visited in NYC was in the process of resetting a client’s ring from RC because the client had such a terrible experience with them and their setting didn’t hold up. If you like the whisper thin look I think any good jeweler can create a minimal classic setting like it if you send them a picture. Side note: I would caution that whisper thin might not be a very secure setting - something to keep in mind. Anyway... After visiting and researching *many* jewelers we went with IDJ in NYC. He hands down had the best pricing, sourced the most beautiful emerald cuts, found the best traps - they were so sparkly compared to ones at other jewelers! He also did a fantastic job creating the setting I wanted based off of pics. Here are a few more ring pics

 

[jerseypeach]

The fluorescence will definitely help!

You can’t go wrong with either setting but I do love the idea of going with the simpler setting (then again, I’m biased ).

My ring is 4.04 center stone that faces up closer to 4.3/4.4. I color. No fluorescence. VS1 clarity. 1.45 ratio. Traps are roughly .36 TCW. More pictures can be found here: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/where-to-find-the-best-emerald-cuts.260208/post-4860006

We actually met with Ring Concierge because we loved her setting but I would not recommend. I wasn’t impressed by their customer service or our initial consultation and to me they really are more of a jewelry design company, they aren’t the ones setting the rings like a lot of other NYC jewelers. Also, one of the jewelers we visited in NYC was in the process of resetting a client’s ring from RC because the client had such a terrible experience with them and their setting didn’t hold up. If you like the whisper thin look I think any good jeweler can create a minimal classic setting like it if you send them a picture. Side note: I would caution that whisper thin might not be a very secure setting - something to keep in mind. Anyway... After visiting and researching *many* jewelers we went with IDJ in NYC. He hands down had the best pricing, sourced the most beautiful emerald cuts, found the best traps - they were so sparkly compared to ones at other jewelers! He also did a fantastic job creating the setting I wanted based off of pics.

I am OBSESSED with your setting. It's very similar to what I'm looking for.

That's incredibly helpful. Glad to know my intuition was right regarding customer service at RC. Love their designs, but honestly, the response time has been so so slow. And your comment regarding durability for the whisper-thin is definitely something I've been concerned about.

In the short amount of time that I've spent on this site I've seen several recommendations for IDJ. I don't want to ask impolite questions (not sure what the etiquette is on this site!) but I'd love to know the cost for your stone especially comparative to others you found. Honestly, I was like looking for a 3.00-4.00 but that the 2.50 was such a good deal that I jumped on it. The price for that stone was just under $12k.

 

[ALH]

I am OBSESSED with your setting. It's very similar to what I'm looking for.

That's incredibly helpful. Glad to know my intuition was right regarding customer service at RC. Love their designs, but honestly, the response time has been so so slow. And your comment regarding durability for the whisper-thin is definitely something I've been concerned about.

In the short amount of time that I've spent on this site I've seen several recommendations for IDJ. I don't want to ask impolite questions (not sure what the etiquette is on this site!) but I'd love to know the cost for your stone especially comparative to others you found. Honestly, I was like looking for a 3.00-4.00 but that the 2.50 was such a good deal that I jumped on it. The price for that stone was just under $12k.

Thank you so much! I just added more pics to my last reply.

Are you on Wedding Bee? If so, I’ll send you a private message you re: price there

 

[jerseypeach]

Thank you so much! I just added more pics to my last reply.

Are you on Wedding Bee? If so, I’ll send you a private message you re: price there

Just created an account! My username is the same as on here - jerseypeach

Thank you so much!!!

 

[Rockcollector]

Here is my J, 2.01 carat with .54 tcw trapezoids.

 

[distracts]

Thank you!!! That makes me feel better I had been initially looking at 'I' or better, but my mom (who is quite jewel obsessed) mentioned that the slight fluorescence can actually help to counter any yellowness from the stone. I guess we'll see once I get it in person!!

Regarding setting - I feel like I like two polar opposite styles. Either something extremely minimal and simple. Basically a plain band with either step-cut traps or baguettes. I've been looking at the Ring Conceriage online and I love their whisper thin settings with these side stone options but have heard mixed things around their customer service. Alternatively, I absolutely love something intricate and antique-ish with milgrain, pave, etc. My original engagement ring looks a lot like this though so I'm thinking the simpler ring provides more variety!

What are the specs on your ring?! I absolutely love how it looks in your profile pic.

With a 2.5 ct stone I would not get a "whisper thin" setting. I've seen too many stories about super thin settings breaking and imo it's irresponsible of jewelers to even sell them without a million caveats. I wouldn't go thinner than 1.8 mm for a solid metal band, and I think the whisper thin is 1.4. A lot of the settings also have the ring head attached at one place on the band which means it's easier to knock off or torque it and bend the ring. If it was a half carat diamond I wouldn't be worried, but with a 2.5 ct diamond that would concern me!

 

[jerseypeach]

Here is my J, 2.01 carat with .54 tcw trapezoids.

Beautiful! That's super helpful to see.

 

[jerseypeach]

With a 2.5 ct stone I would not get a "whisper thin" setting. I've seen too many stories about super thin settings breaking and imo it's irresponsible of jewelers to even sell them without a million caveats. I wouldn't go thinner than 1.8 mm for a solid metal band, and I think the whisper thin is 1.4. A lot of the settings also have the ring head attached at one place on the band which means it's easier to knock off or torque it and bend the ring. If it was a half carat diamond I wouldn't be worried, but with a 2.5 ct diamond that would concern me!

That seems to be the consensus I'm seeing. Sorta relieved as I wasn't thrilled at the prospect of essentially paying a premium for a social media brand. But I will say they make lovely looking pieces! But I'm not what I would describe as a gentle person, so probably better not to go with something that would need to be babied.

 

[AuntKiki]

Congratulations on your anniversary and upgrade. I have a 2ct emerald cut with larger traps, .60ct each. A different look. Lots of finger coverage.

 

[ALH]

Just created an account! My username is the same as on here - jerseypeach

Thank you so much!!!

I’m so sorry I forgot to message you on weddingbee! Would you still like the info?