Wedding band with diamonds AND pearls? Help?

[LynzeeLeigh]

I have this wedding band in mind that would be like a typical diamond wedding band, but instead of just diamonds, have every other one be a tiny seed pearl. I have trouble believing that no one else has ever thought of this, but for the life of me, I can't find one. How would something like that have to be set (channel, pave, prong)..? If it's even possible? Has anyone ever seen something like it? It'd be a cross between these two rings.

 

[Haven]

I love diamond and pearl rings, and I think your ring idea is lovely, BUT I would be hesitant to wear pearls on a daily basis because I don't think they'd stand up to regular ring wear and tear.

I inherited a ring from my grandmother with a pearl in the center and two small diamonds on each side. I wore it every day for a while, and then I noticed that it looked like I'd done some damage to the pearl so I stopped. Now I only wear it on the weekends.

I hope someone else chimes in to say whether pearls can stand up to everyday wear and tear on a ring.

 

[Novel]

Sounds gorgeous to me, as well, but I think pearls have a Mohs hardness of around 3; they're very soft and layered. I'd be worried about damaging the stone from daily wear, and, personally, about losing pearls.

 

[KaeKae]

LynzeeLeigh, I have two stories.

#1. My mother wanted a pearl ering, so my dad looked into it, talked to several jewelers, as well as women in his family, and was advised against it. He bought her a beautiful diamond ring and promised to get her a pearl ring later, which he did for their first Christmas, then a matching band for their first anniversary the next month. It became her 'dress up' ring set. Good idea on dad's part. She never took her rings off. After I inherited her rings, I found that she'd managed to put a nice chip in her diamond. Can you imagine what she might have done to a pearl?

#2. I used to work with a lovely woman who had a pearl ering. A very pretty setting, but the pearl was a dud. I mean, it was so dull, I didn't know what stone it was, it had no sheen at all, looked like a little white marble. Like my mom, she wore her ring all the time, never took it off, despite being a mother of two teenagers and a preschool teacher, whose hands are constantly in water, playdough, paint...I wish she'd worn just her wide gold band, and saved that beauty for special days.

I love your design idea, and think it would be a great idea for a right hand ring, or like my mom, maybe an anniversary ring, that you can add to your set for 'dress up' occasions.

 

[that_someone_special]

Pearl rings should not be worn every day unless you want to replace it every few years. The pearls will become damaged and sometimes, end up looking like they are rotting- not very pretty!

The issue is... are you going to take your ring off EVERY SINGLE TIME that you want to wash your hands? Or when you put lotion on? Or when you are cleaning? Or cooking? You will end up spending more time NOT wearing the ring than wearing it.

Have you thought of doing a wedding pendant maybe?
If you must do a ring, I would get a plain back up ring as well and only wear the diamond/ pearl one on special occasions.

 

[Jennifer W]

It is certainly possible to have the band that you've described - my aunt wears one, and her engagement ring is a Tay river pearl with diamond sides. Her set is still absolutely gorgeous, and she celebrated her 40th anniversary a few years back.

However, as people have said, pearls are not at all robust. You would have to baby that ring and take it off before doing pretty much anything with your hands. I think if you know exactly what you're getting into, and what you need to do to care for the ring, then you should go for it, if that's what makes your heart sing.

I'd probably have a back-up band for occasions when the pearls could be damaged.

 

[kelpie]

Beautiful idea, but not practical. I bought a car from a lady who then called me devastated after she moved to another country wondering if the pearl from her wedding ring was somewhere inside the car. I still haven't found it and doubt I will. They are just not durable enough for daily wear.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Not only is it not durable, it would drive me NUTS to have my diamonds dirty. You can't just plop a ring with pearls in an ultrasonic or in a bowl with windex, either! So definitely don't do this in an everyday ring! These are the reasons you don't see them combined more often.

 

[LynzeeLeigh]

Thanks for all the input! I think I'm going with the second picture as my wedding band to go with a plain solitaire diamond ring. I planned to get a pendant with a pearl to wear for the wedding anyway, especially since we're having it on a beach, so I'll just do that.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Good decision! And I love pearl pendants!!!