What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides rings

[Area57]

I started liking diamonds when I was looking for a present for a former girlfriend. I never knew what women saw in them, until I saw that sparkle and brilliance for myself.

What kind of pieces do men wear? Besides rings. I would really like and everyday piece to wear. Something that is somewhat rugged. Not that I won't be careful, but, you know, something I can wear everyday.

I do have my ears pierced and currently don't have any earrings. I have a watch, and a bracelet already. A necklace would be good. I was thinking earrings or a necklace. But I don't want it to look too effeminate.

Probably a necklace is my best option, since I need one, or at least a new charm. my last necklace I didn't take off for four years.

 

[Area57]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

No ideas? No men want to show their jewelry off?

 

[Niel]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

a stud is the most obvious thing to me. I dont think its effeminate to wear diamond studs.

 

[Area57]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Studs are probably a good way to go, I wouldn't mind that. Not growing up wishing for them or wearing them, do they stay in pretty well? Can you put them in and leave them in?

 

[VRBeauty]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Stud earrings, of course... though I prefer a single earring on a man. Just personal preference. Which happens to have the advantage of costing less...

ETA I wear relatively small stud earrings pretty much every day. I prefer to take mine out at night - a combination of comfort and keeping the diamonds clean and (mostly) habit. There have been many push back vs. screw back discussions here. I think you'll find greater than 75% agreement that a good push back (friction back) is the way to go.

 

[Niel]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Studs are probably a good way to go, I wouldn't mind that. Not growing up wishing for them or wearing them, do they stay in pretty well? Can you put them in and leave them in?

Well I wouldn't wear them in the shower or to bed, but they have some that are made with screw backs and other things that keep them securely in place.

 

[Niel]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Stud earrings, of course... though I prefer a single earring on a man. Just personal preference. Which happens to have the advantage of costing less...

I agree I'd put all my money into one studd if I was a man

 

[VRBeauty]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Stud earrings, of course... though I prefer a single earring on a man. Just personal preference. Which happens to have the advantage of costing less...

I agree I'd put all my money into one studd if I was a man

Yup. I'd figure out what size was most comfortable for me, and then get a top-of-the-line cut.

 

[kenny]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Why no ring, especially if you don't want to look effeminate wearing a diamond?

IMO a tension-set ring is the least-effiminate way a man can wear a diamond.
It's easier to see and enjoy a diamond on your hand than on a tie tack, earring, or necklace.

I'm going on my second asscher in a beefy tension setting.
IMO curves of rounds and cushion cut diamonds look more feminine.
Straight lines and angles of asschers and emerald cuts look more masculine.



The diamonds are from goodoldgold.com and the tension settings are from boonerings.com



Check oiut the Octavia Asscher diamond cut, above.
It has the light performance of a super-ideal round in a stop-sign octagonal shaped asscher cut with a high crown for astonishing light performance, even off-axis.
I think it is only sold at www.goodoldgold.com and was designed by our own KarlK, a beloved PS member.

 

[kenny]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r



Notice there is no metal under the diamond in a true tension setting.
This lets more light in and out.

Though Ideal cut pays attention only to the light entering and exiting the TOP of a diamond TONS of light enters and TONS of sparkle exit the side of a diamond too.
Usually when I see my diamond I did not just flip my wrist up to get a pefect top-down on-axis view.
I usually see it off axis, or a bit to the side or in full-profile like when my hand is on the car's steering wheel in the sun.

Tension settings let you see more of what you paid for.
Plus since they are so beefy IMO they hold diamonds better than little delicate pointed prongs that can bend, unbeknownst to you, as you are just putting on a sweater or just reaching into your pants pocket.

... and since most of the diamond not in jail behind bars, tensions settings are a breeze to clean.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Yes, Tension setting...

 

[Area57]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Alright! Now we are getting somewhere guys!

First off, let me clarify. I didn't say I don't want it to look effeminate, I think I said TOO effeminate.

Hey, it's diamonds and jewelry, I'm a straight guy, but I like what I like and don't care too much what other people have to say about it.

But at the same time, certain jewelry pieces are just "effeminate" like the solitaire engagement ring. Probably just because it has such a long association with something women wear.

Ok, I haven't ruled rings out. It's just that I already have a coulee rings, nothing but basic ones, but also I am not married and well....I'm not out picking up chicks everyday, but I don't want women to look at my hands and see what could be misenterpreted as an engagement ring or wedding ring, is there a difference for men's rings?

How would I wear a ring but not have its ive off the wrong impression?

Ok, so the other good option is studs, or, as you guys say, it looks best as a stud. Approximately what size do you find works and looks best? This would be really fun, especially just finding one, because I get to go diamond shopping with all the online tools, fun stuff.

So what do you think the consensus is for what looks best? I am thinking off the top of my head, 1/2-3/4 carat? I'm pretty much an average sized person.

If I go the stud route, I would take it out at night, I would just want something that I could wear around daily and not have to worry about loss or damage. Something that I can wear doing all things in life outside of manual labor or sports.

Thanks for getting some ideas coming and let's get some more photos! Love the Asher and the tension ring

 

[Area57]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Great photography, I need a macro lens.

 

[gregchang35]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

DF and Kenny,

You guys are KILLING me with your Octavia tension sets!!!!

I have a few bling....ring, earrings and pendants.
I can only attach 4 pics at a time so....
Earring first. these are 1.03ctw= 0.51 and 0.52

 

[kenny]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

How would I wear a ring but not have it give off the wrong impression?

Right hand, middle finger.

FWIW because they are deep and bulging in a side view, asschers face up smaller than rounds.
IOW, when viewed from the top a 1 ct asscher will appear to be smaller (actually we should say lighter) than a 1 ct round.

That means to get the apparent size of, say, a 1 ct round you have to buy an asscher that's maybe around 1.4 ct.

If you get a tension setting only buy from the specialists, though many jewelers will claim they can make a good tension setting.
Special alloys and process are needed to assure the metal never lets go of the stone.
Personally I'd only buy from, in descending order of price, Niessing, StevenKretchmer, GelanAbaci, or Boonerings.
The first 3 work in gold and platinum only.
The last does titanium and some other non-precious alloys.
Every tension setting is custom made to the exact stone being set.
A ring from the first three will cost thousands of $$$.
The last will run in the hundreds, leaving more $$$ for a better diamond.

My first tension setting was platinum from Gelin Abaci.
The subsequent were from Boonerings.
I recommend the very white alloy cobalt chrome because our titanium rings darkened over time.

 

[gregchang35]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Rings:
Well, i have amassed a few!!! LOL

The set:
1) Asscher in semi tension setting. It is very similar to the tension setting that kenny has, but it has a bar under it. here in AUS, there are no jewellers who are able to do this. If i were to upgrade at some point, i will be doing things in the US.

2) Carre eternity in a channel setting...

My OEC in yellow gold.

I have a jade ring given to me by my dad.....
[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/dads-jade-ring-35-yrs-without-seeing-the-light-of-day.215564/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/dads-jade-ring-35-yrs-without-seeing-the-light-of-day.215564/[/URL]

my FCD necklace.

 

[gregchang35]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

other Rings.. i have the russian wedding ring.. - 3 rings interlocking as one
thick band ring...

i have pics of these, but not on this ocmputer. but you can just make them out in my avatar.

As for earring stud... try a few at the store, if they allow you to do it. if not, buy some cheap cubic zircons or other similar types that you can get from the fhsion jewlery sites. that way you can get an idea of what would work.

I used my piercing studs as a guide. they were smaller than what i wanted. i eventually went up to 0.5ct princess in each ear which are about 3.5mm ish.

as for rings, i think middle finger on right is best to not give the wrong signal.

 

[VRBeauty]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Ok, I haven't ruled rings out. It's just that I already have a coulee rings, nothing but basic ones, but also I am not married and well....I'm not out picking up chicks everyday, but I don't want women to look at my hands and see what could be misenterpreted as an engagement ring or wedding ring, is there a difference for men's rings?

How would I wear a ring but not have its ive off the wrong impression?

Most women - and especially most single women - are pretty adept at differentiating between the left and right hand.

 

[Area57]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Those .5 carat earrings look like a good size. The proportion to your ear looks good. Diamond price aside, how much for the setting, the stud? I assume it's cheap, even in gold, because there isn't much to them.

Ok, good idea about right, middle. Makes sense to me. I'm not a woman, to me I see a ring on a man and he's married. I only recently found out about the left hand thing!

Let's get some necklace pictures coming too.

 

[Area57]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Those .5 carat earrings look like a good size. The proportion to your ear looks good. Diamond price aside, how much for the setting, the stud? I assume it's cheap, even in gold, because there isn't much to them.

Ok, good idea about right, middle. Makes sense to me. I'm not a woman, to me I see a ring on a man and he's married. I only recently found out about the left hand thing!

Let's get some necklace pictures coming too.

 

[kenny]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

... I see a ring on a man and he's married.

That's definitely not the case where I live.

... I only recently found out about the left hand thing!

This surprised me and I got curious.
I googled and learned in many countries the wedding ring is worn on the right hand.

So, if you'd like to wear a ring that might be mistaken for a wedding ring but DO want to appear single you'll have to wear it on the opposite hand of the marriage hand for your location.

 

[Area57]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

I think you guys are probably right. Women know what to look for. You know, it's just that in part we wear jewelry because we want women to think we look good, it would defeat the purpose if I looked attractive, yet married!

Hey Kenny, what kind of lights do you use to get the rainbow of colors in your photos?

 

[thecat]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

I've seen the Love bracelet with and without diamonds on a man. I think the Juste un Clou, both diamond and non diamond versions, would look good on men too. It's also common to see men with one diamond stud. When I see men with diamond pendant, there's usually a design to the pendant like what Greg showed.

 

[VRBeauty]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

I've seen the Love bracelet with and without diamonds on a man.

Isn't the Love bracelet supposed to indicate that one is in a committed relationship?

 

[kenny]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Hey Kenny, what kind of lights do you use to get the rainbow of colors in your photos?

Thanks for asking.
I like yacking about diamond macrophotography and sharing my not-secrets.

If you are talking about this one the diamond was placed in the throat of a flower.
The blue is reflections of the sky.


The above pic was shot with the set up below.
Notice the bellows (the accordion thing) between the macro lens and the body.

The bellows has no optics, it just holds the lens further from the body for greater enlargement.
This fills up the frame, or sensor, with the diamond before you take the pic!

This uses all of your camera's pixels for surprisingly-high resolution of tiny things like diamonds.
Many people have macro settings on their cameras, a few have real macro lenses on a DSLR, but almost nobody knows about or bothers getting a bellows.

I've been talking about bellows for 10 years on PS and AFAIK only one member here has bought one, though I suspect several vendors, who stay hush hush on their photo setups, have.
Using all of the sensor before taking the pic gives vastly superior clarity, focus and resolution; Without a bellows you have no choice but to crop in later because diamonds are so tiny.
Unfortunately without a bellows you use only a small portion of your camera's sensor.
If the diamond only takes up 10% of your 16-MP sensor the results can only be as sharp as a 1.6 MP camera.

A true macro lens can produce a magnification ratio of 1:1.
That just means the size of the image of a penny on the sensor will be the size of the penny itself.
To fill up the frame using a true macro lens a diamond would have to be 36mm in diameter (the width of a full-frame sensor), but a 1 ct is only around 6 mm.
Hence the need for more magnification than any macro lens can deliver.

BTW PS software lowers the resolution of uploaded pics to save bandwidth.
When viewed live, not on PS, these pics are razor sharp, even when they fill up the 27" monitor, and even if you crop in a great deal.



If you are talking about the other very colorful one of two diamonds those colors are not fire from the diamond dispersing light.
The colors are just reflections of an unusual environment.

I painted watercolor on white paper and cut a hole in the center.
You can't see it but the camera is behind the paper and looking through the hole.
Diamonds (which behave like little boxes of mirrors) reflect the colors in front of them.
No fancy lighting, just an ordinary CFL bulb in a cheapo aluminum reflector ... all from Home Depot.



Here's another pic from that set up.
I sold this diamond to get my Octavia.

 

[gregchang35]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Those .5 carat earrings look like a good size. The proportion to your ear looks good. Diamond price aside, how much for the setting, the stud? I assume it's cheap, even in gold, because there isn't much to them.

Ok, good idea about right, middle. Makes sense to me. I'm not a woman, to me I see a ring on a man and he's married. I only recently found out about the left hand thing!

Let's get some necklace pictures coming too.

'simple' setting starting from approx $250.

there are various types of settings:
martini, cocktail martini, basket, bezel.. and the list goes on...
the most common for a round stone is the martini. This will allow for the stone to sit closest to the lobe.
the basket is the next common setting that i have seen.

then you gotta think about the prongs/ claws are they going to be fine claws or just straight out prongs, or split prongs and so on.....


HOwever, for the size that you are looking for which i believe to be around the 0.5ct... i think that the martini or basket setting is all that you need to consider. the prongs can be claws or just like mine straight out prongs.

with settings: most, if not all, jewelers will have an earring setting of sorts. the best thing to do is find a vendor that has stone that you LOVE and then they will get it into a setting that you like.

I would consider getting the best bang for your $. In relation to rounds:
1) CUT= get the best cut eg Hearts and Arrows, A cut above and so on....if you have time you can source the expert selection and run the angles on the reports through the HCA. or give your budget to the masses and they will always find something for you. You probably know that PSers are all here to help you as they have in the past. Best to find vendors that can give you performance images- Idealscope or ASET... numbers on report are good but the images are better, given that you are buying on line. I guess some of this you already know, since you have been on here before to buy a ring. Sorry if i am telling stuff that you already know.
2) Clarity = The clarity can be as low as "eye clean" Si1. The clarity (visibility of inclusion) is something that doesnt matter a great deal in earrings as they are sitting in your ears and therefore you are not staring at it all day.. unless it is a 'mind' clean issue/ theoretical clean/ you dont want to 'see" any inclusion irrespective if they are on your ears or not issue.
3)Colour of the stone can vary.. i prefer mine to be in the (GIA) E colour range.. others have sweet spots for (GIA) FGH ranges. You will need to determine which colour would suit you for your ears.
4) carat- it looks like t he 0.5ct is the range for you.. but try a few on if you can to see what suits your lobes; and of course what you are comfortable with when viewing in the mirror.

Fancy cuts- princess etc are based more on performance than numbers on a report. Most of us will advise to get an ASET for them.


good luck with the hunt.
of course post pics when you are hunting or when you foudn something!!!!

 

[gregchang35]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Kenny,

Your photography is AMAZING!!! Drooling here over the octavia images.... nice to see again...

 

[thecat]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Greg, I love your OEC in square outline setting. Very unique look

Kenny, you have such a professional setup to take photos. No wonder my hp camera photos can never capture the fire from my diamonds but your photos show colors so well.

 

[thecat]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

I've seen the Love bracelet with and without diamonds on a man.

Isn't the Love bracelet supposed to indicate that one is in a committed relationship?

Where I stay, singles buy it for themselves too.

 

[Area57]

Re: What are good diamond jewelry pieces for men? Besides r

Awesome, thanks Kenny! I'm learning photography. I have a pretty good setup so far, but no macro lens. Though there is one I have my eyes on.

I haven't learned about the bellows, but don't people also put an extension tube between their lens and the image sensor to get the same or a similar effect? I have seen some homemade setups where they had some tube taped in there.

Lastly, what did you do for you avatar?m something similar? Very creative ideas I must say, and very inspirational. I can't wait to explore macro photography.m it will be fun as I start my jewelry and gem collection. In addition to the nature photos I originally wanted it for, like flowers and small sea creatures, bugs etc....

I will have to play around once I get a diamond and see what kind of cool color pictures I can take.

Until I get that macro lens, I have a 24 mp camera and a 70-210mm lens with a minimum distance of three feet I think, which may get some get close ups, with cropping though.

I know what you are saying about this site and many others reducing the photos, I guess they just would bog down the speed at which the web pages load otherwise.