What did everyone start out with?

[sjz]

Ok, I looked, and if there was another thread on this topic I couldn''t find it. So I apologize if this one is redundant. But the recent thread about under 1 carat diamonds being too small got my curiosity going. How many of you started out with diamonds over one carat? Is that typical? Or did many of you (like myself) start out small and get bigger (or get more) as the years went by?

I don''t know what the trends are elsewhere, but in the rural midwest where I live, it''s not that typical for a newly engaged gal to sport a really huge rock. 1 to 1.5 carats is becoming more common, but is still far from the norm where I live. Most of the ladies with the larger diamonds have acquired them over the years as upgrades or gifts from their hubbies. A lot of women are even buying diamonds for themselves nowadays.

My own story goes like this...started out with a marquise that was around 1/3 of a carat with smaller side stones. Traded that one in soon after I got married (never liked it and didn''t choose it) for a .75 carat solitaire with a ring guard having .5 ctw diamonds. Have worn that for the majority of my marriage. Over the years, hubby has given me various diamond rings...diamond bands, cluster rings, anniversary rings...the most expensive being a 1 carat princess with another .5 carats of channel set diamonds in the band. I have also purchased several diamond and/or diamond and gemstone fashion rings for myself in recent years. There are also some diamond rings that I have inherited from grandmother''s and my MIL.

For the first several years that I was married, I was an RN working in the emergency room. I didn''t wear a lot of jewelry in those days (mostly a pendant and my plain gold wedding band). I still have my RN liscence, but for the past ten years, my wonderful husband has allowed me to pursue my musical career, so I haven''t been working as a nurse, at least not on a regular basis. It wasn''t until I stopped working at the hospital and could actually enjoy wearing my rings that I started getting a taste for acquiring more, more, and MORE...lol.

I still haven''t really got the bug for the huge rocks...YET

...but I have a feeling that I will eventually want at least ONE big diamond ring. You Pricescopers can be a baaaaaad influence on a person, you know it? Seeing all of your beautiful and BIG rings has made me start daydreaming...

 

[lost on 5th]

that is an interesting question, beacuse i too have noticed the HUGE rings shown on here. first off, i would have to let you know that im starting to shop for a ring, so i am speaking from a different perspective.

although on the east coast now, my upbringing and friends are all still midwest. the ones that are engaged / married (in their mid 20''s) typically have rings that are ~ .9 to 1.1 ct. all are solitare settings and most are white gold.

something to keep in mind is a bit of midwest mentality. i think a lot of it comes down to precived status. my friends brag about their rings not because of size.... but because they are engaged. a more recognized symbol of status and wealth in that culture still is cars and houses. in contrast, NYC where i am now. most dont have a car...and no one can drive by your apartment and see it. i think that has something to do with the inflated ring sizes here. (just a random thought)


anyhow, thats my 2 cents.

 

[sjz]

Date: 3/17/2005 1:13:38 PM
Author: lost on 5th
that is an interesting question, beacuse i too have noticed the HUGE rings shown on here. first off, i would have to let you know that im starting to shop for a ring, so i am speaking from a different perspective.

although on the east coast now, my upbringing and friends are all still midwest. the ones that are engaged / married (in their mid 20''s) typically have rings that are ~ .9 to 1.1 ct. all are solitare settings and most are white gold.

something to keep in mind is a bit of midwest mentality. i think a lot of it comes down to precived status. my friends brag about their rings not because of size.... but because they are engaged. a more recognized symbol of status and wealth in that culture still is cars and houses. in contrast, NYC where i am now. most dont have a car...and no one can drive by your apartment and see it. i think that has something to do with the inflated ring sizes here. (just a random thought)


anyhow, thats my 2 cents.

You are very wise! I never thought about it before, but you are right. A couple of years ago, we sunk a huge amount of money into building a new house with a lot of nice upgrades. My hubby and I both drive nice cars, and our kids go to private school and all that goes with that.

It''s not so much that we are trying to impress other people. Most of our friends and people that my husband works with live in similar homes and drive comparable cars. And most send their kids to private school if they can afford it (the public schools in our town are not always in the best neighborhoods and often don''t have the same access to extra-curricular activites that our kids get at their school). Most people I know would think I was very silly or selfish if I was wearing a 50K+ diamond, while living in an apartment and sending my kids to public school. And sadly, I don''t think I will be able to afford a huge honking diamond for a few years, at least until we are finished educating our kids and able to downsize from our big house to a smaller house or condo.

Hopefully, someday my biologist daughter and my orthodontist son (yep, they already know what they want to be when they grow up...lol) will buy me lots of nice things, and my husband will live to a ripe old age and retire wealthy. That way I will be one of those little white haired old ladies dripping with diamonds.

 

[codex57]

Look for the polls about what size your e-ring was. I made one, and found out there was another poll even older than mine. Those polls should answer your question, unless you wanna see what people on Pricescope right now say versus a couple months ago.

 

[Sunni79]

I started out with a 5/8 carat E color solitaire in a platinum setting. My new ering is a 1.50ct yellow diamond in a white diamond studded lucida-style setting. I love the way the yellow looks next to the white stones

 

[Mara]

i agree the old polls will help if you want to see what people''s stone sizes are--hopefully someone can bump them.

in terms of what people start with and PS..i''ve often wondered if PS tends to attract those who like larger stones, but we do see alot of smaller stones as well so i don''t think that is it...

i think part of it may be that people come here for one thing, aka an engagement ring at 1c or .50c and then figure out their budget and requirements and end up being able to get something larger with their education (aka not getting ripped off at the mall store) and/or after they get that first stone and the education, they stick around and continue to be addicted and buying new earrings, other stones, upgrading the first one, etc.

so i don''t know how many came to PS with either a huge rock OR the intention of buying a huge rock vs those who end up with a larger rock than they expected...either up front or down the line maybe?

i''ve often thuoght it would be great if Leonid or someone would do an actual survey, not just a poll since that is just one Q but rather a traffic survey on people who frequent PS, income, location, initial ideas, what they ended up with, have they upgraded, how has PS changed their thinking, etc.

then we could get a really good idea of the numbers!

 

[IrishEyes]

I have a .75 princess with .75 ctw princess and baguette channel-set sidestones. My wedding ring is a .75 ctw channel-set princess and baguette as well. I am currently working on an upgrade to hopefully a 1.15-1.45 princess. We''ll see......

Lost on Fifth: I totally agree with you, never thought of it that way until you mentioned it!! Aren''t you the wise one

 

[Mara]

oh also...when we started looking all i knew was i wanted a 1c stone, that was like the PINNACLE of diamond happiness for me.

the FIRST diamond we actually saw in person was a .80 HOF which ''looked like a 1c'' according to the salesgal, now I know what she meant was it was just properly cut to look as a real .80c should but probably looked like maul-cut 1c''s...

in the end after months of research i got a 1.23c stone that looked like a 1.35. after a year i sold that back and took the $ and got a 1.29 well-cut stone from WF. then this year i upgraded to a 1.60c.

a far cry from ''i want a 1c''! hanging around PS *does* mess with your mind!

final stop will be ~3c or so..but i dont know, that 5c asscher idea is looking MIGHTY SWEET!

 

[kaylagee]

first ering was a large red garnet(wasn''t sure I wanted a diamond at all)

then about 4months after wedding : 1.08 ct rb solitaire ''tiffany'' style (now thinking about buying a mate to make earrings

)

1st anniv. received 1950s vintage ring guard about .45 ct

this winter: 2.05 oval ring and a bezel eternity band(around .70ct)

i can live with this one until we can afford a great quality, large EC. or until i''m cured of this insanity.

 

[Lord Summerisle]

Date: 3/17/2005 3:18:24 PM
Author: Mara
i agree the old polls will help if you want to see what people''s stone sizes are--hopefully someone can bump them.


in terms of what people start with and PS..i''ve often wondered if PS tends to attract those who like larger stones, but we do see alot of smaller stones as well so i don''t think that is it...


i think part of it may be that people come here for one thing, aka an engagement ring at 1c or .50c and then figure out their budget and requirements and end up being able to get something larger with their education (aka not getting ripped off at the mall store) and/or after they get that first stone and the education, they stick around and continue to be addicted and buying new earrings, other stones, upgrading the first one, etc.


so i don''t know how many came to PS with either a huge rock OR the intention of buying a huge rock vs those who end up with a larger rock than they expected...either up front or down the line maybe?


i''ve often thuoght it would be great if Leonid or someone would do an actual survey, not just a poll since that is just one Q but rather a traffic survey on people who frequent PS, income, location, initial ideas, what they ended up with, have they upgraded, how has PS changed their thinking, etc.


then we could get a really good idea of the numbers!

possibly... i''ve gone for the 1/3rd route... but it was the kind of size she was after... but then i also enjoyed spending time on this forum. I did get extra when i bought... and its a pipe dream to beable to get something else for her later.. a pendent - and sometime in the future a bracelet,, but ATM we''re running close to boarder line, and well just wanted to get something that said how i felt for her... and that wasnt down to size - but the quality of the cut. - twas a fun journey tho

 

[ursulawrite]

Started off with a 1.3 carat E-colour solitaire (aged 24). Now 28 and still with the same stone. Having just bought a sizeable Manhattan apartment, I can''t imagine diamond upgrades are going to be a top priority, not with all that Ligne Roset furniture I like! As for my friends, they have two- and three-carat solitaires (this is NYC, after all). All were engaged in their early- to mid-twenties and all spouses are lawyers, bankers etc. etc.

 

[sjz]

Date: 3/17/2005 3

5:42 PM
Author: codex57
Look for the polls about what size your e-ring was. I made one, and found out there was another poll even older than mine. Those polls should answer your question, unless you wanna see what people on Pricescope right now say versus a couple months ago.

Thanks, but I guess I want more than just "how big was your original ering". I''m kind of interested in hearing the scoop on what you got, why, and where you went from there kind of thing. I ended up on pricescope kind of by accident. I was looking for remount ideas and ended up here. I lurked for quite a while before I even posted my first post. I have to admit, I was really surprised and amazed at all the beautiful jewelry I saw! The first thread I read was the eye candy thread. I''m sure my jaw was lying on the desk after the first few posts...lol!

The only person I know in real life who has a diamond anywhere near as big as some of the ones I''ve seen on here is my husband''s sister. When she got engaged, both she and her husband were working on Wall Street and living in Manhatten. Enough said? I have to admit, I did feel kind of inadequate about my diamond when she was around (who wouldn''t? hers was nearly three carats, mine was 1/3 of a carat!!!!) I do remember her mother (my MIL) remarking to me once that even though her ring was so much larger and more expensive than mine, she had noticed that mine was much more sparkly and "dainty" looking on my hand. My SIL''s ring is always sort of flopped over to one side, because it''s so top-heavy.

Maybe it all worked out better for me in the long run. My MIL owned a HUGE diamond cocktail ring. I''ve posted pictures of it on the SMTR thread. Anyway, I''m currently in the process of having the ring taken apart and made in to other rings. I already have a 5 stone 1 ctw band ring in yellow gold that I had made from some of the diamonds. I''m waiting on an identical one in white gold, which should be done by tomorrow. That is still going to leave me with nine .20 carat diamonds and a .5 carat diamond. I still haven''t decided what I''m going to do with those. I might even have something pretty made with the mounting once the diamonds have all been used. Anyway...if my SIL hadn''t already had that huge rock of hers, my MIL may never have taken pity on me and given me the huge diamond ring!

 

[FireGoddess]

started out with a 0.75 ct rb I SI1 stone.

upgraded to a 1.5 ct pear D VS2 stone.

am currently trying to put a nice little halo of diamonds around the pear.

i''m hoping that will cure the shrinkage syndrome for a long while.

or should i say, my husband is hoping.

 

[sjz]

Date: 3/17/2005 3:11:22 PM
Author: Sunni79
I started out with a 5/8 carat E color solitaire in a platinum setting. My new ering is a 1.50ct yellow diamond in a white diamond studded lucida-style setting. I love the way the yellow looks next to the white stones

I bet that ring is gorgeous! Do you have a picture of it posted on here? Maybe I''ve missed it? I love yellow diamonds, too. I''ve got my eye on one, but it''s a little more money than I want to spend right now. I love seeing the yellow and white diamonds next to each other, too. And yellow diamonds are DIVINE in platinum!

I also love champaign diamonds. I saw a very nice one set in rose gold the other day. Something else to add to my wish list!

 

[sjz]

Date: 3/17/2005 4:12:52 PM
Author: kaylagee
first ering was a large red garnet(wasn''t sure I wanted a diamond at all)

then about 4months after wedding : 1.08 ct rb solitaire ''tiffany'' style (now thinking about buying a mate to make earrings

)

1st anniv. received 1950s vintage ring guard about .45 ct

this winter: 2.05 oval ring and a bezel eternity band(around .70ct)

i can live with this one until we can afford a great quality, large EC. or until i''m cured of this insanity.

I love garnets, too. They are my birthstone. I just bought a new one this week!

I had thought about having a round garnet set into my original ering mounting, which is a yellow gold tifanny style. I thought it would look pretty in my ring guards.

 

[sjz]

Date: 3/17/2005 3:41

6 PM
Author: Mara
oh also...when we started looking all i knew was i wanted a 1c stone, that was like the PINNACLE of diamond happiness for me.

the FIRST diamond we actually saw in person was a .80 HOF which ''looked like a 1c'' according to the salesgal, now I know what she meant was it was just properly cut to look as a real .80c should but probably looked like maul-cut 1c''s...

in the end after months of research i got a 1.23c stone that looked like a 1.35. after a year i sold that back and took the $ and got a 1.29 well-cut stone from WF. then this year i upgraded to a 1.60c.

a far cry from ''i want a 1c''! hanging around PS *does* mess with your mind!

final stop will be ~3c or so..but i dont know, that 5c asscher idea is looking MIGHTY SWEET!

Mara, your upgrade journey has made me think I might do that someday! That''s why I got the .53 from WF recently. I''m thinking of it as an investment in any future upgrade adventures I might want to embark upon. And it''s always nice to have a stone of that size. Even if I never decide to upgrade...I could always get a matching stone and have myself some nice earrings!

 

[fire&ice]

Started engaged life with an F/VS1 or VVS (can''t remember) .70 rb in simple jabel tiffany setting (gold shank, white head) - rotated the orientation NSEW for the prongs. diamond wedding band & identical one as a 1 year anniversary band.

Received 1.25 OEC family ring (10th) in a white gold illusion setting. Very pretty diamond. I like old settings.

20th anniversary of our engagement (Hubby always said that my first stone was just a "starter") - hubby proposed again w/ a 3c RB in a Vatche platinum setting w/ two side baguettes.

So, I''ve been on the small, medium and large end. I can tell you - you will have comments about ALL of them. Someone on this forum called me a hoochie w/ my 3c. I''ve also been on the receiving end of someone saying my .70 was puny.

Oh well. Can''t please everyone - might as well please yourself.

 

[canuk-gal]

Date: 3/17/2005 5

1

7 PM
Author: fire&ice
Someone on this forum called me a hoochie w/ my 3c. I''ve also been on the receiving end of someone saying my .70 was puny.

HI F & I:

A hoochie? What the heck is that supposed to mean????

Isn''t that something you drink?

cheers--Sharon

 

[fire&ice]

Date: 3/17/2005 5

9:21 PM
Author: canuk-gal

Date: 3/17/2005 5

1

7 PM
Author: fire&ice

Someone on this forum called me a hoochie w/ my 3c. I''ve also been on the receiving end of someone saying my .70 was puny.

HI F & I:

A hoochie? What the heck is that supposed to mean????

Isn''t that something you drink?

cheers--Sharon

HA! Hoochie as in cheap, tacky.

It just made me laugh. It was one of those how big is too big threads that spiral out of control.

I suppose the name probably did originate from hooch - a hoochie would be someone who would hang out at a hooch bar drinking with the guys - maybe old west? As in my younger days, I have been able to hold my own w/ some guys - maybe the poster was technically correct.

I digress from diamonds.

 

[Sunni79]

sjz-
I will post pics in a day or two under show me the ring. I am still trying to figure out how to post the pics. The ring is gorgeous and I couldn''t be happier with it!

. I got the ring for a very good price.

 

[kaylagee]

"As in my younger days, I have been able to hold my own w/ some guys - maybe the poster was technically correct.  

I digress from diamonds."





F&I..LOL!!!

 

[AGBF]

My real engagement ring has two 1-point diamonds set in a tiny oval nest made of 18K gold. It is delicate and beautiful. I currently wear a 6 and it is 5 1/4 or 5 1/2, so I cannot really wear it. I am loathe to have it made bigger, though. What if I become a size 6 *DRESS* again?

Deborah

PS-The "story": I was a graduate student and my husband had just started to work after graduate school. We were living in Paris and were poor. He bought me the engagement ring when we took the train to Genoa, Italy (his home) so that I could meet his parents. We bought it together in a jewelry store on the Via XX Settembre, a big shopping street in the middle of the city.

 

[fountainfairfax]

in 1991 when I got engaged to my now-ex I had a .75 oval w/round and baguette sidestones- I think the ctw was close to 1.50...at the time I was a NY transplant living in Mesa, AZ, 24 yrs old and it was a beautiful ring.

In 1995 when I would bring my old e-ring to work here in NY the people in my office would go CRAZY over it....

Fast forward to 2004/2005 Long Island, NY; I now have 22 yr old employees with 2+ ct center stone rings (granted from maul stores-not great quality) that their fiances have gone into a crazy amount of debt to get(one 24 yr old has a 3 stone e-ring w/ a 3.5 ctw that ran her fiance close to 10 grand- they both make around $11 per hour,) my customers (Optical professionals) sport e-rings in the $25,000-$30,000 range and don''t mind talking about it!

Even in this environment I will be proud to wear my future e-ring- my cherished inherited 2.2 ct omc, less than perfect but totally paid-for, sentimental and all mine!!!!

 

[Libster]

I started out with a yellow gold wedding band
5 yr anniversary - .65ct columbian emerald with diamond side stones, each .15ct
10 yr anniversary - columbian emerald and diamond band - 3 emeralds totaling .45ct & 8 diamonds totaling .25ct
15 yr anniversary - 1.12 RB with side stones, each .30 ct
This past Christmas - 1.40 ct Facets shared prong round eternity band

I must admit that PS has made me a CRAZY...OBSESSED...DIAMOND....FREAK!!!

 

[codex57]

Date: 3/17/2005 4:38:41 PM
Author: sjz

Thanks, but I guess I want more than just 'how big was your original ering'. I'm kind of interested in hearing the scoop on what you got, why, and where you went from there kind of thing. I ended up on pricescope kind of by accident. I was looking for remount ideas and ended up here. I lurked for quite a while before I even posted my first post. I have to admit, I was really surprised and amazed at all the beautiful jewelry I saw! The first thread I read was the eye candy thread. I'm sure my jaw was lying on the desk after the first few posts...lol!

Oh, you want the why too? Ok. My story is taht PRICESCOPE IS EVIL!!! Most of my internet research was done on here. I didn't like the other diamond forums. But, like Mara said, I suspect that those with larger stones seem to congregate here. Maybe it's cuz those with smaller stones don't care. Anyways, my original goal was to get a 1 carat stone. I knew she wanted D color, but that's about it. After learning about cut and seeing all the gorgeous (and big) ideal cut stones out there, I started thinking "ok, maybe a 1.1 ct then." Before I knew it, I was considering a 1.43 ct rock. Ended up with a 1.37 D VVS2 ideal round brilliant for almost double what I originally intended to spend. You people are a bad, bad influence.

I looked at a bunch of stones in person. Ended up buying at a B&M. Price was pretty comparitive and I loved the service. Considering how many times I inspected a stone, thought I was gonna get it, then changed my mind, all that money shipping the stones back prolly made it a wash btw buying at a B&M vs. internet.

 

[pearcrazy]

I started out at in 1991 at age 27 with a .54 carat pear shaped diamond H SI1 in yellow gold tiffany style 6 prong setting. I got a wrap with small diamonds that I wore with it. For our 4 year anniversary, I got a seven stone bar set anniversary ring that didn''t go with the wrap so I ditched the wrap and wore my engagement ring with the seven stone band and plain 2mm gold band. At our 11 year anniversary, I reset the .54 pear into a semi mount ring with 10 marquise sidestones .70 total weight. Two years later, I replaced the .54 pear with a I color VS2 1.12 pear and set the old .54 pear into the pendant in my avatar last Christmas. My upgrade was a 13 year oddessy and I''m not done yet. I''m thinking that I want to get a setting to match my anniversary ring and re-set my 1.12 into it. I want to put a pear shaped pink sapphire in the semi mount.

Maybe I''ll be content then.

 

[glaucomflecken]

this is an interesting topic!

i guess this will probably make me sound greedy, but my fiance proposed last july with a 1.07 H SI1 round and when we decided to change the setting to a more substantial width ring, it looked too small. Plus then I became addicted to PS and started looking at everyone''s gorgeous rings and learned more about ideal cuts. Mine was beautiful but once I knew that a 58 table 62.5 depth was on the brink of ideal, it started to bug me in my head. So we upgraded to a 1.52 H SI1...and we''re not married yet! people have made some comments about it and I do feel kind of guilty sometimes b/c its bigger than most people around where I live. My FI said that in 5 or 10 years if I let him get a muscle car he will let me get my 2.5 or 3 carat!

 

[jellybean]

I started out with a 0.38ct round that was my husband's great-grandfather's diamond that he wore in a pinky ring. This was 1998 and I was in pharmacy school and my husband was in law school. I was 26 and my husband 27. My MIL picked out the setting for my e-ring (looooong story there) and I never really liked it. It looked like it was from the 80's and was supposed to have a shadow band for it.

In December 2002 my MIL gave me her 1.5ct round that was her original e-ring. I now wear that most of the time w/ my diamond wedding band, however, sometimes I do wear the 0.38ct if I'm just running to the store. I had the 0.38ct in a pendant but my little ones kept pulling it off my neck.

I probably won't ever upgrade b/c my husband is sooo not a jewelry guy. He doesn't understand spending more than $2,000 for an e-ring! (He only spend $500 for my original setting -- I keep telling him he got off cheap!) I also tease him that he never bought me a diamond!

Actually, he gets really mad when I say that. An ego thing maybe???

Oh, I should say that most of my friends that got engaged around the same time we did all got diamonds around 1ct. A couple of friends got 1.25ct, so I definitely felt embarressed with my small diamond.

I live in the suburbs outside Chicago and you see 2 - 3ct diamonds all the time. I noticed it especially at my daughter's playgroup. No small diamonds there!

 

[BluePea]

I don''t have my ring yet (one more week to wait!), but I am starting out with a .94 ct E VVS1 RB. I graduated from college this past summer, and none of my friends have e-rings yet, even though one of them got married after graduation. I am very proud of my bf for saving to buy me a beautiful stone - he graduated a year before me, spent the summer with his family, and only started looking for jobs in the fall of 2003, so after less than one and a half years of work, he was able to save up for the engagement ring.

It''s definitely not the biggest ring around - we live in Manhattan - but it''s a very pretty stone, and I don''t think that size matters to me that much, even after looking at all the beautiful rings with large stones on PS

; and I love how responsible and mature he was!

Hehe, and I am also afraid that if I get a larger stone I would break it within two days of wearing it

; the other day I hit my head on the ladies'' room door - and, no, it''s not made of glass!

 

[longtimelurker]

I started out with a .83 E Si2 from the maul in a tiffany style solitare. We were still in college & he spent pretty much everything he made over that summer break! For our 15th anniv I upgraded to a 2 ct. from Whiteflash. It''s one of the biggest diamonds in my peer group b/c I''m addicted to diamonds. Most of my friends have e-rings in the 1-1.25ct range.