What size diamonds for this Halo (surrounding 2ct Cushion Sapphire)

[ntpf]

Hello! First post here, actually just found this excellent site! I know this forum is for diamond related questions only. Though this center stone is a Sapphire my question is in fact regarding the diamonds. I''m unsure if there is a better place to post this question. If so please let me know!

I''ve been talking to some jewelers about this ring and wanted to get your feedback. Of course it comes down to personal preference but I wanted your educated opinions. This ring is for my girlfriend as an engagement ring. Yes, Sapphire. She picked it out! We want a 2ct Cushion Cut Sapphire surrounded by a diamond halo. The halo has been a topic of discussion because there are different varieties. We like the kind where the surrounding diamonds are held in place by 2 prongs sandwiched between all the stones all the way around. I was told what it was called but can''t for the life of me remember. Was it Dual Prong? It''s not the triangular version where a prong sticks out the top forming a more jagged look to the halo. This version has two prongs on each side of the stone near the top and near the bottom in such a fashion that you don''t really notice it and all you see are diamonds.

My girlfriend is petite and has small hands. One jeweler recommended 4/5 point diamonds. But I''m worried that may be too small. She said we could do 6/7 point diamonds but that may be too big. More than anything I''m worried about it being too small but does she have a very valid point?

For a 2ct Cushion Cut Sapphire what size round diamonds would be most appropriate for this type of halo. If I went to 6 or 7 point would they be too large and take away from the Sapphire?!

Thank you so much for your feedback!

 

[cindygenit]

As a halo lover and owner... I would say 5 pointers!

it would make your sapphire appear larger, and yet still be quite delicate because the diamonds are not too big.

I have the "dual prongs" as well on my halo, and you''re right, It shows off the diamonds nicely

 

[Gypsy]

WHOA.

5 pointers are BIG.

Um... which of these pictures is closer to the look you are trying to go for? In terms of size of halo to center ratio?

1. 2 carat sapphire 7.4mm 10 pointers in halo:

1.8 carat 6 x 8 sapphire in halo. Each stone is probably less than 1 point.

8.9mm x 7.1 mm x 4.6 mm, 2.47ct

.96 carats in diamonds... here's the setting: http://www.dimendscaasi.com/engagement/viewAll/pages/1-DTC104S.asp there are 96 diamonds in the setting so either they are all one pointers, or the stones around the stone 1.5 pointers, and the ones in the gallery (underneath the stone) are .5 and the shank has 1 pointers in them

 

[cindygenit]

Hi all,

Sorry for posting again but i have to agree with Gypsy that 5 pointers are huge... I must have got my carat weight confused... i would suggest getting 0.005 cts which is in fact 0.5 pointers. I like a very delicate halo. But since your stone is so big, a 1 pointer halo would be great.

Sorry for the mistake (and i''m an engineer

...long day)

 

[ChunkyCushionLover]

Date: 6/25/2009 1:42:36 AM
Author:ntpf
Hello! First post here, actually just found this excellent site! I know this forum is for diamond related questions only. Though this center stone is a Sapphire my question is in fact regarding the diamonds. I'm unsure if there is a better place to post this question. If so please let me know!

I've been talking to some jewelers about this ring and wanted to get your feedback. Of course it comes down to personal preference but I wanted your educated opinions. This ring is for my girlfriend as an engagement ring. Yes, Sapphire. She picked it out! We want a 2ct Cushion Cut Sapphire surrounded by a diamond halo. The halo has been a topic of discussion because there are different varieties. We like the kind where the surrounding diamonds are held in place by 2 prongs sandwiched between all the stones all the way around. I was told what it was called but can't for the life of me remember. Was it Dual Prong? It's not the triangular version where a prong sticks out the top forming a more jagged look to the halo. This version has two prongs on each side of the stone near the top and near the bottom in such a fashion that you don't really notice it and all you see are diamonds.

My girlfriend is petite and has small hands. One jeweler recommended 4/5 point diamonds. But I'm worried that may be too small. She said we could do 6/7 point diamonds but that may be too big. More than anything I'm worried about it being too small but does she have a very valid point?

For a 2ct Cushion Cut Sapphire what size round diamonds would be most appropriate for this type of halo. If I went to 6 or 7 point would they be too large and take away from the Sapphire?!

Thank you so much for your feedback!

That setting you like it called shared prong set and really has no relevance to the size of the diamonds in the halo.

Assuming your sapphire has a width of about 7 - 7.5mm 0.8 point diamonds (0.008 Ct) would be a very nice delicate halo around the sapphire. They would have a width of about 1mm So you would have 1mm diamond 7mm sapphire and 1mm diamond.

If you like really delicate you could go down to half pointers or as large as 2 pointers its a matter of taste. The most common melee size for delicate halos would be about 3/4 - 1 pointers and they look very nice especially for 2CT stones on women with smaller fingers.

Ask your jewler to show you different halos even if they are around diamonds or other stones so you can get a feel for the sizes.

If you meant 4 or 5 pointers those would be way too big and you'd have almost as much diamond width as the sapphire.

Think about looking across the stone 2.5mm Diamond 7mm Sapphire and 2.5mm Diamond thats a very different look and very bulky!

1 point round dimaonds are about 1.3mm wide.
5 pointers are 2.5mm wide.
7 pointers are 2.7mm wide

My GF also has small thin fingers and will be getting a 1.5CT cushion diamond (6.5 X 6.5) with a halo of 1 pointers but she likes delicate.

Edit: By the time I finished my message you already reposted

 

[Ellen]

I would go for 1 point or less, but I like delicate. Just enough to enhance the center.

 

[PinkTower]

Here is a CAD image of my 1.83 cushion sap. with half pointers for a halo. This looks bulky as it is just a CAD. The prongs will be claws. It is platinum, and I just wanted a bit of white to accent the blue, rather than calliing attention to the halo. Really, it is just personal preference. HTH. You might want to move over to colored stones if you need more opinion. There are experts on colored stones and diamond contrast over there!

 

[Catmom]

To give you another example, here is a 1.91ct cushion sapphire surrounded by a very delicate shared prong halo. I couldn''t tell you the size of the stones [less than 1 pointers for sure] but they are very small. You will need to decide just how big you want the halo to be. I would suggest going out to some B&Ms and looking at various halo rings. When you see a halo that you like then ask what size the stones are and go from there.

 

[ntpf]

Wow!! What great replies! First off thank you to everyone who took the time to respond. Your feedback has been very helpful!

The general consensus is for much smaller diamonds than I expected!! Your opinions are definitely noted, but it is possible I''m not out of my mind and maybe we in fact are going for a different look? Let me explain:

Based off your responses and the recommendation of this jeweler, I agree 6/7 pointers may be too big. But in fact she really likes the ability to clearly ''make out'' the diamonds around the stone. For the smaller diamonds it appears much of the halo is made up of the prongs holding the diamonds and she really liked the weight of the halo being more diamond than metal--which is also why the jeweler recommended that setting for the halo and my girflfriend really liked it (BTW, thanks ChunkyCushionLover, Shared Prong does sound familiar, I think that was it). We spoke to the jeweler together about this halo and when I came back alone I take it the jeweler must have been paying attention because she knew what we were going after, again mentioning that setting and then 5 pointers.

Gypsy, thank you for posting those pics. Out of all them we are actually going more for the look of the first picture than the last two. The first one has 10 pointers which are bigger than I wanted. But the other two are definitely smaller than the look we''re are going after and as you said are only 1 - 1.5 pointers. The jeweler I went to did show me different sized halos with various stones. We wanted something larger than the ring halo''s she showed us so she showed us some earrings with 8 pointers (I think) which we liked the way the diamonds stood out more. She suggested something between the two which is why I guess she said 5. My posting originally was to make sure we shouldn''t go on the higher end towards 8---but again, you guys replied with interested reactions!

So, you mention it''s a matter of taste. But the consensus it for smaller. Does that mean I''m wrong? Do you think going for the larger look for the halo would be a mistake. I''m talking 5 pointers now (not the 10 in that first picture, or the 6/7 I was thinking earlier, I think you made a point going the smaller end is better)

 

[chrono]

Date: 6/25/2009 9:45:59 AM
Author: Pink Tower
Here is a CAD image of my 1.83 cushion sap. with half pointers for a halo. This looks bulky as it is just a CAD. The prongs will be claws. It is platinum, and I just wanted a bit of white to accent the blue, rather than calliing attention to the halo. Really, it is just personal preference. HTH. You might want to move over to colored stones if you need more opinion. There are experts on colored stones and diamond contrast over there!

Pink,
I like the proportion of the diamonds in relation to the sapphire. Big enough to see the bling but not too big as to take the attention away from the sapphire.

 

[cindygenit]

Hi again ntpf!

It seems like you already know which one your gf is leaning towards. 5 pointers shold be great if you like that look. GOod luck with the proposal!

Cindy

 

[Gypsy]

You are absolutely NOT wrong. You like what you like. Your taste is never wrong. What you want is less of a halo and more of a cluster ring. Or maybe a balance between the two.

I'd lean toward 4-5-6 pointers. Plus I'm pretty sure that there's a price jump with melee above either 5 or 6 point (of course you need less of them).

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/show-me-your-sapphire-or-other-colored-stone-and-diamond-cluster-lady-di-ring.73656/ Are some examples.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.christies.com/lotfinderimages/d51090/d5109088l.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx%3FintObjectID%3D5109088&usg=__Y3_QJepv7aXLlu0xkDpMCoC64iI=&h=308&w=340&sz=60&hl=en&start=46&um=1&tbnid=OrmQsfjcZDw36M:&tbnh=108&tbnw=119&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsapphire%2Bcluster%2Bring%26ndsp%3D18%26hl%3Den%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:en-us%26sa%3DN%26start%3D36%26um%3D1

the reason smaller melee are favored here is the same reason dark boot cut jeans are. The look you are going for was very popular in the eighties and seventies. Now, delicate halos are in.

The look you want is very classic and lovely actually.

 

[ChunkyCushionLover]

Date: 6/25/2009 6:43:45 PM
Author: ntpf
Wow!! What great replies! First off thank you to everyone who took the time to respond. Your feedback has been very helpful!

The general consensus is for much smaller diamonds than I expected!! Your opinions are definitely noted, but it is possible I''m not out of my mind and maybe we in fact are going for a different look? Let me explain:

Based off your responses and the recommendation of this jeweler, I agree 6/7 pointers may be too big. But in fact she really likes the ability to clearly ''make out'' the diamonds around the stone. For the smaller diamonds it appears much of the halo is made up of the prongs holding the diamonds and she really liked the weight of the halo being more diamond than metal--which is also why the jeweler recommended that setting for the halo and my girflfriend really liked it (BTW, thanks ChunkyCushionLover, Shared Prong does sound familiar, I think that was it). We spoke to the jeweler together about this halo and when I came back alone I take it the jeweler must have been paying attention because she knew what we were going after, again mentioning that setting and then 5 pointers.

Gypsy, thank you for posting those pics. Out of all them we are actually going more for the look of the first picture than the last two. The first one has 10 pointers which are bigger than I wanted. But the other two are definitely smaller than the look we''re are going after and as you said are only 1 - 1.5 pointers. The jeweler I went to did show me different sized halos with various stones. We wanted something larger than the ring halo''s she showed us so she showed us some earrings with 8 pointers (I think) which we liked the way the diamonds stood out more. She suggested something between the two which is why I guess she said 5. My posting originally was to make sure we shouldn''t go on the higher end towards 8---but again, you guys replied with interested reactions!

So, you mention it''s a matter of taste. But the consensus it for smaller. Does that mean I''m wrong? Do you think going for the larger look for the halo would be a mistake. I''m talking 5 pointers now (not the 10 in that first picture, or the 6/7 I was thinking earlier, I think you made a point going the smaller end is better)

Your comment about seeing too much metal here is some advice. In shared prong set the beads are much larger than in just plain 4 prong set because they must be big enough to hold two stones in place. Although you have more prongs in regular 4 prong set you have a lot less metal in just regular 4 prong set pave as the beads can be much smaller. You might consider this type of pave for your halo/cluster as you will see less metal but this is a lot more important for the smaller halos than the larger one you are considering.

If you want to see an excellent example of delicate halos with minimal metal check out http://www.artofplatinum.com/start/enter.php his mushroom pave is very delicate and you see mostly diamonds.

Sorry I can''t give you a direct link as his search engine is down for maintenance tonight.

Keep in mind also that magnified pictures make the melee stones look much larger in proportion to the the centre stone than the actual ratio in real life.

 

[ntpf]

Thanks cindygenit & Gypsy! Just wanted to make sure I wasn''t making a mistake.

Gypsy, that first link you suggested blew my mind, I never even knew cluster rings were a sort of genre of their own. That makes me realize there''s absolutely nothing wrong with what we''re going after. Reading into that link I even hear the original poster discussing how she doesn''t want the ''smaller diamond'' (melee) she so often sees, that she wants bigger diamonds--just like my case.

That said, now I wonder again if I should go for the bigger ones!! hahaha. Perhaps it''s best to take the jewelers advice. If she was saying it simply for the money then why would she suggest the smaller one? Plus the band is nice and deserves some recognition (if the center stone with halo takes up a lot of real estate). The first two pics in that link were good samples of rings with a larger diamond halo, 10 pointers--plus her finger is 3 1/2 and my girlfriend''s is 4. The sapphire is 2.6ct and the ruby is 1.5ct so mine would be in between. Would a 10 pointer be roughly twice the size as 5? I imagine not but would they be close in size? Those 10''s are a little big for what we''re after.

ChunkCushionLover, just saw your post also! Thanks for the advice about settings. So in a halo you can have the diamonds set in 4-prong style? I thought there wouldn''t be enough space. I tried checking out your link but looks like the catalog is offline like you said. I look forward to checking it out later.

Thanks everyone!

 

[PinkTower]

ntfp,

Did you notice the pears on the first ring?
That ring is amazing, but it is the balance of the pears that makes it so pleasing to the eye, I think.
Without the fluid taper of the pears, the ring would look entirely different.

Chrono,
Thanks for your thoughts. Looking forward to hearing more about your ''project!'' How exciting!

Pink

 

[atroop711]

I would say 1 - 1.5 pointers.

 

[atroop711]

Date: 6/25/2009 9:45:59 AM
Author: Pink Tower
Here is a CAD image of my 1.83 cushion sap. with half pointers for a halo. This looks bulky as it is just a CAD. The prongs will be claws. It is platinum, and I just wanted a bit of white to accent the blue, rather than calliing attention to the halo. Really, it is just personal preference. HTH. You might want to move over to colored stones if you need more opinion. There are experts on colored stones and diamond contrast over there!

this is just GORGEOUS!!!!!