What would you choose? (engagement ring question)

[Jelly]

What would you choose? A nice diamond on a solitaire setting? Or a smaller stone with a fancy setting (with lots of bling)?

I''m shopping for an engagement ring, but on a limited budget (of course). I fell in love with a setting which will take up more than half my budget. What would you do?

 

[sjz]

I would go for the nice stone in the solitaire setting. If you use over half of your budget on the setting alone, that will seriously limit the size and quality of the diamond. Besides, my thought is that the majority of your investement should be on the stone. Setting styles go in and out of fashion, and most people end up changing the setting down the road, anyway.

If the setting is something that you really love, though...consider this option...buy the blingy setting now, and instead of buying a small or inferior quality diamond to put in it, put in a nice colored gemstone. Later on, if you want, you can upgrade the gemstone with a nice diamond if you have the money.

Of course, it would be helpful if you could give some indication of what your budget is, and what kind of diamond and setting it is that you are looking at. There are some very savvy shoppers on this forum that might be able to hook you up with BOTH the nice diamond and a nice blingy setting that you would fall in love with.

 

[kenny]

Buy the best stone you can and put it in the simplest setting.

In fact if my budget was a million bucks I''d still go for the most simple setting.
It will never go out of style.
Its job is to hold the most beautiful diamond you can get.

That''s my opinion.

 

[Jelly]

Being that I''m a public school teacher and my fiance is a graduate student, our budget isn''t very big. We''re also trying to plan an inexpensive wedding for sometime next year. He''s looking at spending less than $4000 for the e-ring.

I already own my own house, but he has student loans, etc.

With this budget, what would you suggest?

Stephanie

 

[flower12]

jelly

I would chose that A nice diamond on a solitaire setting.
because you might be up grade more bigger in the future.

 

[Bev]

Hi Jelly,

I would definitely get a nice stone in a solitaire setting. It would allow you to get a better quality diamond. Also, a smaller stone in a setting with lots of bling could very well take away from the stone itself. My first e-ring was a 1 carat RB in a classic tiffany setting, accompanied with a diamond channel set wedding band. It''s classic and beautiful - you really can''t go wrong with that combo.

Good luck with your search!

 

[MrsFrk]

Solitaire, definitely. Later on, you could put the stone in a more ornate setting. Or create a 3 stone. Or get some eternity bands to flank the solitaire. So many options. I love the look of a classic solitaire and wedding band, it is timeless.

 

[pyramid]

I would put the money in the diamond too. However, on this forum you will find that most people would, I think outside in the real world a lot of people would go for the setting because that is a lot of the look and in the UK anyway most people do not upgrade their diamond or setting unless the setting wears out.

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 7/25/2005 11:43:53 PM
Author: kenny
Buy the best stone you can and put it in the simplest setting.

In fact if my budget was a million bucks I''d still go for the most simple setting.
It will never go out of style.
Its job is to hold the most beautiful diamond you can get.

That''s my opinion.

Mine too Kenny - you said it beautifully!

You can always change the setting later if you wish. Good luck!

 

[valeria101]

First I''d try to see if the tradeoff is necesary... settings are easy to substitute (some are really overpriced and the vast majority not at all ''unique'') and you might find out that a larger diamon of lower grades would do just fine.

In the end, ading some to the diamond buget may not make allot of difference given how fast the cost of these things rises with weight.

You will wear the ring, not a diamond hung on a string after all.

Without knowing what the choices are (what stone and ring are considered), I do not have a general rule of thumb for the choice.

Just some 0.2 worth, as usual.

 

[valeria101]

I have looked over your other threads to get the details: approx 4k total ring cost and the mention of a tempting setting from a local jeweler described as "antique style engagement setting in white gold with diamonds and with rose gold in the four corners of the head with pink diamonds".

I would guess the setting is about 2k - a number that gives some choices. One thing about these intricate settings is that... well, the fashion changes and it is hard to tell if in a short time you will not find something you like allot better. Just for fun, take a look at antiqueengagementrings.com and their settings, and those listed for the sapphires at thenaturalsapphirecompany.com.

Given the price, I would guess the pink diamonds are either very small or faintly colored (hard to tell if set in pink gold - even white ones would look pink set like that!), so I would not consider their presence as a strong argument in favor of the ring.

But... I have not seen the setting, let alone like it. This really is your choice.


Your other question ('what to get for 4k') fits pretty well here. How about a 6mm (about .9cts) round in a solitaire with pink accents ? Such as this and this (assuming pink 'surprize' diamonds or sapphires in the setting). Mark Morell did a ring along these lines - the setting is different, but the pinks are there to make an example:

This, to show that solitaires do not have to be dull, cold and featureless...

 

[Lorelei]

I always love your posts Valeria - they are always so informative and well presented. You really go that extra mile to help and do a great job!

 

[Regular Guy]

Jelly,

I agree with Lorelei that Ana puts together well constructed suggestions, and you may do well to follow her''s out.

Otherwise, as you say:

I fell in love with a setting which will take up more than half my budget. What would you do?

I simply have to note that it''s just not that often that you fall in love. Unless you''ve already been convinced to look elsewhere, you may well consider keeping the setting you''ve found, and going with something like (btw, did you have rounds in mind?) a .7 H or I VS1 or VS2. Using the search by cut database here, a couple of these come forward, one of which is this one, for example.

Anyway, such a choice seems reasonable to me.

With best wishes,

 

[ko]

Hi Jelly, for $4000 you can get a very nice ring

I agree with what''s been said here, a simple solitaire is timeless and the diamond is sure to stand out.
Good luck!

 

[valeria101]

Thank you, guys !

my pleasure...


and two diamonds:

0.87cts I-Si1 (AGS) and 0.93cts I-VS2

Both are not AGS0 but check the HCA scoring if you care for that. The .93 comes out HCA 1.1 (FIC)... and I can easily remember a few waves of fruitless inquiries for one like these.

 

[MissAva]

I would choose the larger diamond, or perhaps better quality diamond with a more simple setting. You may even want to go gold instead of platnium.

 

[JCJD]

Date: 7/25/2005 10:57:24 PM
Author:Jelly
What would you choose? A nice diamond on a solitaire setting? Or a smaller stone with a fancy setting (with lots of bling)?


I''m shopping for an engagement ring, but on a limited budget (of course). I fell in love with a setting which will take up more than half my budget. What would you do?

What do YOU want? You are the one who will be wearing the ring, not us. You could go several routes, depending on what YOU are comfortable with.

1. You''re most sentimental about the diamond - you should get the diamond you want for the rest of your life and a simple setting. Then upgrade the setting when you have the means to do so.

2. You''re most sentimental about the ring (setting) - get the setting you love with a diamond that fits your budget and upgrade the stone when you have the means.

3. You want a big rock now - get the setting you love with a simulant in the size you want your diamond to be in and get the diamond when you have the means.

4. Pick your own route and be happy about your decision!!

Let''s say you''re looking at a $2500 setting, leaving up to $1500 for the stone (assuming setting the diamond is included in the setting''s price, etc). Let''s look at a H&A RB in the F-H, VS2-SI2 range in your budget...

Here''s a nice one! 0.515, G, SI1, 61.2%, 55%, AGS, girdle thn-med f, culet pt, sym id, pol id, neg fluor, 5.17-5.21x3.17, $1475 from Whiteflash HERE.

You could expand your criteria to find a bigger diamond and search for H&A in G-J color...

0.57, J, VS2, 63%, 55%, AGS, thn-s thk, ex, ex, 5.31x5.33-3.3, $1409 from Abazias.

Good luck with your decision, I hope that helps!

 

[Jelly]

Thanks for all your advice. I''m having a great time looking at beautiful diamonds at Whiteflash! Wow!

Stephanie

 

[jellybean]

hey Jelly! (like your name!

)

I was in that exact situation and I chose the solitaire with the bigger stone. I am so indecisive that I would probably want to change the setting in a couple of months anyway!

 

[Jelly]

Jellybean,

Hi! I didn''t know there was another "jelly" around here. My dog, a poodle/schnauzer mix is named Jelly, hence my name here.

Stephanie

 

[VuittonGal]

I would definitely choose the nice solitaire. You can always upgrade the setting at a later date.

 

[ame]

Good diamond in a solitaire. I like simple first off but you can always change the setting. Why not start with a great stone?

 

[jellybean]

Date: 7/29/2005 3:59:16 AM
Author: Jelly
Jellybean,

Hi! I didn''t know there was another ''jelly'' around here. My dog, a poodle/schnauzer mix is named Jelly, hence my name here.

Stephanie

"Jellybean" is my daughter''s nickname.

I have a niece named Stephanie too. Too funny!

 

[fire&ice]

The stone will last forever. The setting can be temporary.

 

[moremoremore]

I would set the nicest stone I could find in a hunk of silver LOL..kidding of course...but it''s about the stone to me. It''s so hard to upgrade...if you even wanted to...if this is *it*, it''s easy to change a setting down the road...it could be a fun project!