wondering about gemstone ering stats in your area

[historychick]

Hello all, I am sort of new here, and don''t find a lot of extra time for posting

but I was wondering how popular gemstone engagement rings are in your area. What different gems/styles do you usually see, what types of women do you see them on ie old, young, professional, artistic types ect.... I suppose I''m hoping for a demographic break down of how common gemstone erings are in various parts of the world and if there is a specific generation wearing them. I thought that this would be a fun and interesting topic, if a thread like this already exists then please excuse this. Thanks everyone!

 

[Elmorton]

Not many people I know have gemstone e-rings (Midwest - most often I see princess cut and round brilliant diamonds around 1 ct for e-rings) - which I think is the biggest appeal! My MIL has a dark blue sapphire e-ring that I'd guestimate is about a ct, maybe a touch smaller, and I also have a friend in her mid-late 20s that has a beautiful, huuuge cornflower blue sapphire e-ring in a classic tiffany setting. Another friend of mine is looking to "upgrade" her diamond e-ring to a big pink sapphire before the wedding - she's in her early 20s and loves big, bold jewlery. Honestly, I don't think gemstone e-ring wearers HAVE a demographic, but I would definitely say that the people I know who have them all wanted something different than a diamond engagement ring and sport beautiful, unique rings!
ETA: And the three women have very different styles (all of them are professionals). My MIL has sortof an Eddie Bauer/Coldwater Creek style (classic casual), my friend with the cornflower blue e-ring has a very classic "grad student" style, and my pink sapphire friend is extremely trendy - think straight leg jeans with designer flats and mini vests.

 

[Selkie]

Interesting question! I have a sapphire e-ring (with diamond sidestones) and never wanted anything else. I''m not against diamonds at all, and they are my birthstone, I just like the color blue a lot as well as the symbolism of the sapphire. I''m mid-30''s, work in the sciences. The only other person I know personally (i.e. not from Pricescope, because there are many here) with a sapphire or other gemstone engagement ring was my personal trainer last year. She had a haloed oval sapphire set east west with a pave band. Much bigger and blingier than my ring, but it fit her outgoing, young personality (she is mid-20''s).

I guess I don''t think there''s a particular demographic, I think everyone has their own reasons for choosing a gemstone for their ring.

 

[innerkitten]

I live in a city thats in some ways very non traditional (San Francisco). I don''t even see engagement rings on every married woman. My sister in law for instance only wears a wedding ring. But one of my best friends has an opal as her e-ring. It''s very beautiful but of course opals are easily damamged so she tends to just wear her gold wedding band most days and the opal a day or two a week.
And the other day I ran into an old friend who is newly engaged and her ring was a three stone ring with a sapphire center stone, very pretty. I think that was the first sapphire e-ring I''d seen in a while.
I''d say with my friends at least while some stick with traditional choices there are a lot that want something unusual or different.

 

[Pandora II]

I'm in UK and coloured e-rings are very popular here.

I'd say at least 50% have either coloured side-stones or a coloured centre-stone. Normally there will be some diamonds - melee or side-stones as well if the centre stone is coloured.

I have done 5 e-rings in the last 18 months:

1) 15ct rb with emerald pear side-stones
2) 1.42ct cushion cut tsavorite with diamond melee
3) 1.22ct oval tsavorite with diamond halo
4) 1.05ct rb with 0.40 tctw tapered baguettes

and 5) which I am about to start will 99% definitely be: 1.50ct EC blue sapphire with baguette sides.

so, 4 out of 5 are coloured.

Of those people, all are professionals and in their 30's. Careers include a hedgefund manager (the current one), a lawyer, a journalist, a politician, and a senior partner in a leading brand management company.

In my own family:

Grandmother - EC Emerald with rb diamond sides
Grandmother 2 - Sapphire with OMC diamonds
Mother - Oval sapphire with rb diamond sides
Sister - Oval sapphire with rb diamond sides

I wouldn't say that money or career had anything to do with the choice, it's more of a personal thing. I have noticed that most of men that propose with the ring go for only diamonds, whereas the fiancees of the men who propose without the ring are much more likely to go for a coloured stone.

It's definitely never a case of well, if I could afford it I'd have a 2ct diamond, but since I can't... It's very much an 'I prefer coloured stones' thing.

They Royal Family also often have coloured e-rings. Princess Diana had a sapphire and the Duchess of York has a ruby.

 

[vslover]

I''m in the Northeast and rarely see gemstone E-rings. I think they can be quite nice, though, but I''ve noticed a lot of unmarried (and not engaged) young women wearing birthstone rings, etc on their left ring fingers...so I think there''s a good possibility it wouldn''t necessarily be viewed as an e-ring...at least around here.

 

[Linda W]

We live in northern California and to be honest I only see diamond wedding rings. However, two of my girlfriends have beautiful sapphire wedding rings. I alternate my diamond wedding ring, with my Padparadscha ring. My Padparadscha ring receives more comments then my diamond ring. HA!!

Linda

 

[LtlFirecracker]

I live in Southern CA, colored stone rings are rare here, but I do see them mostly as side stones. Here are a few examples that come to my mind, all the women I would consider as professional

1) one girl has large blue centersone with colored size stones and plain wedding band
2) I know 2 women with 1 large center diamond with colored sidestones
3) My best friend (from southern CA but living up north) has a smaller center diamond with 2 green sapphires, there is a really nice story behind the colored stones
4) One of my friends has a diamond center with sapphire accents on the ring. She has a wedding band that alternates diamonds and sapphires


That is all I can think of

ETA: I am not sure how true this is, but I have herd at least one guy say he would only buy a diamond as a e-ring because "other guys know what that means." Just an observation of a single person...so I wouldn't generalize it to all guys.

 

[LostSapphire]

I received my original sapphire/diamond e-ring 21 years ago. In all those years, I think I might have seen 5 or 6 gemstone e-rings.

Funny, mine wasn't a stunning stone, or high-end setting, but I was constantly receiving comments about it. Maybe because a gemstone e-ring is unusual...

Since I lost it, DH has given me a 3-stone ring with a 2ct centre stone and .5 ct each sides....It is beautiful, but I hardly ever get comments about it.

The new (upgraded!!

) sapphire e-ring is in the works (thank you Jeff White). I can hardly wait to move the big door knocker to my right hand and get some blue bling back on my left hand!

ETA: I'm in Canada.

 

[historychick]

thanks for all of your postings, it seems that the only thing that gemstone ering owners have in common is that they think outside of the box, (and have good taste). Pandora, I am intrigued as to why gemstone rings are so popular in the UK. I have heard people say that the average ering there is usually smaller, more understated and usually includes gemstones...any ideas as to why that is. Is the obsession with bling a wholly American phenomenon?

 

[Selkie]

I''m not Pandora, but I have frequently heard that Princess Diana''s blue sapphire engagement ring from Charles started (or boosted) a trend for colored stone rings in the UK and elsewhere.

 

[pamplemousse]

I''m a graduate student in a pretty big city and of probably 20 or so married or engaged couples in my close circle of friends, at least five of us have gemstone e-rings. (All sapphires except for one aquamarine.) All of them except for one have some kind of diamond accent.. mostly pave/melee. Most of the gemstone e-rings I''ve seen are sort of traditional solitaire style, but I also have a friend who has a sapphire set in a band (accented with some pave) that she wore as an e-ring and now wears as her sole wedding band/e-ring combo.

My DF and I were fairly certain about doing a sapphire but once loose stone arrived via FedEx and we saw it in person we were DEFINITELY sold. They''re just so much more interesting than diamonds! No bias, of course..

I was convinced after seeing other friends'' rings and now that I have mine I couldn''t be happier.

I think there are so many options out there, you really can do whatever you want. We mounted our sapphire in a pave setting that is very similar to settings usually used for diamonds. I think it really shows off the stone and (while my friend''s sapphire band is gorgeous) I think it looks more like an "engagement" ring. Sort of going back to what someone was saying about "people know what that means." My stone is not a diamond, but I think the diamond accents sort of help people realize what it stands for.

 

[LostSapphire]

Date: 5/16/2008 12:33:33 PM
Author: pamplemousse
I''m a graduate student in a pretty big city and of probably 20 or so married or engaged couples in my close circle of friends, at least five of us have gemstone e-rings. (All sapphires except for one aquamarine.) All of them except for one have some kind of diamond accent.. mostly pave/melee. Most of the gemstone e-rings I''ve seen are sort of traditional solitaire style, but I also have a friend who has a sapphire set in a band (accented with some pave) that she wore as an e-ring and now wears as her sole wedding band/e-ring combo.

My DF and I were fairly certain about doing a sapphire but once loose stone arrived via FedEx and we saw it in person we were DEFINITELY sold. They''re just so much more interesting than diamonds! No bias, of course..

I was convinced after seeing other friends'' rings and now that I have mine I couldn''t be happier.

I think there are so many options out there, you really can do whatever you want. We mounted our sapphire in a pave setting that is very similar to settings usually used for diamonds. I think it really shows off the stone and (while my friend''s sapphire band is gorgeous) I think it looks more like an ''engagement'' ring. Sort of going back to what someone was saying about ''people know what that means.'' My stone is not a diamond, but I think the diamond accents sort of help people realize what it stands for.

Pamplemousse: I don''t believe I''ve ever seen pics of your ring after completion.....how about a few hand shots?

I remember seeing the stone but nothing since...or have I been in a fog?

 

[anemone]

I''ve only seen 1 here in the northeast since I started paying attention a couple of years ago. It was a 5carat+ Alexandrite in chunky 24K.

 

[marcy]

I live in the Rocky Mountain region and I only know one person who has sapphire accents for her ering. Everyone else I know has diamonds.

 

[jennalyns]

Interesting topic! I live in Miami, and I rarely see anything but diamonds- people here seem to go for even really teeny diamonds (less than .25) or cluster settings rather than colored stones. Also, most rings I see down here are yellow gold, not sure why. I have seen two or three FABULOUS GIANT ruby yellow gold rings on Cuban women in their 50''s or older, and they wear these rings with wedding bands on the left hand. I never really liked rubies until I saw this gorgeous YG ruby ring on an 88 y/o woman (she was talking to everyone around her, and laughing that we all thought she was in her sixties!) that completely made my jaw drop, it was the most classy, gorgeous thing I''ve ever seen! It was the most stunning red, and completely amazing. Other than that, though, most people seem to have diamonds down here. I only know one person IRL who has a non-diamond ering- she has a small (by PS standards) blue sapphire, about 6x4 mm, because she said she wanted to wear it surfing.

 

[pamplemousse]

Date: 5/16/2008 1:55:45 PM
Author: LostSapphire
Pamplemousse: I don''t believe I''ve ever seen pics of your ring after completion.....how about a few hand shots?


I remember seeing the stone but nothing since...or have I been in a fog?

threadjack/

No.. I haven''t posted handshots or anything yet. Sadly, I have no camera.

All I have is a crappy camera phone and (trust me, I''ve tried) the photos from said camera phone are woefully inadequate. But I should have access to a camera sometime this summer and I promise handshots ASAP. My ring is an oval stone in a setting that''s sort of an interpretation of this one and, if I do say so myself, it turned out beautifully. No bias.

Anyway.. I''ll post here and in SMTR when I can.

/threadjack

 

[Diamond*Dana]

I live in the midwest, and I do not know anyone that has a colored stone e-ring, and I have not seen any that I can recall (and I do notice at these things

).

 

[monarch64]

Midwest here as well, chicagoland to be exact, and I have actually never seen an e-ring with a color center stone, unfortunately. I spent maybe 4 months in Paducah, KY about 10 years ago and did see one or two gorgeous emerald centers, which I loved because I am a May baby and love emeralds! Most people who know me here on PS know that my dream RHR would be a 2 ct EC emerald set in platinum with some sort of sidestones.

 

[icekid]

I don''t know anyone IRL w/ a gemstone ering either. I love

my ring, but if I had it to do over again I would definitely consider something colorful and sparkly, with pave!

 

[FrekeChild]

I'm in the Southwest US, New Mexico to be exact.
I want a blue topaz engagement ring.
My friend has a solitaire black diamond.
Another friend has a princess pink sapphire with princess channel set and some diamond melee.
Those friends are the only ones I have that have engagement rings, and they are Sociology graduate students, so they are more socially aware of the diamond industry.

My mom didn't have an ering.
All of my older relatives-over 40-I'm the baby of the *generation*, have diamond erings.
Most girls I see walking around campus with wrings or wedding sets, have diamonds.

I read somewhere that 80% of the American public has a natural diamond engagement ring, while the other 20% doesn't have an ering, has a plain band or has a gemstone ring. I think that was from a academic article. Oh I'll just look it up: Fram, Eugene and Robert Baron. 2004. “Are Natural Diamond Engagement Ring Forever?” International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management Volume 32 Number 7

But I'm not entirely sure about those stats, it's been a while since I read it, so I could be wrong.

 

[jewelerman]

Historychick,
very interesting question.i am from a very conservative western state and i see few women with colored gem for an e-ring.I also found that the women interested in color are from europe or most likley are from the U.K...rubies and sappires.I think a ruby or a sapphire make a great e-ging...esprcially in an edwardian style ring.I like the saying at the bottom of your post Is the author Gordan B.Hinkley by chance?

 

[Gailey]

Hi Historychick

I''m new too!

My 15th wedding anniversary was this week. I have a yellow topaz, bezel set with a diamond halo. I am English (now living in Canada), and I am the same age as the Princess Diana would have been. Her halo was a tad bigger than mine!

I would agree that in UK, coloured gemstones are much more prevalent in engagement rings, than they would appear to be on this side of the pond. My first job after leaving school (in UK) was in a high end jewellery store. I would say that at that time, the most popular engagement rings were ruby and sapphire single stones with diamond side stones and diamond solitaires. Not sure which was of the two different styles was the most popular.

Here''s a picture - not a great one!

 

[Pandora II]

As a colour e-ring wearer, no one has ever thought that my ring wasn''t an e-ring. Whether that''s because its more normal here - or because I don''t wear any other jewellery I don''t know.

I was in Tiffany last Saturday in New Bond Street and they have a whole section on the e-ring floor just for coloured stone e-rings.

They had a 5ct Alex ($48k) that was one of the best I have ever seen. The SA even took it over to the window for me to see. He was one of the people who worked there because gems were a passion rather than it just being a sales job, so we had a really good chat and I got to try on loads of beautiful stones.

I doubt that have that big a selection of coloured ones in the USA.

When I was over last year, I was very suprised how many sales assistants commented on my ring and complimented it. None of them mistook it as a RHR.

Mine is not that big by PS standards - it''s 1.42ct. It is big by UK standards, but I have the coloured equivalent of DSS and have wished I''d held out for a bigger stone.

However, my chance of finding the right colour in the right shape and size was slim!

I don''t really know why there are more of them here than diamonds - maybe it''s because they are more understated? Or perhaps because we used to own India, Burma etc and so historically had a lot of access to colour stones? The crown jewels have a lot of colour in them. The coloured stones are real and owned by the crown - the ''diamonds'' are either rock crystal of hired in for ceremonies.

You certainly get more attention here for a coloured stone e-ring than you would for a diamond.

 

[Gailey]

Gemstones in British engagement rings, probably has something to do with history. Engagement rings are probably considered to be the most important piece of jewellery a lady can own. Elizabethan jewellery, for instance is predominantly gemstones, not diamonds. Queen Elizabeth 1st loved jewellery and gemstones have been highly valued ever since.

Not my area of expertise, but you might find this link interesting:

http://www.elizabethancostume.net/jewelry/index.html

 

[jewelerman]

VERY INTERESTING SITE!Thanks for posting.

 

[historychick]

Date: 5/17/2008 3:19:07 PM
Author: jewelerman
Historychick,
very interesting question.i am from a very conservative western state and i see few women with colored gem for an e-ring.I also found that the women interested in color are from europe or most likley are from the U.K...rubies and sappires.I think a ruby or a sapphire make a great e-ging...esprcially in an edwardian style ring.I like the saying at the bottom of your post Is the author Gordan B.Hinkley by chance?

Thanks jewlerman It''s good to know that I''m not the only one who wonders about random things like this...good eye my quote is indeed by G. B. I find him to be pretty quoteable

I''m assuming then that your conservative midwestern state is Utah?

 

[historychick]

Welcome Gailey

thanks for the article I love stuff like that (guess you couldn''t tell by my screen name) also I like the asscher in you avatar pic, what stone is it?


Pandora...size dosn''t matter your e-ring is deffinitly one of my favorites on this entire site! I think there is a lot to be said for understated beauty. A stone does not have to be the size of a golf ball to garner attention, as I''m sure yours does.

 

[jewelerman]

History chick,
Yes, I do currently live in the state of Utah,but am not a native of this state.I moved here because of the oppertunities in the jewelry trade.I also read books and magizine articles written by G.B.Hinkley and also find his work quotable.As seen in photos of him he wore onxy and diamond in his wedding ring while his wife wore a pear shaped white diamond.

 

[Pandora II]

Date: 5/19/2008 10:04:41 AM
Author: historychick
Welcome Gailey

thanks for the article I love stuff like that (guess you couldn''t tell by my screen name) also I like the asscher in you avatar pic, what stone is it?


Pandora...size dosn''t matter your e-ring is deffinitly one of my favorites on this entire site! I think there is a lot to be said for understated beauty. A stone does not have to be the size of a golf ball to garner attention, as I''m sure yours does.

Aww, thank you - I adore my ring, the real problem is I keep eyeing up tsavorites for a pendant and then thinking oh no, it''ll be bigger than my green baby and that won''t do! So then I start thinking I should have looked for a 3ct to start with...

Crazy I know...