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Shiny_Rock
- Joined
- Apr 28, 2003
- Messages
- 394
I apologize in advance for the very long story to follow. Please skip to the end for pics.
About one year ago, I started searching for a ring for my 20th anniversary in 2017. My original engagement ring was a 0.51ct Lazare diamond which I believe was the only branded ideal cut diamond available at that time. I upgraded a couple of times over the years to a 0.96ct Eightstar (I so regret selling this one), then a nearly 2.5ct MRB. Upgraded that to cushion cut that I love. Having a PSer for so long, I decided that for the 20th, I wanted an ideal cut MRB in my collection. I knew it would take a while to find because I was particular about certain aspects of the diamond. I ended up compromising on some but stood steadfast on others.
I contacted a vendor I worked with before but was told my specs were too narrow. I relented but ultimately could not find the right stone. Also, I was looking for a larger stone, so the selection was very limited within my search perimeter.
JA had a huge inventory, but there were a lot of duds to wade through. WF had a nice selection but most were smaller than I was looking for. BGD unfortunately was (I felt) a little pricey. I was interested in a CBI but was worried about going the custom route.
At the end of last year, I decided that I had to see some stones in person before I could make the purchase. I had been in contact with WF throughout and a couple of stones had come and gone, whilst others didn’t catch my eye. Still I knew a visit to them was in order if I wanted to see larger ideal cut stones. In particular, there was a stone that I thought fit the bill except the table was larger than I liked.
So in December, we flew to Houston where Becca showed us three stones, a 3, a 4 and a 5ct ACA.
My eye was on the 5ct but I wanted to try out a 3ct to see if it was more wearable. It was, but I had a couple of other stones that were larger, so DH encouraged me to go bigger. I pushed my luck a bit at this point and asked to see a 5.5ct ACA. I had not seriously considered this stone as it was over budget, bigger than I wanted to go, and also an LGF of 78% (I prefer fatter arrows, 75% would have been perfect) , but it had a smaller table which I’ve always loved.
I compared the two 5+ct stones and immediately saw a difference. One of the stones had a clearly brighter center to me, but DH thought they looked the same. My take is that ACAs are not all equal and that depending on individual, there is a preferred look, so I was very glad we were able to see some stones in person. We left WF that day, happy but undecided. As the WF visit was a side trip of a longer vacation, we had no time to ponder this purchase at that time.
Back home, things happened that were beyond our control and we were unable to make things happen in a timely manner and could not purchase from WF. At this point, DH suggested I look at colored stones as an alternative. I wasn’t too sad, as a blue sapphire was something I’d always wanted and proceeded to start my research when out of the blue
, DH tells me to go ahead and buy the ACA if I really wanted it. Does a girl need to be asked twice? I was so happy WF was able to work with us to make the purchase happen!
The setting is of course from the incomparable Caysie of CVB Inspired Design. When I saw msop03’s gorgeous modified Jovyn, I was smitten. Still, I was going to go with one of WF’s 6 prong setting for the fast turn around time when I saw mochiko post her ACA in the Jovyn. That was it! I immediately wrote to Caysie and ordered the Jovyn.
It took a while, but the ring has finally reached me and I am thrilled with both the stone and setting.
Again, I apologize for the length of this post. Thank you for reading if you made it this far.
About one year ago, I started searching for a ring for my 20th anniversary in 2017. My original engagement ring was a 0.51ct Lazare diamond which I believe was the only branded ideal cut diamond available at that time. I upgraded a couple of times over the years to a 0.96ct Eightstar (I so regret selling this one), then a nearly 2.5ct MRB. Upgraded that to cushion cut that I love. Having a PSer for so long, I decided that for the 20th, I wanted an ideal cut MRB in my collection. I knew it would take a while to find because I was particular about certain aspects of the diamond. I ended up compromising on some but stood steadfast on others.
I contacted a vendor I worked with before but was told my specs were too narrow. I relented but ultimately could not find the right stone. Also, I was looking for a larger stone, so the selection was very limited within my search perimeter.
JA had a huge inventory, but there were a lot of duds to wade through. WF had a nice selection but most were smaller than I was looking for. BGD unfortunately was (I felt) a little pricey. I was interested in a CBI but was worried about going the custom route.
At the end of last year, I decided that I had to see some stones in person before I could make the purchase. I had been in contact with WF throughout and a couple of stones had come and gone, whilst others didn’t catch my eye. Still I knew a visit to them was in order if I wanted to see larger ideal cut stones. In particular, there was a stone that I thought fit the bill except the table was larger than I liked.
So in December, we flew to Houston where Becca showed us three stones, a 3, a 4 and a 5ct ACA.
My eye was on the 5ct but I wanted to try out a 3ct to see if it was more wearable. It was, but I had a couple of other stones that were larger, so DH encouraged me to go bigger. I pushed my luck a bit at this point and asked to see a 5.5ct ACA. I had not seriously considered this stone as it was over budget, bigger than I wanted to go, and also an LGF of 78% (I prefer fatter arrows, 75% would have been perfect) , but it had a smaller table which I’ve always loved.
I compared the two 5+ct stones and immediately saw a difference. One of the stones had a clearly brighter center to me, but DH thought they looked the same. My take is that ACAs are not all equal and that depending on individual, there is a preferred look, so I was very glad we were able to see some stones in person. We left WF that day, happy but undecided. As the WF visit was a side trip of a longer vacation, we had no time to ponder this purchase at that time.
Back home, things happened that were beyond our control and we were unable to make things happen in a timely manner and could not purchase from WF. At this point, DH suggested I look at colored stones as an alternative. I wasn’t too sad, as a blue sapphire was something I’d always wanted and proceeded to start my research when out of the blue
, DH tells me to go ahead and buy the ACA if I really wanted it. Does a girl need to be asked twice? I was so happy WF was able to work with us to make the purchase happen!The setting is of course from the incomparable Caysie of CVB Inspired Design. When I saw msop03’s gorgeous modified Jovyn, I was smitten. Still, I was going to go with one of WF’s 6 prong setting for the fast turn around time when I saw mochiko post her ACA in the Jovyn. That was it! I immediately wrote to Caysie and ordered the Jovyn.
It took a while, but the ring has finally reached me and I am thrilled with both the stone and setting.
Again, I apologize for the length of this post. Thank you for reading if you made it this far.
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