#JOTW Tacori Engagement Ring Upgrade!

[tmot14]

Hi everyone! I mostly lurk, but posted recently about my search for a center stone for my engagement ring upgrade. We were students when we got married and always intended to upgrade my teeny department store ring after 5 years. The upgrade got pushed back nearly a year since we just had a baby girl this summer .

The finished product arrived from WF today, and I absolutely love it! Perfect size center stone and setting. I'm definitely seeing the yellow in the I stone, and may decide to swap it out for a higher color, but other than that it's perfect.

The center stone is 1.513 carat, AGS ideal cut, I color, VS2 (eyeclean).






Thank you so much to those who chimed in, and to those who contribute to this forum--I've learned so much from you all. I sense a dangerous habit forming! Now to shop for the wedding bands.

 

[tmot14]

Quite the upgrade, eh?

 

[kathley]

I love that style of Tacori and your stone looks beautiful in it! A great upgrade for sure

 

[Tourmaline]

So pretty!

 

[Acinom]

Congrats with this beautiful upgrade. I love the halo with plain shank and the profile is really special.

 

[laylah]

WOW - you don't kid around! Beautiful upgrade - gorgeous

 

[tyty333]

Its gorgeous! It was worth the wait!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Now that is quite an upgrade! Gorgeous ring! Now you can save the original to give to your daughter someday!

 

[derbygal]

I love it!

 

[Travelgal]

What an awesome upgrade. Beautiful!

 

[arkieb1]

Beautiful ring, congrats on your upgrade!!!

 

[motownmama]

VERY cool setting!!

 

[Asscherhalo_lover]

That's one heck of an upgrade! I'm sorry the color troubles you but it shouldn't be too hard to upgrade again

 

[Calliecake]

So pretty, and talk about finger coverage!

 

[marcy]

Very pretty!

 

[evil_unicorn]

What an upgrade! It's beautiful!!

 

[vintageinjune]

Beautifully crafted, such a combination of "holy upgrade!" and "Wow that is sooooo pretty!". Perfect!

 

[tmot14]

Thanks, everyone! Here are some more pics since I can't quit gawking at it. I'm still surprised at how yellow the "I" looks...perhaps since the halo is made of G stones? WF folks assured me you wouldn't be able to tell, but I definitely can. Would moving up to a G for the center stone really be that much of a difference? I've tried to capture the yellow tint I'm seeing (it's only in some lighting, but for the amount of $$ this ring has cost us, I want it to be as close to "perfect" as possible).



In other lighting, it looks fantastic like this:


Either way, it is such a gorgeous ring and I am so grateful for the upgrade!

 

[Ally T]

Oh God, I absolutely LOVE this! The halo is so well shaped & scalloped around the diamonds - its very delicate & flower like! Love it!

I think if the colour bothers you, I would upgrade the Centre if your funds allow. I had a beautiful ring many, many years ago that had a slightly tinted diamond in the melee, which were tiny, but it bothered me incredibly. I am very colour sensitive though, so it would be personal choice. If its bothering you already then its probably not going to go away

And huge congratulations on the new baby too!

 

[motownmama]

Where it does show in some of your pics, I'm loving the slight contrast between the center and the halo.

 

[distracts]

I'm not sure how much of the yellow you are seeing is due to the diamond's color and how much of it is due to reflecting the environment... all the pics you posted look to have very warm lighting and surroundings. Even my whitest diamonds look significantly less-white in warmly colored or warmly lit rooms, especially in comparison to smaller stones that don't reflect as much of the environment. I mean, I'm not sure, but it looks like it could be happening. The yellow I see in the first set of pictures looks like the diamond's color, but in the pictures with the couch and whatnot it looks like probably reflections of color.

 

[apacherose]

Oh so beautiful! Congratulations!!!

 

[tmot14]

I do really love the setting--it's so delicate, has wonderful finger coverage, and is in keeping with the floral theme of my original engagement ring. I'm thinking of having a pendant made from the original to give to my daughter when she's older .

Distracts, I do think the yellow is from the diamond. I noticed it in the professional photos from WF but hoped it would look better in person. I cropped out the logos from these since I think that's PS policy?



Either way, I can't stop taking photos of it, so here are a few more with baby feet!



I am working with the folks at WF to see if they can find a G or higher stone with comparable specs, but I am not finding much even if I increase my budget by $3k. Brian Gavin has a few that look great, but I'd hate to return this ring just to have another vendor remake the setting again.

Sooooo who wants to help me go diamond hunting again? Should I start another thread? Decisions, decisions!

 

[thecat]

I think your ring is lovely. But swap the diamond out if you aren't happy with it before the return/exchange period expires. Can you return the setting? I thought customised settings aren't refundable.

 

[Madison2]

This ring is gorgeous! Love the setting!
I can see some yellow in the center stone, are you color sensitive? I know I am color sensitive so I went with a H color and mine is very white. See if you can swipe out the I stone for H or G and I think you will be happier. Remember you will be staring at your ring on your finger and it it bothers you now it will always bother you. So why not exchange center stone now before it gets more expensive to upgrade later on.

Good Luck!

 

[dawnxcui]

Sooooo who wants to help me go diamond hunting again? Should I start another thread? Decisions, decisions!

It really sounds like the yellow tint in the diamond is bothering you from the number of times you've mentioned it.
unless you're getting another upgrade sometime soon, I'd suggest you start a new thread in rockytalk and see what the experts there can find for you.
if this is going to be your forever diamond, you'd want to be happy with it and not get bothered by the tint every time you look at it.
i LOVE your setting, it is absolutely gorgeous.

 

[tmot14]

Thanks again for all of your kind comments! I wore the ring to the dentist today and without my even bringing it up, she commented on how gorgeous it was and couldn't stop gushing over it. She actually asked me to turn it around during a dental procedure since it was too distracting!

Can you return the setting? I thought customised settings aren't refundable.

Thankfully the setting is returnable within 30 days as well. Tacori fit the halo to each stone, but it was not considered a custom setting.

You're all right--the color obviously bothers me, and it is wisest to switch it sooner rather than later. I had a look on the major vendor's websites (WF, Brian Gavin, GOG), and couldn't find exactly what I was looking for within my budget. I posted a thread in Rocky Talk about my search here:
[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/switching-out-my-center-stone-is-this-the-closest-match.206898/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/switching-out-my-center-stone-is-this-the-closest-match.206898/[/URL]

 

[luv2sparkle]

I remember noticing the color difference between my eternity and my erring when I first got it. After a very short time, I couldn't see the difference anymore. I think with WF you will always be able to trade up for a higher color, so maybe you don't have to be in a big hurry. A 1.5 carat is a very popular size upgrade so you really shouldn't have a great deal of trouble finding one when you are ready. I have had an I and J color stone and both are lovely in my opinion. Your ring is beautiful! I hope you enjoy it and get the color thing sorted out!

 

[apacherose]

I love the footsie photo! You ring is just beautiful. I can see the color in some of your shots, it is still beautiful to my eye. Just a lovely, lovely ring. I think the diamond is gorgeous. Good luck on your search.

 

[tmot14]

Update! I decided to switch out the center stone for one with a higher color within my return period, and could not be more happy with the results. It was $3,400 more for a slightly smaller stone, but wow is it gorgeous and visually, performs so much better than the last diamond. It is a 1.354ct, F color, VS1 (eyeclean) Whiteflash Expert Selection. I was slightly disappointed that I didn't jump that mental >1.5 ct hurdle, but couldn't justify spending ~$7k more for a negligible size difference. And I've decided to go with a very simple band, so I can now buy myself some IDJ jackets and citrine studs (you are all a bad influence!!). I'm also setting the original engagement ring into a pendant.

Ok, enough blabbering. Here are some photographs: