Any diamond / ring experts out there?

[Drippingwithdiamonds]

Help me!
I'm replacing my wedding and engagement ring with one single ring.

I went to a lovely studio today ( they are quite big and long-established) and had a quote for a bespoke ring.

TBH I feel it's expensive. But my real problem is that I cannot compare with other places like Tiffany because she quoted me the stone sizes in millimetres, not points/carats.

The quote was for 7 stones- 3 x 1.5 mm brilliant cut, and 4 x 1.5 mm baguettes, all high quality, set like an eternity ring in 18ct gold. Cost was around £2.5K.

I've emailed to ask for carat weight/size so I can compare with other brands.

Can anyone help or say whether this sounds expensive? I'm thinking of going back for another design session and seeing what single stone I could get for that price.

Shorter, it really depends on the amount of white metal that was added to the gold to colour it. (Usually palladium or nickel).

White gold can have a pinkish, yellowish or brown tone to it when the plating is wearing off, it's totally normal.

Shouldn't be 'very yellow' though..... is it very old, maybe tarnish adding to the colouration?

I don't think a 1.5 mm width diamond is 0.05 carats, I think it is 0.015 carats.

Can someone who knows what they are talking about please confirm this one way or another.

If I am right about the carat size then the Tiffany ring is looking a better buy.

H colour is ok, ( better in yellow gold than white) but SI clarity may effect their sparkly'ness. You wouldn't be able to see any inclusions but they can 'dull' the diamond.

Are you sure the ring you were quoted for is made from scratch and they are not using premade settings?

You must have lovely delicate fingers to be able to wear an H size ring. I have hands like a builders . Have you considered an antique ring, it's not unusual for them to be a very small, and you may be able to get something quite special for that amount of money.

The carat part is down to mass, so it could be a 1.5 mm wide but deep cut diamond. It's possible.

drippingwithdiamonds. That looks like a lovely ring.

I think if it's described as a brilliant cut diamond it should conform to a reasonably strict set of dimensions otherwise it won't be very 'brilliant'. There are other 'round' diamond cuts but I think they are much more unusual and most often found in old jewellery.

I actually like old Cut diamonds. Preferably huge ones a girl can dream

This looks good value for a full band of better grade diamonds......and I bet you could get either a better price or bigger diamonds as your ring size is so small.

<a class="break-all" href="http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?um=1&hl=en&client=firefox-a&sa=N&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&biw=1920&bih=1009&tbm=isch&tbnid=k95RTszHcT1-aM:&imgrefurl=www.humphreybutler.com/shop/edwardian-diamond-and-sapphire-target-cluster-ring/&docid=L7RanpP-M87UGM&imgurl=www.humphreybutler.com/shop/images/1192/SN2942.jpg&w=950&h=950&ei=UT0HUKuGOoSf0QWrtPXCDQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=190&vpy=145&dur=1704&hovh=225&hovw=225&tx=133&ty=118&sig=108565776429953037501&page=1&tbnh=156&tbnw=164&start=0&ndsp=45&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0,i:73" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">mine cut

This is what I have Leander, you might appreciate. It's a really flat cut but it's very sparkly!

That is beautiful, what a stunner.

I find with the old cuts you can see the diamond more than when they are a brilliant cut, and with the right stone they can be fantastically fiery and sparkly. I am not sure I am explaining that very well but I hope you see what I mean.

I love Asscher cuts too.

I know exactly what you mean. They also look more like what I would expect a diamond to look like if that makes any sense!

Asscher cut is so classy. The things I'd do for an Asscher cut emerald are unprintable!

The main thing with diamonds is to keep them clean. People spend loads of money on them worrying about their 'C's but even the best diamonds are not going to sing unless they are clean. It's the one bit of housework I do without complaining.

Looking at diamonds is like porn for me. I just love them. The bigger and sparkler the better. Sad but true .

I splashed out on an ultrasonic bath (for the business cough cough)

Never had stones so sparkly ever in my entire life. I might love it more than I love my Dyson.

Sacrilege!

My family think I love my diamonds more than I love them. It's not true but it's close

I use a sonic cleaner too. They are great.

Note to self. Must remember to clean jewellery tomorrow

I've made my dd some jewellery ( and found some amazing bits of victorian children's jewellery) that she dresses up with and can have as an investment when she's older.

She's 2.5 but very gentle with jewellery, whether it's plastic or not! I've trained her well

Haven't got a pot to piss in mind you but we have lovely jewellery between us lol

My DD is 15 and wears plastic smiley faces in her ears. . My years of training have not paid off.

My current ring is 3 x 3mm stones- and I was told when we bought it that these were 10 points each ( tenth of a carat).

I worked out therefore that a 1.5mm stone was half of that .05

No?

I'm not an expert, but I don't think that's how it works. I had a ring of my grandmother's valued when she died and the valuer said you had to take into account all of the diamond, in 3d if you like, not just the parts that met the eye.

Thinking about what others have said about antique rings why don't you give Christie's South Ken a ring and see when their next jewellery sale will be - you can place a bid over the phone and you might get something fab for closer to trade than retail price.

Sorry to hijack Dripping

On the Domino site one the 'Flow' bit - the second ring is gorgeous; does it have a name for that type of ring ......so I can look for one?

I'm a bit silly superstitious about rings- I wouldn't want to wear someone else's :(

I think it's very personal.

Whatever you do, don't go to Tiffany to buy a ring - the mark up is INCREDIBLE. You're basically paying for the branding and the name.

I recently had an eternity ring made to a much higher spec than the Tifffany equivalent, and it was a quarter of the price. Diamonds btw should be quoted in carats plus their colour and clarity, measurements alone just are not enough. Ideally you'd want to know the type of cut as well, even for small diamonds.

Don't be fobbed off and keep asking until you get the answers you require.
(ex-Tiffany employee here..)

Thanks!

I knew the cut- brilliant and baguette.

You will find info about diamond width and carat here

The cost of .015 diamonds is relatively low, although, I imagine that the baguette cut stones would be a bit more depending on their quality.

I Am not sure you are getting a good deal with the ring that you have been quoted. It is a gorgeous and beautiful style ring, but not one that is a complicated design. I wonder if you are paying over the odds for the whole 'designer' spiel. This is absolutely ok - if that is what you want to do. Buying something with such sentimental importance is personal and is meant to be enjoyable. However, diamonds and precious metals are rare in that they are both commodity products and luxury products and I, personally, am too mean wouldn't want to pay over the odds.

The fact that the jeweller is not too forth coming with the details of the damonds would also bug me a little. Some of the large retailers do this because the grade of their diamonds is quite low. They will state somewhere In the small print that all their diamonds are such and such Very low quality. There is nothing wrong with doing this but whatever their size there is a huge difference in the sparkly'ness of diamonds of different qualities.

I would also not want to buy 'enhanced' diamonds which are commonly sold on shopping channels and similar big stores. I don't know if small diamonds are enhanced but I would check if I were you. Wikipedia -Diamond Enhancement

Diamonds buying is quite personal and you need to work out what you do and do not like. I am happy to drop down on colour for a larger stone with better clarity and I also like an 'excellent' rated cut. Other people value colour more.

By the way not all platinum is rhodium plated, I have a ring and necklace which have not been plated. I don't even bother getting the ring buffed very often as I like the finish how it is.

Finally, I would like to add that if you are happy with the jewellers that you have got your quote from and, if you love the ring there is nothing wrong with using them if that is what you want to do. You may be paying a bit more but if it's worth it for an easy and stress free purchase then there is nothing wrong with doing it. Personally, I love the thrill of the chase when I buy diamonds and am happy to do hours of research and travel all over the place but that is because I genuinely enjoy it. Each to their own and all that.

I would look on line particularly for the jewellery quarter in Birmingham. I cannot remember the name of where my ring was bought, but it has 7 brilliant cut stones making .85 of a carat they are colour E/F and clarity VVS2
and are set in 18 carat gold. It cost less than you have been quoted and it was only 4 years ago

None of my business but have you considered avoiding blood diamonds? Places to try: www.ingleandrhode.co.uk/ethical-diamonds-gemstones and www.aprildoubleday.com/.