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Advice Re: ruby earrings

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AlexS_NYC

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 18, 2021
Messages
10
Hi I am new to the forum. Sorry if this has been posted in the wrong section, I can't seem to figure out how to move it to Colored Gemstones.

I am trying to gather information for an upcoming purchase. My anniversary is coming up in December and I wanted to buy my wife ruby earrings because we had a son this year in July and that is his birthstone. I know I want round cut rubies. I know I want something that is of sufficient quality to become a keepsake that we pass down when we are old and gray.

As such, I have two questions:
1. What is a reasonable carat weight for the earrings? I was thinking around 1.5 tcw would be appropriate, as she wears a diamond pendant that is 1.07ct and her engagement ring which is 1.7ct, so I want the earrings to be proportional.

2. What is an appropriate budget, given your opinion on point 1, to get something that is of quite high quality. I do not want to spend on cheap rubies... I want something that is really special (as it is an expression of my emotions for my wife upon the birth of our son and the anniversary of our marriage). I am open to hearing what factors I should consider and what I should reasonably expect to spend given those relevant factors.

Again, I am here for an education, so please let me know if there are factors that I really am not considering that need to be on my radar.

Any and all advice is welcome and appreciated!
 
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Rubies of decent size and heirloom quality are fabulously rare and expensive - are you thinking you want solitaires, or could it be a conglomerate of smaller stones?
 
Perhaps I misspoke... I just meant I wanted the earrings to be heirlooms when we are old and gray. I did not realize it was a term of art. I will edit the original post.
 
OK! That probably makes the budget less eye-watering :P

The gem world is full of words with convoluted meanings used for marketing. I'll look around and see if I can find anything. Are you wanting natural rubies, or lab?
 
I would think natural rubies are more special. Something doesn't feel right about lab grown... But because I am so ignorant on budget maybe I need to consider lab grown rubies. Can I say that I have a strong preference for natural rubies but reserve the right to walk that back? I understand from other posts that I am spending at least a few thousand dollars... But I don't really know what a reasonable budget is given that most of my shopping up to this point has been through retailers that have poor reviews on this forum (see, e.g., natural ruby company)... Which is why I am here seeking guidance and tutelage.
 
AlexS_NYC said:
I would think natural rubies are more special. Something doesn't feel right about lab grown... But because I am so ignorant on budget maybe I need to consider lab grown rubies. Can I say that I have a strong preference for natural rubies but reserve the right to walk that back? I understand from other posts that I am spending at least a few thousand dollars... But I don't really know what a reasonable budget is given that most of my shopping up to this point has been through retailers that have poor reviews on this forum (see, e.g., natural ruby company)... Which is why I am here seeking guidance and tutelage.
Click to expand...

Let me ask a couple local jewelers here that I trust. I'll let you know what they say
 
AlexS_NYC said:
Thank you so much!... I would like solitaires if that wasn't clear. Sorry for late reply.
Click to expand...

@AlexS_NYC The local jeweler I trust just told me she has a pair of round rubies in her vault. She told me she'll get more info tomorrow when she's in studio
 
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AlexS_NYC said:
I would think natural rubies are more special. Something doesn't feel right about lab grown... But because I am so ignorant on budget maybe I need to consider lab grown rubies. Can I say that I have a strong preference for natural rubies but reserve the right to walk that back? I understand from other posts that I am spending at least a few thousand dollars... But I don't really know what a reasonable budget is given that most of my shopping up to this point has been through retailers that have poor reviews on this forum (see, e.g., natural ruby company)... Which is why I am here seeking guidance and tutelage.
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this is such a lovelly idea
i look forward to seeing what you get here
 
Rubies are more dense than diamonds so for carat weight they are smaller.
A .75 ruby will be closer in visual size to a .60 diamond.
The most common shape for rubies in oval, as it suits the natural crystal shape, however sometimes the face up size is smaller for the weight as there is “more gem” under the girdle than say with a Round Brilliant shape. So watch the mm dimensions as well as carat weight.
Matching colour can also be tricky, though as earrings you can be more forgiving with slight colour and/or shape differences.
There will be a premium associated with buying two well matched rubies as opposed to the cost of a similar size and quality ruby sold as a single gem X 2.
 
I love rubies and I wish you luck in your search!

Ivy and Rose has matched rubies sometimes for a good price, nothing on their site now but you could contact them.

If you decide ultimately to choose lab stones, https://www.finewatergems.com/ can custom cut for you, I had a beautiful 10mm lab ruby cut and they should have more rough.
 
Must be very careful with the term"natural" rubies. So many supposedly natural rubies are glass-filled that there's hardly any ruby there at all. Be sure to get a report from a reputable lab saying that no treatment has occurred. Heating is fine if you're OK with that.

Heated, untreated rubies are less expensive than unheated, untreated rubies, but they still cost!
 
musicloveranthony said:
@AlexS_NYC here’s what the jeweler sent 3C3FA5CC-77A7-42E3-98F1-B29AD795469D.png935447A6-BEC0-42A6-B3AF-366FB9F32DD6.png
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Thank you for your prompt response -- Does the jeweler have any information on the quality of the sets? To be honest I had been preparing myself to spend meaningfully more money, so I am a bit surprised at how affordable these are.
 
AlexS_NYC said:
Thank you for your prompt response -- Does the jeweler have any information on the quality of the sets? To be honest I had been preparing myself to spend meaningfully more money, so I am a bit surprised at how affordable these are.
Click to expand...
Here's her insta and website with her phone # if you want to reach out to her there :)

www.saracommers.com

Sara Commers Private Jeweler | Custom Jewelry | Del Mar, Minneapolis, Miami

Sara Commers is a Jewelers of America Certified Bench Jeweler and an Award-Winning Jewelry Designer. Commers Custom Jewelers specializes in creating original and unique designs for their clients in a variety of precious metals.
www.saracommers.com www.saracommers.com

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Cerulean said:
Hate to say I am not crazy about either of these pairs.

Big windows...to me, the color is too purple and they look a bit like garnets.

@Bron357 has a gorgeous ruby that would be my ideal color with the perfect glow
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Yeah I think I agree
 
AlexS_NYC said:
Thank you for your prompt response -- Does the jeweler have any information on the quality of the sets? To be honest I had been preparing myself to spend meaningfully more money, so I am a bit surprised at how affordable these are.
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They’re priced fairly for - and commensurately with - the quality.

What is your budget? Approximately?
 
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Here are a pair of rubies I have in a pin. It's not a great representation but, even in this photo - see the difference in color from the ones you were considering? These are roughly 5mm across and even more red in real life (rubies are notoriously difficult to photograph accurately for color).

858546
 
If you are open to preloved

www.fashionphile.com

TIFFANY Platinum Diamond Ruby Flower Stud Earrings | FASHIONPHILE

This is an authentic TIFFANY Platinum Diamond Ruby Flower Stud Earrings. The earrings are crafted of platinum and features 18 karat yellow gold prongs holding two round cut rubies weighing approximately 1.00 total carat weight. Surrounding the ruby are round and marquise cut diamonds weighing...
www.fashionphile.com www.fashionphile.com
 
$10k is a bit steep for me. I would happily spend $5k, but my wife might actually murder me instead of thanking me if she found out I spent $10k

Those are beautiful though!

I think probably $6500 is my ceiling. Please be honest if that isn't a realistic budget for what I want.
 
I like both pairs. The more expensive one is more red and transparent to my eye. The less transparent and cheaper pair is more pink. I think gemfix has a return policy so you could always order them and see what you think.
 
FL_runner said:
I love rubies and I wish you luck in your search!

Ivy and Rose has matched rubies sometimes for a good price, nothing on their site now but you could contact them.

If you decide ultimately to choose lab stones, https://www.finewatergems.com/ can custom cut for you, I had a beautiful 10mm lab ruby cut and they should have more rough.
Click to expand...

Do you have a pic of the 10mm lab ruby? How is the cut, etc.?
 
airplay355 said:
I like both pairs. The more expensive one is more red and transparent to my eye. The less transparent and cheaper pair is more pink. I think gemfix has a return policy so you could always order them and see what you think.
Click to expand...

Yes, that was my impression as well. I will have to consider them, as they are the best option that I have found. Although I am now wondering if maybe my budget is not sufficient to get the quality I want from natural rubies, and maybe I should consider lab grown stones. However, the lab-grown route still doesn't sit right with me on some level, although I can't really articulate why.
 
mrs-b said:
Here are a pair of rubies I have in a pin. It's not a great representation but, even in this photo - see the difference in color from the ones you were considering? These are roughly 5mm across and even more red in real life (rubies are notoriously difficult to photograph accurately for color).

20211024_135700.jpg
Click to expand...

These are just lovely. Would you mind sharing with me (either publicly or via email) where you sourced them. Rubies are my daughter's birthstone and I really would like a lovely pair in exactly this size some day.
 
AlexS_NYC said:
Do you have a pic of the 10mm lab ruby? How is the cut, etc.?
Click to expand...

1476LabRuby.jpg1476Outdoors.jpg

It's a giant honker I am going to set in a pendant. Gary Braun works with mined and lab stones, it just depends on what he has in stock- I know with COVID there were some challenges with supply for natural stones so he was doing more work with lab stones last year. His cutting is really gorgeous, no matter if it's lab or mined. The benefit of lab material is that you can often get high clarity and specific colors, BUT it's lab created origin so I know not everyone is interested in that. I have lab and mined stones including some vintage, preloved items.
 
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