Cost Question: Custom ring w/ recycled gold

[sukiisukii]

Hi Everyone! I've been eyeing those luscious chunky "donut"/gypsy rings for a while now and have been holding off because they are quite expensive due to the high metal weights. My father in law recently gave me a bunch of old 14K cuff links/tie clips that he no longer needs and with no sentimental value. They weighed in at a whopping 32g! Wanted to put this gold to good use and wanted some advice. I know the gold isn't necessarily going to get "recycled" but I was hoping to use some of the melt value towards the new ring.

Below are a few inspirations from IG (owners credited below):

Donut Ring by Tendenza Jewelry


Bigohbijoux Custom Gypsy


And here is a rough sketch of what I think I want (pls excuse my poor art skills ).
I just purchased a 0.9ct lab cushion (5.4mm) for the project.



I'd assume this honker would weight in 15g+.

Now, the question is... after sending my gold and stone to the designer/jeweler, how much more on top is a reasonable amount to pay to complete such a project? I understand there are charges for labor, setting etc...

Thoughts? Any suggestions as to how I should tackle this? Any recommendations for people to work with?

And just for fun and eye candy, this is the stone I just ordered (let's see how it looks upon arrival)

https://media.lovbegrowndiamonds.com/imaged/LG389978597/video.mp4

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[Mreader]

What a cool project! Depending on the condition of the cuff links etc, it may be better to sell those to fund your project rather than use melt value.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I love gypsy rings
how generouse of your father in law
i agree we need to see pictures

Gold is high right now
it would be awaome if you can get as much money/credit aa you can to fund the new ring

 

[tyty333]

I think you should let them tell you how much it will cost and then you decide if it sounds like a fair deal.

 

[AllAboardTheBlingTrain]

I guess it depends on labour costs in your area. Where I live, labour is not expensive so this would be ok/expected way to get such a ring done.

I would ask your jeweler for a quote on how much it costs to get it done from scratch, and how much it costs to get it done if you melt the cuff links. Then see if you can figure out how much it costs to sell the cuff links (even if for scrap) and so how much the net cost would be in the former instance; and then take a call. If you have access to an indian/Chinese jeweler where you live it would be cheaper (not sure if in your area they do custom projects).

 

[sukiisukii]

So after crunching the numbers to see what my all in cost is (gold melt value + stone cost + quoted labor costs), I landed at about $2700 for the ring complete, which I think is pretty good since I haven't been able to find one complete (new or vintage) at a comparable price.

Let's see how it goes! Stone should arrive by end of next week so maybe we can get this project started by month end. Woohoo!

Will be back to report in with updates Have a good weekend everyone!

 

[caolsen]

So after crunching the numbers to see what my all in cost is (gold melt value + stone cost + quoted labor costs), I landed at about $2700 for the ring complete, which I think is pretty good since I haven't been able to find one complete (new or vintage) at a comparable price.

Let's see how it goes! Stone should arrive by end of next week so maybe we can get this project started by month end. Woohoo!

Will be back to report in with updates Have a good weekend everyone!

Just bear in mind you won’t get a 1:1 on the melt value - jewels typically pay you less than they sell to the smelter for. Case in point, I just scrapped list value about $400 of platinum but got a credit of less than that on the new work, the offer from the jeweler was very fair but it was not the book value of the scrap.

 

[weemie]

I have no experience with getting a ring made, but I had to say I can’t wait to see what it turns out like!! I love gypsy/bombe rings!

 

[klrrrr]

@sukiisukii how is this project going? I can't wait to see the pics!