Dilemma about set (ring/necklace) from grandparents

[SuLi]

Hi everyone!

I have a bit of a dilemma and hope that I can get some great advice from all of you.

My grandparents were really generous, and had a diamond ring/necklace set made for me when I turned 18 (this is ten years ago). I never found out what the specs of the diamonds were, but I can''t imagine that they would be larger than .25 carat on each. The ring has a center diamond and two smaller diamonds flanking it, and the necklace has one central diamond in a "tension" setting - all of the diamonds are round.

I don''t wear much jewelry, and find that now I have an engagement ring, I don''t wear the ring at all. And, although I know tension settings can be pretty secure, I''ve always been uncomfortable wearing the necklace for fear that I''ll somehow lose the diamond.

I was thinking more recently about resetting the ring and necklace, but worry that it would be disrespectful to my grandparents. The live in another country, and I don''t get the chance to speak to them very often (there is also a bit of a language barrier). I would love to ask them directly, but I''m not sure how they would take it. I really value and treasure their gift, but find that I don''t wear them as much as I should.

So, do you guys think that it''s a bad thing to be thinking about resetting? Am I being disrespectful?

If I go ahead with resetting, my two options were this: either turning the necklace/ring into earrings, or just resetting the necklace into a bezel setting while keeping the ring.

I can try to post pictures of the two later.

Thanks for letting me share my dilemma.

 

[Ellen]

I am in the (smaller) camp who does not find it disrespectful to want to make something sentimental wearable versus not wearing it at all.

The way I see it, you have two options. Try to verbally express to them how your taste has changed, but you so want to incorporate the diamonds into something you will wear, (as you do treasure them), and see how it goes, or, just go ahead and do it, if they will never know anyway.

 

[chrono]

As unsentimental as I am when it comes to engagement rings, I am terribly sentimental when it comes down to jewellery given by my grandparents. Personally, I would not change a thing. I will leave them as they are and wear the ring on my right hand. That said, I am not you.

You obviously want to wear these items, treasure them but feel uncomfortable with wearing them as they are. Ultimately, it is up to you but I prefer the option of bezeling the pendant and wearing the ring on my right hand. I don''t think it is disrespectful; that seems a rather harsh word.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Can you show us a picture? I am wondering if you mean that the pendant is in a semi-bezel setting or something similar. I can''t imagine a pendant in a tension setting, but there''s a first time for everything!

 

[lisaC]

I don't think you're being disrespectful by wanting to transform the pieces you were given in something more to your taste. Heck with the number of resets posted on this site...
I would think it would be lovely to have them changed into something that you'd wear more often than have them just gathering dust in a box...I think that it would show how much you appreciated their gift- were these your first diamonds?
Gosh you're 28 now and tastes definitely change. Don't feel bad.

Do you have a pr of earrings? Bezels to plump them up or simple understated prongs never go wrong...even those jackets aren't a bad way to go either
Lisa

 

[eac]

I am in the "go ahead and reset" camp. I would at least reset the necklace/pendant into a bezel.

Over the past two years, I have dealt with exactly this dilemma: a diamond and gold pendant, given to me by my grandmother when I was born...in 1971. My, how tastes have changed. I wrestled with the sentimental value of the now-unwearable piece versus my desire to have pieces I could wear, and would wear. In the end, I had the .25 carat diamond from the pendant made into a right-hand ring. The pendant had enough gold in it that I was able to work out a deal with a jeweler to have a new gold pendant fabricated and fixed to the drawn cable chain that came with the pendant. Now I have two pieces that I love to wear - I wear the ring every day - instead of something gaining dust and guilt in my jewelry box.

 

[chrono]

SuLi,
Like DS, I was wondering maybe your pendant is bar set. A bar set diamond can look very much like a tension setting since the sides are completely exposed. Do you have a picture of the pendant?

 

[chrono]

Does it look sort of like this?

 

[SuLi]

Sorry for being MIA...my camera batteries were dead and I could not post pictures last night.

Here''s a picture of the ring...the more I think about it, the more I think I will hold on to the ring in it''s current setting. I think it would be a great piece to pass down to my future children (hopefully, a daughter).

 

[SuLi]

Here''s the first picture of the necklace:

 

[SuLi]

Here is a side picture...I thought it was a tension setting, but if I'm not right, can someone let me know what it is?

To me, it doesn't feel very secure. I've decided that I would like to get it set in a delicate bezel necklace. I made an appointment to meet with the folks over at Quest this Saturday, so we'll see what happens.

Thanks for the advice...and if anyone else had further thoughts, please let me know!

 

[Kissmark]

I think the ring is very nice. Maybe you can just keep the ring as it is and reset the necklace only? The necklack does look a little insecure. Or you can get some insurance on it that way you are not afraid to wear it.