How long did it take you to pick out your own ring? more confused each day! ahhh

[courtneyclv]

Oh man..I am getting myself into trouble. My wonderful BF said I can pick out whatever I want. I know my price range and I am getting more and more confused on what to get. I am a very eclectic person and like a lot of different things...I cant even decide on what kind of designer jeans to buy, let alone a ring.

At first I wanted a ''tacori'' looking ring with side stones. When I tried them on though, the eternity bands would be too much for my size 4 finger, and too expensive. Other antique style rings were just too ''old'' looking for me or too widefor my skinny finger. I tried on 3 stone rings and unless you get a 2 ct. center stone, the sides take away from the center. And solitares are too ''boring'' for me. I want a ring that has radiant cut or princess with a ton of sparkle, a bit of engraving.. i wish I could decide! I know that in my budget I cant probably get a 1-1.40 ct. depending on the setting.

Oh man, and then there is..."what kind of wedding band can I put with this e-ring?" My head is spinning!

I guess all I want to ask is..how many times did you go look at settings, center stones, etc. I think I am on my 5th visit and still cannot decide! I have put 3 rings on hold, look at them a few days later and then think that I should keep looking. Is this normal?

Will I just ''know''????????

Courtney

 

[courtneyclv]

I did find my dream ring at the store..but it was $18,000!

It is the kind of setting with pave diamonds that go around the center stones top..I do love bling and sparkles. Maybe I can get my radiant center made like this...and that will make my ring look huge right? But..I wonder if this Halo setting costs more than the other ones. (was looking at settings around $2,000)

kind of like this

 

[Suteishi]

lol Well, we looked at about 8 B&M stores. Tried on about a thousand things. Thought I knew what I wanted when we were at Tiffany''s, but then saw other things and had to try them on too. I couldn''t decide. I found ps. I learned. I got more confused.

Then called oh gee, 4 online dealers....and we ended up having it made because I couldn''t find exactly what I wanted. XD

This took months. I went from wanting a solitare to one with sidestones. Then from wanting trap sidestones (Tiffanys) to squares (Christian Bernard) to rbs (online). Then I was trying to narrow down the stone with seemingly thousands to pick from...etc, etc, etc. I was feeling overwhelmed, stressed, and like I couldn''t find what I wanted all while not wanting to make a mistake or have regrets. At that point I turned to my sweet bf and said honey, ARGH! help me! lol

But that''s what a good guy is for, right? And I think he really enjoyed being a part of the process. He broke it down very easily. First just pick the setting. And if you can''t find exactly what you want, let''s get what you want made.

I wanted something classic but still somewhat unique than what I kept seeing at every store. Something that to me would look as good when I wore jeans as when I dressed up. I tried on wedding sets to see what felt more comfortable. I tried on a few more things and after I picked the online store (Whiteflash), the salesperson there, Jamie, was amazingly helpful. She listened and helped me with the custom setting. She then was my eyes and knowledge at picking a stone (cause I am just a n00b). Took all of two weeks.

In the end having something made is sweet because you''re involved in the entire process. It was way less stressful than what I was trying to do on my own (even with my freaking out when I saw the casting lol). Overall, it''s been fun and I can''t wait to get my ring!

And yes, I might change my mind in 5 or ten years and have the setting remade or upgrade the center stone, but there is something really nice about having a custom piece made just for me that no one else has -- especially as it came out to be significantly different and much less money than what I was originally trying to decide between at B&Ms.

Good luck with your hunt!

Through it all ps is an awesome tool. If only you could go shopping with all the ps people in a large chartered entourage!

 

[Suteishi]

Date: 11/10/2006 2:10:17 AM
Author: courtneyclv
I did find my dream ring at the store..but it was $18,000!


It is the kind of setting with pave diamonds that go around the center stones top..I do love bling and sparkles. Maybe I can get my radiant center made like this...and that will make my ring look huge right? But..I wonder if this Halo setting costs more than the other ones. (was looking at settings around $2,000)


kind of like this

Wow. Sweet. You can totally have something like this made. I''d give Whiteflash or Goodoldgold a call to price it out.

Your hands are small-ish so around the size you''re looking for will be nice and big with lots of sparkle. My bf''s sisters are around your hand size and their centers are both less than 1 ct but look *HUGE* because their hands are so dainty.

I think through November Whiteflash has a 5% setting discount too even on customs (we just missed out on it

). That should help!

 

[courtneyclv]

My little secret is that I have a $3700 credit at the jewelry store if we spend double that.. so want to use it.

My sales lady, that I am meeting tomorrow with BF, did show me the gorgeous Halo ring (the 18,000) and I think she saw my eyes light up. She then said that any size center can be made like that. She also said that it may cost more to get a ring designed. Hmm..I would imagine that they would be able to put a cushion or radiant in a setting like that and it wouldn''t necessarily be a ''custom'' ring.

And...since the Halo does make the center stone look larger, maybe I could get a ring like this..and stay in budget. (i may go a little over double my credit)

Anyone have pics of wedding sets like this?

The more I think about it, the more I like the Halo, even with a cushion. I LOVE sparkles, bling, etc. and want a ring that really stands out of the crowd...hmm

going to ask for pics in the other forum!

 

[kcoursolle]

If you do a search for halo, a lot of different settings should come up. Also, you could check around the show me the ring main thread and browse through all of the eye candy.

 

[Miranda]

You sound like me!!!! I''ve been through every emotion and thought you are having. For my anniversary upgrade it took me almost a YEAR to be clear about what I wanted...Then DH just surprised me with something because I was so indecisive! I have an oval in a halo right now, but, I''m thinking 3 stone with eternity band next time around since that''s what I really wanted in the first place.

Are you or BF opposed to future upgrades or resets??? If not, have fun with this setting...Or go soiltaite and wedding band this time and reset in the future...That way you''ll always have your wedding band. I have a size 3.5 to 4 finger so I get what you are saying about the thin line between too much and too plain!

To answer your questions: We went bling shopping at least 10 times and to MANY different stores. Just because your jeweler doesn''t have it, doesn''t mean they can''t get it. So, yeah, the way you are feeling is TOTALLY normal. To me anyway. It''s hard when you like so many different things. You may "just know". I think for me it would take a $100,000 budget and lotsa carats to think "oh yeah, perfect". When I am looking for paint colors or home decorations or bedding etc. things just seem to narrow themselves down. I''ll know that when I keep going to the same color or pattern then I''ve found the one. Keep shopping and look in magazines, etc. Good luck!!!!!!

 

[Cehrabehra]

it took months and yes, you will know... I *love* that ring you posted...

 

[cpster]

Can you use the credit just towards the stone and possibly your future husband's and your wedding band? Have you looked at Leon Mege's website at http://www.artofplatinum.com? If I was going to have pave on my ring, I would go to Leon. His work is fabulous. Ask for a quote.

My original e-ring was a solitaire. It's funny though...now I'm changing it to a three stone ring...round flanked by two pears. I remember when we were first looking at rings I gravitated to this design, but my husband thought it was too flashy. Five years later, I'm about to get the setting I've always wanted...so I think you will know it's the one...listen to yourself!

 

[courtneyclv]

I picked out my ring! After going back to the store about 6 times...I went with the ring that I kept going back to...4 different visits.

I knew this was the ring because I kept going back to it..and because there was this ''tacori'' style ring that I use to love..I held it up to the ring I keep putting on hold I land realized I didn''t like that tacori anymore...i loved this ring. That is when I made my decision.

It is a 1.22 princess cut center stone, (F color, SI1 clarity, certified...soooo sparkly and clear!) .64 cts. in the setting. Baguette sides that are a bit wider under the center stone and then taper down narrower, pave hand engraved on both sides of the ring, platinum. All full of sparkle, a little antique, tiimeless, sexyness and class. Like me..haha

The ring looks incredible on my size 4 1/2 finger! I tried on more settings, looked at larger stones that had visible inclusions or color of J and decided that the princess in the ring was the one. I held it next to a 1.52 princess and didn''t see much of a difference either. The other loose stones seemed small to me or didn''t have the same sparkle. I thought the radiant was too rectangular for my long skinny fingers, and the cushion, too round.

BF now has to surprise me with it and propose. And they will make a matching engraved, pave baguette wedding band that will sit flush and will taper, just like my e-ring.

Don''t worry..I will post pics..hopefully our tips will get better so he can get it soon! (im a cocktail waitress and he is a barteder..how cliche''!)

Courtney

 

[mrssalvo]

congrats courtney...please come back and post pictures once he proposes..

 

[angeline]

Ha, I see myself in everything you wrote! I have changed my mind a thousand times. Not only on the setting but on the stone. I think that as we read more and see more on the internet our tastes change. Eventually you either just ''know'' (kind of like men maybe) or you get tired of the chase and just choose one to settle down with !

There''s no easy answer. Trouble is I would like something in every type of style - modern antique, pave, plain, vintage, square, round, cushion, wide band, small band, there''s something beautiful about all of them. (Can you tell I had a lot of boyfriends cos I could see something ''special'' in everyone? LOL!!)

Well ''m really off track now. But I just think you need to do it long enough till you''re done! and you''ll know when you''re done, either from sheer exhaustion or becuase you''re totally in love. Hmmm, another analogy with men coming up here.... (remember there''s always upgrades!) - kidding! (at least from the man point of view) I better stop now before I get myself in trouble or my dh comes to read what I''m writing...

sorry I haven''t been any help really!

a

 

[kcoursolle]

It sounds beautiful! I can''t wait to see the pictures, and I bet you can''t wait to have it on your finger LOL!

 

[courtneyclv]

haha...A. You are so funny! I love your analogies to men and rings! They made me laugh. Yeah, I will post pics as soon as I get it.

(now I have to hint to all of my waitress friends to tip my BF an extra 10%!!!)

Oh, and although I do love the Halo setting. I thought it may be a bit too trendy. I loved the rings from the top, but from the side they look almost 'space ship' looking. I think it is important to love your ring from ALL angles.

Courtney

 

[MustangFan]

I thought I knew what I want right away, but going to stores confused me a lot.
In the extreme case, we started looking in April and finally picked out a stone in July, then we went to buy the setting I had my eye on for 2 months and it didn''t the fit stone at all. BACK TO SQUARE ONE AGAIN! ended up just recently going back to the jeweler a month ago to finally have a custom ring done.
So, for me, and I''m saying in the EXTREME CASE because things come up it seems an awful lot, that changes our situation. (He changed careers over the summer, and our dog was having seizure two weeks ago..... The ring has been on the back burner a lot lately.

SO far I''ll have waited 9 months to get my ring, and that''s not even counting how long he''s going to make me wait after the ring is complete

 

[courtneyclv]

Don''t you just hate waiting!?

Now yes, I am so excited to get engaged and that my man is going to propose..but it is also exciting to get this amazing symbol of love that you can''t wait to wear on your finger and show the world! (whew..that was a long run-on sentence!) I don''t know if men realize how exciting it is to get the ring.

So now the clock is ticking.....

Courtney

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Courtney, it sounds like you made a wonderful choice! And you made a decision a LOT faster than many of us on here! We see so many pretty things, it is hard to ever make a decision! Post pictures as soon as you can!

 

[ladykemma]

hey, (that''s texas for hi) make sure you get clear on whether you want your wedding band to sit flush. that spilt shnak you posted, no band will fit with that.