Increíble: My Whiteflash W Prong is here!!

[Isabelle]

Thank youjstarfireb and shortee! You guys are really nice to say so.

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/22/2008 2:02:34 PM
Author: Harriet
Isabelle,

I read somewhere that you''ll be in Newport for the last 3 weeks of July. I''ll be there for a couple of days too. Maybe we''ll run into each other!

OMG Harriet, that''s too funny. I would love to see you there! I will be in town from July 1 through the 18th. When will you be there?

 

[gwendolyn]

ISABELLE!!!! It is MAGNIFICENT! Gorgeous, beautiful elegant, classy, sparkly, all around drop dead GORGEOUS!!!!

I love everything about it, especially the prongs.

Bravo!!!

 

[LostSapphire]

Date: 6/22/2008 6:51:13 PM
Author: Isabelle


LostSapphire, thank you so much. You are so kind to say all that about the ring, and I have to tell you that I KNOW you will be very happy that you worked with WF. Tell Leslie to find out from Sheerah who cast my ring over there b/c the guy is incredibly talented. You want meticulous attention to detail and you will get it, I have no doubt. You will also get friendliness and customer service. (I know there is some attempt to pretend that an 'artiste' can't be bothered to be polite, but it's actually not true. Rudeness doesn't correlate with talent. Some rude people are talented but not all talented people are rude). PLEASE keep us posted with the progress of your ring. I can't wait to see the stone that Jeff White gets you. I know you are anxious to get it, but stay patient b/c it will be worth the wait.

The reason I went in person to WF is b/c beforehand I didn't trust any jeweler that wasn't Tiffany, Cartier, or Van Cleef. LOL!! REALLY, that is the truth. I couldn't believe all the gushing I read on here, and I felt particularly skeptical over all the buzz about the ACA diamonds. I just couldn't believe that any diamond could be as nice as a Tiffany diamond. The other thing that really drove me was all I had read about Brian Gavin. I wanted someone to look at my diamond and tell me what he thought about it, and I wanted the person to be a real expert. So I called and much to my surprise, I had an easy time getting an appointment. Brian meets with so many people all the time, so I thought that was a good sign. He's accessible and wants to answer questions and educate people. He's really a genius, honestly. I loved the time I spent with him. Physically being in their offices turned the virtual world into the real world, and as you know, I went from being 'skeptical' to telling all of my friends, and anyone who asks, that they simply MUST go to Whiteflash.com. I can't recommend them enough.

Please keep me posted about your ring! I cannot wait to see the final product!

Thank you Isabelle.

I'm starting to get antsy these days. Hope Jeff White finds "the one" soon!

It is wonderful that you were able to take your diamond in to have them look at it in person! What an experience that must have been.

What I think I'll do is have Jeff ship the stone directly to WF (I'm in Canada and the thought of this thing crossing the border twice freaks me out). Once WF is done I will either fly down to pick it up or have it shippped to a relative in the north-east US where it is closer to my home. That way I only have to do the thing at customs with the finished product, and it keeps things simpler.

My hope is that this project will be done by very early Fall...depends completely on Jeff, however. Lesley said they would have approx a 3-4 week turnaround with my ring.

Thanks again and congrats on the ring!

LS

ETA: I have learned the words *artiste* and *customer service* can actually be used in the same sentence!

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/22/2008 6:57:18 PM
Author: gwendolyn

ISABELLE!!!! It is MAGNIFICENT! Gorgeous, beautiful elegant, classy, sparkly, all around drop dead GORGEOUS!!!!

I love everything about it, especially the prongs.

Bravo!!!

Thank you Gwendolyn! You probably know better than anyone how I agonized over these prongs. You are really nice to say all this and also to have been so encouraging throughout this journey. Thank you so much for all of that! I am going to bore you guys to death with one FINAL set of hand shots taken outside this evening. I really wanted to keep trying to get some scintillation outdoors. Well, I took Gary''s advice from Rocky Talky and stood under a large tree in our backyard and put my hand up against our hedges. What follows are the results. :

 

[Isabelle]

This one is crap. Shadowy, etc. But magnified it showed some cool scintillation

 

[Isabelle]

full hand shot. And that''s all folks! LOL

 

[Isabelle]

And just for laughs, here are my three offspring. All my rings pale in comparison to these three.

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/22/2008 7:14:43 PM
Author: LostSapphire

Date: 6/22/2008 6:51:13 PM

Author: Isabelle



LostSapphire, thank you so much. You are so kind to say all that about the ring, and I have to tell you that I KNOW you will be very happy that you worked with WF. Tell Leslie to find out from Sheerah who cast my ring over there b/c the guy is incredibly talented. You want meticulous attention to detail and you will get it, I have no doubt. You will also get friendliness and customer service. (I know there is some attempt to pretend that an ''artiste'' can''t be bothered to be polite, but it''s actually not true. Rudeness doesn''t correlate with talent. Some rude people are talented but not all talented people are rude). PLEASE keep us posted with the progress of your ring. I can''t wait to see the stone that Jeff White gets you. I know you are anxious to get it, but stay patient b/c it will be worth the wait.


The reason I went in person to WF is b/c beforehand I didn''t trust any jeweler that wasn''t Tiffany, Cartier, or Van Cleef. LOL!! REALLY, that is the truth. I couldn''t believe all the gushing I read on here, and I felt particularly skeptical over all the buzz about the ACA diamonds. I just couldn''t believe that any diamond could be as nice as a Tiffany diamond. The other thing that really drove me was all I had read about Brian Gavin. I wanted someone to look at my diamond and tell me what he thought about it, and I wanted the person to be a real expert. So I called and much to my surprise, I had an easy time getting an appointment. Brian meets with so many people all the time, so I thought that was a good sign. He''s accessible and wants to answer questions and educate people. He''s really a genius, honestly. I loved the time I spent with him. Physically being in their offices turned the virtual world into the real world, and as you know, I went from being ''skeptical'' to telling all of my friends, and anyone who asks, that they simply MUST go to Whiteflash.com. I can''t recommend them enough.


Please keep me posted about your ring! I cannot wait to see the final product!

Thank you Isabelle.


I''m starting to get antsy these days. Hope Jeff White finds ''the one'' soon!


It is wonderful that you were able to take your diamond in to have them look at it in person! What an experience that must have been.


What I think I''ll do is have Jeff ship the stone directly to WF (I''m in Canada and the thought of this thing crossing the border twice freaks me out). Once WF is done I will either fly down to pick it up or have it shippped to a relative in the north-east US where it is closer to my home. That way I only have to do the thing at customs with the finished product, and it keeps things simpler.


My hope is that this project will be done by very early Fall...depends completely on Jeff, however. Lesley said they would have approx a 3-4 week turnaround with my ring.


Thanks again and congrats on the ring!




LS


ETA: I have learned the words *artiste* and *customer service* can actually be used in the same sentence!

It will all be fantastic and you will be happy you waited for the perfect stone. What type of sapphire are you looking for? What shape and what color? I LOVE sapphires. I think Lesley''s time estimate sounds about right. My ring took a shade under 5 weeks but there was JCK and some holidays in that time frame. It was well worth the wait and I know yours will be too. Your idea about having them ship directly to WF makes sense b/c you will want Brian to give you his opinion on the stone before you set it anyway. What an exciting time for you!

(BTW, glad you learned that the the two terms can appear in the same sentence BEFORE you signed a contract with anyone else. lol)

 

[LostSapphire]

Date: 6/22/2008 7:57:24 PM
Author: Isabelle



It will all be fantastic and you will be happy you waited for the perfect stone. What type of sapphire are you looking for? What shape and what color? I LOVE sapphires. I think Lesley''s time estimate sounds about right. My ring took a shade under 5 weeks but there was JCK and some holidays in that time frame. It was well worth the wait and I know yours will be too. Your idea about having them ship directly to WF makes sense b/c you will want Brian to give you his opinion on the stone before you set it anyway. What an exciting time for you!

(BTW, glad you learned that the the two terms can appear in the same sentence BEFORE you signed a contract with anyone else. lol)

2.5-3.0 ct fat oval or cushion, setting like this beauty:

http://www.artofplatinum.com/4images/details.php?image_id=294

Jeff found a sapphire a month or so ago but in spite of my wanting it really, really BAD, it was a bit too light. If you go to Cross jewelers, (link below) the colour we''re hunting for is approx Royal Blue or a bit lighter would be ok.

http://crossjewelers.com/sapphire/HowToBuyAsapphire.htm

Thanks for asking.

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/22/2008 8:15:31 PM
Author: LostSapphire

Date: 6/22/2008 7:57:24 PM

Author: Isabelle




It will all be fantastic and you will be happy you waited for the perfect stone. What type of sapphire are you looking for? What shape and what color? I LOVE sapphires. I think Lesley''s time estimate sounds about right. My ring took a shade under 5 weeks but there was JCK and some holidays in that time frame. It was well worth the wait and I know yours will be too. Your idea about having them ship directly to WF makes sense b/c you will want Brian to give you his opinion on the stone before you set it anyway. What an exciting time for you!


(BTW, glad you learned that the the two terms can appear in the same sentence BEFORE you signed a contract with anyone else. lol)

2.5-3.0 ct fat oval or cushion, setting like this beauty:


http://www.artofplatinum.com/4images/details.php?image_id=294


Jeff found a sapphire a month or so ago but in spite of my wanting it really, really BAD, it was a bit too light. If you go to Cross jewelers, (link below) the colour we''re hunting for is approx Royal Blue or a bit lighter would be ok.


http://crossjewelers.com/sapphire/HowToBuyAsapphire.htm



Thanks for asking.

Well of course you have impeccable taste. The color you like closely approximates the Kashmir color, which is the rarest and most beautiful. Few sapphires from Sri Lanka can achieve that color. (Ceylon sapphires). Have you considered, (this is just an idea, and I have no idea how plausible it is or if it is too risky, etc.) bidding on a ring from one of sotheby''s auctions and having the sapphire re-set? You can go to their website and look at all the sapphires they are selling or planning to sell at upcoming auctions. It can be really hard to find a good sapphire with that Kashmir color, b/c ideally you don''t want to see inclusions but you want the saturation to be even. I can see why you are having to wait for Jeff White to find it for you. It''s a tall order but perhaps you could consider having him look at Sothebys.com

 

[LostSapphire]

Date: 6/22/2008 8:22:52 PM
Author: Isabelle


Well of course you have impeccable taste. The color you like closely approximates the Kashmir color, which is the rarest and most beautiful. Few sapphires from Sri Lanka can achieve that color. (Ceylon sapphires). Have you considered, (this is just an idea, and I have no idea how plausible it is or if it is too risky, etc.) bidding on a ring from one of sotheby''s auctions and having the sapphire re-set? You can go to their website and look at all the sapphires they are selling or planning to sell at upcoming auctions. It can be really hard to find a good sapphire with that Kashmir color, b/c ideally you don''t want to see inclusions but you want the saturation to be even. I can see why you are having to wait for Jeff White to find it for you. It''s a tall order but perhaps you could consider having him look at Sothebys.com

I had never thought of that. I would think, however, that Sothebys would be out of my budget! Jeff has given me an approximate figure per carat and I am good with even his high part of the range....but Sothebys? yikes that seems a bit scary.

But what the heck, I''ll go look anyways! thanks

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/22/2008 8:41:56 PM
Author: LostSapphire

Date: 6/22/2008 8:22:52 PM

Author: Isabelle



Well of course you have impeccable taste. The color you like closely approximates the Kashmir color, which is the rarest and most beautiful. Few sapphires from Sri Lanka can achieve that color. (Ceylon sapphires). Have you considered, (this is just an idea, and I have no idea how plausible it is or if it is too risky, etc.) bidding on a ring from one of sotheby''s auctions and having the sapphire re-set? You can go to their website and look at all the sapphires they are selling or planning to sell at upcoming auctions. It can be really hard to find a good sapphire with that Kashmir color, b/c ideally you don''t want to see inclusions but you want the saturation to be even. I can see why you are having to wait for Jeff White to find it for you. It''s a tall order but perhaps you could consider having him look at Sothebys.com

I had never thought of that. I would think, however, that Sothebys would be out of my budget! Jeff has given me an approximate figure per carat and I am good with even his high part of the range....but Sothebys? yikes that seems a bit scary.


But what the heck, I''ll go look anyways! thanks

Here is a 4.00 carat "new" http://www.sothebys.com/app/live/lot/LotDetail.jsp?lot_id=159466865 (I don''t know anything about this particular stone of course. I just say it''s an example of what you can find on there!)

 

[LostSapphire]

Date: 6/22/2008 8:51:53 PM
Author: Isabelle


Here is a 4.00 carat ''new'' http://www.sothebys.com/app/live/lot/LotDetail.jsp?lot_id=159466865 (I don''t know anything about this particular stone of course. I just say it''s an example of what you can find on there!)

hmmm that''s not so scary!

Thanks for the link. I''ll be playing over there for a while.

 

[LostSapphire]

Here''s one that I''m restraining myself about: perfect size and colour but I can''t get enthusiastic about a round....

 

[iluvcarats]

So elegant and beautiful! Enjoy your lovely new ring!

 

[Lynn B]

LOVELY hands...
KILLER diamond

...
GORGEOUS setting...
BEAUTIFUL prongs...

all that and you got to meet Brian and John, too?! WOOHOO!!!

Comgratulations, and ENJOY!

 

[rainydaze]

Isabelle, i love everything about your set! the recut was amazing, and now seeing it all come together so beautifully is such a treat! i love that you were able to use your grandmother''s wband, and those heart prongs are delicious - i love how they were done!

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/22/2008 9:05:59 PM
Author: LostSapphire
Here''s one that I''m restraining myself about: perfect size and colour but I can''t get enthusiastic about a round....

That''s a gorgeous stone. I would also inquire with Brian Gavin at Whiteflash if you bought a large carat sapphire, is recutting an option to change shape? I really don''t know the answer to that. Some of these sapphires are HUGE. Some I noticed have some scratches according to the condition report, but there are ways to polish scratches out sometimes, i am pretty sure to make an older stone look new. Particularly considering that you want the Kashmir color, the Sothebys option might work better than you think. You could also contact them directly and see how they do this sort of thing, or if they can recommend a way for you to be a smart purchaser. I am sure there are lots of people who buy used jewelry in order to take the stones and reset them into something new. And I know I have read about stone restoration before, but it probably depends on the severity of the damage. Well keep me posted ok?

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/22/2008 9:27:40 PM
Author: iluvcarats
So elegant and beautiful! Enjoy your lovely new ring!

Thanks iluvcarats! You are so nice to say that. I can''t stop staring at it. It''s hard to get work done.

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

Dunno how iI missed this beauty--congrats! Oh and yur kids are cutie patooties

cheers--Sharon

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/22/2008 9:28:57 PM
Author: Lynn B
LOVELY hands...

KILLER diamond

...

GORGEOUS setting...

BEAUTIFUL prongs...


all that and you got to meet Brian and John, too?! WOOHOO!!!

Comgratulations, and ENJOY!

Thanks LynnB! You are so nice to say all that and for taking the time to look at the photos, etc. Sometimes I just wonder: "How did they manage to get those prongs so small and so nicely aligned?" It''s such a change from the ring I used to have. For fun, I thought I would post a pic of the OLD setting. Check out THESE prongs: thick, crooked, and covering a lot of the edges LOL

 

[Isabelle]

Another look. I purposefully never took pics from the side b/c it was so hideous.

 

[Isabelle]

And the contrast: Not the best picture to show the prongs, but actually a fair representation of the fact that you can''t SEE the prongs really.

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/22/2008 10:16:03 PM
Author: rainydaze
Isabelle, i love everything about your set! the recut was amazing, and now seeing it all come together so beautifully is such a treat! i love that you were able to use your grandmother''s wband, and those heart prongs are delicious - i love how they were done!

Thanks Rainydaze!! You are so sweet to say that, and it makes me feel so wonderful about this ring.

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/24/2008 10:01:31 AM
Author: canuk-gal
HI:


Dunno how iI missed this beauty--congrats! Oh and yur kids are cutie patooties

cheers--Sharon

Awww, thank you Sharon! The kids are so much fun. My oldest
( my son) loves the new ring too.

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/24/2008 4:21:25 PM
Author: SanDiegoLady

Date: 6/21/2008 7:22:17 PM

Author: Isabelle

2 of 2

I love this photo Isabelle, your ring is a striking classic. I love it.

Awww, thanks San Diego Lady. Throughout the whole process you have always said the nicest things about my ring and my diamond. I really appreciate it.

 

[ahappygirl]

Isabelle, I keep returning to this post. Your ring is stunning. I am so glad you love it - you should! It's a firecracker!

 

[blondie]

Just beautiful - what a gorgeous setting and diamond of course!

 

[Isabelle]

Date: 6/25/2008 10:18:04 AM
Author: ahappygirl
Isabelle, I keep returning to this post. Your ring is stunning. I am so glad you love it - you should! It''s a firecracker!

Thank you so much!! I really love it too. The excitement of posting pics and talking about the re-cut makes me feel like a fiance all over again. If only I could take 11 years off my face as well! LOL