Mona (Instagram: moissy_diamond_jewelry) formerly fr. Starsgem

[swaye2010]

It just got delivered so I haven’t spoken to her yet. I’m usually not color sensitive either but it definitely picks up lots of yellow. It’s a cloudy day and I took everything in natural light so I know it’s not an issue with the lighting color. I just want to make sure I’m not being over dramatic and that I’m justified in saying it doesn’t look GH to me

Is this one through Mona? I wonder about the quality of the rough she is getting for the G/H stones. I know originally she said she couldn’t do G/H so maybe she hasn’t had enough time to work out the best supplier?

I was taking a few pics the other day of mine so I could work out the right size bale to move it into a pendant. If it were in dim light, I could certainly get it to photograph more yellow. Does it look yellow all the time though....no....it is pretty white.

Couple different lighting conditions:

 

[poppins]

It just got delivered so I haven’t spoken to her yet. I’m usually not color sensitive either but it definitely picks up lots of yellow. It’s a cloudy day and I took everything in natural light so I know it’s not an issue with the lighting color. I just want to make sure I’m not being over dramatic and that I’m justified in saying it doesn’t look GH to me

Hi,
The omcs Mona sent me videos of that were from the GH-stock looked like this, which is why I went with Def although my original intention was GH. In this picture the stone to
the right looks a bit yellow and irl they are the same colour I was told.

 

[baileydare16]

Is this one through Mona? I wonder about the quality of the rough she is getting for the G/H stones. I know originally she said she couldn’t do G/H so maybe she hasn’t had enough time to work out the best supplier?

I was taking a few pics the other day of mine so I could work out the right size bale to move it into a pendant. If it were in dim light, I could certainly get it to photograph more yellow. Does it look yellow all the time though....no....it is pretty white.

Couple different lighting conditions:

Yes it’s from Mona. Oh yeah I can see yours is definitely not nearly as yellow as the stone I got. I was expecting to pick up hints of vanilla tone but it’s more than I was expecting. It’s hard to see in the videos and photos she sent me but I have a better camera and it picks it up immediately.

 

[baileydare16]

These are on a white piece of paper in natural, overcast light

 

[Lucky_Rabbit]

These are on a white piece of paper in natural, overcast light

It's definitely more of an I/J color to me. She's still new going off by herself so like Swaye mentioned, and might not be getting as good of a rough as the bigger companies like SG. Her DEF seems more GH color, for antique cuts that show their color more. The cut on your stone is still very nice.

 

[baileydare16]

It's definitely more of an I/J color to me. She's still new going off by herself so like Swaye mentioned, and might not be getting as good of a rough as the bigger companies like SG. Her DEF seems more GH color, for antique cuts that show their color more. The cut on your stone is still very nice.

I’m going to ask her for a different stone. This is supposed to be my forever ring and the color is going to drive me insane. The cut is absolutely perfect though and the ring is nice and heavy. The ring itself is perfect.

 

[swaye2010]

These are on a white piece of paper in natural, overcast light

It is very nicely cut but definitely more in the I/J range. It would work a bit better if it is was in yellow or rose gold because it might just be a bit too yellow for the white metal. If it really bugs you, you might consider just getting a loose stone from SG and then turning the more yellow one into a matching pendant. I just ordered a bale pendant frame for mine for $95 in 14K gold. I know this is not ideal but the ring itself looks very nicely made and you want to love it if you have to look at it everyday.

I wish mine actually had a little more color because it almost seems too white for the vintage style of the ring. The other 11x9 ACC that I bought looked like it showed a little more color but I only had it loose for a few days. I can’t remember now if it actually looked more yellow than the other one though because I didn’t have them loose at the same time.

 

[baileydare16]

It is very nicely cut but definitely more in the I/J range. It would work a bit better if it is was in yellow or rose gold because it might just be a bit too yellow for the white metal. If it really bugs you, you might consider just getting a loose stone from SG and then turning the more yellow one into a matching pendant. I just ordered a bale pendant frame for mine for $95 in 14K gold. I know this is not ideal but the ring itself looks very nicely made and you want to love it if you have to look at it everyday.

I wish mine actually had a little more color because it almost seems too white for the vintage style of the ring. The other 11x9 ACC that I bought looked like it showed a little more color but I only had it loose for a few days. I can’t remember now if it actually looked more yellow than the other one though because I didn’t have them loose at the same time.

I’ll weigh all the options but hopefully Mona comes through and agrees it’s pretty yellow/not GH like I paid for and gives me a replacement or works with me on it lol I’m already out $810 for the ring. I really wasn’t looking to push into the $1k range for my ring because I didn’t get the color I wanted.

 

[swaye2010]

So, I got CADs for my OEC ring in platinum, size 6 with a 7.5mm GH OEC.
Overall I like the rounder look Mona's team gave it.
I requested 1.8mm thick shank and 2.2mm width, the CADs show thicker (2.05mm and 2.4mm) but I'm assuming it will polish down. Although if it did come in thicker, I wouldn't mind because of some durability issues I'm suspecting with their platinum alloy. Plus I love metal! And hefty rings! It's coming in at 6.5grams
Green is Mona, white was my Inspo pic...

Any thoughts?
thanks

I haven’t looked over here in awhile but I was answering something else and caught your CAD. I can see that your inspiration picture has the stone in more of a straight ‘V” shape which make it sit much higher. The prongs have a slight bend on the Mona CAD which keeps the stone lower, but at the same time, you do loose some of the feminine shape of the ring.

I can also see that although you want a solid ring, it is a little too thick on the shoulders and between the fingers. It could just be the CAD but I had this problem with my first Tianyu ring. For some reason Starsgem doesn’t seem to have a problem with curving in the shoulders so they swoop in to meet the head. I think Mona maybe using a similar CAD version that Tianyu uses and the rings have a tendency to be too thick between the fingers and at the shoulders. Instead of it being rounded, they have a flatter appearance to the shank. I would just check and see what the between the finger’s measurement is and at the shoulders. You really don’t want to get over 2 mm or it starts getting uncomfortable. You can see my pic above with a ring I had made in the US vs the Tianyu ring.

 

[sd_flp]

@baileydare16 I just got home. I'm sure you probably got a lot of helpful info, but I thought I would share these pics for you and anyone else interested. This is the GH antique cushion I got from Starsgem against white paper:



Today I am wearing my white gold ring with my DE stone from Tianyu; I figure I hold it next to the GH cushion. The difference is super subtle, imo:



I think Mona's colorless moissys are fine. Both my DEF moissys I bought from her were white with no yellow. I'll attach a pic of the H&A I used to have right next to the Tianyu H&A in different lighting:

 

[Lucky_Rabbit]

I’m going to ask her for a different stone. This is supposed to be my forever ring and the color is going to drive me insane. The cut is absolutely perfect though and the ring is nice and heavy. The ring itself is perfect.

Hopefully she'll let you exchange it in their DEF color, because yes, the ring and cut looks great. Just the color yet is off. She seems nice, so hopefully she'll work with you: D

 

[baileydare16]

@baileydare16 I just got home. I'm sure you probably got a lot of helpful info, but I thought I would share these pics for you and anyone else interested. This is the GH antique cushion I got from Starsgem against white paper:



Today I am wearing my white gold ring with my DE stone from Tianyu; I figure I hold it next to the GH cushion. The difference is super subtle, imo:



I think Mona's colorless moissys are fine. Both my DEF moissys I bought from her were white with no yellow. I'll attach a pic of the H&A I used to have right next to the Tianyu H&A in different lighting:

I’m talking to her about it but she isn’t budging. She’s saying that the stone she sent is GH then she tried to say it’s bevause it’s a bigger stone so I sent her examples of other people’s big GH cushions lol so then she said it was the light but I sent videos and pictures under different light sources and now she’s saying the ring is good and beautiful.

 

[Lucky_Rabbit]

I’m talking to her about it but she isn’t budging. She’s saying that the stone she sent is GH then she tried to say it’s bevause it’s a bigger stone so I sent her examples of other people’s big GH cushions lol so then she said it was the light but I sent videos and pictures under different light sources and now she’s saying the ring is good and beautiful.

That's not cool. I've purchased GH ACC stone/ring from SG and most have done the same with getting GH color from SG in pretty big sizes too and none (that I know off) showed the type of warmth/yellow you're getting. Especially since she used to work for SG she should know. Maybe you can remind her that not making the situation right isn't good for a new business that needs to build a good reputation.

 

[baileydare16]

That's not cool. I've purchased GH ACC stone/ring from SG and most have done the same with getting GH color from SG in pretty big sizes too and none (that I know off) showed the type of warmth/yellow you're getting. Especially since she used to work for SG she should know. Maybe you can remind her that not making the situation right isn't good for a new business that needs to build a good reputation.

I mentioned that since she worked at SG she knows and has seen some of these big GH cushions then she sent me videos of pennyc’s ring and said it looked yellow too lol she’s really fighting me tooth and nail. I told her all I wanted was a GH stone not a super yellow one. She’s been going back and forth with me for half an hour now and idk what to do. I’m being nice and polite and just trying to explain what I see but she’s claiming that’s normal for GH.

 

[Lucky_Rabbit]

I mentioned that since she worked at SG she knows and has seen some of these big GH cushions then she sent me videos of pennyc’s ring and said it looked yellow too lol she’s really fighting me tooth and nail. I told her all I wanted was a GH stone not a super yellow one. She’s been going back and forth with me for half an hour now and idk what to do. I’m being nice and polite and just trying to explain what I see but she’s claiming that’s normal for GH.

The side stones are DEF color. And if the main stone is supposed to be GH color, it does not do that much of a jump in color based on your last color. It definitely looks like an IJ color. Did you pay through PayPal? Did you buy through ETSY? If you did it through ETSY, leave her a negative review if she won't fix it with your last picture showing it's not GH as described. You could also try to get your money back through PayPal. But if you really like the ring and want to keep it and just get your stone replace. You can try to negotiate with her about getting another one cut but in DEF color. You will still spend some money. And have the stone switch out with your jewelry nearby. OR if you don't want to work with her anymore, ask SG to cut you a GH gem and showed them the video and picture of what you stone. But again, you'll spend some money. If she won't budge, you kind of have limited options.

 

[baileydare16]

The side stones are DEF color. And if the main stone is supposed to be GH color, it does not do that much of a jump in color based on your last color. It definitely looks like an IJ color. Did you pay through PayPal? Did you buy through ETSY? If you did it through ETSY, leave her a negative review if she won't fix it with your last picture showing it's not GH as described. You could also try to get your money back through PayPal. But if you really like the ring and want to keep it and just get your stone replace. You can try to negotiate with her about getting another one cut but in DEF color. You will still spend some money. And have the stone switch out with your jewelry nearby. OR if you don't want to work with her anymore, ask SG to cut you a GH gem and showed them the video and picture of what you stone. But again, you'll spend some money. If she won't budge, you kind of have limited options.

I paid through PayPal and I would hate to dispute it but she is really not budging at all and it’s really disheartening that she isn’t standing behind her word. I wonder if PayPal would be able to do a partial refund? I’m not sure but she won’t even discuss options with me bevause she thinks there is nothing wrong with the stone

 

[Lucky_Rabbit]

I paid through PayPal and I would hate to dispute it but she is really not budging at all and it’s really disheartening that she isn’t standing behind her word. I wonder if PayPal would be able to do a partial refund? I’m not sure but she won’t even discuss options with me bevause she thinks there is nothing wrong with the stone

I've never done disputes with PayPal but I bet there is an option for a partial refund. Do you have an invoice from her that break down the cost of what each item is? If you do then you can probably use that to get the partial refund for the stone. Get the picture/screencap of the pics and videos she sent you and do a comparison to the yellow of your stone. Used pictures outside that doesn't have yellow wall or something to prove your point. That's what I would do.

 

[baileydare16]

I've never done disputes with PayPal but I bet there is an option for a partial refund. Do you have an invoice from her that break down the cost of what each item is? If you do then you can probably use that to get the partial refund for the stone. Get the picture/screencap of the pics and videos she sent you and do a comparison to the yellow of your stone. Used pictures outside that doesn't have yellow wall or something to prove your point. That's what I would do.

Well after threatening to open a dispute she’s saying I can return it and get it replaced but I have to pay shipping.
She hinted that the stone is that color because she gave me such competitive pricing on the ring lol.
She said it’s “too much risk” to make this ring and that making this ring is too expensive. I told her I don’t want to pay shipping for a stone that’s too yellow because it’s not what I wanted in the first place. Her attitude has really left a bad taste in my mouth and I feel kinda cheated to be honest. I will not buy anything from her again. She said “in this price, I have try my best to make this ring good” and then she told me I should have set it in yellow gold because it’s yellow and wouldn’t show the color difference between that and the yellow stone lol

 

[Lucky_Rabbit]

Well after threatening to open a dispute she’s saying I can return it and get it replaced but I have to pay shipping.
She hinted that the stone is that color because she gave me such competitive pricing on the ring lol.
She said it’s “too much risk” to make this ring and that making this ring is too expensive. I told her I don’t want to pay shipping for a stone that’s too yellow because it’s not what I wanted in the first place. Her attitude has really left a bad taste in my mouth and I feel kinda cheated to be honest. I will not buy anything from her again. She said “in this price, I have try my best to make this ring good” and then she told me I should have set it in yellow gold because it’s yellow and wouldn’t show the color difference between that and the yellow stone lol

It's not our fault she wanted to do competitive pricing. If she CAN'T delivered what she promised than don't be low balling on the price if you can't do it. I understand it's a competitive market, but it's worse when there's problems because you wanted to cut corners. She obviously knew it was yellow when she mentioned yellow gold instead. As someone who has sent loose stones back to China. It's risky. I would tell her to ship you the replacement stone first and once you have the stone and you get it replaced you'll send her back the yellow stone. Because I would be scare to ship the whole ring back, it could get lost or stolen then you're out of luck. Or just send the stone back to her and not the whole ring if she insist you send something to her first.

For shipping things to China, the one time I did it, I used USPS Priority Mail (also used their shipping box) to send it back to China. It cost me about $30-ish. The lady said there's no tracking once it leaves the US, but there was actually tracking that showed up now and again and when it got delivered it showed that it was delivered. That's one way I would advise shipping it back. You want to declare as something like sterling silver costume jewelry with low value. It took a little over a week I think for them to get it.

 

[baileydare16]

It's not our fault she wanted to do competitive pricing. If she CAN'T delivered what she promised than don't be low balling on the price if you can't do it. I understand it's a competitive market, but it's worse when there's problems because you wanted to cut corners. She obviously knew it was yellow when she mentioned yellow gold instead. As someone who has sent loose stones back to China. It's risky. I would tell her to ship you the replacement stone first and once you have the stone and you get it replaced you'll send her back the yellow stone. Because I would be scare to ship the whole ring back, it could get lost or stolen then you're out of luck. Or just send the stone back to her and not the whole ring if she insist you send something to her first.

For shipping things to China, the one time I did it, I used USPS Priority Mail (also used their shipping box) to send it back to China. It cost me about $30-ish. The lady said there's no tracking once it leaves the US, but there was actually tracking that showed up now and again and when it got delivered it showed that it was delivered. That's one way I would advise shipping it back. You want to declare as something like sterling silver costume jewelry with low value. It took a little over a week I think for them to get it.

Yeah I told her I’m not paying to ship this ring back and that I don’t trust shipping it back to China. I told her I want a replacement stone sent to me and that I’ll pay to have it re-set at a local jeweler and she can pay to have the old stone sent back. I think that’s fair.

 

[Ra2nl]

@baileydare16 I hope you can work this out with Mona. Your ring is stunning!!!

 

[baileydare16]

@baileydare16 I hope you can work this out with Mona. Your ring is stunning!!!

Thank you! The ring itself is really beautiful, excellent craftsmanship. Feels nice and heavy and sturdy but also very comfortable.

 

[Lucky_Rabbit]

Thank you! The ring itself is really beautiful, excellent craftsmanship. Feels nice and heavy and sturdy but also very comfortable.

Not sure if this might help, but there's my 8x9.5 ACC GH color from SG. Not yellow. Slight warmth in certain lighting, but faces up fairly white.

 

[baileydare16]

Not sure if this might help, but there's my 8x9.5 ACC GH color from SG. Not yellow. Slight warmth in certain lighting, but faces up fairly white.

Thank you! I sent some of these to Mona and she tried to say yours looks white because of lighting lol I had to go back on the Starsgem thread and find them.

 

[Lucky_Rabbit]

Thank you! I sent some of these to Mona and she tried to say yours looks white because of lighting lol I had to go back on the Starsgem thread and find them.

LOL. That is too funny for her to tell me how my ring looks. The picture of the stone is against the paper background. The paper is white. You can tell the white paper turns a certain color of warmth. But the stone didn't turn yellow with the warmth. It has about the same comparison tone is color. If it's from my lighting, the paper would be whiter to match her theory that it's my lighting. But ok then, lol. She's just trying to get out of correcting her mistake. Which is too bad because your stone cut and ring are beautiful. If it wasn't that yellow, it would have all been perfect.

 

[baileydare16]

LOL. That is too funny for her to tell me how my ring looks. The picture of the stone is against the paper background. The paper is white. You can tell the white paper turns a certain color of warmth. But the stone didn't turn yellow with the warmth. It has about the same comparison tone is color. If it's from my lighting, the paper would be whiter to match her theory that it's my lighting. But ok then, lol. She's just trying to get out of correcting her mistake. Which is too bad because your stone cut and ring are beautiful. If it wasn't that yellow, it would have all been perfect.

Yeah it’s such a disappointment and definitely didn’t look this yellow in the videos she sent me. I suggested that she sends a new stone, I’ll have it set locally and then send her the old stone back. I’ll still be out money getting it set here but I don’t want to send the entire ring back. That’s my last offer before I get PayPal involved.

 

[Ra2nl]

@miafab
My ring was not exactly like the CAD, maybe because i have a small stone. Where the ring meets the prong, it's flat not curved like the CAD. Sorry for the crappy pictures!
The ring was made by StarsGem

 

[sd_flp]

@baileydare16 , I am so sorry this happened to you and I feel really bad. I can’t believe Mona would not accommodate your request until you threatened to get PayPal involved. Based on my previous experience with her, I didn’t expect her to do that at all! Especially since she worked for Starsgem.

I don’t think you should have to pay for shipping to return the stone. Honestly I was hoping she would just ship a new stone at her cost. The fact that she was being so stubborn makes me hesitant to recommend her to anyone, even though my experience with her was thoroughly positive.

If you read the Zhenggyong thread about the botched elongated cushion, the PSer was able to get a partial refund through PayPal. She just wanted money for the cushion as she bought this along with an OEC, and PayPal let her win in this case. So there is that in case she isn’t going to accommodate you further. Did your invoice include a cost breakdown of the stone, ring, and labor? You can use this if you have to file a PayPal claim and let PayPal know you want money for the stone only.

I hope this helps. Again, sorry that you had such a poor experience.

 

[miafab]

I haven’t looked over here in awhile but I was answering something else and caught your CAD. I can see that your inspiration picture has the stone in more of a straight ‘V” shape which make it sit much higher. The prongs have a slight bend on the Mona CAD which keeps the stone lower, but at the same time, you do loose some of the feminine shape of the ring.

I can also see that although you want a solid ring, it is a little too thick on the shoulders and between the fingers. It could just be the CAD but I had this problem with my first Tianyu ring. For some reason Starsgem doesn’t seem to have a problem with curving in the shoulders so they swoop in to meet the head. I think Mona maybe using a similar CAD version that Tianyu uses and the rings have a tendency to be too thick between the fingers and at the shoulders. Instead of it being rounded, they have a flatter appearance to the shank. I would just check and see what the between the finger’s measurement is and at the shoulders. You really don’t want to get over 2 mm or it starts getting uncomfortable. You can see my pic above with a ring I had made in the US vs the Tianyu ring.

Thanks so much for this!
I've gotten the reworked CAD, with domed sides and I think that eliminates the thickness issues between the fingers.

 

[miafab]

@miafab
My ring was not exactly like the CAD, maybe because i have a small stone. Where the ring meets the prong, it's flat not curved like the CAD. Sorry for the crappy pictures!
The ring was made by StarsGem

This was great info thanks for the help!