sgclavenna
Rough_Rock
- Joined
- Aug 27, 2008
- Messages
- 35
Hello fellow PS'ers!!!! I am here to share my (very long) story about how I came to use the wonderful Brian Gavin to finish a reset for me that I had long toiled over. First let me give you the background on my rings.
When I got married in 1996 I had a lovely princess cut solitaire that I paired with simple round brilliant anniversary bands. They were all set in 14k white gold and I loved them. However, not being well educated about the composition of white gold and the need to rhodium, within a few years realized I would much prefer a platinum setting. In 2000 while working for a jeweler, I had my center diamond reset into a platinum cathedral solitaire and got 2 new platinum anniversary bands, this time with princess cut diamonds. They were exceptionally well made pieces and I wore them soldered together and loved them!!!! And of course, I paid cost + 10% as an employee, so the value was exceptional. Sadly, in 2003, they went missing (I actually think stolen) and I filed with our insurance. Most unfortunately I could not replace the set for the amount I was given (the hand made nature of the pieces and the fact that the jeweler I worked for was now retired and the store closed made this the case). So I chose a simple platinum solitaire, this time with a plain platinum wedding ring, and waited it out.
Eventually in 2004 I decided to reset the diamond into a princess cut channel set band with a matching wedding band. I ended up having that design remade (twice!!!) again however, basically recreating the same rings, but trying to get better craftsmanship, etc. It was after the second remaking (in 200
that I found PS, hee hee hee. Let me say that the final remake was great. The quality, the precision of the set was exactly what I wanted. I adored the rings and wore them happily. The challenge became that they were not very comfortable. The nature of the design was very modern/square lines/edges on the rings, so not rounded or comfort fit. I waffled about what to do. Try to have them remade again??? Reset the center diamond into a 3 stone?? Reset it into some sort of halo??? What would I then to do with all my little princess cut stones???
I kept wearing them and explored some settings with different vendors over this last year. It was not until January of this year that I realized what my vision was and ultimately decided to move forward. I am a therapist, I work with children, and low income families, and I am often going to people's homes, etc, for sessions. It is not always conducive to wear a blingy wedding ring, so I have taken to wearing some costume pieces that I like but would have no qualms about losing should something happen while on the job. This lead me to decide to have my current set made into 3 rings- a solitaire, and 2 channel set eternity bands, set in platinum, all of which I could wear interchangeably and also with my plain platinum band (think Jennifer Garner's stack). This would require using all my little princess cut stones plus some provided by the vendor- the diamonds in one ring are .05ct each and in the other .08ct each. So I worked with Jamie at BGD to realize my dream.
She helped me decide on this solitaire, saying it would fit best with accompanying bands:
http://www.briangavindiamonds.com/engagement-rings/solitaire/truth-cathedral-platinum-5860p
I had very clear instructions that I wanted the eternity bands to have rounded edges (I used the Tiffany Lucida eternity band as my guide) and Jamie sent me a few photos of an anniversary band Brian recently made with those exact edges. The team then made a CAD for me to show how the finished ring would look and I approved!
At present, I have moved forward with the creation of the solitaire and the smaller eternity band. I will be going back for the larger band in a few months once my wallet has recovered. I cannot say enough about the beauty of my new rings. I am so pleased to have rings that are comfortable and can be worn in multiple variations depending on the day and situation I find myself in. Comfort is a big thing for me, considering I want to wear these rings all of the time!!!!! But also the quality of craftsmanship is extremely important to me and it is evident that Brian and his staff work very hard at this. I am thrilled with the results!!!!
Here are the shots from BGD. The next post will include my own shots. The diamond is a 1.66 ct F/SI2 (GIA cert). The e-ring is a 6, I got the eternity band in a 6.25.
Enjoy!
Stephanie
When I got married in 1996 I had a lovely princess cut solitaire that I paired with simple round brilliant anniversary bands. They were all set in 14k white gold and I loved them. However, not being well educated about the composition of white gold and the need to rhodium, within a few years realized I would much prefer a platinum setting. In 2000 while working for a jeweler, I had my center diamond reset into a platinum cathedral solitaire and got 2 new platinum anniversary bands, this time with princess cut diamonds. They were exceptionally well made pieces and I wore them soldered together and loved them!!!! And of course, I paid cost + 10% as an employee, so the value was exceptional. Sadly, in 2003, they went missing (I actually think stolen) and I filed with our insurance. Most unfortunately I could not replace the set for the amount I was given (the hand made nature of the pieces and the fact that the jeweler I worked for was now retired and the store closed made this the case). So I chose a simple platinum solitaire, this time with a plain platinum wedding ring, and waited it out.
Eventually in 2004 I decided to reset the diamond into a princess cut channel set band with a matching wedding band. I ended up having that design remade (twice!!!) again however, basically recreating the same rings, but trying to get better craftsmanship, etc. It was after the second remaking (in 200
that I found PS, hee hee hee. Let me say that the final remake was great. The quality, the precision of the set was exactly what I wanted. I adored the rings and wore them happily. The challenge became that they were not very comfortable. The nature of the design was very modern/square lines/edges on the rings, so not rounded or comfort fit. I waffled about what to do. Try to have them remade again??? Reset the center diamond into a 3 stone?? Reset it into some sort of halo??? What would I then to do with all my little princess cut stones???I kept wearing them and explored some settings with different vendors over this last year. It was not until January of this year that I realized what my vision was and ultimately decided to move forward. I am a therapist, I work with children, and low income families, and I am often going to people's homes, etc, for sessions. It is not always conducive to wear a blingy wedding ring, so I have taken to wearing some costume pieces that I like but would have no qualms about losing should something happen while on the job. This lead me to decide to have my current set made into 3 rings- a solitaire, and 2 channel set eternity bands, set in platinum, all of which I could wear interchangeably and also with my plain platinum band (think Jennifer Garner's stack). This would require using all my little princess cut stones plus some provided by the vendor- the diamonds in one ring are .05ct each and in the other .08ct each. So I worked with Jamie at BGD to realize my dream.
She helped me decide on this solitaire, saying it would fit best with accompanying bands:
http://www.briangavindiamonds.com/engagement-rings/solitaire/truth-cathedral-platinum-5860p
I had very clear instructions that I wanted the eternity bands to have rounded edges (I used the Tiffany Lucida eternity band as my guide) and Jamie sent me a few photos of an anniversary band Brian recently made with those exact edges. The team then made a CAD for me to show how the finished ring would look and I approved!
At present, I have moved forward with the creation of the solitaire and the smaller eternity band. I will be going back for the larger band in a few months once my wallet has recovered. I cannot say enough about the beauty of my new rings. I am so pleased to have rings that are comfortable and can be worn in multiple variations depending on the day and situation I find myself in. Comfort is a big thing for me, considering I want to wear these rings all of the time!!!!! But also the quality of craftsmanship is extremely important to me and it is evident that Brian and his staff work very hard at this. I am thrilled with the results!!!!
Here are the shots from BGD. The next post will include my own shots. The diamond is a 1.66 ct F/SI2 (GIA cert). The e-ring is a 6, I got the eternity band in a 6.25.
Enjoy!
Stephanie
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