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- Aug 18, 2013
- Messages
- 12,046
A while back I had a bezel set cluster ring with a sapphire in it and an all-diamond cluster pair of earrings. The ring had a 2ct blue sapphire and 2.1ctw of side diamonds - all colorless, eye clean, individually certed and ideal cut. The earrings had colorless, eye clean centers, both Astor Ideal from Blue Nile, ideal specs, GORGEOUS diamonds - with side stones that were, I think, around...12 points each? More than 10 and less than 15. That's as much as I remember. They were colorless and well cut and definitely very clean.
Together, they were lovely.
But over time, the earrings made my ears ache and the sapphire wasn't the hue I wanted. So I pulled the ring apart, sold the sapphire, let the sides just sit for a while, dismantled the earrings, let those sides sit as well, and used the centers as side stones in my 3 stone ring (which I think everybody on Pricescope has seen!)
But then I upgraded the ring and the sides were back in a box again, just waiting.
But *then* - Good Old Gold had a GORGEOUS 1.51 G SI1 diamond for sale on their site, which I snapped up, given that it was, honestly, the whitest G I'd ever seen. It was STUNNING. I had it set back into the 2.1ctw of individually certed sides that were just sitting around (26-27 points per stone, E color, VS/VVS), and came up with one of the few perfect pieces of jewelry that I own; my cluster ring.
But I didn't have earrings that could hold a candle to them, so after a false start and then some back and forth, David Klass at DKJ sourced me some absolutely top shelf 20 point diamonds - colorless, VS, ideal cut - to return my .95 and .96ct Astor Ideals to earrings.
And so we did.
I also have a beautiful peridot - a gorgeous apple green - and some other diamonds, fleshed out by a couple more sourced by DKJ - to make a pendant, but that will be later on this year and will complete the set. For now, here are my new earrings - F colored VS2 centers, Astor Ideal, .95 and .96ct respectively, with individually sourced 20 point sides - E/F, VS, ideal cut - snapped by the jewelry paparazzi out and about with my cluster ring.
The set equals 8.7ctw and we'll be throwing in another 2ctw for the pendant. I'll probably wear them all with my diamond bangles (another 10 ctw) - so at that stage I'll be all sorts of "Look out Liz Taylor - here comes Mrs B!!"
Ok. Not really. But maybe those stats explain why I say I'm at an end of it with diamonds. For me, there's a limit. Not for everyone, granted - and have at it, I say! But for me....I just want to set what I have left then call it a day. I am one very lucky woman who has more than anyone has a right to expect, and certainly far more than I ever dreamed. And I'm very grateful. Time to start giving more back.






Together, they were lovely.
But over time, the earrings made my ears ache and the sapphire wasn't the hue I wanted. So I pulled the ring apart, sold the sapphire, let the sides just sit for a while, dismantled the earrings, let those sides sit as well, and used the centers as side stones in my 3 stone ring (which I think everybody on Pricescope has seen!)
But then I upgraded the ring and the sides were back in a box again, just waiting.
But *then* - Good Old Gold had a GORGEOUS 1.51 G SI1 diamond for sale on their site, which I snapped up, given that it was, honestly, the whitest G I'd ever seen. It was STUNNING. I had it set back into the 2.1ctw of individually certed sides that were just sitting around (26-27 points per stone, E color, VS/VVS), and came up with one of the few perfect pieces of jewelry that I own; my cluster ring.
But I didn't have earrings that could hold a candle to them, so after a false start and then some back and forth, David Klass at DKJ sourced me some absolutely top shelf 20 point diamonds - colorless, VS, ideal cut - to return my .95 and .96ct Astor Ideals to earrings.
And so we did.
I also have a beautiful peridot - a gorgeous apple green - and some other diamonds, fleshed out by a couple more sourced by DKJ - to make a pendant, but that will be later on this year and will complete the set. For now, here are my new earrings - F colored VS2 centers, Astor Ideal, .95 and .96ct respectively, with individually sourced 20 point sides - E/F, VS, ideal cut - snapped by the jewelry paparazzi out and about with my cluster ring.
The set equals 8.7ctw and we'll be throwing in another 2ctw for the pendant. I'll probably wear them all with my diamond bangles (another 10 ctw) - so at that stage I'll be all sorts of "Look out Liz Taylor - here comes Mrs B!!"
Ok. Not really. But maybe those stats explain why I say I'm at an end of it with diamonds. For me, there's a limit. Not for everyone, granted - and have at it, I say! But for me....I just want to set what I have left then call it a day. I am one very lucky woman who has more than anyone has a right to expect, and certainly far more than I ever dreamed. And I'm very grateful. Time to start giving more back.






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