Paging Poptart and LoveinBloom!!!

[diamondseeker2006]

Date: 6/27/2007 12:03:39 PM
Author: angeline

Date: 6/27/2007 11:40:10 AM
Author: diamondseeker2006
Heck, I''m a lot older than all of you girls! Lol! But I think that testifies to the timelessness of these designs!


Actually, one concern I have had is that these rings do not call for large diamonds. Part of my confusion has been whether a smaller stone would look better in the setting I am looking at. What size stone are you setting, Angeline? I don''t remember if you have said.

I agree with you 100%. I have a 2.1ct F SI2 and I was originally looking at trading up to a 3ct but dropping to I SI2 to do it. Then I started falling in love with these settings and thinking that a smaller stone would look much better, and the SI2 has always bugged me so I''m trading now to either a 2.03 D VS2 or 2.2 F VS2. Waiting on the IS from WF.

I think that smaller would be even nicer actually. There''s something so delicate and perfect looking about them with the smaller stones. Which setting are you looking at? Is it the one Cross calls Society Hill? I LOVE that one too. I tried it on and it has a bit of a 3-stone look to it with the sides. Gosh it''s so hard to make up one''s mind! How big is your stone?

a

I think you made a very, very wise decision to upgrade in quality rather than size! That would have been my choice hands down! My stone is 1.6 cts. so is smaller than yours! Yes, right now my favorite is that one. When I saw it, I thought it was the prettiest setting I had ever seen. But now that I am away from it, I second guess myself and wonder if I''d miss a plain solitaire!!!

How did you find the pricing?

 

[angeline]

diamondseeker - good timing! I was just about to post regarding my final stone decision. I have ended up with a 1.57 Expert Selection D VS1 from WF. In the end I wanted the best cut I could get then the best color/clarity then size. I know most people on PS would disagree with me but I have always wanted a ''D''. and if I get tired of it I can always trade it back to WF with their excellent upgrade policy.

So I hope I''m not stealing your ideas but I tried the ''Society Hill'' on today and I think it might look fabulous with a 1.57. So we''re nearly stone twins now, except yours is bigger! Darn I love that setting! Re pricing, I didn''t enquire with Larry about that setting but his quoted prices on the others I looked at were really good, and less than what I have seen on the internet (which is really only Clay Pot) for pricing. so where are you at with your stone and setting? I know you had that humungous thread about settings, just not sure where you are now? I hear you re the plain solitaire, I just want something where I don''t have to worry about the metal dulling or scratching or whatever, and I''m not super keen on pave.

LiB I was gong to post and tell you how I went to a store called ''The Vault'' today in Santa Cruz, just to browse, and I couldn''t believe my eyes but they had VC rings!!! so my browsing promptly stopped there and I tried them all on. The sales lady had a 3-stone from them designed for her it was amazing, sorry it was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.!!! I am thinking that the Society Hill might be the way to go, I think I want a little more ''meat'' to my ering than the one I thought I wanted which is the one Hest88 has.

I should get my new stone on Thursday, so I will be hoofing it up to SF as soon as my dear hubby can get time off work to mind the baba. I definitely need time alone with all the preciousesses to decide.

I am so glad you and poptart posted about these, I might never have found them and appreciated them otherwise! And and yes that pic is from that site you mentioned. $40k?? I don''t think so. I have to say I didn''t love the ring she ended up with. I love the VC MUCH more

Well dh has arrived back with pizza so as much as I love sparklies, I do love my pizza!! Will post a thread soon I guess about my new stone, except I think everyone will think I''m crazeee.

a

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Angeline!!!! Wow! A D VS1! This is so ironic. Whe I was talking to Cross Jewelers, I asked Ralph what diamonds he liked best in the VC settings. He said they had set .75 up to 2.5 carats, but that they loved D and E color stones the most! It did make me think about whether to upgrade my stone before having it set. So I looked at GOG and they have a 1.58 D VS1! Isn''t that funny?! I don''t think I can justify the diamond upgrade and the VC settings, but we would really be ring twins if I did! But I imagine that your new stone will look the same size as my 1.63 anyway. But I will be DYING to see it especially if you set it in the 484/585! Do you like the thinner or wider version of the e-ring? It was a hard decision because I really liked both but there is a big price difference. I''ll post a picture or two of the settings with a 1.5 ct. cz in them for you.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

To answer your other question, I had my diamond set in a plain solitaire last fall so I could wear it and not rush into a permanent setting decision. I did get a diamond Memoire wedding band, but I will either keep it to wear when I don''t wear the new set or else just consign it. I may call Larry and get some prices, but I am hoping to see a picture of the cross pendant from your next visit before I call him. I don''t want to bother him about that unless I really love it.

Oh, I forgot to say that I''d use the thinner wedding band regardless of which e-ring I got. I thought it would be too much to have both of the wider rings.

I am with you on the going alone to VC! No one else has the patience to deliberate over all the little details like we do! I can''t wait to hear after your next visit to see what you decide!

 

[angeline]

Date: 7/3/2007 11:23:08 PM
Author: diamondseeker2006
Angeline!!!! Wow! A D VS1! This is so ironic. Whe I was talking to Cross Jewelers, I asked Ralph what diamonds he liked best in the VC settings. He said they had set .75 up to 2.5 carats, but that they loved D and E color stones the most! It did make me think about whether to upgrade my stone before having it set. So I looked at GOG and they have a 1.58 D VS1! Isn''t that funny?! I don''t think I can justify the diamond upgrade and the VC settings, but we would really be ring twins if I did! But I imagine that your new stone will look the same size as my 1.63 anyway. But I will be DYING to see it especially if you set it in the 484/585! Do you like the thinner or wider version of the e-ring? It was a hard decision because I really liked both but there is a big price difference. I''ll post a picture or two of the settings with a 1.5 ct. cz in them for you.

Oh my goodness!!! Get the 1.58, we would be like IDENTICAL ring twins, especially if we both got the SH setting! (I keep calling it that cos that''s where I first saw it) Just kidding, this diamond business is an expensive one!

Thank you SO much for posting that set in the white metal, it''s so hard to find pics of it in white, not yg. It looks just beautiful! I think I would just get one of the bangle bands to wear with it, I think it might be a bit much too with the matching band.

Good decision to wait until you are sure on the setting. I''ve already wasted some $$$ on my previous setting. I think I would go with the thinner VC setting if I do go ahead with that one. I have always loved that picture on Cross'' website and I do love the way they describe their rings, even though sometimes it sounds a little corny.

I will tie the camera to my wrist next time I go up so I don''t forget to get pics. Will he know exactly which cross I am talking about? Is there more than one or any possiblity of confusion?

a

 

[Love in Bloom]

Date: 7/3/2007 11:00:41 PM
Author: angeline

LiB I was gong to post and tell you how I went to a store called 'The Vault' today in Santa Cruz, just to browse, and I couldn't believe my eyes but they had VC rings!!! so my browsing promptly stopped there and I tried them all on. The sales lady had a 3-stone from them designed for her it was amazing, sorry it was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.!!! I am thinking that the Society Hill might be the way to go, I think I want a little more 'meat' to my ering than the one I thought I wanted which is the one Hest88 has.

I should get my new stone on Thursday, so I will be hoofing it up to SF as soon as my dear hubby can get time off work to mind the baba. I definitely need time alone with all the preciousesses to decide.

I am so glad you and poptart posted about these, I might never have found them and appreciated them otherwise! And and yes that pic is from that site you mentioned. $40k?? I don't think so. I have to say I didn't love the ring she ended up with. I love the VC MUCH more

Well dh has arrived back with pizza so as much as I love sparklies, I do love my pizza!! Will post a thread soon I guess about my new stone, except I think everyone will think I'm crazeee.

a

Angeline, what a pleasant surprise you must have had at The Vault

. It is funny because when I looked for info on Van Craeynest, I had a difficult time finding any. Then, even though VC pieces are so elusive and esoteric, when I stopped looking so hard their designs and namesake kept poping up in the oddest of ways:

Firstly, I had several pics of their rings socked away in my favorite jewelry picture folder for a while. This was before I even knew who made the rings and I thought they were actual antiques! I only realized what I had done when I went back through and looked for VC links for you.

Then when I finally did figure out who manufactured the rings I liked, I called them only to have my my hopes squelched since there aren't any reatailers near where I live. It was one cold and sad winter day when I came back from getting the mail that I heard the phone ringing. It was Larry calling me back. Somehow we got into a discussion and I mentioned that I was going to NYC to visit a friend. He mentioned that Belenky Brothers was in SoHo and that there was a mounting there similar to the one I was interested in getting so that I could perhaps get a glimpse in person. I had so much fun in SoHo, but then I got distracted...

A while after my NYC trip and some family tradgedies later, I had put the wedding planning and plans for a reset on the back burner. I was cleaning up my mess of bridal magazines and wedding stuff from around my desk when the Spring 2006 issue of Elegant Bride fell from the top of the stack I was attempting to wrangle. It fell open to page 78, a page I had dog-eared because I liked the suit by Badgley Mischka on that page. Guess what was picturred in the lower left corner?? Style 1014, simply entitled, "4 FLOWER RING" ! I took it as a sign from the jewelry deities and my interest sparked again.

Subsequently I stumbled upon pricescope and saw Hest88's EC VC set, the chronicles of Widget's star ruby gondola ring, and of course Diamondseeker's thread on VC designs

. I finally decided to go ahead and order my rings and even impulsively ordered a band for my fiance (I still can't believe I did that!). I ordered and waited. The wait was excruciating and I looked at the pics here on PS to help tide me over. I was a frequent lurker, but I had never registered at that point.

I finally got our rings in the mail and along comes Poptart and her "Van Craeynest anyone?" thread! So I registered and posted. As I was thinking back to how my reset came about, I decided to send Larry a 'Thank You' package with some goodies and a sketch of a design. I called Larry to make sure he received the package, and he confirmed he had. I assumed he saw my sketch, thought it was awful , and just didn't say anything about it

.

Then just when I thought that was the end of my Van Craeynest advenutre, I call Larry to ask him something about our rings (cleaning, sizing...I forget what exactly) and to thank him one last time. He said he saw my sketch

....that it looked good

...and that he could make it for me

. Thus Love in Bloom's Van Craeynest adventure continues...perhaps the end will come when I visit San Francisco. I think it was meant to be. Who knows?







Sorry that was so long. I was just sharing in case you have a similar experience of VC popping up all over the place. It really seems kind of erie! Ah, but such is life...

So I agree that having more metal "meat" (haha,

) on your ring may be a good idea. My rings turned out a little wider and thicker than I expected, but I feel safer wearing my ering all the time and it still looks delicate in person. Your new stone sounds fantastic by the way!!! Be sure to keep us updated on your new diamond and which rings you choose. I must have changed my mind about 300 times before I actually ordered

. I'm sure seeing all the pretties in person doesn't help that much either! That would be really funny if you an Diamondseeker end up being identical jewelry twins. That is probably just as rare as having identical twin babies!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Angeline,

If you don''t want the extra sparkle of the matching diamond wedding band, guess what? They make that exact wedding band with no diamonds!!! It will be like the sides of the rings all the way around! I think that would be a gorgeous alternative and so complementary! I really had not thought of doing that, but I might. The smaller wedding band just has 6 teeny diamonds like 2 points each, so it is subtle sparkle. The larger one has 5 larger diamonds so it is more blingy and I don''t want that. I just think the scroll work on the sides of that ring is so magnificent, that I wouldn''t want to give that up on the wedding band. I hope Larry has samples of all three wedding bands so you can see the difference. But if not, you can easily imagine the plain one. I am not sure if there is a picture of the plain one anywhere, but I am sure it exists. I''ll look and see if I can find one.

As far as the cross goes, Larry told me he had made one. He rarely gets requests for them. I want a small one, 1 inch or less. I think he had made one in gold and I really want white metal. But I can''t order something I have never seen. So if he has any crosses, I''d like to see the pictures. I just don''t think he''s into digital photography and email.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Okay, no picture, but if you go to the mickyroof.com site and go to the VC page, click on specifications for all styles. Scroll down to 484 and 484-Lg for the e-ring choices. Then 584, 584-Lg, and 584-plain are the wedding bands! I tried on both the regular and larger e-rings and there is only a very slight difference in size. The larger may be a better fit for our size stones. But then I''d go with the smaller 584 or the 584-plain wedding band. Just imagine that wedding band without the diamonds at the top.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Large 484, regular 484, and small 584 with diamonds:

 

[diamondseeker2006]

one more (wish my hands were as young as all of yours!)

 

[Love in Bloom]

Holy cow DS!!! I think your hands look great; even better with that set

! That center is a 1.5? I think it looks fantastic with that size stone and I love the larger mounting. I have seen the plain band that looks kind of like an eternity knife edge band (kind of looks like 548P except with scrolls instead of flowers) which is great because you can wear it like a stack ring. There is also another matching band without diamonds that has a plain strip of polished metal in the middle (584PG). It comes in narrow and wide versions (aka women''s and men''s versions). It is amazing to see all of the variations on this ring within the same family! I should have asked you if you had any pics; that is quite a VC goldmine you have there!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I really was not going to post them to save the surprise for my finished rings (if I get them), but since Angeline is considering them, I thought she might enjoy seeing more pictures! Maybe it is just the 4 of us reading this thread at this point anyway!

I am leaning toward the larger e-ring with one of the thin bands. I am not sure whether I want the diamonds or the plain. I love the thinner one with diamonds, but I am also concerned about it looking like too much. Yet it goes so perfectly with the e-ring! Very hard decision!

 

[Love in Bloom]

Diamondseeker, I am totally in love with the idea of the larger setting and the narrower band! That combo with a 1.5ct+ stone sounds perfect to me

! I think the thinner band offers more versatility (stacking, wearing by itself) while still holding true to the scroll theme, all the while having your center stone be the crowning jewel it was meant to be when you wear the two rings together

.

 

[angeline]

Wowzers thanks for posting those pics ds06!!! They are immensely helpful. I didn''t know there were so many options available within that style. I love that knife-edge plain band idea but like you it''s hard to turn down the extra sparkle of the matching band. Wow how would a full eternity style like that be?? TDF!

By the way you haven''t seen my lizard hands yet! I think I''m leaning towards the thinner e-ring with a slightly wider band. I like something a little heavier for wearing the band on it''s own. Oooohh and then think of the stacking opportunities! I''ll be set for all anni, b''days, etc for the 20 years!

What size were the rings in the pics you posted ds? I mean as in were they the large size or small?

LiB, I know what you mean about things just turning up and pointing you to a certain direction. I feel that way too, and if something seems to fall easily into place I usually feel it was meant to be and vice versa. I''m also glad I''m not the only one changing my mind a 1000 times! I''ve run the whole gamut from bezel to tension to Leon and now to these. I''m still in love with them though and it''s been a little while, so I''m hopeful this is the set for me!

While I love a holiday it means my stone won''t arrive till Thursday. I''m hioping I won''t think it''s too small. I haven''t seen my 2.1ct for a while since Leon had it for a few weeks, then WF, so I think it will be okay. There''s something really lovely to me to think of having a perfect stone on a perfect delicate setting. Well perfect stone to me I guess, I know what''s perfect is up to personal opinion.

I''ll keep you posted!

a

 

[diamondseeker2006]

That top e-ring is the wider one, the second is the regular, and the wedding band is the regular. There is a wider wedding band with diamonds that is probably the width of the wider e-ring. I am not sure if the plain one is narrow or wide or both, but LIB sort of indicated that there is more than one size plain band. The men''s plain band is in Micky Roof, and it is gorgeous, too.

These bands may appear to be knife-edge, but they really aren''t. The middle strip on the thinner bands is flat, but the narrowness makes them appear to be knife-edge. The platinum is just gorgeous in person. The pictures do not do them justice, as you girls know!

Angeline, I think your new diamond will be close to perfect! But it may be a size adjustment for you. But when I had that 1.5 ct. cz in those settings, I felt like that was large enough. In fact, the settings are so gorgeous that a smaller diamond looks just as good. When you have a plain solitaire, the diamond is the only focus, so I can see where a larger stone might make more of an impact. But with VC rings, it is the total picture of setting and stone.

You have a good point about having a wider band that could be worn alone. You can obviously go with both wider, both narrower, wide e-ring with thin w-band, or thin e-ring and wider w-band. Very nice to have all those options, but it makes deciding tougher! Although, you''ll have the advantage of trying on more than I can! Take lots of pictures for us!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Date: 7/4/2007 12:21:28 PM
Author: Love in Bloom
Diamondseeker, I am totally in love with the idea of the larger setting and the narrower band! That combo with a 1.5ct+ stone sounds perfect to me

! I think the thinner band offers more versatility (stacking, wearing by itself) while still holding true to the scroll theme, all the while having your center stone be the crowning jewel it was meant to be when you wear the two rings together

.

Thanks! That is the way I am leaning. The other reason for that is that this ring will someday be left to a daughter, and I think the wider e-ring will be more easily worn as a rhr than a thinner one.

 

[Love in Bloom]

Date: 7/4/2007 12:38:18 PM
Author: angeline

Wow how would a full eternity style like that be?? TDF!

Holy cow I almost just fell out of my chair envisioning that one

! Would you have it made as wide (larger diamonds all the way around) and pierced as the 548 eternity, or would you go for a narrower band with smaller diamonds? I was never into really wide eternity bands, but I would wear this one (ha! in my dreams

).

 

[angeline]

Date: 7/6/2007 5:18:46 AM
Author: Love in Bloom

Date: 7/4/2007 12:38:18 PM

Author: angeline


Wow how would a full eternity style like that be?? TDF!

Holy cow I almost just fell out of my chair envisioning that one

! Would you have it made as wide (larger diamonds all the way around) and pierced as the 548 eternity, or would you go for a narrower band with smaller diamonds? I was never into really wide eternity bands, but I would wear this one (ha! in my dreams

).

Sighhhhh.... I would wear ANY of their rings. Or earrings (which I was browsing last night..), or pendants. You know I was imagining an eternity just like the 584 but with the small stones continued all the way around. I was looking at the MR website info again and I noticed that the ring like the scroll-y one but with flowers on the sides (54 actually does come in an eternity style with various stone size options so I''m sure they could do the 584 like that too.

I got my stone yesterday and I

it!!! It looks plenty huge to me, I think looking at the VC rings with smaller stones all the time helps. I love that I don''t have to even think about the inclusions anymore after having my SI2. I think it will look fabbo in the 448 style that ds likes. I feel a little bad if I get it before she does, as she was the first that liked it. Well who knows what I''ll choose after I have another look.

Another

thought: I hardly spent any of the upgrade money I was going to spend so I was thinking of getting another stone, like .5-.7 and doing this one in yellow gold. How yum! I love the pierced styles just not for an e-ring. Just not sure how expendy that ring would be. I rang Larry yesterday to tell him I got my stone but he''s away all week, so I''ll have to wait till Monday. I''m hoping to go in towards the end of next week. DH has to take a day off work so I can go on my own, hee hee.

Here''s the one in yg: The woman at The Vault the other day had a 3-stone version of this. My eyes just about popped outa my head!

 

[Love in Bloom]

Congratulations on getting your stone Angeline! Darn holidays

. The post office ppl have to have fun sometime

. I''m glad you are happy with it even though it is smaller than your other stone. Your D VS1 definitely sounds worth it

! OOooh and I like the idea of you using that upgrade $$$ to your full advantage

. I am trying to imagine what 1014 would look like in a 3-stone style. Did the lady''s 3-stone ring at The Vault still have the flowers on the shoulders? That sounds really interesting indeed

. I wonder how much 1014 is as well. I priced 1021 in yellow gold for my momma and I think it was either $2600 or 3600, I can''t remember which (kind of a big difference, I know

). I think the price may also depend on the price of gold or platinum at the time the blanks are purchased or something along those lines.

I am quite happy that 548 comes with tiny diamonds! Did you see my old ering setting in my first SMTR? I saved that setting because I thought it was pretty and I was sentimental about it. Now I''ve started thinking about it, it isn''t made very well and I don''t want to have to worry about it. Now I''m trying to figure out what to do with the diamonds (there are 48 total). Larry suggested clustering them into earrings, but I''m asian and wearing cluster earrings makes me think I''ll look like an old lady

. I''m thinking maybe they could be put into an eternity band like 548. The specs at MR say the the 1pt eternity takes 38 stones (maybe more for larger sizes? I wear size 7 now). If I have 10 leftover, what would I do with those?? Maybe they could go in the center of some flowers on each side? Heheh maybe I could get my nose pierced and get a Van Craeynest nose ring

!

 

[angeline]

Date: 7/6/2007 2:20:25 PM
Author: Love in Bloom
Congratulations on getting your stone Angeline! Darn holidays

. The post office ppl have to have fun sometime

. I'm glad you are happy with it even though it is smaller than your other stone. Your D VS1 definitely sounds worth it

! OOooh and I like the idea of you using that upgrade $$$ to your full advantage

. I am trying to imagine what 1014 would look like in a 3-stone style. Did the lady's 3-stone ring at The Vault still have the flowers on the shoulders? That sounds really interesting indeed

. I wonder how much 1014 is as well. I priced 1021 in yellow gold for my momma and I think it was either $2600 or 3600, I can't remember which (kind of a big difference, I know

). I think the price may also depend on the price of gold or platinum at the time the blanks are purchased or something along those lines.


I am quite happy that 548 comes with tiny diamonds! Did you see my old ering setting in my first SMTR? I saved that setting because I thought it was pretty and I was sentimental about it. Now I've started thinking about it, it isn't made very well and I don't want to have to worry about it. Now I'm trying to figure out what to do with the diamonds (there are 48 total). Larry suggested clustering them into earrings, but I'm asian and wearing cluster earrings makes me think I'll look like an old lady

. I'm thinking maybe they could be put into an eternity band like 548. The specs at MR say the the 1pt eternity takes 38 stones (maybe more for larger sizes? I wear size 7 now). If I have 10 leftover, what would I do with those?? Maybe they could go in the center of some flowers on each side? Heheh maybe I could get my nose pierced and get a Van Craeynest nose ring

!

I just remember that the 3-stone looked so amazing on the side. So many flowers all twining around - so pretty! I don't remember the shoulders of it...Aren't you a nice daughter thinking of that ring for your momma. Does she like it? I'm half-chinese by the way...

And what a great idea for using the stones from your old setting! I think that would be magnificent! The eternity I mean, I"m with you on cluster earrings. I would guess that the specs would list for a standard size 6. At the Vault they had flower earrings that I haven't seen on line anywhere, they were just your classic VC flowers with diamonds in the middle. Maybe you could do those? That would be super-pretty! Or of course there is your nose-ring idea!

I just can't wait till Monday when I can talk to Larry. Do you think a warmer stone like I or J would look better in yellow gold? more antique-ish? Then I had the wild idea of hunting down an OEC or old stone! My poor dh, he just wants the diamond madness to end, he doesn't realise that it never will

!!!

a

 

[Love in Bloom]

Actually Mom hasn''t seen that ring yet

. She almost never goes online

can you believe it? I''m trying to get her to reset her dad''s diamond from his wedding band. I think it is about 40 points and is currently set in a really awful antique reproduction that looks like an engagement ring. She never wears it and I think it''s because she is self conscious about being single

. Her dad''s diamond also has a brown ribbon like inclusion (like a swirl in a marble) right in the center and I think she is afraid to reset it for fear it might break. I was thinking since VC''s stone setter is VERY good, and since 1021''s center is bezel set that it might keep the diamond safer. Unfortunately she isn''t really a jewelry person; she''s just sentimental about her dad''s diamond. I''m still trying though!

Oh and I would love to see those earrings, well everything really. I''ll MUST visit The Vault. Oh dear I may just spend my entire honeymoon jewelry shopping

.

So do you mind me asking what the other non-chinese half of you is

? LOL, I can always ask, but you don''t have to answer

. I''m adopted and my birth certificate says "Outer Mongolia" although I was adopted from S. Korea. My Filipino friend says I look Chinese, and I have also been suggested as Hawaiian and Eskimo before. I really have no idea what I am! I''m just me, I guess

. Mom is Polish/German, dad is Irish. We are an odd bunch

.

Oh my Angeline, I think an OEC would look just PERFECT in 1014 ! A little warmth wouldn''t hurt either. That sounds just stunning actually

. Would you have the ring antiqued? If not, make sure to tell Larry you don''t want an antique finish because I don''t think he ever asked what kind of finish I wanted on 1918, it just came antiqued. Turns out we love the finish, it isn''t nearly as dark as it looks in the pics, and Larry said it would get better over time because it would wear off just a bit, but that is something to consider since the finish is probably harder to take off than to put on!

Oh the diamond madness...and the jewelry madness...our work is never done. Always one thing after another, the next one prettier than the last! Why do we as living things seem to inherently covet shiny and sparkly objects? I haven''t a clue, but I do know I think the internet is the biggest enabler of it all! Such a dangerously wonderful thing

.

 

[angeline]

You know I remember as a 10yr old sending off for a cz offer from a magazine! I loved sparklies even then! My other half (as in me not dh) is half english/half irish. So I am an odd mix too. Our daughter is adopted, she is half chinese indonesian and not too sure on the other half exactly. Wow I bet you''re really pretty, with all those suggestions on your ancestry, sounds exotic. I wish I had Outer Mongolia on my birth certificate. Seriously.

I''m a bit scared of OEC shopping cos I know about RB''s and I know nothing on OEC''s. I like the antiqued finish because you can see the detail. On all white it''s harder to see.

I know you have told me before but when are you getting married? if you need jewelry shopping tips for north california just let me know! I will share my meagre knowledge. If it wasn''t your honeymoon I would suggest meeting up! but you will probably have better things on your mind!

Yes the obsessive madness. I just love having something to learn about. Perpetual student my mother always used to say when I wanted to do another course instead of getting a job! The only problem with getting the setting and diamond of my dreams means that it''s all over! Nothing to dream about... still I''m sure I''ll think of another project

a

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I sort of have chills reading the last two posts. I am from English and German descent (long ago), but get this....our youngest daughter is adopted from China! Talk about strange that we''d all have something very special in common aside from liking the same rings!

 

[angeline]

Date: 7/7/2007 12:02:40 AM
Author: diamondseeker2006
I sort of have chills reading the last two posts. I am from English and German descent (long ago), but get this....our youngest daughter is adopted from China! Talk about strange that we''d all have something very special in common aside from liking the same rings!

Oh wow that is so cool! It is a BIG coincidence isn''t it. Strange and wonderful world. It is a pity that PM''s are disabled I would love to share a photo of my baby. I did post one of her in Halloween costume on the Dog''s Only thread in Hangout...she was dressed as a Dalmatian..

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Aww...I''ll try to find her picture! I have a special fondness for Asian babies! Our little girl is 11 now, which is hard to believe! She is still beautiful, though! We had two biological children first, but I am such an adoption proponent now!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I found her!!! She is beautiful and I know you adore her! Not to ask too many personal questions, but did you get her in the US or internationally? We went to China to get our little girl when she was just under 6 months old.

 

[angeline]

I am more than happy to share. We adopted in the US, because we are not citizens here we could not adopt from overseas. I had always wanted to adopt from China as I am half-chinese. We were so lucky that she became our daughter, she is just perfect. The birth-family are so nice too, I felt like I was with family the short time that we spent together. The birth-mom invited me to be present at the birth which was an honor and wonderful experience. sigh... so many wonderful memories, time has flown, she is 28 months now.

.

a

 

[Love in Bloom]

I have chills too Diamondseeker! This is a strange and wonderful world indeed. I find our commonalities intensly profound and enlightening; I love it

!

LOL Angeline, sending off for jewelry at 10 years

? That is too cute

.

Searching for an OEC sounds a good bit different than shopping for a RB. Did you see Vintagebling''s SMTR ? She posted some diagrams of older cut stone patterns that are really interesting and informative, not to mention her ring is absolutely gorgeous

!

Oh yeah, and our wedding is 10/13/07 on the east coast, but we are entertaining the thought of eloping

on 7/11 (my b-day!

). Regardless of what we do though we won''t be able to visit CA until October. I would love any shopping tips (jewelry and otherwise!) you have Angeline! You know, we don''t have to make plans to meet, but if we happen to be at the same jewelry store drooling over the sparklies at the same time...lol that would be fantastic

.

 

[angeline]

LinB - I found this post while revisiting your SMTR thread:

Date: 6/7/2007 10:11:58 PM
Author: Love in Bloom
OMG Diamondseeker...what stone are you thinking about setting? Is it your 1.63 H&A?? I'm having palpitations just thinking about it

. I saw this ring

at Belenky Brothers with about a 1.5 stone and it was TO DIE FOR!!!!! (pic is from timepieces.com, though). If I had a bigger stone I would have totally picked this mounting

.

I love this setting too. As you saw it with a 1.5, do you think that the diamond got swamped by the setting? do you think the other setting that DS and I are looking at (Is it 584?) would make the diamond the star more? I would love to see this setting with a 1.5 in it. The one on MR's site looks humungous, like at least 2ct.


Do you think you might really elope? I think that could be more fun than a formal wedding sometimes. It would be nice to do both! Wow let us know if you do! You could be married by this time next week!

If you don't show up on the boards for a while after 7/11, we'll know what's happened, hee hee! Happy Birthday anyway for next Wednesday, I hope you have a fantastic day.

a