Seeking advice for sapphire engagement ring

[samsolomon]

Hello, there! I am new to the PriceScope community and quite new to the world of colored gemstones. On my girlfriend's (soon-to-be fiancee's) recommendation, I thought I would solicit your expertise both on stones and jewelers to work with in the Chicagoland area.

My soon-to-be fiancee and I are searching for sapphires for her engagement ring. She knows quite a bit about gems (she has spent a lot of time on PriceScope) and has given me particular specifications. We are looking for an oval blue sapphire, true cobalt to deep royal blue; she prefers the medium to dark end of the trade. She's looking for a stone between 7.5 x 5.5 mm and 8.5 x 6.5 mm; 8 x 6 mm would be the ideal calibrated size. We are aiming to keep the total budget for the ring within $4,000 - $5,000.

After searching through Pearlman's and Gemfix, two vendors that she found through PriceScope posts and liked, we reviewed a number of sapphires. I was hoping that those of you out there with expertise in sapphires could offer your thoughts on the six sapphires I have listed below. She wants to check with the PriceScope community to see if there is anything we might be missing about the six sapphires below.

https://gemfix.com/gems/sapphire-blue-11-1306
https://gemfix.com/gems/sapphire-blue-11-1252
https://gemfix.com/gems/sapphire-blue-11-1286
https://gemfix.com/gems/sapphire-blue-11-1044
http://www.pearlmansjewelers.com/gemstones/?sku=G89301
http://www.pearlmansjewelers.com/gemstones/?sku=G87031

I also wanted to ask about recommendations for jewelers to do the ring setting in or around Chicago. Who are the best jewelers to set a ring like this? Are there any jewelers in the area with whom you would recommend working?

Thank you in advance for your advice!

 

[chroman]

I’d be worried that many of them will look very dark most of the time. Of that lot, my favorites woukd be the 1.68 and the 2.03 from gemfix

 

[ShinyPink]

I like the Gemfix 2.03 the most, plus it's unheated and not a color change. I prefer a little lighter blue like that one.

 

[Bron357]

I like the 1st and 3rd gemfix ones.
The ones from Pearlman are lovely but rather dark. They will get even darker when set, so inside at night time they might look almost black.
Make sure your vendor has a return policy as you really do need to see them in person in different ordinary light conditions. The photos from vendors tend to be optimized. You can buy a gem holder ring for a few dollars online (like a temp ring) so you can get an idea of how it looks on the finger.

 

[doberman]

From a color standpoint, I like #3 the best.

 

[amalthea13]

I actually inspected the first Gemfix one you posted, and it was extremely dark. I would recommend against that one unless that's what she's looking for.