Shopping for a Sapphire Engagement Ring

[Limeade]

Hi everyone!

I just found Pricescope a few days ago and it has been more than helpful to me and my boyfriend as we have begun our search for a sapphire engagement ring! With that in mind, I still am full of questions, as this is my first major jewelry shopping experience (unlike most of the people on this board, I''m not a huge jewelry fan - although surfing around here seems to be slowly changing that!).

I''m really looking for a really simple, modern setting, and after looking at some rings, I''ve decided that I''d really like to go with something bezel set. Linda Penwarden''s designs in particular have really caught my eye. I''m not exactly sure how to post pictures on here yet, but at her website she has a picture of a bezel set diamond with small, pear-shaped cutouts on the side. I''m thinking that I''d like to set a light to medium colored sapphire in it, as I am afraid that the setting won''t allow enough light to brighten up a darker stone. I really like this sapphire at Artistic Colored Stones:

http://www.acstones.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=9&idproduct=1180

So......with that being said, here are my questions:

1. Would this stone (or one similar in size, cut, color, etc.) look to dark in a bezel setting? Do any of you have pictures of bezel set sapphires?

2. Has anyone purchased from Linda Penwarden before? Although I''m pretty sure I want my setting from her, I''d like to get a general idea of people''s experiences with her, her prices, policies, etc. My boyfriend and I are both poor grad students, so we can''t afford to spend probably more than 3-4,000 on a ring.

3. How difficult is it to buy a stone online? Is the stone I picked out at Artistic Colored Stones a decent one? Unfortunately I live in a relatively small town in the midwest, so we don''t have a wealth of sapphires on hand locally to decide from. Chicago would be about a 6 hour drive, and I think we''d be willing to make the trip if anyone would have any suggestions for places to shop for loose stones there. Otherwise, I think we''re stuck shopping online.

4. I really like the look of portuguese cut stones, so if anyone has any additional resources for round, portuguese cut sapphires in the 2-3 ct. range, that would be great. So far I''ve been having a difficult time finding a good selection.

Thanks for the help! You guys are great!

 

[PrecisionGem]

Glad to hear you are breaking away from the diamond e-ring!
Princess Di had a blue sapphire e-ring too.

I had a look at the picture, and it looks like a very nice color stone, with a good price. Under $500 per ct. is a good price for a stone of that size and color. Looks like a good deal to me.

 

[bpilloud]

I have a 1 carat green sapphire ring in a half-bezel that''s very similiar to the ruby one on Linda Penwarden''s index page. No picture, sorry. The half-bezel made my stone considerably darker than it was outside of the bezel. One thing that helped lighten it up was a v-shaped notch that was cut into the gallery to let light in. So, I''d recommend that you go with a half-bezel and not a whole bezel.
Mine was custom-designed in 14k gold for about $375 (plus cost of stone), by Snow Owl Designs, here in Portland, Oregon. They''re very good, and I thought the price was quite reasonable.

I don''t know anything about Linda Penwarden, but I love her site! it looks like she''s done a lot of very cool rings.

 

[lucious librarian]

Hi Limeade and welcome!

I am new to Pricescope too. It really is a great place. Lots of knowledgeable and friendly people.

My guy and I decided on a sapphire e-ring too. We have a limited budget and really want to create something special...something that really reflects what we share. He surprised me at Christmas with a stone we both picked out from http://www.thenaturalsapphirecompany.com/

We are now in the process of looking for a setting. We really liked Linda Penwarden''s site, so I emailed her directly. BUT her response kind of put a damper on us selecting her for setting our stone.

Here is the direct quote: "Thanks for your inquiry. Just to let you know, I do not take any responsibility if your stone gets chipped or broken during the setting process..."

So I say be careful if you do go with her...maybe talk with her directly. My guy and I just decided outright with her response that we would take our business elsewhere and make sure the jeweler''s work is guranteed. I am going to check into insurance as well and see if that is a possibility for protection.

Good luck and we are all looking forward to pics and details.

 

[foxglove]

Date: 1/25/2006 9:12:13 PM
Author: luscious librarian
We really liked Linda Penwarden''s site, so I emailed her directly. BUT her response kind of put a damper on us selecting her for setting our stone.


Here is the direct quote: ''Thanks for your inquiry. Just to let you know, I do not take any responsibility if your stone gets chipped or broken during the setting process...''

So I say be careful if you do go with her...maybe talk with her directly. My guy and I just decided outright with her response that we would take our business elsewhere and make sure the jeweler''s work is guranteed. I am going to check into insurance as well and see if that is a possibility for protection.


G

Hello!

I had a similar experience when I inquired about setting a stone I had with a local artist. He also said that he could not be responsible for the stone''s integrity during the setting process. When I asked why, I thought I was given a fairly good reason. He said that if the stone was not sourced by him, he really couldn''t be sure whether the stone was previously set/stressed before (or a man made gem, etc.) and thus more susceptible to damage during the setting process. He was therefor uncomfortable setting an uninsured stone without the caveat. Especially if the stone was an expensive one.

After that, I didn''t see this as someone who was irresponsible with their craftsmanship, but rather, someone who wanted me to know all the risks due to unknowns?

fox

 

[widget]

I think very few if any jewelers will be responsible for stones sourced elsewhere, when asked. The thing is, often they don''t mention this when they accept a job.
Some say that by accepting the job, they are in fact implicitly taking responsibility..(there''s some legal term for this)...

In any case, I''ve had several stones of mine mounted by jewelers who didn''t source them, and have had no problems (knock wood!).

Limeade: If you really love Penwarden''s work, why not talk to her about her sourcing a stone for you? I''d certainly consider that!

Or you could look at www.palagems.com , or some other wholesalers to see if they have something you like, and then have her call it in. Who knows? Maybe that stone at acstones is available to the trade. (It''s lovely, by the way...love that off violet color!

)

Good luck!
widget

 

[lucious librarian]

Date: 1/26/2006 11:17:49 AM
Author: foxglove
I didn''t see this as someone who was irresponsible with their craftsmanship, but rather, someone who wanted me to know all the risks due to unknowns?
fox

Fox, you make a good point by presenting this topic from the perspective of the jeweler. Well taken.

Widget, You also make a great suggestion buy having a jeweler source the stone as well. Although that is not an option for us, it is a good idea to ask. We are prolly going to go back to the NSC, since they sourced the stone and they have a couple nice setting options...fingers crossed for quality work.

Peace
Elise

 

[PrecisionGem]

It is not an issue of the jeweler not knowing where the stone came from, and therefore more likely to chip or scratch, it''s an issue of what to do if he does chip it. If the jeweler uses his own stone, then only he is out the cost to replace his own stone, or pay to have it recut etc. If you bring him in a stone, where and at what cost is he to find another "exactly" like it. With diamonds this isn''t a big an issue, since they are so plentiful.
Jewelers chip stones from all walks of life. I have never called on a jeweler who hasn''t asked me to fix his scratched or chipped stones.
The other thing is, they would rather sell you one of their stones, so that they can make the profit on the stone.
I think almost every jeweler with a sign up, or tell you they are not responsible if they chip your stone, this is pretty typical, and doesn''t meant they are not good stone setters.

 

[Limeade]

Lucious Librarian - unfortunately the ''disclaimer'' given to you by Linda Penwarden doesn''t surprise me - I think that I have read on other posts @ PS that this is a general policy of jewelers, but it still makes me a little nervous. Hopefully it doesn''t turn out to be a problem for either of us

Thanks for the suggestions of The Natural Sapphire Company and PalaGems......I have looked at their websites and WOW!

So many beautiful stones to pick from! I have noticed by looking at many different stones of similar sizes (2-3 ct. range) that the stone I mentioned from acstones.com has a fairly small diameter (sorry, I don''t know the technical terms for this stuff) for a 2.78 ct. stone @ 7mm. Does this mean the stone will be deeper than a more ideally cut stone of the same carat weight? It''s not a big issue to me (I still think it''s beautiful) but I was just curious.....this is all such a learning process.

Although I do like bezel settings, I''m starting to wonder if it may not be the best option for a colored stone. Anyone have any suggestions for a simple, modern, unique settings for a sapphire? I know that due to the nature of the stone there are not many round sapphires out there, so I am open to other shapes. I do like the look of east-west set ovals/cushions/emeralds.

Thanks for all the help! I never realized there were so many options out there for sapphire e-rings!

 

[valeria101]

Date: 1/26/2006 4:26:35 PM
Author: Limeade

Although I do like bezel settings, I''m starting to wonder if it may not be the best option for a colored stone.

It is, unless the stone is overly dark and needs help from an open setting to show color. For light color stones or some cut with a small window... bezels are quite a blessing. Your jeweler should have better advice about this

Anyone have any suggestions for a simple, modern, unique settings for a sapphire?

Here''s one that is a bezel but not a closed one, looks modern and holds an oval E-W

And no, I didn''t try to check all the points in your post - it just so happened.

 

[raddygast]

Limeade,

I am (still) planning on having my ring done by Linda Penwarden, for exactly the same reason as you. I''ve never seen better bezels anywhere. But make sure SHE does the bezel. I saw some rings in her display case with less than perfect bezels. When I brought it to her attention, she looked at it and immediately agreed, saying it wasn''t the best example because she didn''t actually set that bezel herself.

But anyway, there should be no problem in using an outside stone, though she did explain to me that it is the client''s risk. On the other hand, she said that she has only ever broken one stone, and it was a very brittle amethyst (I think) or something that was later identified to have had a fissure in it.

If you source a stone through her, and something goes wrong, she will of course assume responsibility. If something goes wrong with your stone, it''s up in the air.

However, she changed her attitude with me when I had my stone appraised and I took the appraisal in to her. Her tune suddenly shifted and she said there should be no problem whatsoever setting it.

Basically the attitude is because they don''t want to take on the risk that you''ve got some shoddy suspect stone from somewhere.

What I''d recommend if you get your own sapphire is that you take it into to the Harold Weinstein Gemmological Laboratory in Toronto. The local jewellers seem to respect that place as the de facto standard of quality. An appraisal on a sapphire costs something like 70 or 80 Canadian, I believe (it''s been a while).

Take that in to her and I think she''ll have no problem.

 

[PrecisionGem]

2.7 cts for a 7 mm does sound a big heavy. But that design cutting is a bit deeper. Also, most sapphires are "native" cut, and usually the cutting is pretty bad. THey will take a shallow stone, and cut it such that it faces up large (large diameter), but is too shallow and this causes the stone to window. You will notice that many online sites do not photograph the stones straight on. But not showing the stone straight on, you can not see how badly the stone windows.
From the picture of the stone you are looking at, it doen''t look to have a window, and looks nicely cut. I think it''s certainly a good price, and worth having sent out for a look in person.