Show me some Van Craeynest!

[diamondseeker2006]

Yeah, the one with the scroll sides. You could get a w-band without the diamonds, but it was oh so gorgeous with them! But I can just look at this thread and get a VC fix now and then!

 

[angeline]

Here''s one I accidentally missed out. It''s the plain solitaire side view. The model number is 445. I love it!

 

[shimmer]

Thank you so much for posting your pics and experience, angeline! If I ever make it to SF, we have to go. I think I would die! Is it just me, or are the rings way more stunning IRL (as far as I can tell from your pictures)???

 

[shimmer]

Great pics btw

 

[piedpiper522]

OMG, I''m a lurker but I had to join to post on this thread. I''m ashamed to say I''d never heard of this jeweler and am blown away by the quality. Thank you for everyone who posted pics! I''m so in love! I would love to have one of these rings, I''m a "LIW" but would love to link SO to this jeweler as a "hint"...don''t know about price range. Love the second picture from the top on page 10, there''s no model number there to reference, but can anyone give me a ballpark figure on what that ring would cost?

thanks so much!

 

[angeline]

Hi shimmer!

I would love a PS trip to VC. No-one I know IRL is as crazy about this stuff as I am.

The rings do look different in real life. The first time I went to see them a year or so ago I was a bit disappointed because everything is so blown up on our computers, and IRl I couldn''t see the details. This time however because I had realistic expectations, I was absolutely blown away. I guess I''ve seen a lot more rings by now and do recognize the quality of these rings when I see it now. I think that''s why I did like the 2-tone because it helped make the detail stand out.

But I don''t care anyway now if others can''t see it because I will know all the details are there, and I will know the incredible artistry and skill that goes into making one of these rings. (just re-read my badly articulated thoughts, I hope you know what I mean!)

 

[angeline]

Date: 10/2/2008 7:28:59 PM
Author: piedpiper522
OMG, I''m a lurker but I had to join to post on this thread. I''m ashamed to say I''d never heard of this jeweler and am blown away by the quality. Thank you for everyone who posted pics! I''m so in love! I would love to have one of these rings, I''m a ''LIW'' but would love to link SO to this jeweler as a ''hint''...don''t know about price range. Love the second picture from the top on page 10, there''s no model number there to reference, but can anyone give me a ballpark figure on what that ring would cost?


thanks so much!

piedpiper welcome!

They are amazing aren''t they! Are you in the Bay area by any chance? I don''t know the model number of that ring, I''ve never seen it before my visit. You could ring Larry and tell him that you are asking about the narrow ring he showed Maggie on Tuesday this week that was in antiqued yellow gold with the 2 diamonds on the e-ring and 3 on the wedding band and with the leaf chasing. Oh and no stone set in it. If he still doesn''t connect which one it is, he also told me that he didn''t have it in platinum because someone sold the sample. He will give you a price no worries, he''s so nice! Tell him you saw it on the message boards, I told him I was going to post all the pics.

Good luck and stick around! Let us know if you find anything out.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I will say that the set I saw was pretty in pictures, but it was GORGEOUS in person! I don''t think platinum and diamonds photograph nearly as well as they appear in person.

 

[kimikocat]

Date: 10/2/2008 7:28:59 PM
Author: piedpiper522
OMG, I''m a lurker but I had to join to post on this thread. I''m ashamed to say I''d never heard of this jeweler and am blown away by the quality. Thank you for everyone who posted pics! I''m so in love! I would love to have one of these rings, I''m a ''LIW'' but would love to link SO to this jeweler as a ''hint''...don''t know about price range. Love the second picture from the top on page 10, there''s no model number there to reference, but can anyone give me a ballpark figure on what that ring would cost?


thanks so much!

Hi PiedPiper -- and the rest of you gals!

I think that set is 456/556. Look on this page:

http://www.vancraeynest.com/chased.html

I believe it is the top L-hand set.

I don''t know the pricing...so I can''t help on that! Sorry

 

[kimikocat]

Date: 10/2/2008 8:14:33 PM
Author: diamondseeker2006
I will say that the set I saw was pretty in pictures, but it was GORGEOUS in person! I don''t think platinum and diamonds photograph nearly as well as they appear in person.

I agree with your statement. Platinum is difficult to photograph... And somehow the shimmer "blurs" the details and makes them disappear.

 

[coatimundi_org]

Date: 10/2/2008 1:46:55 PM
Author: angeline
Here''s one I accidentally missed out. It''s the plain solitaire side view. The model number is 445. I love it!

That side view is GORGEOUS! I love the plain solitaire!

 

[angeline]

Date: 10/2/2008 8:18:34 PM
Author: kimikocat

Date: 10/2/2008 7:28:59 PM

Author: piedpiper522

OMG, I''m a lurker but I had to join to post on this thread. I''m ashamed to say I''d never heard of this jeweler and am blown away by the quality. Thank you for everyone who posted pics! I''m so in love! I would love to have one of these rings, I''m a ''LIW'' but would love to link SO to this jeweler as a ''hint''...don''t know about price range. Love the second picture from the top on page 10, there''s no model number there to reference, but can anyone give me a ballpark figure on what that ring would cost?



thanks so much!

Hi PiedPiper -- and the rest of you gals!


I think that set is 456/556. Look on this page:


http://www.vancraeynest.com/chased.html


I believe it is the top L-hand set.


I don''t know the pricing...so I can''t help on that! Sorry

kimiko - I know, it looks so much like 456! Except it was thinner and the leaf chasing was much deeper. I actually asked Larry if it was just a thinner version of 456 but he explained some other differences that I just can''t remember right now. Sorry!

 

[Mariposa]

Oh my GOSH!!! I just saw this thread and the pictures are GREAT!!! So, angeline, you went off to see the "wizard"...I would love to go visit him, myself. I was straining my eyes to get a better picture of the trays of rings laid out to see. I''m soooo jealous. Thank you so much, though, for all the pictures.

kimikocat - I think that the set you''re referring to is similar to the one LIB and I have (#456 & 556), but it looks significantly more petite. There are also no flowers incorporated into the design shown and the diamonds in mine and in LIB''s are bezel-set, not prong set as they seem to be judging from the picture. Apparently, the website has a very limited number of the designs they actually have. I know that they do a lot of custom and semi-custom work.

Mariposa

 

[angeline]

Date: 10/2/2008 9:19:04 PM
Author: Mariposa
Oh my GOSH!!! I just saw this thread and the pictures are GREAT!!! So, angeline, you went off to see the ''wizard''...I would love to go visit him, myself. I was straining my eyes to get a better picture of the trays of rings laid out to see. I''m soooo jealous. Thank you so much, though, for all the pictures.


kimikocat - I think that the set you''re referring to is similar to the one LIB and I have (#456 & 556), but it looks significantly more petite. There are also no flowers incorporated into the design shown and the diamonds in mine and in LIB''s are bezel-set, not prong set as they seem to be judging from the picture. Apparently, the website has a very limited number of the designs they actually have. I know that they do a lot of custom and semi-custom work.

Mariposa

Mariposa - good eye! I''m impressed that you picked up all that detail from the pics. He is a wizard indeed, isn''t he.
I hope to go again soonish without my 3yr old so I can concentrate. It''s a bit overwhelming and takes time to sort out what I really like because actually I really like everything

 

[piedpiper522]

Thanks everyone! I did some sleuthing and found one of his online retailers that gives out a generic price guideline which was very helpful!
I understand the rings are narrower/daintier then your "typical" engagement ring, does that seem to be true for those of you who have tried them?

here's the link for those interested: http://www.clay-pot.com/scp_items_1200wedding__page-1.html

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Date: 10/2/2008 11:50:16 PM
Author: piedpiper522
Thanks everyone! I did some sleuthing and found one of his online retailers that gives out a generic price guideline which was very helpful!
I understand the rings are narrower/daintier then your ''typical'' engagement ring, does that seem to be true for those of you who have tried them?

here''s the link for those interested: http://www.clay-pot.com/scp_items_1200wedding__page-1.html

No, that is not true at all. The rings come in various widths just like any other line of rings.

 

[Love in Bloom]

Wow! Some amazing things have been going on in this thread!

Mariposa - Your new diamond is fantastic and I love the rainbowy flashes it throws off... looks like a real sparkler!

Swimmer - You have a good eye! Isn't Lang's fun? I so wanted to visit Lang's on my honeymoon but figured I shouldn't spend the entire time looking at jewelry, hehe

.

Angeline - The picture where you can see your little one's hand beside yours is just too adorable for words! It looks like you spent a lot of time visiting and looking at the rings...I already did that once, but I totally want to do it again! Your pictures remind me of how fun it was to be there (and how much I love the 457/557 in two-tone!)

.


So here are some pics I wanted to share. Unfortunately these rings are not mine; VC sent them to me to look at. First up, a band:

 

[Love in Bloom]

Larry tells me he designed this just a year ago after we met in person. It has a small channel of diamonds (I had no idea VC did channel setting), bead set diamonds in the hearts, and tiny bezel-set diamond centered flowers. I think he mentioned the hearts can be inlaid in platinum since I love their rings in two-tone metal. I'm sorry my pics don't show how sparkly even the tiny diamonds are. He says my pendant inspired the use of hearts on this band, and the style number is 700-11.

7/11 just happens to be my birthday so I thought that was cool

 

[Love in Bloom]

And here is 1030, a pierced ring. It's kind of an odd ball as far as VC designs go, and it's BIG. This one is set with an 8mm center but can be made for smaller (or larger...

) diamonds. Larry mentioned this is one of the first rings he designed by himself.

 

[Love in Bloom]

The profile is so unique:

 

[Love in Bloom]

Here you can kind of see the underside. VC calls this a "flying underbezel." I'm not entirely sure what that means, but the main diamond appears to float in the setting:

 

[Love in Bloom]

I think the side stones total about a half carat. They taper perfectly and are set in floating platinum "tongues" (much like #6 that Angeline posted):

 

[Love in Bloom]

The profile again. I didn't get a chance to play with this one when I visited, but I'm happy to do it now

:

 

[Love in Bloom]

Handshot ... hopefully I''ll get to post pics of my own new ring soon! :

 

[kimikocat]

hi LIB! That little heart is really sweet...

So did you get to keep it ? Or did you have to send it on to a retailer?

 

[kimikocat]

This ring appears in the PDF catalogue but has always sort of confounded me, in terms of visualizing the architecture, because I could never quite figure out how the tongues and the sweeping "W" frame fit together. From the top it is actually a very soft, feminine design, but from the side it looks like it might be deco and angular. It''s a really fascinating piece.

I forgot to write up above, commenting on the band with hearts, that I think four of those little hearts, joined together like a four leaf clover, would make a really sweet charm or girl''s pendant. Maybe with tiny tsavorites or even green enamel. Green gold inlay? What do you PSers think?

 

[Love in Bloom]

Date: 10/23/2008 7:40:09 PM
Author: kimikocat
hi LIB! That little heart is really sweet...

So did you get to keep it ? Or did you have to send it on to a retailer?

Unfortunately I don''t get to keep it

, but the band is definitely on my list of things to purchase. If it were my exact size (it''s a 6.5, I think) I might contemplate just purchasing this very band right away if Larry would do that

. I''m so bad (as you already know) and need to get it in the mail!

 

[AnitaT]

LIB-- Thanks so much for sharing the pictures! The pieces are lovely, incredible

The flower and heart miligrain band is so dainty. I love it.

Forgive me if you have already mentioned it, but what are you thinking of for your latest project?

 

[loriken214]

YAY....I spoke with Larry on Monday and my 951 band should be on its way very soon.....can''t wait to see it on my finger!

Lori

 

[Love in Bloom]

Date: 10/25/2008 6:27:00 PM
Author: AnitaT
LIB-- Thanks so much for sharing the pictures! The pieces are lovely, incredible

The flower and heart miligrain band is so dainty. I love it.

Forgive me if you have already mentioned it, but what are you thinking of for your latest project?

Sorry AnitaT, I didn''t see your question! You''ve already seen, but I''ll still link . I''ll be back to update later!

Date: 11/19/2008
Author: Loriken214

YAY....I spoke with Larry on Monday and my 951 band should be on its way very soon.....can''t wait to see it on my finger!

Lori, I can''t wait to see!!