So are Mara and AlJ at WF right now!?!!

[Shay37]

I cannot wait for more pics. What an adventure! That 7.5 ct is the size of a dime? Holy Cr@p! That thing is gorgeous. I will be waiting patiently for all the details of the trip and the photos.

Shay

 

[AGBF]

Date: 9/17/2005 1:35:04 PM
Author: Demelza
Here is the link to that gorgeous stone. It really is magnificent. I wonder when and if it will sell.

Thanks, Demelza. It''s cute, but as one of my friends said when confronted by a wealthier friend''s Tiffany ring, "I''d rather have a house".

Is there a reason this wasn''t done to a D color stone? (This is going to draw flak from everyone who adores warm colored stones, I know!) I mean, I have a G color diamond, but isn''t the point of cutting a stone like this to make it as "flawless" and upscale and exclusive as possible? (And D color stones do cost more!)

Is the Eightstar showcase stone a D? I may go look it up if someone doesn''t post about that one soon!

Deb

 

[AGBF]

The Eightstar is a D color with IF clarity, so I remembered correctly. Oh...and it weighs 13.41 or 13.42 carats. One could buy an even bigger house with the money that stone would cost!

Eightstar

Deborah

 

[HOUMedGal]

Apple, we totally missed you!!!!!!!!!

 

[jorman]

Okay- we''re waiting.
We want scoop, details, all the delicious diamond dirt aannnndddd PICTURES!
We also want to know the truth, Mara- did you stick that diamond in your pocket when they weren''t looking?

(ame- totally cracking me up with the Greg comment).

-Janna

 

[aljdewey]

OKAY, OKAY......sheesh! The pressure!

Ladies (and gentlemen)......the MECCA ROCKS! Heh - *literally*. I''m wrung out exhausted from the 2-day whirlwind that was the Mara-Al "vault assault".....LMAO!

Ok, stories galore.....but first, some eye candy to soothe the savages!

First......the uber upgrade:

 

[aljdewey]

Can you BELIEVE the size on this.......SWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!

 

[aljdewey]

As Mara noted, it''s close to the size of a dime. The pics STILL don''t capture the presence this thing has in person, but you get some idea from this.....

 

[aljdewey]

And here''s a profile shot.......as you can see, it''s WAY too big for the setting (which should hold a 3-4 ct!).

When I took this shot, the first thought through my head: "Ame would go INSANE trying to 40x mag this baby, and she''d have total heart failure about nicking it!"

 

[aljdewey]

And here is the TRUE dynamic duo.............our heroes!

 

[aljdewey]

........and Shay.......we had a little halo party just for you! hahahahaha

I''m wearing the prong set (what you''re getting); Mara has the bezel (and the gorgeous hands).

 

[aljdewey]

...............that is, until I decided to hog them all to myself. *sigh* of contentment.

 

[aljdewey]

and Shay.......here are the profile shots. These should help you. Honestly, the prong set didn''t seem "high"......the difference wasn''t much in person.

 

[aljdewey]

I just wanna ask: does it get ANY better than this??!!

Both halos, and a 3-prong that Mara got up close and personal with......a 1.5 center stone flanked by sides.

 

[aljdewey]

Last one for now - this was during the Pepsi challenge. All the stones lined up are 2-caraters. (Coincidence? Naaaaaaaaaaaah. Mara was ABSOLUTELY involved in rigging that!)

 

[Kaleigh]

Alj,
Thanks for the pics!!!! That stone is just amazing. Yes ame would go nuts looping that monster!!! The pics of John and Brian are great too.

 

[valeria101]

Let me think... now, WF is a bit far but Paul in Antwerp is not!

You girls give me all these bad ideas

 

[Mara]

Oh but being bad feels so good, Val!!

I see that my partner in crime has updated the thread, thank god because I am still on TX time and have been dozing on the couch with Portia for the last hour...seriously I also am on overload from the last few days. I told Al this morning I wanted to respond to all the Q''s and just spill out everything, but I didn''t even know where to start (well besides posting the 7.5c of course which was the easy part).

Suffice it to say that we had a FABULOUS time, we took ALOT of pictures and much merriment and alcohol was had. And everyone in Houston is SO nice. Tomorrow morning I will be able to form a coherent thought re: the trip and more pixies.

But for now...Batman says Sleep.

 

[aljdewey]

OK.....that should tide over the riot-crowd for now!

I have to say that I am just DRAINED.....happily so. What a whirlwind trip. The folks at Whiteflash are even warmer in person and just as genuine. It was SO fun to finally meet the folks we feel like we've known for such a long time. They are AMAZING hosts; they were indulgent beyond belief and we just cannot thank them enough!

The highlight of my entire trip: meeting Mara. Hands down. We've been talking together for three years, and it was a wish fulfilled to finally be in the same place together. She's the real deal......hysterically funny and very down to earth (when she's not drooling on the 7.5 ct.!), and I adore her. FYI----the twin thing totally happens in person too----each blurting out the same thing at the same time. It was like communing with my long-lost twin. I am already thinking about the next time we can find a way to catch up.

John and Renee were nice enough to pick us up at the airport and drop us off at our hotel. Mara and I did a catch-up girls nite out at a FABULOUS South American restaurant called Americas. The food was AMAZING! Smoked crab legs, empanaditas, and potato-crusted calamari were the appetizers; the special that night was a trio of filet, lobster tail, and corn crusted snapper. YUM. Dessert: Bread pudding with coconut ice cream. Not only was dinner incredible, but Mara managed to wheedle the white sangria recipe from the waiter - SCORE!

After dinner, we went back, and the "hardware" party began.....trying on each other's rings, earrings, pendants, etc. and taking TONS of photos.

We saw so much at Whiteflash. We met the sales team - SO awesome after all these years on the phone with them. It's a total hub of activity there when things are rocking! It took a bit of time to catch everyone in between phone duties (we didn't want to hold up you folks who might be calling!

). They couldn't be nicer.....really.

We had a chance to chit-chat with Lesley for a bit, and that was a real treat. I just LOVE her accent - and it's more charming in person.

Seeing their places was an eye-opener, because I never realized that the folks we speak with on the phone are in a building about 10 minutes away from the diamonds. Where's the fun in THAT? I can better understand now why Denise and Lesley can't just get up and get a diamond and take a polaroid for me.

You're off the hook now, ladies!

We met some behind the scenes folks, too....Leon, their QC person, and Vera, who makes sure things get processed. That woman is the NICEST woman on the planet....

.....and she is the glue that holds it all together in that office.

Brian......well, he's in a class by himself. I was touched at how gracious he was with his time, and how indulgent he was to show us everything our little greedy hearts desired! Poor John Q......he was talking to us and lost us mid-sentence when Brian began to pull out the stones. All of the sudden, Mara and I spun around with a glazed look on our faces like we were answering the call of the mothership! John, we LOVE that you were so gracious and didn't take offense. Look, you must remember one thing.... NOTHING can match the power of the stones! hehehehehe

I think one of the coolest parts (for me) was having a chance to see new things - new jewelry designs that are about to come out. I'd tell you about them, but then Brian would have to hunt me down......and I hear those Texans are especially skilled at hunting, so I'm not tempting fate. But ladies.....there is some LOVELY eye-candy on horizon.

I HAVE to tell you all this, and I wish Leonid had a way to post a .wav file, because you won't believe this without hearing it yourself. After a couple of HOURS with the diamonds, we finally left to get dinner. Mara actually said this: "I've had ENOUGH OF DIAMONDS for right now." BLASPHEMY! (I think it was really a head injury from poking herself in the eye with the 7.5 carat in a "close-up inspection maneuver".. LOL, just kidding,......but she DID say it.) I had to agree; we were on total overload. It was an AMAZING experience to sit with soooooooo many gorgeous stones and compare. I'm sure my dreams will be filled with snippets of that experience for a long time.

We ended by having dinner with Renee and John last night at a local steakhouse that is to DIE for....Pappas Bros. Jorman, we owe you a lobster or something for such a FABULOUS recommendation. FABULOUS----

You'll all be happy to know that our public terrorism record is intact......when the waiter told us they were out of peach cobbler dessert at 10:45 p.m., we guilted/charmed/cajoled him into getting the kitchen to make one a fresh one anyway.

Special, special thanks to John and Renee for their company at dinner; I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. I learned some fun new tricks from Renee, and I found a new wine buddy in John. You guys are awesome.

Ok, the sad, pitiful answer to the million dollar question: No, I didn't buy anything. It was tempting - absolutely - but then again, after caressing the 7.5 carat stone, it would be hard to find something "reasonable" to satiate myself with. Plus, I was really there to make a few adjustments/decisions on the pendant. I'm waiting to see what Brian's next trip to Belgium brings before I decide on whether or not to change the J.....but I have to say that I'm LOVING that J more as the days go by. I may just adjust the clasp and call it a day. We'll see.

Thanks to all for the interest....and sorry for the wait, but YANNO, it's all about priorities. We had to absolutely savor and squander the vault time, so leaving to post was out of the question!

EDITED TO ADD: I see my co-conspirator has dropped in while I was typing this.....HEY, BATMAN!
It's true.....I'm exhausted as well. As such, no proofreading for this puppy.....I trust y'all will forgive me for just letting it all flow out.

 

[MissAva]

When ya''ll get a chance does either of you remember the color on the prong set halo ceter stone?

 

[diamondlil]

Date: 9/18/2005 12:59:28 AM
Author: aljdewey
...............that is, until I decided to hog them all to myself. *sigh* of contentment.

Thanks for posting both the prong and bezel next to each other. That ring is so gorgeous, and I honestly like them both equally. It would be very hard to choose one over the other. What size and color center diamond did they use on these rings?

I hope the two of you will post more pics!

 

[AGBF]

Thanks for (finally) posting, gals. The stories are great. I had no idea that you two had never met until now! I assumed that if you were travelling together, that you had met previously.

Whiteflash does appear to be a candy store, but I especially envy you meeting John. I do not know Brian, but it sounds as if both guys were great (as were Lesley and Renée).

I would not want to visit Houston in the summer again. (Did that once. Never forgot it.) I would have picked the coldest month of the year to visit (whatever that is in Houston). But you seem to have had really great fun! It was great to feel a part of your trip. Thank you!

PS-Did the steak house have steak with gorgonzola butter?

Deb

 

[Shay37]

Al, thank you so much for the eyecandy. I really am glad I went with the prong. I like the bezel, but the prong calls to me.

We can''t wait to hear more of the adventures of the dynamic diamond duo. Glad it was so fun.

Shay

 

[belle]

thanks for the awesome pics alj!

and for taking the time to share your experience. it sounds like you guys had a wonderful time.

 

[hoorray]

Wow - sounds like a great trip

. To get to see all those spectacular stones in person, side by side would be a treat. Glad you had fun, but can''t believe you came home empty handed!

 

[sevens one]

Wow - that sounds incredible. I''m exhausted just thinking about it.

Looking at diamonds can be fun but very tiresome too

I''m thrilled that you two got to meet. There are so many wonderful people here that I would still like to meet.
I''ve had the honor to meet a few and have become close friends with Diamond Lil and Kaleigh.
For that Pricescope is just priceless. I would never have met these wonderful people without it.

I hope you two remain in close contact. What a wonderful gift.

The diamonds are one thing; but friends......

Thanks for the cool pics; I''m loving those halos.

 

[aljdewey]

Thanks, all!

Mata and D/Lil, I seem to recall both halos being J stones, but can''t swear to it. With SOOOOO many stones/colors, etc., it seriously blurs after a while.

But I seem to remember them both being just over a carat and J stones. Mara can pipe in and confirm, I''m sure.

Deb, we had tried to meet once before during my honeymoon, but a crappy rental car failure foiled us. We had talked about trying to hook up when Mara & Greg visit his family in NJ---they are on the same coast and I could get to them with a little effort---but that opp. hasn''t come yet, and it''s not optimal anyway. When they are there, they really cherish the time with his family. We had been talking about meeting at WF next spring, but when the opportunity came earlier through my pendant, we seized it. Travelling together is a bit of a misnomer in this case.....I flew from MA to TX; she flew from CA to TX, and we met in the middle.

The steakhouse did have a gorgonzola butter option, but we all went with the special - a small cut of filet and a Maine lobster tail with asparagus & garlic mashed. mmmmmmmmmm

Shay and Belle, you''re welcome, and yes, it was FUN. I''d do it again in a moment!

Lop, I KNOW......I cannot believe I came home empty-handed either, but truthfully, I''d just blown my budget a month before in building the pendant. MARA....the little troublemaker!.....got me HOOKED on these earrings! New 8-prongs that are just to die for, so elegant, and they are .75 each. I seriously was thinking about it, believe me! I honestly think the only thing that stopped me is my car; it''s on last legs and I''ll have to replace it next year (if it makes it that long), so I had to summon my superpowers and resist the temptation of the stones.

7s - Yes, it''s the friends that count. As I mentioned, the best part of my trip was finally meeting my dear friend. I''ve honestly never met anyone through online previously, so I wondered if it would be a little awkward. Not at all---sitting with her at dinner that night was like sitting with an old friend; comfortable and like we''ve done it always. Same with the WF folks; it felt more like a reunion than a first meeting. I highly recommend the experience. It''s all in the relationships for me. Hope you are rested and that Angelo is on his way to going home - haven''t read the thread for an update, but going there right now.

 

[fire&ice]

The "mother ship" - still chuckling about that. Sounds like a GREAT experience!!!

 

[aljdewey]

Date: 9/18/2005 11:27:14 AM
Author: fire&ice
The ''mother ship'' - still chuckling about that. Sounds like a GREAT experience!!!

Honestly, it really was. Beyond my wildest imagination.

Oh, and I forgot earlier, folks......we both looked at a HUGE range of ACA stones in the H&A viewer. As much as I know this is going to take the wind out of some picky sails, the images all exhibit the crispness and integrity of the H&A pattern. If we were to take all the ACAs we saw and line them up facing table down, we wouldn''t be able to tell them apart through the H&A viewer. I actually tried to......Brian had a few stones out and had me look at them all, and I couldn''t tell which was which from the hearts images. They were all spot on.

 

[MissGotRocks]

Sounds like the perfect trip - good friends, good food and DIAMONDS galore! I can understand it being overwhelming and yet the greed of it all must eat you up. You just simply want to see and drink in everything you can while you are there.

Thanks so much for the stories and the pictures. I''m sure there will be more to follow when you guys have rested up. So we know that Al did some fine tuning thinking on her pendant. . . but

did Mara buy ANYTHING?