What Did You Do With Your Old Gold?

[soulsis]

I am just curious as to what you ladies have done with your old e-rings (from past marriages..failed or not). I feel like a crook trading in my old e-ring for a down payment on a new e-ring with my BF. I think that most of you would agree that there is no point in having jewellery you don''t wear. We should start a TRADE-IT-HERE thread. I''ll line up with all the crud I have collecting dust!!

 

[BrightSpot]

Soulis, good for you! I don''t think there''s anything wrong with trading in your old e-ring towards your new one! If my grandparents didn''t have a hand in picking out the diamond for my old ring, I would''ve done the same! As it is, my old e-ring has been remounted into a RHR. (It''s a 1.23 ct RB set in platinum with trilliant citrine sidestones)

What a great idea to start a trading thread!

Good luck picking out your new e-ring. What are you considering?

 

[soulsis]

Oooh thank you for the positive reaction...especially on a Monday. My dear sis is worried people will think he''s cheap. My old ring just sits there and it is mine, right? My BF never pressured me to do this either. I just figured...you know, nice ring low cost and it will be a different diamond. We found a jeweller (after searching for several months) who is taking it as a trade in. It is a 1.10 with 6 other diamonds each about 0.20. Even the guy that had made our engagement set wouldn''t touch it unless I traded up double the size. So now BF and I are getting one made. It should be done in about 3 weeks. It has a little old and a little new to it. Just like we both liked.

To be honest, my man is a great guy. He just can''t afford the bling

 

[AChiOAlumna]

My first e-ring (from 1st engagement) was put on consignment and I was able to purchase furniture with it (my ex-FI insisted I keep the ring)...

I just got an upgrade for our 10-year anniversary (to my current DH) but I''ve kept the original w-set. I''ll be wearing it when I go on vacations to the Caribbean and so forth, so I''m not constantly worrying about losing the stone to my new ring.

 

[BrightSpot]

Actually, my bf & I came really close to remounting my old RB into a new e-ring. (I didn''t want to actually trade it in b/c of the sentimental connection w/ my grandparents.) My family freaked out & said my bf was cheap! My bf didn''t persuede me to do this either--I just thought it seemed silly to spend all of that money to get a stone that was similar to one I already owned!

I agree with you, though--the ring is yours! It seems silly to have it just sitting around when it could make a hefty downpayment on your new ring! I think that''s very kind of you to offer your old diamond up to the cause! And nobody needs to know about your contribution. It will be a new & different diamond after all. So you get the great guy & the bling!

Unfortunately, my bf''s finances don''t support getting a new diamond ring right now either. As my family put up such a stink about the potential remount, I didn''t think it was worth going through with it. Instead, we''re having a yellow sapphire ring made. It took me a long time to come to this compromise, but I think it''ll work well. After all, it is all about having the great guy....

I can''t wait to see your new ring! Now you''ll only need something borrowed & something blue for your wedding...

Congrats & best wishes,
BrightSpot

 

[soulsis]

That sounds beautiful. I know..I don''t want anyone to know the story behind my new ring. My sis is kind of a blabbler mouth though. I hope that she doesn''t turn into the "look at my sis'' new e-ring and her man hardly had to pay anything for it".

The one thing that kind of bothers me is the fact that my ex and I are really good friends. We had agreed to give our daughter the ring when she was older. I wanted to let her have my family ring instead. I think a big part of me wanting to get rid of the ring was not wanting to have it around anymore. Well....when Ripley turns 20 I''ll tell my ex then that I had gotten rid of it! The engagment ring isn''t really sentimental to her though,technically. we have split up. Why not give her a truly sentimental ring to her when she gets older? My family ring has my BS, her father''s BS, her BS and my mother''s BS in it plus my mother''s engagement diamond in it. That ring is much closer to me than a diamond from a failed relationship.

 

[noobie]

I gave it to my custom jeweler. The salvage value of the material was less than $100 and I didn''t know what to do it. I also gave him a WG pendant setting that he made which we later switched to semi bezel. It goes both ways, he gave the new bezel in PT950 for the WG price since he preferred to cast in PT.

 

[BrightSpot]

Soulsis,

That''s a tough one. Do you think you could have a talk with your sis & tell her you prefer not to share the story behind your ring? It''s really nobody''s business, but I can see how that would be uncomfortable. Or, you could be completely upfront with her and everyone else & describe this as your "phoenix ring"--beauty rising from the ashes.

As for saving the original e-ring for Ripley (beautiful name, btw), I agree that the family ring might have more sentimental value. How old is she now? Could you talk with her about this? Do you think this is something you could/should discuss with your ex? What a difficult situation--good luck!

 

[sjz]

Date: 5/9/2005 1:59

2 PM
Author: soulsis
Oooh thank you for the positive reaction...especially on a Monday. My dear sis is worried people will think he''s cheap. My old ring just sits there and it is mine, right? My BF never pressured me to do this either. I just figured...you know, nice ring low cost and it will be a different diamond. We found a jeweller (after searching for several months) who is taking it as a trade in. It is a 1.10 with 6 other diamonds each about 0.20. Even the guy that had made our engagement set wouldn''t touch it unless I traded up double the size. So now BF and I are getting one made. It should be done in about 3 weeks. It has a little old and a little new to it. Just like we both liked.

To be honest, my man is a great guy. He just can''t afford the bling

I would tell your dear sis that nobody''s going to know that you used your old diamond as a trade-in for the engagement ring unless SHE blabs. Besides, your BF isn''t cheap. Lot''s of people don''t have the money to spring for huge diamonds, and that''s nothing to be embarassed about. I think that it''s sweet that you want to pony up and contribute something to the cost of your ring. In a way, it makes it more meaningful in my opinon. This ring is something that the BOTH of you contributed to. Besides, you weren''t wearing the old diamond anyway...it was a waste to have a 1.10 carat diamond just sitting around and not being worn by some other lucky person. By trading your old diamond in, you will be contributing to someone else''s joy and good fortune

. Just imagine how happy
some other woman (or fella) is going to be to buy that diamond!

I''ve mentioned this before on other posts...I don''t think there is a thing wrong with the woman contributing something toward her engagement ring. Sometimes I think it even seems a little selfish when I hear stories about women who demand a certain size, or a certain price be paid for their diamond, when maybe their bf cannot really afford it. It''s really about the meaning behind the ring, and the sacrifices made on both sides that truly count. There is always going to be opportunities for upgrading, anniversary rings, RH rings, and so forth down the road. I always thought that girls who only cared about showing off how big their diamond is or bragging about how much their bf spent on the ring are a little crass, anyway...JMO.

 

[soulsis]

BRIGHT SPOT...My daughter is 5 thanks! My mom died when I was 19 so her ring always meant more to me. Blood is pretty thick, right? If I had a tattoo of his name I would want to get rid of it so as not to remind me of my marriage before. Same with the ring!

 

[soulsis]

Date: 5/10/2005 10:15:28 AM
Author: sjz

Date: 5/9/2005 1:59

2 PM

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I''ve mentioned this before on other posts...I don''t think there is a thing wrong with the woman contributing something toward her engagement ring. Sometimes I think it even seems a little selfish when I hear stories about women who demand a certain size, or a certain price be paid for their diamond, when maybe their bf cannot really afford it. It''s really about the meaning behind the ring, and the sacrifices made on both sides that truly count. There is always going to be opportunities for upgrading, anniversary rings, RH rings, and so forth down the road. I always thought that girls who only cared about showing off how big their diamond is or bragging about how much their bf spent on the ring are a little crass, anyway...JMO.

Ooooh thank you. That made my day. The woman that recommended the jeweller to me runs the dayhome where my daughter goes. She is wonderful, but has a habit ofopening her mouth at the wrong time. I told her thank you the other day for the "lead" and she said, "Well....I hope Dion appreciates it because your ex paid for your ring!" Man...some people. One of the girls here got engaged recently and received a beautiful, very tiny diamond (0.15). I was so happy for her! Who wouldn''t be? An associate grabbed her hand and asked her if her BF got it out of a Cracker Jack box. I almost popped her in the face. Thank you so much for the postive words ladies. I feel really good about this now.

 

[NyssaLynne]

Do what you want to do and it isn''t anyone''s business. I traded in the diamond from my first marriage to buy the diamond for my engagement ring for this marriage. I paid for most of the first diamond and my ex still owed me a lot of money from our divorce settlement (and still does over 7 years later). By trading in the diamond I got a nicer diamond than my now husband could afford at the time. It seemed such a waste to let it sit in the safe. I still have the accent diamonds and sapphires and plan to make custom pieces for my children to have for their own wedding, so there will still be something sentimental for them.

 

[BrightSpot]

Soulsis,

I agree with sjz. It is sweet for you to contribute & the financing of the ring is nobody''s business but yours & your bf''s! I agree that the family ring would be much more meaningful to your daughter and to you.

I''m so glad you feel better about the situation! Congratulations!