Would you sacrifice colour in an OEC to maximise size?

[Agnasia]

Thank you to everyone for your feedback, I have sent over an email and will update you when I have a response.

 

[Agnasia]

Second round of CADs are in! My main concern is the thickness of the shank, which is 2.3mm. I believe my wedding band is between 1.7-1.9mm thick. Let me know your thoughts.

 

[oldcutclubmember]

It’s looking great! By thickness, do you mean the height? If you are going with triwire, I don’t think it can really be adjusted too much.

 

[Agnasia]

It’s looking great! By thickness, do you mean the height? If you are going with triwire, I don’t think it can really be adjusted too much.

Yes sorry, I mean the height. I know it’s usually recommended to keep the shanks a similar height, so not sure what the options here are.

 

[Agnasia]

With the shank, are the options to keep it as is and live with it sitting higher than my wedding band or switch to a plain shank so it can match? What would you do?

Also I have asked for them to make the ring in a size 6, my wedding band is 5.75 but would probably be better as a 6. Should I keep it as a 6 or should I size up? In Tiffany I tried both a 6 and 6.5, both were fine although it was a hot and humid day.

 

[RetroQT]

My wedding band is a six and my ering(s) are 5.75 so as to not cause discomfort. I’ve always heard a variation is better with multiple bands.

Hopefully others will weigh in as well.

 

[oldcutclubmember]

I would go with a 6. If I know that I am going to be stacking bands or rings, I always size up a bit to avoid the muffin top look on fingers lol Also it’s just more comfortable when there is some breathing room.

As for the height, I think this is a personal choice. Some people prefer the mismatched, haphazard look and some prefer the matched look and would definitely want it to be the same height.

 

[junebug17]

@Agnasia, I would go with the 6. As to the height, hard to tell for sure but I'm thinking it will look fine.

Can't wait to see the finished ring, excited for you!

 

[Agnasia]

Thank you all @RetroQT @Muluver and @junebug17. I will stick with size 6 and have asked if there is any room for adjustment on the height so we’ll see.

 

[Agnasia]

I have been advised to keep the shank as is as it loses a little in polishing and they’ve offered to take a photo of the wax alongside a band of a similar height to my wedding band. They have also confirmed they will hand milgrain. Exciting!

 

[Agnasia]

I have photos of the wax! It’s sitting next to band that is 1.7mm high and I think it looks fine thankfully. I think we’re good to go!! Eek!!

 

[Lisa Murphy]

Hi everyone,

I’ve started tentatively looking for an OEC as an upgrade, but it looks like in order to get the size I would like something has to give!

I live in the UK so this is a modest upgrade and actually my third! I started with a 0.39 MRB, found Pricescope and fell in love with old cuts. I got a beautiful 0.73ct OEC from Grace but have been suffering with DSS. Having spoken to my husband he has a real sentimental attachment to my engagement ring, so he’s not keen to get a new setting and would rather something new. However, it’s hard for him to get his head around how much diamonds cost. It’s not so much affordability but how much seems reasonable to spend to him, if that makes sense?

We will have been together for 20 years in October so it’s feels like a nice time for the upgrade and in his own words if he was buying me an engagement ring now the budget would be completely different, but he won’t say how much!! All I can say is that I saw a nice mine cut on Instagram and for the specs thought it was very reasonable, but when I spoke to him about it he was a bit taken aback. I may need to remind him how much my last upgrade was! I’m also sending him other diamond posts so he starts to get a feel for how much diamonds cost.

There is a diamond that I felt “got away” as he was nowhere near purchasing (still isn’t) but it was a 1.8ct albeit with an EGL cert and to my mind reasonable (possibility due to the cert!). I have since seen that lower colour stones may be the way to go. I’ve seen what looks like a nice O-P diamond with a GIA cert. I think I would prefer to compromise on colour than clarity? Although recently I’ve seen some I1 that don’t look like that grade, at least to my inexperienced eyes?

I tried to see some lower colours in real life but in Hatton garden the shops that had old cuts tended to have whiter stones. I did learn though that I don’t like transitionals (always thought I would love them from images) and I’m drawn to OECs and while I also love OMCs they tend to face up much smaller. I also tried on different carat weights, shame I don’t know the actual measurements, because despite having small child size hands I have fairly fleshy fingers (size 6) and I was totally comfortable with a 1.5ct.

How would you try to maximise size, would you go down in colour? I’m not so hung up on carat weight but more dimensions, as long as it doesn’t compromise performance.

My engagement ring that needs resizing - 0.73ct



A 1.34ct I tried on and liked



This is a 1.12ct



This is the biggest I tried - a 1.5ct transitional which didn’t feel hugely bigger than the others, but that may be because it’s a solitaire rather than an ornate setting.



Thank you for reading if you managed to get to the end!!

So many choices! Don't be in a hurry. Since you like the antique cuts and don't mind shopping online you have only to decide what exactly it is you're looking for and then narrow your search. Maybe you'd like to change it up a bit and try a 3 stone ring or navette with multiple stones. You can get a lot more carat weight that way for the money. Also, the larger solitaires are pricey, so you don't want hubby to have a heart attack, or sacrifice all your quality just for size. Remember, each 1/2 ct. of weight in larger stones doesn't translate into that much more in size in mm across the top. For example, average 1 ct. Is 6 mm and 1.5 ct is 6.5 mm. When you consider the price difference it's enough to make you want to look for another way out. Some married couples end up resetting the original stone with another two complementary stones. A nice 5 stone ring might be another way to go. In any case, think about quality. To me, I always consider how something is going to hold value and act as a savings account for your hard earned money. Antique diamonds are a good investment as they are getting more scarce. But the clarity and color have to be there as well. Tradespeople know this and generally won't pay anything for low quality diamonds. Try to keep the quality at the very minimum to SI (eye clean) and colors now lower than G/H/I. This will assure your investment. And shop around. Get a feel for the prices by looking at many stones. You may find a bargain, but first you have to know what the median price range is. Have fun with it and be patient. You will find what you are looking for!

 

[dmack]

That’s really lovely! The heights work together perfectly. Can’t wait to see the finished product!

 

[Agnasia]

That’s really lovely! The heights work together perfectly. Can’t wait to see the finished product!

Thank you! Yes it seems to work together well so that’s a big relief! All getting very exciting now!

 

[lulu_ma]

Can't wait to see the finished ring. And the gallery looks perfect!

 

[Agnasia]

Can't wait to see the finished ring. And the gallery looks perfect!

Me too! I wouldn’t have got here without everyone’s invaluable advice, so thank you all!

 

[AL12]

I have photos of the wax! It’s sitting next to band that is 1.7mm high and I think it looks fine thankfully. I think we’re good to go!! Eek!!

Super exciting!!! Is there a reason why it’s on your pinky right now? Is it because of your band?

 

[junebug17]

Oh wow, it looks great! The heights of the rings are fine together. Can't wait to see the finished ring, so excited for you!

 

[oldcutclubmember]

So very excited for you! It looks lovely!

 

[Agnasia]

@AL12 that's the vendor's finger! I'm guessing that's the finger it fits on. They took the photo so I could get an idea how it would sit with my wedding band.

@junebug17 thank you! Yes it all looks fine, I didn't need to worry but it's so good to have the reassurance of the wax! I've given them the go ahead to cast!

@Muluver thank you, it all feels really exciting now! More patience required from me though

 

[AL12]

@AL12 that's the vendor's finger! I'm guessing that's the finger it fits on. They took the photo so I could get an idea how it would sit with my wedding band.

@junebug17 thank you! Yes it all looks fine, I didn't need to worry but it's so good to have the reassurance of the wax! I've given them the go ahead to cast!

@Muluver thank you, it all feels really exciting now! More patience required from me though

Omg goodness! Hahha I thought they sent you the wax model and was curious how it would look on your ring finger proportion wise.

It looks great from all angles! I’m sure you are getting more eager for the finished product!

 

[Agnasia]

Omg goodness! Hahha I thought they sent you the wax model and was curious how it would look on your ring finger proportion wise.

It looks great from all angles! I’m sure you are getting more eager for the finished product!

When I get the finished ring I’ll take lots of photos so you can see the proportions. This is the painful bit isn’t it, waiting!!

 

[RetroQT]

I have photos of the wax! It’s sitting next to band that is 1.7mm high and I think it looks fine thankfully. I think we’re good to go!! Eek!!

The proportions are *chef’s kiss*!!! It’s gonna be a stunner!!

 

[Agnasia]

The proportions are *chef’s kiss*!!! It’s gonna be a stunner!!

Aah thanks so much! I give you guys all the credit!!

 

[Niel]

There is milgrain on the wax- so the milgrain wont be by hand?

 

[RetroQT]

Two weeks of silence on this thread. What’s the latest, @Agnasia?

 

[Agnasia]

Two weeks of silence on this thread. What’s the latest, @Agnasia?

I’m patiently waiting!!

 

[Agnasia]

@RetroQT I think I&R heard you! I checked my emails and they’ve told me it’s ready!!!

 

[junebug17]

@RetroQT I think I&R heard you! I checked my emails and they’ve told me it’s ready!!!

 

[oldcutclubmember]

So excited for you!!