Engagement Rings ! ??

[Flambeur]

Originally Posted by evor1

wtf he should be marrying her right now. the diamond industry is the 2nd biggest scam behind religion. hes lucky his girl doesnt buy into the bullshit.

she isn't buying into it for all the wrong reasons.

 

[pjw123]

Thanks for the input guys, didn't know it would spark such debate on my girl's character. She's actually not liberal at all, quite conservative to be honest. I think I may get a diamond from my deceased grandmother, which would be great for a number of reasons, and it should finally put this problem to rest. I really like the bespoke idea, I kind of like vintage looking rings (I like contemporary as well, but I think vintage is better for this). Any of you guys know where I should look for something like that?

 

[tiecollector]

Go to www.betterthandiamond.com I bought one of these for the center stone and it looks amazing. It has fooled every jeweler too. I just bought a really nice setting to compensate and the ring looks like it cost a small fortune.

 

[rdawson808]

Originally Posted by evor1

wtf he should be marrying her right now. the diamond industry is the 2nd biggest scam behind religion. hes lucky his girl doesnt buy into the bullshit.

And third in line is the apostrophe industry. I can't stand them!


But to the OP: please wait a couple weeks until you get more info. My wife made some statements early on about what sort of ring she would prefer. So I started looking for that. Then I mentioned it and she said, "oh no, I didn't mean that!" So that changed things. Ask her some questions; talk about it.

In the end, make sure you choose it yourself. I think it means much more than having her pick one out and you just paying.

b

 

[TheFoo]

Originally Posted by pjw123

really like the bespoke idea, I kind of like vintage looking rings (I like contemporary as well, but I think vintage is better for this). Any of you guys know where I should look for something like that?

Van Craeynest in San Francisco is supposed to be very good at 'vintage' design (not my cup of tea, but I digress):

http://www.vancraeynest.com/

They have collection pieces and do custom work.

 

[StopPolloition]

I went with a purple sapphire as the center stone. I don't much care for diamonds and neither does she. Used the remaining money towards fun activities to do together and gave her my favorite handgun as an additional engagement gift. We do things a bit differently than most.

 

[zjpj83]

I know someone who got a big, beautiful saphire. Lovely ring.

 

[TheFoo]

Originally Posted by zjpj83

I know someone who got a big, beautiful saphire. Lovely ring.

You can go much bigger for less money, too. A cushion or oval cut sapphire with a diamond micro-pave halo and band would be very, very pretty.

 

[haganah]

Get her a lab made diamond. The quality will be ridiculously high so you can look down on mafoofan for having a less perfect diamond. The cost will be a tiny fraction. Most jewelers outside of a lab won't be able to tell the difference. Enjoy.

 

[rdawson808]

Originally Posted by pjw123

I really like the bespoke idea, I kind of like vintage looking rings (I like contemporary as well, but I think vintage is better for this). Any of you guys know where I should look for something like that?

You could just buy something vintage. My wife's ring is vintage (edwardian probably). An equivalent newly made ring would have cost nearly twice as much, based on the few quotes I got). I think the diamond (it didn't have one in the setting) was even from an estate rather than "new".

I bought hers at a local jeweler who sold both new and estate items.

b

 

[TheFoo]

Originally Posted by haganah

Get her a lab made diamond. The quality will be ridiculously high so you can look down on mafoofan for having a less perfect diamond. The cost will be a tiny fraction. Most jewelers outside of a lab won't be able to tell the difference. Enjoy.

Do they make them big and clear enough yet? I was under the impression that they don't really, and they would be extremely expensive anyway.

 

[haganah]

Originally Posted by mafoofan

Do they make them big and clear enough yet? I was under the impression that they don't really, and they would be extremely expensive anyway.
Yes. They also have GIA ratings as well. I think the clarity is supposed to surpass natural stones by far.

 

[TheFoo]

Originally Posted by haganah

Yes. They also have GIA ratings as well. I think the clarity is supposed to surpass natural stones by far.

Clarity was the wrong word. I should have said whiteness. As far as I know, they are just now able to make passable white diamonds, and they cost as much as natural examples.

I would admittedly be wary of buying a lab-made diamond. Yes, I know, the chemical composition is identical, but some of the romance is lost, no? It's like machine-sewing made to look exactly like hand-sewing.

 

[haganah]

Originally Posted by mafoofan

Clarity was the wrong word. I should have said whiteness. As far as I know, they are just now able to make passable white diamonds, and they cost as much as natural examples. I would admittedly be wary of buying a lab-made diamond. Yes, I know, the chemical composition is identical, but some of the romance is lost, no? It's like machine-sewing made to look exactly like hand-sewing.
So it's now a romance issue?

The only fear you should have is your wife taking the ring off and mailing it to a special lab. But I think if you're wife is doing that...well you've got enough troubles already. BTW, I'm not so sure how much romance there is in a product that's created by companies that have encouraged blood shed and massive overpricing. That said, I'd still use a natural stone - just because

 

[TheFoo]

Originally Posted by haganah

So it's now a romance issue?

Well, wasn't it always? Despite the fact they are not all that scarce, it's sill neat that natural diamonds take so long to form. And very clear, colorless diamonds of sizeable dimensions are relatively rare. There is truth to the anti-diamond campaign, but it's also overzealous.