lots of questions about my ring

I'm not much of a jewelry wearer but recently got married and so I now
wear a wedding band. I have a number of questions regarding expectations
of quality and what jewelers can and should do but also what the standard
practice is in the field. Please bear with me, I'm a newbie.

The ring in question is in the bottom two pictures on this page:

http://www.ftupet.com/~tert/img/fg/rings.html

A little more background -- the retailer has a small shop in a small town
and has been used by my mother's family for decades. She doesn't do any
of the work herself.

The ring "off the shelf" is 14K white gold with three diamonds of about
..10ct each set in a line. We wanted two things done: add rose gold around
the edges of the ring so it would match my wife's engagement ring (in the
top photo), and replace the middle diamond with a larger one that belonged
to my grandma. The jeweler said we could have these things done.

Here are my questions:

1. I've only worn it for a few days and the rose gold plating seems to
be wearing off. The jeweler didn't exactly make it clear that the rose
gold would be plating -- not sure what I was thinking but like I said I
don't know much about jewelry. Shouldn't it last a little longer than
this? And what can I do? I think I would prefer to have the stuff taken
off if it's going to have to be replated every few days in order not to
look cheap!

2. The center diamond isn't really how I envisioned it -- first of all
I didn't want a bezel, and now it seems to be out of place with the
smaller diamonds. The long version of the story is the jeweler told me
after the ring had been sent off to have the work done that the center
diamond was too large to set without a bezel. I agreed to the bezel
because she said it would look nice, but she didn't really explain what
it was. I later looked at some pictures on the web and then changed
my mind. I called back the next day and left her a message saying I
just wanted the three diamonds in a row. She called back several days
later saying that her assistant didn't give her my message and the
work was being done already but if I didn't like it they surely could
have it restored to the original version. Once I actually got the ring
I decided I didn't like the design but in our ensuing conversation she
said it might be expensive to have it put back the way it was. I had
been led to believe that I wouldn't have to pay for work that I didn't
want done. So this is sort of a legal question -- am I obligated to pay
for a design that wasn't really what I wanted and was poorly explained
to me? At this point I'm ready to send it back (without the diamond my
grandma gave me) and start over with someone else (I haven't paid for it
yet).

3. One other option is, I would really like the ring if the smaller
diamonds weren't there, but only if the holes were filled with white
gold to look as if nothing had been in there. I'm happy to pay for that
work to be done but I'm going to be picky and I don't want to see evidence
that there were any holes. Is this feasible? Should I take it to another
jeweler and get a second opinion?

4. Out of curiosity, I'll ask about this: the center diamond picks up
the color of the rose gold but the small diamonds don't, so the small
diamonds look whiter and they don't really match the center diamond.
This is another reason to have them replaced. If we got rid of the
rose gold then this wouldn't be a problem any more. If we kept it, is
there some way to put a touch of the rose gold inside so at least the
diamonds match each other??

5. Finally, the bezel isn't exactly symmetrical - if you look from the
side it's obvious that one side is a little taller than the other. No
one will notice this without looking up close but considering how much
this ring cost I find this unacceptable.

One more note -- in the picture it might look like the bezel is rose gold,
but it isn't, that's just the reflection from the edges of the ring.

My wife's engagement ring turned out great -- I wonder if I'm just having
some bad luck here. If anyone has any creative ideas that won't cost a
million dollars I'm all ears. I had been willing to go ahead with option
#4 until I realized today that the rose gold is plated on and it's already
starting to wear off. I prefer option #3 but I have my doubts whether this
can be done to meet my exacting standards. :-]

"tert in seattle" wrote
Here are my questions:

1. I've only worn it for a few days and the rose gold plating seems to
be wearing off. The jeweler didn't exactly make it clear that the rose
gold would be plating -- not sure what I was thinking but like I said I
don't know much about jewelry. Shouldn't it last a little longer than
this? And what can I do? I think I would prefer to have the stuff taken
off if it's going to have to be replated every few days in order not to
look cheap!


What colour is it showing up as in those spots? What is it that's making you
think it's plated, and
that the plating is wearing off?

2. The center diamond isn't really how I envisioned it -- first of all
I didn't want a bezel, and now it seems to be out of place with the
smaller diamonds.

It doesn't look out of place to me.

The long version of the story is the jeweler told me
after the ring had been sent off to have the work done that the center
diamond was too large to set without a bezel. I agreed to the bezel
because she said it would look nice, but she didn't really explain what
it was.

Always make sure you have a complete understanding of what it is you're asking
for, and being
offerred. Don't say yes to something and then decide to look into what it is.
It will almost always
end in trouble due to misconceptions and mis-understandings.

I later looked at some pictures on the web and then changed
my mind. I called back the next day and left her a message saying I
just wanted the three diamonds in a row. She called back several days
later saying that her assistant didn't give her my message and the
work was being done already but if I didn't like it they surely could
have it restored to the original version. Once I actually got the ring
I decided I didn't like the design but in our ensuing conversation she
said it might be expensive to have it put back the way it was. I had
been led to believe that I wouldn't have to pay for work that I didn't
want done.

You agreed to have the work done. That's time and materials the jeweller needed
to spend on altering
the ring. You have then, after the work you agreed to has been completed,
decided you don't like it,
and want the jeweller to spend hours and materials on again altering the ring
or starting over from
scratch for free?

Tell you what. I'll employ you to dig a hole for me so I can install a swimming
pool. Once it has
been done I'll ask you to fill it in and dig it again, but a few feet over to
the right. I wasn't
sure it'd look good there anyway. But to hell with me paying you for the time
and effort to dig the
second hole. Oh, and can you make it oval instead of rectangular this time
please?

Would that work? I'd bet you'd be pretty bloody annoyed at me.

So this is sort of a legal question -- am I obligated to pay
for a design that wasn't really what I wanted and was poorly explained
to me? At this point I'm ready to send it back (without the diamond my
grandma gave me) and start over with someone else (I haven't paid for it
yet).


Considering how much larger the centre diamond is, it would not be able to be
set into the existing
ring the same way as the other 2 diamonds have been. For the simple reason that
the pavillion and
the culet (the very tip of the bottom of the diamond) would stick out the back
a fair way, and
scratch the finger quite severely. So to get around this the top of the ring
needs to be built up.
One way to do this (cheapest and easiest way) is to stick a bezel on there and
set the diamond into
that. Putting a claw setting there would also help, but in my opinion wouldn't
look anywhere near as
nice.

If the ring were to be made again in the original style, but to accomodate the
larger diamond, the
top of the ring would be quite thick, and wouldn't look as nice on the finger.
It would also cost a
fair bit more for all the extra gold.


3. One other option is, I would really like the ring if the smaller
diamonds weren't there, but only if the holes were filled with white
gold to look as if nothing had been in there. I'm happy to pay for that
work to be done but I'm going to be picky and I don't want to see evidence
that there were any holes. Is this feasible? Should I take it to another
jeweler and get a second opinion?

Filling in holes can be done, but making sure there's no sign of the holes is
trickier. If the
jeweller has some white gold from the same alloy mix as the ring is made of,
that would help ensure
a colour match with the gold. But then there's the solder. And that's almost
certainly going to be a
different colour. It may be only a slight difference, but it would still be
noticable. So to make it
look uniform in colour, a common practice is to rhodium plate the white gold
parts of the ring. That
will give it a nice bright white look, and will be uniform. But it will wear
over time and then you
may possibly see the colour differences again.

If you don't want to be re-plating the ring every now and then, you'll need to
look at throwing
money into having the ring made again from scratch.


4. Out of curiosity, I'll ask about this: the center diamond picks up
the color of the rose gold but the small diamonds don't, so the small
diamonds look whiter and they don't really match the center diamond.
This is another reason to have them replaced. If we got rid of the
rose gold then this wouldn't be a problem any more. If we kept it, is
there some way to put a touch of the rose gold inside so at least the
diamonds match each other??


I doubt the centre stone is picking up the rose gold, unless it's set into rose
gold. And even then,
probably not. I'd dare say the centre stone is a lower quality. If you want a
nice, white, large
diamond to match the other two, be prepared to pay big dollars. Conversly you
could have lower
quality side diamonds to match the centre stone (considering the centre one has
sentimental value to
you). That would be alot cheaper than the first option.

5. Finally, the bezel isn't exactly symmetrical - if you look from the
side it's obvious that one side is a little taller than the other. No
one will notice this without looking up close but considering how much
this ring cost I find this unacceptable.


Sometimes this is an optical illusion. I've been frustrated by rings that
measure spot on at all
points, but still for some strange reason they just look wrong. So it's a
matter of throwing away
the measuring callipers and going by eye. After all in day-to-day life it's the
eye that needs to be
pleased, not the measuring equipment.

This is one point I'll grant you. If you've paid a fair bit for the ring, you
may reasonably expect
the work to be done well. Whether you like it or not is another matter of
course. ;-)

Overall, it would appear to me that the jeweller simply did as they were asked.
It's unfortunate
that the assistant didn't get your message to the correct person in time (or at
all as the case may
be), but sadly that's life sometimes. And if you didn't have a complete
understanding of what they
were talking about, you should have....

A) asked for a clearer explanation
and/or
B) gone away to research and then gone back to them with a yay or nay.

As for the plating issue, if you had some clear pics or could better describe
why you feel it's been
plated we might be able to suggest reasons, or point your understanding in the
right direction.

It's a nice looking ring though. I quite like it's fairly simple design. I'm
not much of a jewellery
wearer (cue the "plumbers tap is always leaking" type comments) but that's a
style I would be happy
to wear.

--
Dale Porter
*Add .au to e-mail address to respond*

tert in seattle wrote in message
. ..

4. Out of curiosity, I'll ask about this: the center diamond picks up
the color of the rose gold but the small diamonds don't, so the small
diamonds look whiter and they don't really match the center diamond.

Just a comment from a non-jeweler who has a ring with an old diamond
in it. My diamond is not a modern cut. In fact, it was cut in the late
1800s in what's known as a "mine cut." Because of the cut itself, my
old diamond simply doesn't have the "sparkle" (laymen's terms) of
modern diamonds. The experts here could tell you more about light
refraction in different cuts.

I was advised by a very good jeweler to *not* set my old diamond with
modern stones for just this very reason. Mine looks great as a
solitaire since there's nothing immediately surrounding it to compare
it to. But put it up against your basic modern round brilliant...and
it looks less, well...brilliant.

This may be part of the issue with your older diamond and why it might
seem to be picking up the rose gold more than the modern diamonds
surrounding it. Especially since you have yours bezel set. My older
diamond is prong set and still looks darker than a modern diamond when
one compares the two. Mine is also yellowish as yours may be.

I've also taken a good hard look at my older diamond and realized that
the thing is simply uneven. Perhaps your jeweler had to compensate for
something similar in what you see as an uneven bezel.

My opinion is that your ring looks just fine the way it is. (I can't
comment on the plating issue, I can't really see it in the photographs
and perhaps that's fixable.) I think you also have to understand that
your grandmother's diamond probably has more sentimental than monetary
value, no matter it's size. If you want a diamond ring with lots of
pizazz (more laymen's terms,) you may have to put grandma's diamond in
the safe and have a ring made with a modern stone.

- Bev Brandt