Ring Question

[Pomlover2586]

Hi again! As I posted in my previous post DF to be and I are going to go looking at engagment rings this weekend. We are both college students and thus don't have a ton of money to spend.
I realize this question may be personal so if it is please feel free to not respond, I'm just curious how much money your rings cost vs. carat size? I have petite fingers and know that the largest stone i'd ever want is a 1 carat. My mom [who has similar hands to me] has a 2.5 carat center stone with 2carat bagets [3 on each side] and this ring while georgous dwarfs her petite hand and has a tendency to look a bit gaudy I'm hoping we might be able to get a 1/2 carat for starters and then possibly upgrade the stone when we have more to spend. Also does anyone know how much a 1/2 carat can cost? I think he's going to buy the ring from the shane co. Thanks!

 

[luv4mylittleones]

My first ring was 3/4 ct and cost about $1000 at zales originally but it was on sale that week AND we got another 10% for applying for a zales card...we ended up getting it for around $800. My new ring is 1.5 ct and I have no idea how much he spent but it's mother's day this weekend so I bet there are some great sales out there if you look. Good Luck!!

 

[DIsNeYSweEtHrTs]

My e-ring is .70 carats in Platinum and cost around $2500 I believe. I have pretty big hands w/long fingers and it doesn't look too big or too small. It goes pretty well with my wedding band too.

 

[Lynn5700]

Hi. My ring is .56 carats. I also didn't like big diamonds on my hand and a half carat is the perfect size for my hands. Here is a picture of mine.

My ring's center stone is .56 and has one side stone on each side and 2 paved stones next to the side stone. It was $3000. The price varies on color and cut. you can get a carat ring and it could be cheaper than a half carat because the clarity is worse than the half carat. The clarity of my diamond is VS2 and the color is F. Color starts D to Z, D being colorless and Z yellow to brown

We also had mine custom made at my Jewelers.

Hope this helps and have fun looking for the ring

 

[Moonpie]

I have small fingers too, and I was also looking for a smallish stone that would "fit" better with the size of my hand...my ring size is about 4 1/2.
Well I ended up getting a 1/3 of a carat ring with little pave diamonds that all together add up to 1/2 carat. I know it's small...but doesn't look small on my hand.
My ring came out to cost just under $5,000 from Tiffany & Co, Legacy ring series.
It's a petite ring, but it's perfect for me and I will always love it!

 

[luvsmickey]

I have a 3/4 ct center stone ($3900) and a 1/2ct sides (Bridal set including wedding band = $999.99) so a total of 1 1/4tdw (With the band it's close to 1 3/4tdw). I think it's beautiful and I get compliments on it all the time. The center stone is a Leo Diamond and the sides are all at least H or better in color and SI in clarity or better. I suggest going to a site to learn about the 4 C's. They will determine the cost of the stone, since the cost is based on Rarity. Jared.com is a great site to find that sort of info. And it has information on the Leo diamond there too! Good luck with your search!

 

[jasonandlisa]

One thing I recently learned about diamonds is that there's a big jump in price right at the 1.0 ct point. A ring that's .97 ct, for example, will be a lot less than a ring that's just over 1.0 ct. I thought that was pretty interesting, since it would be pretty tough to see the difference. My jeweler said that's just because it's a "magic" number in a lot of people's minds. I don't know whether it works that way at other points, too. But if it does, there might be a difference in price between .47 and .5 cts. I agree with the other posters, too, you definitely want to learn about the 4 Cs. They make a big impact on price.

 

[Pomlover2586]

I've been looking at various websites that describe them and know the general basics. Its funny that I didn't learn them when I was younger though as my mom and step father are both well versed in diamonds [took me shopping all the time when they were looking for her ring] Guess as a child I didn't care much. I realize I won't get anything large because we can't afford it....I've just heard stories of people having their rings mocked etc for having a "small diamond" and hope this doesn't happen to me....

 

[Nanu57v]

Hi!

I would definately stay with something under 1 caret if you are petite. I am only 5'2", and my hands are small. I have a .70, and I thought it was to big when I got it. Its since grown on me, but I can't imagine going any bigger.

You will find a huge range of prices based on quality and color. A super high quality one could run you 4K, where you could also find one in the hundreds.

 

[Nanu57v]

.I've just heard stories of people having their rings mocked etc for having a "small diamond" and hope this doesn't happen to me....

If people say that they are worth listening too. Its your diamond, who cares what others think...If they have a problem with it, tell them to buy you a bigger one.

 

[dmslush]

I realize I won't get anything large because we can't afford it....I've just heard stories of people having their rings mocked etc for having a "small diamond" and hope this doesn't happen to me....

You really shouldn't worry about what other people say about your ring. The symbol of love behind the ring is not told in the size of the stone. I actually don't even have an engagement ring. We have flipped flopped on the decision to buy one. I finally decided that I didn't want a ring, but would rather have some extras like the Magic Kingdom photo shoot. Heck, he can always buy me a ring, we can't always get married in disney.

And you know, I've not had anyone ask me why I don't have a ring. I guess most people that know us understand that he has gone back to college, we have a teenage daughter, and I am the bread winner for the moment, so they figure it is not in the budget, I guess. Heck, we've been together for a 11 years, so a ring isn't going to make that big of a difference LOL

 

[PirateKitty]

I've just heard stories of people having their rings mocked etc for having a "small diamond" and hope this doesn't happen to me....

IMHO, if you start off with a big whopper of a diamond, where do you really have to go from there? What I mean is, wouldn't it be really nice to start off by first, not going into debt for a ring, and then to have something to look forward to on an anniversary...ie. upgrade? I love the fact that DF purchased a smaller ring (.50 carats) and that he wants to upgrade on our anniversary.

Who cares what others think. If someone mocked me for having a small diamond, they are obviously not in my circle of friends. Its how you feel about the ring that is important. The diamond could be large or small, but when its "the one", the size won't matter.

 

[luvsmickey]

Somthing else came to mind. Somthing I tell all of my diamond guest. In the four C's one of the C's is Cut. A lot of people think that the shape of the diamond is the cut of the diamond. That's not the case, the Cut refers to the Porportions and Symetry. How well your diamond is cut will determine how much it sparkles! The Brilliance, Fire and Sintilation is all done by the Cut. Yes that is what it is, not the color, not the clairty, and not the size, but the CUT will determine the beauty of the stone. If you want people to WOW over your ring with out going large in size, Cut is going to give you that effect. Now, Jewelers know how important that C is and it will make a big difference in price, but if you don't mind going a little smaller, you can get a Beautiful Stone! You may have heard of Hearts on Fire or Hearts and Arrows, those are both the same thing, they are both an Ideal Cut diamond. And Ideal cut diamond is one that is cut to Ideal porpotions. If the diamond is cut to Ideal porportions it will sparkle A LOT more than one that is cut traditionally (anything cut poor, fair, good, very good, excellent). Another Diamond that is Cut for sparkle is the Leo Diamond. It has more Facets (that's faces in French, basically means cuts) than a traditional cut diamond. BUT it's not just how many, but where they are Placed! You can have more facets and it not sparkle anymore, it's where they are placed that will make that difference! I told my DF when he was looking for my ring (he was scared because I've been a Jeweler for over 8 yrs) that he should go with either an Ideal or a Leo Diamond. And if price was a factor, please go smaller, I would rather a smaller more beautiful diamond than a large flat diamond that didn't sparkle! In my eyes, he did both! Good luck! And I hope that helped instead of sounding like rambeling!

 

[Pomlover2586]

DF to be and I went shopping today and found the perfect ring! We separately selected the white gold band and then the stone and it's a 1/2 carat E Color and VS2 Clarity!! OMG!!!! It's amazing!!! Since I have teeny fingers it looks quite large on my hand so I won't have to worry about "comments" It ended up costing Just over $1500 but were very happy with it! Now DF to be says he's going to hide it away until he actually proposes to me!! What a tease!!!!! Oh well at least I know when he does propose i'll adore the ring

 

[prncesaurora21]

Now DF to be says he's going to hide it away until he actually proposes to me!! What a tease!!!!! Oh well at least I know when he does propose i'll adore the ring

mine did the exact same thing...except i didn't want to wait and i kept taking it out of its hiding place to show my friends so we just decided what the heck and i started wearing it (this is about three days after he bought it! lol) so there was no real proposal but that's ok i love my ring and i love him! have fun with your engagment!

 

[Belle1981]

Congrats on getting your ring!!!! That is so exciting! It really doesn't matter what other people thing about you ring as long as you love it too! I have small hands like you 4.5 as well. DF picked a great ring but I am pretty sure my best friend helped! Mine is a solitaire 1.5 carat. Rings are a symbol big small thick or thin it symbolizes the same thing LOVE! Good luck

 

[TXTurtle]

Congrats on the ring! When DH2B and I got engaged I got a sapphire instead of a diamond. No political reasons or anything like that - I just like blue better than white. Personal preference. During that first week when EVERYONE is looking at your ring I got a range of comments from people doing that "oh, it's ... nice ..." thing to others loving it. Now that all that newly-engaged fuss is over only a few people have payed any attention to it one way or another. I still love how it sparkles and, if anyone has issues with it then that's their problem. I like it and it's mine so there! So I'm glad you went with what YOU want and congrats on the impending engagement! Enjoy it!