QuestionMy fiance and I purchased a beautiful ring from a very distinguished up scale store this Christmas eve 12-24-09. Since then I have had two occasions where little diamond fell out on the band part and the platinum band is bending in. My ring is an Ascher cut surrounded by smaller diamonds forming a octagon. There are a series of emerald cut and princess diamonds about 1/2 around on each side. The ring is platinum as I said, and of good quality diamonds. The jeweler says they will replace the diamond when they fall out, to me it sounds like they know it will be an ongoing problem I cannot live with. What do you think!
Thanks-Cody
AnswerDear Cody,
There is a strong trend in ring design for many smaller accent diamonds on the sides and shoulders of the ring. Unfortunately, even with the best of brands we have seen problems requiring special care. The customer is of course totally unaware of previous situations of lost accent stones and if told up front, the sale would likely pass on to another design style. The best brands have very few lost stones and generally may be re-sized with few problems within 2 sizes at the max and preferably less that that if sized down. A few particular styles should not be sized down at all. Sizing down bends the curve of the ring band to a smaller circle and that will tend to spread apart the settings of accent stones on the shoulders and sides of the ring. A jeweler must be quite careful to check for loose stones and professionally tighten or reset any side stones "iffy" on security for the years to come.
I have worked directly on many rings over the last couple of years with problems of lost accent stones, stones set mostly in the bands. Yes, in many cases small stones have been lost and in some cases we have gotten a new ring from the manufacturer made to correct size and in other cases refunded the sale or credited the original purchase to another ring.
MY RECOMMENDATION
Cody, as a jeweler who works on the rings and knows stone setting and jewelry metals quite well, I honestly cannot recommend keeping a ring which has already shown problems of lost stones. Yes, the problem does tend to continue. In many cases a new ring from the manufacturer is no better at stone security than the one returned. My advice might seem tough and my heart goes out to your fiance and you who purchased the ring in good faith: Do not keep it. Try and find a more secure design or one without many small accent stones. The Asscher cut is a wonderful diamond cut with a special beauty. Platinum is a wonderful jewelry metal and generally tough enough; however, if a thin band or a band weakened by multitudes of drilled areas where stones are set, platinum will bend more easily than desired. Generally, platinum is the most secure metal for diamond setting but not if thin or if bent or if the setter simply has not put enough metal over the edges of the side stones. Gold or palladium would do no better with such conditions and likely do worse.
Go to the store and they should honor your request and desire for another ring. The history so far has proven this is not the ring you need to be wearing. A bride needs to be happy and have a ring to wear and enjoy for years to come without any fear that someone will say, "What a beautiful ring"...oh, is there a stone missing? I would find it difficult to believe the store is not aware of problems with similar rings.
Cody, I do not like to take away any joy but losing stones will be no joy and only frustration should that happen again (a very likely event). This is what I must recommend. Although the store will consider me an "unknown" you can quote me if needed or say you spoke to another experienced bench jeweler about the situation. In any regard, the store should be very cooperative with little more said than you want to change rings.
Cody, get back with me if you need to with a follow-up. A rating will be appreciated but certainly is not required.
God Bless and Peace. Thomas.
