You may absolutely love the work of a particular jewelry designer and have your heart set on them designing your engagement ring for you. Now, there is no reason why this might not happen, but there are some points that you should take into account, before you commit yourself to a course of action that you might end up regretting due to factors that you haven’t yet considered.
Track them Down
Many jewelers and designers are on Instagram which is the most image-friendly of the most popular social media networks. If you search for jewelry and engagement ring tags, including diamonds – especially rings and diamonds for sale – on the site, you are sure to come across a lot of offerings. Choose about five to seven accounts who seem to produce jewelry that suits your taste and keep an eye on them for a few weeks. This will give you the time to see if they are worth speaking to, or if they are more about image than substance.
Involve Them at the Outset
As soon as you have become engaged (or plan the proposal) you should speak to the designer. Find out a realistic time frame for the delivery of your engagement ring amongst other things – there is no point planning a romantic New Year engagement if the ring is not going to be ready until after Valentine’s Day. They may also insist on input when it comes to choosing and sourcing the diamonds and the metal for the band – and they might be able to offer those to you at something of a reduced price seeing as they will be crafting the ring too – so don’t be too quick to snap up diamonds for sale that you might come across!
Set a Realistic Budget
Which is another reason for speaking to the designer sooner rather than later. Having a realistic budget for your designer ring will usually mean paying an inflated fee for their name, as well as the customary and expected expenses of diamond, metal for the band and hours of labor and craftsmanship. If you want the cachet of a well-known and respected designer, you should expect to pay a good sum for that privilege, perhaps even twice what the design would cost from a different, less-well-known jeweler.
Artistic License
When dealing with an artistic temperament and someone whose reputation rests on their latest work, do not expect to have full creative control. If a designer dislikes your designs – finding them tacky, unimaginative or simply too awkward – they may insist on tweaking the design into something that they deem better. As you are paying extra precisely for this input, swallow your pride, thank them and let them make the changes that they see fit! If you genuinely dislike their ideas, make sure that this discussion is had in the very early days of contact, so you can take it to a different jeweler or designer if necessary!
Designer engagement rings are an enormous status symbol, letting all who see it know that not only are you engaged, happy, and able to afford a diamond, but that you are doing so very well that you can afford to have your diamonds set and mounted by the very best in the field! And that is surely a win-win for all?
Read More:
Why your diamond ring turns yellow and why?
Everything you need to know about buying diamonds
Uniquely yours: designing your dream engagement ring
Timeless engagement rings the best gift to your spouse
