I am beyond excited to share today’s post with you. I recently shared on Instagram that I upgraded my engagement ring. I shared bits & pieces of the process along the way, but you all have had questions. I thought I’d answer the FAQs here so they are all in one place I can easily refer you all back to!
LET ME UPGRADE YOU
Below I’m sharing more of the backstory with upgrading my engagement ring with Diamonds Direct. I’m also answering the FAQs you all submitted on Instagram stories or have messaged me along the way.
BACKSTORY
When Charles proposed about six years ago, he did so with an absolutely stunning ring. It was exactly what I wanted. It was sort of a replica of a Harry Winston ring. An elongated radiant cut with two baguettes on either side. Despite wearing mostly only yellow gold jewelry, I had it in my head that platinum was what I should go with for an engagement ring, so that is what I wanted & what I got. As time went on, I really only wore gold jewelry so my ring felt less & less reflective of my style.
WHY UPGRADE?
This actually started as a reset, so I’ll touch on that below first.
WHY A RESET?
As I mentioned above, I felt like yellow gold was more reflective of my style, so I decided to reset my ring from platinum to yellow gold. I absolutely loved my baguettes, but decided to keep my ring more dainty & simple to let the stone shine. I thought switching to yellow gold & just having a solitaire stone & repurposing the baguettes would be the best choice. Our five year anniversary & my 35th birthday was coming up, so I thought this would be a perfect time to do this!
WHAT ABOUT THE SENTIMENT WITH YOUR ORIGINAL RING?
I don’t really find sentiment in many things. A ring is a representation of your commitment in a relationship, so to me just as relationships evolve, why can’t your ring? I also think people’s style evolves. This includes jewelry! Resetting your ring can make it feel completely new, just like taking a trip away with your spouse can help you reset. Many people find sentiment in their original ring & that is great! I am just not one of them. I loved that ring so much & always will. We are both different & our relationship is different, so why can’t my ring be different?
WHY DIAMONDS DIRECT?
I have been familiar with the Diamonds Direct brand & knew they had so many incredible offers. We trusted them & knew they did amazing work! Since getting engaged myself, I’ve gone shopping with friends there several times & the customer service was always superior, which is so important to me.
HOW DID YOUR RESET TURN INTO AN UPGRADE?
When I was going in to look at different setting options, there was a ring with a simple solitaire setting & a thin gold band I looked at. It had the same cut of ring as mine– an elongated radiant cut, but it was noticeably larger than my current one. Every time I went back throughout the resetting process, I wanted to look at it & try it on. I kept looking at pictures & videos I had taken of it. Basically, I fell in love.
Diamonds Direct offers a 110% lifetime upgrade opportunity. This allows customers to trade in their engagement Diamond, solitaire Diamond pendants, or Diamond studs for a different size, quality, or shape! You’re only required to pay the difference between the two after applying 110% of your original purchase towards your new one. You could upgrade your ring every year if you wanted to! This opportunity allowed us to get the most out of Charles’s original investment & make upgrading possible. The best part about this is that since you can do it every year if you want, you don’t have to feel like you have to go up drastically. Every little bit could add up & then in a few years you could end up with another carat or a ring that is twice the size! Just as your love & family grows, your ring can, too!
WHAT DID YOU END UP DOING FOR YOUR RESET?
For my new setting, I chose a thin yellow gold band with white gold prongs. The reason for choosing white gold prongs was so the color of the diamond would not show any of the yellow gold tint. The setting was done by C. Gonshor who does the most amazing work & my ring was no exception. I did not reuse the baguettes from my original ring in my setting & instead did a solitaire with a hidden halo for a fun, subtle bling touch from the sides. I LOVE IT SO MUCH.
WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH YOUR BAGUETTES?
Since I traded in my original stone for the upgrade, I wanted to keep the baguettes. Although I did not use them in this new setting, I am going to repurpose them into something. I’m holding off a bit because it’s been a big summer & I want to really be sure of what I want to do with them. Although, if I change my mind later, I can always repurpose them again! I’m thinking of making them into a cluster with other diamond shapes for earrings, but we’ll see. Diamonds Direct is hanging on to them so they are safe in the meantime. I will of course take you guys along for that process when the time comes.
MINED OR LAB DIAMOND?
Both my original ring & current ring are mined diamonds. Lab grown diamonds are so new & determining their value, especially their potential resale or trade in value seems tricky for the industry. Having a mined diamond was a priority for me. The beauty in a diamond is how rare they are & the process to obtain them. They are all unique, one of a kind, & have a story to tell. Just like people & just like relationships. A mined diamond is an investment & Diamonds Direct treats it as such. They protect your investment with their upgrade policy so you know you can get the most for your purchase! They focus their approach on educating the customer fully before making a buying decision so you can decide what is best for you.
WHAT SHAPE IS YOUR DIAMOND?
My diamond, both the new one & my original, are elongated radiant cuts. I love this style because it’s almost a hybrid between a cushion & an emerald. I felt like it was very unique when I originally got it six years ago, but it has definitely increased in popularity since, particularly the elongated ones & for good reason.
DID YOU LOOK AT SWITCHING SHAPES?
I did not. I love the radiant cut! If I were to change shapes ever it would likely be to an oval, as that is my current favorite other shape. Particularly for what looks good on my hands!
DID YOU STACK YOUR NEW STACKABLE BAND WITH YOUR OLD BANDS & NEW RING?
Yes! For my first Mother’s Day I got a new stackable band I shared on Instagram. It is the most beautiful band with alternating marquise & stacked round diamonds set in yellow gold. I actually had four bands stacked with my other ring (I told y’all, I love the stacked, dainty look) so I kept two of those to stack with my new engagement ring & band. For me, it represents Charles, me, & now Emmett. I love how it looks! This is one of the most fun parts about new bands is that you can stack them together or wear on their own on other fingers.
ANY ADVICE WHEN JEWELRY SHOPPING?
Oh my gosh so much!! First off, if you’re shopping for engagement or wedding rings, be sure to go try on rings to get an idea of what you like AND what looks good on your hand. We all have different hand types, just like body types, & some rings & styles are more flattering on some than others. If you don’t want to go with your spouse, go with a friend or family member. Decide on what you love & have them relay the information to your significant other if you’re going for an element of surprise. If not, go with them & find out together. It’s a big investment so it may as well be something you like.
Be sure you go to people you can trust! You want someone that can help maximize your budget with what’s important to you. Diamonds Direct has such amazing diamond experts who can do just this! All of you who told me that you have jewelry from them said the same thing— their customer service is incredible. With locations all over the US & a few in Texas, there is likely one near you. They also have a ton of jewelry online as well.
Know what’s important to you. Everyone talks about carats for rings, but that is just one of the four C’s. The others are cut, clarity, & color. Some people get so obsessed with carat weight that their significant other thinks I HAVE to get them this carat weight diamond & they end up with a lower color grade or poor clarity that they may not be happy with. You can have two diamonds that are the exact same carat weight but look totally different because of the specs or how they show. All diamonds carry their carat weight a bit differently, so it’s important to look at the specs of every diamond so you can maximize your budget if a “big look” is important to you. I’d recommend being open minded when you look at the specs & see different stones to compare. For color: similar to choosing a paint color, the best way to see differences is putting them side by side. We had SO much fun doing this in store with the Diamonds Direct team. We turned it into a game because I’m weirdly good at noticing the differences in stones & guessing where they fell in terms of ratings & the 4C’s. The more you educate yourself & look at these with a trusted expert, the better off you’ll be maximizing your budget & ending up with a stone that you absolutely love.
I hope that this was helpful & that I answered your questions! If not, feel free to leave them below or shoot me a DM. I absolutely love my new ring & am beyond grateful to Diamonds Direct & their entire team for being so wonderful to work with & making all of my dreams come true.
For more information about Diamonds Direct, visit www.diamondsdirect.com. You can set up an appointment directly with the Dallas team by giving them a call at 972-342-6663.
Thank you to Diamonds Direct for partnering on this post & my posts sharing my eternity band, reset process, & ring reveal. Coming full circle to work with a brand that we’ve been customers of for years is my favorite part of this job. I can’t say enough great things about them & was beyond thrilled for the opportunity to partner!
Photos by Vanessa Christina Photography
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