What makes a ring look vintage? The design usually has very specific details within the craftsmanship that feature elegant details and Victorian style or lace-inspired characteristics. Before unwary consumers shop for the diamond wedding band of their dreams, it’s important to understand some of the terminology that sets these old-fashioned ring designs apart from the more contemporary looks of a traditional diamond band.

One noticeable difference is that a modern engagement ring or wedding band has a sleek, smooth appearance with either a high-polished or matte finish band; whereas the vintage wedding rings are usually designed with a tiny diamond encrusted look known as pave. Pave diamond ring settings have tiny smaller diamonds that are set closely together to resemble tiny beading within the metal. This is not the same as a cluster diamond setting, which uses larger stones to fill the appearance of one stone. Pave diamonds often cover the metal entirely and give the appearance of the whole band being filled with tiny sparkles.

Another design feature of the vintage diamond rings is in the crown – also known as the head – of the diamond solitaire that is set on top of the mounting. To put it simply, the diamond engagement ring often features either one main diamond or three diamonds, depending on whether the ring is meant to be worn as an anniversary band, right hand ring or as a solitaire. Vintage settings commonly highlight that larger center stone with delicate accents that surround the main attraction.

When choosing a vintage diamond, the most important thing is to choose a setting that is well-made so that the tiny pave diamonds do not fall off the ring. It is better to order the diamond band in the correct size, rather than to have it sized up or down to fit. Sizing it too much will compromise the strength of the mounting and could cause the smaller pave stones to become loose during wear of the ring.

Vintage diamond bands have indeed become a popular choice, because of their luxurious and delicate look that adds a touch of femininity to any lady’s hand whom happens to be fortunate enough to acquire such a stunning jewelry piece. Many of these wedding rings will become long-lasting family heirlooms that can be passed down through generations.

Wide Pave Diamond Bands
Antique Engagement Rings
Vintage Engagement Rings

Today we got word that Microsoft has closed Cashback’s Madison, Wisconsin office.  According to the email we received, it was quite an abrupt and unexpected closing for economical reasons effective immediately.  As a Cashback merchant we are very sad to see some of the great people we have been working with at Madison’s office depart from Microsoft.

We have great confidence in Live.com’s Cashback service and believe that it offers a very valuable venue for us to bring our exclusive line of diamond jewelry to our customers online.  We are offering our highest discount we have offered on any of our products: 10% off!

Because not our entire product feed on Cashback is live right now – which might be due to their closing the Madison office – we are offering the same 10% offer directly through CleverEve.com until our entire line is available through http://search.live.com/cashback. To take advantage of this offer please call our toll free number: 866.303.3876.

Some valuable resources are:
http://howtobuyadiamond.gia.edu/Tour_FrameSet.htm
http://jewelry.about.com/od/diamonds/u/jewelry_advice.htm

Start your search by entering as specific as possible of a “search term” in one of the major search engines.  For example if you are looking for a pave set diamond right hand ring than enter “pave set diamond right hand ring” in the search box.  This will help you find sites that are more specific to your search rather than having to go through hundreds of sites that are irrelevant to your search.

Browse through many sites before making a purchase.  Make sure you are comparing apples to apples when evaluating different products.  An average online shopper for diamond jewelry pieces takes between 10 -15 days before making a purchase.

Some suggested online jewelry sites:
http://bluenile.com/
http://jamesallen.com/
http://clevereve.com/
http://zales.com/
http://novori.com/

Make a list of the items and the URLs of the product pages of the items you liked.

Educate yourself about the site you are considering purchasing your piece of jewelry from.

Read the fine print and the warranty policy carefully.  Most reputable online jewelers offer a 30 day return policy in addition to a limited manufacturing warranty policy.  It is also more common than not for a high end diamond jewelry sites to offer free insured shipping on purchases over a certain dollar amount.

Inquire about the site that you wish to purchase your product from on independent, third party sites and forums.  A good point to start your search is the BBB. Also check to see if the site has a valid SSL certificate (preferable a SSL 2 certificate which certifies the business entity that is behind the operation of the site).  Usually this can easily be checked by looking for the buttons of these providers on the bottom of the pages of the site you are interested to purchase from.

Read customers reviews about the site that are places on a third party – independently operated site.

Some examples are:
http://ivouch.com/
http://trustlink.org/
http://bizrate.com/ratings_guide/guide.html

Make sure the site is operating from within the United States and has a physical location.  Their mailing address must be present on their site – usually in the terms of use or privacy policy section of the site.

Call their toll free number to place an order rather than going through the online shopping cart.  If the site does not provide a toll free number simply forget about purchasing anything valuable from that site.  When placing your order ask for discounts and promotional offers.  You might be able to save a few bucks just for asking.

Have a good time shopping for your diamond jewelry piece and remember that the process of purchasing a diamond jewelry item online is supposed to be an easy process.  If you are having a lot of trouble just calls the toll free number of the site.  There usually are knowledgeable representatives behind the line that can eliminate most of the anxiety and burden related to purchasing a valuable item online.

The reason for this is that the largest portion of the cost of a high end diamond jewelry piece is in the material which the piece is made of. The labor cost is relatively low compared to the material cost. To give an example, a diamond and platinum bracelet made with high color and clarity diamonds that has a cost basis of $10,000 might have most of the cost basis (about $9,000) made up of material cost. This material cost would be the same whether the piece of jewelry is made in the United Stated or overseas. The difference in the cost would be in the labor and overhead which would amount to $1,000 in our example. This difference is partially eliminated because of shipping and insurance costs. Hence a high end diamond jewelry piece would cost the same no matter where it is made. A low end diamond jewelry piece would have a smaller portion of its cost basis composed of material cost, and the labor cost would have a larger chunk of the overall manufacturing cost.

As a general rule, most high end diamond jewelry is still manufactured in the United states; this is especially true of larger and more expensive jewelry pieces. The next time you are buying a piece of diamond jewelry, ask about where the items are manufactured … this should give you an indication of the quality of the piece of jewelry you are purchasing.

Gold as it is used in jewelry pieces is usually in 22kt, 18kt, 14kt, or 9kt

Gold is mixed with other metals or alloys to make it useable for jewelry purposes as pure (24kt) gold is very soft and not suitable for everyday wear.

18kt white gold is made by mixing 75% gold with 25% other metals such as silver and palladium while 18kt yellow gold is made by mixing 75% gold with 25% other metals such as copper, zinc or other alloys.

So in its natural form Gold is not white and has to be mixed with other alloys for it to look whitish. White gold rings are coated with another white metal called Rhodium. Rhodium is a metal very similar to platinum and it shares many of the properties of platinum including its white color. The rhodium plating is used to make the white gold look even whiter. The natural color of white gold is actually a light grey color. The Rhodium is very white and very hard, but it does wear away eventually. To keep a white gold ring looking its best it should be re-rhodium plated approximately every year or year and a half. Just in case you are wondering why they are referred to as 24kt or 18kt gold: The mathematics of referring to gold as 24kt (99.99%) and 18kt (75%) is based on the following computation: (18 / 24 = 0.75 or 75%)

See CleverEve’s 18kt white gold jewelry by choosing a category below:

18kt White Gold Engagement Rings
18kt White Gold Ladies Bands
18kt White Gold Diamond Bracelets
18kt White Gold Diamond Earrings
18kt White Gold Men’s Rings

Platinum is a white metal in its natural state, but unlike gold it is used in jewelry in almost its pure form. Platinum is extremely long wearing and is very white, so it does not need to be Rhodium plated like white gold.Platinum is a very dense (heavy) metal, so a platinum ring will feel heavier than an 18kt gold ring, especially if it is a wide or thick ring. Platinum is also very expensive. A platinum ring will be approximately twice the price of the same ring in 18kt white gold. See CleverEve’s platinum jewelry by choosing a category below:

Platinum Engagement Rings
Platinum Ladies Bands
Platinum Diamond Bracelets
Platinum Men’s Rings

When you are comparing a platinum piece of jewelry with a white gold one, keep the following in mind:

• Platinum is almost twice as heavy as white gold.
• Platinum is approximately twice as expensive as white gold.
• White gold needs to be re-rhodium plated approximately every year or year and a half.
• Platinum is white in color in its natural form while gold must be mixed with other metals or alloys and be rhodium plated to look white.