buying engagement ring on-line?
Discussion
hi all - mrsSN-to-be has seen a ring she likes - i was hoping to get one made with slightly better stones and/or a cheaper price on-line. i've looked at blue nile diamonds, but they have some less than favourable reviews about the quality of their jewelry and their after sales service in the event of problems.
another option is to get the stones on line and have them set into a ring at the local jewelers, but i don't know if they'd take the hump at that.
any suggestions for this please? thank you
another option is to get the stones on line and have them set into a ring at the local jewelers, but i don't know if they'd take the hump at that.
any suggestions for this please? thank you
SpydieNut said:
hi all - mrsSN-to-be has seen a ring she likes - i was hoping to get one made with slightly better stones and/or a cheaper price on-line. i've looked at blue nile diamonds, but they have some less than favourable reviews about the quality of their jewelry and their after sales service in the event of problems.
another option is to get the stones on line and have them set into a ring at the local jewelers, but i don't know if they'd take the hump at that.
any suggestions for this please? thank you
Buying diamonds is not an easy process, if you want something nice, because 99% of stones you see retail are utter crap.another option is to get the stones on line and have them set into a ring at the local jewelers, but i don't know if they'd take the hump at that.
any suggestions for this please? thank you
You can buy certified stones, which will give you a guide to the "four Cs" Colour, Cut, Clarity and Carat weight. But until you see the stone you just don't know what you are getting. A stone that looks good on paper can be dull and lifeless in reality.
Some suggestions:
Go for a day to Birmingham Jewellery Quarter and see as many stones as you can. Marlows used to carry some decent stones, but they changed hands a while back, so I am not sure what the quality is like now. Most jewellers around there will make you up a ring - haggle though! BJQ is a good day out and there some nice cafes for when you need a nice sit down and a coffee / snack!
When I was last looking at stones, I found some surprisingly well cut stones in Chisholm Hunter. Non-certified.
Is the lady at all interested in vintage? You can find some nice old rings / stones. Older diamonds are not always cut the same way as modern ones, nor are they always as white but that is not a bad thing. I have seen some stunning warmer (more yellow) stones. You will also probably pay less.
About 3 years ago now I bought (now) Mrs Varsas an engagement ring from Blue Nile, we are very happy with it, she also has the matching wedding ring. It all had to be custom made as her fingers are so dainty they fall below the normal sizes. I did read up about diamonds before hand, learn what the 4 C's are and why you can compromise on, for example, inclusions (unless you will be looking at the stone under a microscope) but not others. After size, the cut is most important, if you want it to look/shine like a real diamon it needs to be cut in the correct way, other cuts may make the diamon look bigger by flattening it but then it won't reflect light properly.
My wedding ring was custom made by a small shop, they were the only people who would do what I wanted (bi-mettalic ring but 4mm is width). Actually going and looking at real stones is a good shout, maybe should have gone to the small shop first? Don't know, I really liked the setting and the fact they had amatching wedding ring.
My wedding ring was custom made by a small shop, they were the only people who would do what I wanted (bi-mettalic ring but 4mm is width). Actually going and looking at real stones is a good shout, maybe should have gone to the small shop first? Don't know, I really liked the setting and the fact they had amatching wedding ring.
The missus found one on a website she liked and I bought it her about 2 years later, company in Sheffield, they said I could come to them to see it but I couldn't find an excuse to go up to Sheffield for the day so I got it posted out. She wanted a "salt and pepper diamond".
I was told Birmingham is a good place to start.
I was told Birmingham is a good place to start.
thanks all - i've had a good look at the 4 Cs for diamonds etc, but thought one diamond with the same mark in each of those areas would look pretty much the same, so it would 'safe' to shop on line for certified stones.
the ring she's seen is in a local independant and is nice - the wanting to get slightly better stones is more me than her
.
will have to have a think about this - ideally i'd wanted to get it and surprise her - and going around places in birmingham would kind of take some of that away
thanks again though - your thoughts and advice are much appreciated
the ring she's seen is in a local independant and is nice - the wanting to get slightly better stones is more me than her
. will have to have a think about this - ideally i'd wanted to get it and surprise her - and going around places in birmingham would kind of take some of that away
thanks again though - your thoughts and advice are much appreciated
SpydieNut said:
thanks all - i've had a good look at the 4 Cs for diamonds etc, but thought one diamond with the same mark in each of those areas would look pretty much the same, so it would 'safe' to shop on line for certified stones.
the ring she's seen is in a local independant and is nice - the wanting to get slightly better stones is more me than her.
will have to have a think about this - ideally i'd wanted to get it and surprise her - and going around places in birmingham would kind of take some of that away
thanks again though - your thoughts and advice are much appreciated
The online diamond places go to some effort to persuade buyers that you can buy stones based upon certificate data alone. You can’t! Many factors affect how a diamond will perform in the flesh. the ring she's seen is in a local independant and is nice - the wanting to get slightly better stones is more me than her
. will have to have a think about this - ideally i'd wanted to get it and surprise her - and going around places in birmingham would kind of take some of that away
thanks again though - your thoughts and advice are much appreciated
If it’s to be a surprise, it’s difficult to go wrong with a Round Brilliant Cut in a platinum (unless she prefers gold) Tiffany setting.If you can afford a quality >1 carat stone, so much the better.
Incidentally, I’ve spent more time shopping alone in BJQ than with a partner.
Louis Balfour said:
The online diamond places go to some effort to persuade buyers that you can buy stones based upon certificate data alone. You can’t! Many factors affect how a diamond will perform in the flesh.
If it’s to be a surprise, it’s difficult to go wrong with a Round Brilliant Cut in a platinum (unless she prefers gold) Tiffany setting.If you can afford a quality >1 carat stone, so much the better.
Incidentally, I’ve spent more time shopping alone in BJQ than with a partner.
thank you - i may take a day out in Birmingham on my own then (never thought i'd be saying that) If it’s to be a surprise, it’s difficult to go wrong with a Round Brilliant Cut in a platinum (unless she prefers gold) Tiffany setting.If you can afford a quality >1 carat stone, so much the better.
Incidentally, I’ve spent more time shopping alone in BJQ than with a partner.
I bought my (now) wife's engagement ring from Blue Nile. We had periodically window-shopped for a while so I knew what she liked, then I did some research and picked out a stone and a ring design, and when it arrived it was fabulous. Just what we both hoped for. It wasn't 'cheap' as such (platinum and high spec diamond, albeit not enormous as she has dainty fingers) but it was undoubtedly much cheaper than an equivalent from a high street store.
3-4 years later she took it to a local independent jeweller to have it enlarged a size, and after doing the work, he was extremely complimentary about the stone and the ring in general when she picked it up later.
3-4 years later she took it to a local independent jeweller to have it enlarged a size, and after doing the work, he was extremely complimentary about the stone and the ring in general when she picked it up later.
SpydieNut said:
hi all - mrsSN-to-be has seen a ring she likes - i was hoping to get one made with slightly better stones and/or a cheaper price on-line. i've looked at blue nile diamonds, but they have some less than favourable reviews about the quality of their jewelry and their after sales service in the event of problems.
another option is to get the stones on line and have them set into a ring at the local jewelers, but i don't know if they'd take the hump at that.
any suggestions for this please? thank you
Drop me an email . I ll get you squared away. We partner with a great bespoke jewellery company . Well worth a conversation another option is to get the stones on line and have them set into a ring at the local jewelers, but i don't know if they'd take the hump at that.
any suggestions for this please? thank you
Edited by Fckitdriveon on Friday 22 September 21:10
Bought my wife’s engagement ring over ten years ago from Diamondfactory. They are online, based in London I think. Great service. Very happy.
Since then, I’ve bought an eternity ring and a necklace from a jeweller on here. Guy called Eddie. Fantastic to deal with. Happy price. All hand made for any budget. Shows you photos of the complete process if you want.
He’s the only place I’d go now. He’s based right down south. Southampton area I think. But I’m way up in North Yorkshire.
I showed him pictures of what she liked. And he made it perfectly.
Can’t recommend enough.
Edit. Here’s a thread he has/had
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Since then, I’ve bought an eternity ring and a necklace from a jeweller on here. Guy called Eddie. Fantastic to deal with. Happy price. All hand made for any budget. Shows you photos of the complete process if you want.
He’s the only place I’d go now. He’s based right down south. Southampton area I think. But I’m way up in North Yorkshire.
I showed him pictures of what she liked. And he made it perfectly.
Can’t recommend enough.
Edit. Here’s a thread he has/had
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Edited by joestifff on Friday 22 September 21:15
Super Sonic said:
If she's seen one she likes, it would be a good idea to buy her that. She will probably be overjoyed.
This is very true Fckitdriveon said:
Drop me an email . I ll get you squared away. We partner with a great bespoke jewellery company . Well worth a conversation
thanks Fckit - have done joestifff said:
Bought my wife’s engagement ring over ten years ago from Diamondfactory. They are online, based in London I think. Great service. Very happy.
Since then, I’ve bought an eternity ring and a necklace from a jeweller on here. Guy called Eddie. Fantastic to deal with. Happy price. All hand made for any budget. Shows you photos of the complete process if you want.
He’s the only place I’d go now. He’s based right down south. Southampton area I think. But I’m way up in North Yorkshire.
I showed him pictures of what she liked. And he made it perfectly.
Can’t recommend enough.
Edit. Here’s a thread he has/had
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Thank you too, I’ll give him a shout as well. Since then, I’ve bought an eternity ring and a necklace from a jeweller on here. Guy called Eddie. Fantastic to deal with. Happy price. All hand made for any budget. Shows you photos of the complete process if you want.
He’s the only place I’d go now. He’s based right down south. Southampton area I think. But I’m way up in North Yorkshire.
I showed him pictures of what she liked. And he made it perfectly.
Can’t recommend enough.
Edit. Here’s a thread he has/had
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
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