Engagement rings...where can I find the best quality / value for my money???

[MegalodoN]

Well, I'm about to take the plunge and buy an engagement ring. So far the best deals look to be on Blue Nile, but I know there has to be other reputable online diamond distributers.

I live in Washington DC so if any of you can recommend a good place locally that will also be appreciated....

I guess I won't be upgrading my PC for a while....heh

--M

 

[64bitloopy]

Pawn shop.

 

[ArMs]

DeBeers perhaps...

 

[MegalodoN]

Come'on guys...somebody has to have been in my shoes recently...?

 

[billandopus]

Your best bet is your local wholesaler. If that wholesaler has a good goldsmith then you're rockin'. Make sure you educate yourself on the five c's - carat size, color, cut, clarity, and cost. I always add the 'cost' because the diamond marketing industry doesn't want you to think about cost as an issue because they want you to spend as much money as you can. Sneaky bastards.

[l]http://www.wam.umd.edu/~sek/wedding/diamonds.txt[/l]

is a great resource that has been around for awhile.

I've written a ton about this subject and you can look it up over at www.dvdtalk.com 'other' forum. Same username. This should clear things up for you.

Bottom line: I know it sounds kinda ... well, selfish but always buy something nice, flattering and impressive but NOT gaudy. 95% of women will say that "I don't need that size of rock blah, blah, blah" ... but you'd best err on the side of caution because she will wear it for the rest of her life.

Seriously.

So, if her hands and fingers are quite slim (piano fingers they say) then get something that looks good but impressive because as much as they say it DOES matter when other women say to them "That's a gorgeous ring!" Deep down your wife will thank you.

I can't emphasize this enough. Again, I know it sounds possibly cheesy. People like to get complimented on or at least have the option to demur or defer the compliment with a "Thanks" or "I didn't want my husband to get me something like this ... it's too big!" They all love to say this ... so give her the reason to do so. An average rock for an average ring will get an average response ... which is nothing.

As for Blue Nile, their rocks seem alright but it's hard to say without holding that rock in your hand with a 10x loupe in your eye. Sometimes it's hard to fathom the table and depth ratios over the 'net. You won't know what an ideal cut shape is until you go to a dealer and see one for yourself. Most dealer/wholesalers will match or beat Blue Nile anyways so don't sweat it. Plus, buying from a local will get you free polishing for the rest of your life which is actually nothing to sneeze about.

But also check out shanks (ie: rings w/o rock) and ideas over at my favorite place

[l]www.r8w.com[/l]

They have some nice shanks and settings there. If only to give you an idea.

Plus, going to a dealer/wholesaler with their own goldsmiths will allow you to do a custom job since pretty much all rings in regular stores in malls and such use stamps for their shanks. Uggh

Good luck.

 

[The Stigenator]

DON'T DO IT MAN!

Seriously.. if you are considering.. shop around.. go to the mall... check out northstrom, macy's, the local mall jewellers.. then try "diamond exchange in tustin, california" and "robin's brothers in california" there are other equivalents to that..

Shop around.. and go shopping with her.. keep a budget on her mind.. for she might end up with the most expensive.

 

[MegalodoN]

Thanks for the suggestions.

I agree about Blue Nile, the prices look great, but I wish I could actually see the daimonds. I don't want to go through the hassle of returning a diamond...that would suck. Most of the jewlers I have visited can't match their prices though - not to mention the fact I'll save a nice chunk by not paying tax....

 

[Cknyc]

If you can afford it spend it. She'll thank you with great sex for years to come..

 

[cxim]

since you are in the DC area, try your local crack dealer. sometimes they take orders for rings & stuff.

use caution, have it checked by a jewler, etc

drawbacks, cash only & you may get popped if you show too much cash, but still where the best deals are.

 

[bcterps]

I'm from DC too, I ended up buying my ring from Mervis Diamond Importers last April. I'm sure you've heard of them, they have offices in MD, DC, and VA. They gave me a fair price and education and pretty decent customer service. I live in DE right now so I had them ship it to me to avoid sales tax, which can save you a couple hundred dollars. I was pretty satisfied overall, their prices are reasonable, not super cheap, but they are definitely a reputable company, I know a few people who have bought rings from them.

However, if you're looking for the best price possible, first thing you have to do is go to a good jewelry store (not in a mall) and get a diamond education which is something you cant do online. Yeah you can read all about the 4 C's on the net but you need to actually spend some time looking at real diamonds. You can also get and idea of how much the diamond you want is gonna cost (or what kind of diamond you can get with your budget). Also it gives you an idea for settings and stuff which is important cause you may be picking out more than one diamond depending on the type of setting you want.

THEN, go to a jewelry show (I know there are ones in Chantilly every couple of months) and look at diamonds. In general you will be able to find high quality diamonds at these shows at good prices, but you need to get used to reading diamond certificates, learning the different grades of clarity and cut, etc. I'm sure that you also know that the appraisal value of a diamond is usually about double what the diamond is worth (ie. I wouldnt pay more than $2500 for a diamond that has been valued at $5000 by an appraiser)


Sorry for the long post, hope it helps.

--Ben

 

[MegalodoN]

I went to Mervis and talked to them about a few diamonds. I got a good feeling from them, and their prices were reasonable, but I still feel like I can do better. Thanks for the suggestion though...

I didn't even think of going to a diamond show, that's a great idea...

Thanks!

 

[Slap]

Blue Nile all the way. Of course I am going to say that. Every local jewler I went to tried to sell me an I in color and VS2 in clarity for the same price I got a F with VSS2. The Blue Nile diamond I got looks great. Way better than any my local jewlers wee trying to sell me. That tax thing was also great. When spending 5-6K on a diamopnd, tax can add up.

 

[HKSturboKID]

If you want good craftsmanship for the price. The best place is to buy in Hong Kong.
The price is similar but as for the designs and the craftsman, it definitely can't be beat. My wife just went back to HK and she bought back 2 pairs with my $$$.

 

[AndrewR]

Do NOT buy a diamond sight unseen (ie, online). That's about the worst thing you could possibly do.

Go to the mall and look at diamonds at a few stores. Hit some expensive ones (wear nice clothes) and some cheap ones. Notice the price and the carat size and try to look at the same size to get a good comparison. Bailey Banks & Biddle actually has some very nice diamonds for which they charge an arm and a leg -- I was rather impressed with their quality though ($4000! :Q). When you go to a place like Zales after seeing the quality at BB&B (or the equivalent, that's just the only national chain that I know of with decent quality, except of course for Tiffany's), you'll be astonished at the crap they have. Read a bunch before you go so you know at least the main points to examine (inclusions, color, etc.). Make sure you know what the diamond looks like in sunlight -- even crap diamonds look good in the light at the store. I bought a pair of earrings for an ex-girlfriend that looked HORRIBLE in sunlight -- cloudy glass. :frown: Took them back.

Then, when you have a basis for comparison, find a local diamond shop with a good reputation (ask around -- best way to find out) and see what they have to offer. Notice price, but do not be hung up on it. Go for the maximum quality you can afford and pay particular attention to a good setting -- it can make a modest sized diamond look stunning. My wife has a .6 carat miner's cut (not made anymore that way) diamond which was her grandmother's, and it's set in a white gold with 6 baguettes -- it looks marvelous despite not being very large. My sister-in-law, however, has a 2.5 carat emerald cut diamond that looks awful. If you see it sparkle once, you're very lucky. It was a waste of $10,000, I think (my brother hit a lucky dot-com stock from a company he used to work for).

On the other hand, if you find a great diamond (always buy loose!), you can have it set in a temporary ring so you can propose, then go with her back to the store to pick out a setting she wants. She's the one wearing it for many years, and she's the best judge of what she likes. Have some money to spend though because it's unlikely she'll pick a cheap one.

Good luck and congrats!

 

[ratkil]

so there are some pretty knowledgeble people here, just out of curiousity what can one expect to spend for a good quality 1 carat diamond?

 

[StageLeft]

A 1 karat GOOD quality diamond will cost you a lot of coin, you could easily spend $7k on it.

Something many people don't realize is that there is way more to a diamond than it's size. Beyond just cut and size there is the quality itself which includes color (Crappy ones have a yellow tinge to them) and then imperfections int he diamond.

As the last guy said you can tell a big diff in stores. The ring I bought was .50 karats (between 3 diamons) for $950...reasonable quality. Another store I checked had .40 solitaire karat ones for many times as much money because they were much better quality. If you look closely you can tell...a 1 karat single diamond of low quality will look rather fugly. I kind of prefer quality over quantity with a dimaond.

We spent an afternoon looking in different stores and they have charts to allow you to compare diamonds and the various ways to tell the quality of them too...

Of course if you split your karat limit into multiple diamonds imperfections in the diamond may be harder to tell as it gets smaller. A .05 diamond, as long as the color is ok, could look like crap and most people wouldn't tell. A 2 karat single will have to look pretty sharp (high quality) not to look like a piece of junk because its easy to tell with it's size.

 

[Frenchie]

Go to a local jeweler. I wne to my local jeweler that I have been going to since I was a kid. Got a nice 1 1/3 marquis at cost. I paid about half the value of the retail price of $7,500. Good quality, cut, clarity, the works. If you want to take a short drive over to PA, I'll hook ya up!

 

[MegalodoN]

Thanks Frenchie, that's a generous offer...I may take you up on it...

here's the kind of diamond I'm looking at right now...necessarily this one in particular, but in this price range and level of quality...

http://www.bluenile.com/details.asp?pid=LD00895365

 

[Frenchie]

Just wanted to impose a few thoughts:

1) you sure she wants a princess cut? They often look small for their size and dont have the same fire/sparkle as most diamond cuts.

2) Make sure you get a good color.

3) You can come down on the quality...Noone except a trained jeweler with microscope will be able to tell the difference. Definitely not a bare untrained eye. Instead of a vvs2, try a vs2 or even a high quality si1. It should also be pointed out that differnet jewelers grade the quality differently. My jeweler has graded diamonds lower than others as he is on the conservative side. He has purchased diamonds graded vs2 that he sells at si1 level.

 

[Ferocious]

Zales sux!

A buddy of mine dropped nearly $3000 for a ring a few years ago. A couple of years later he decided to sell it and took it to several different jewelry stores for appraisels. Even though still in mint condition it was only worth about $600.:|

 

[Frenchie]

Here ya go!!!!!

 

[billandopus]

Like I said previously, look up similar posts about engagement rings either here some time ago or at dvdtalk.com forums "other" for some very detailed info.

The advice and info is is very good. I like what many people have to say here. I used to quasi-be in the industry so I kinda know my way around.

If you can find a recent Rappaport Guide then it will give you general wholesale prices. Sorry, I'm not much help there (I'm not supposed to)

but from memory a 1.00 ct e/f color vs2 with ideal cut would run around ... oh, 5 to 8k and up. I know, large ball park but it really depends.

The Holy Grail is this in order of importance:

1-cut
2-color
3-tie carat size
4-tie clarity

get the best cut diamond with the best color you can get. you will get the most fire and brilliance and wow factor. clarity is less important to a degree. depending on the characteristic of the particular clarity in a stone you can go all the way to almost si2 in grade if the inclusions do not interfere with the cut, fire, and brilliance. cutters know how to manipulate a rock to maximize value and to hide inclusions.

once you figure out the above then put a bit more effort and money into a custom shank which will uniquely identify your loved one. they will appreciate it. if your wife is walking around with the same off the rack ring like someone else then she will feel common even though she will tell you otherwise.

if you are unsure of her ring size and want to do the ring thing undercover you can always wrap a twist tie/whatever around their ring finger while she's sleeping. Works for some people. remember that if you do custom then it's harder to return if she doesn't like it. I advocate the more open approach where you casually shop around to gauge her likes and tastes and then drop it for awhile and then go shopping behind her back.

good luck.

 

[shortylickens]

A NEW RECORD!!!

19 FREAKIN YEARS!

 

[brianmanahan]

stageleft, there's a name i've not seen in years

 

[Muadib]

Does this mean that shorty is off the market?