Has anyone bought an engagement ring from Birks?

[Cathers]

hello everyone, this is my first post(I hope I put in the right section!) My BF and I are looking to purchase an ER for me in the near future. We have both been married before, and have both had rings from Mall Jewellery Stores(good post on here about that experience) We want this ring buying experience to be different. We have looked out of curiousity at both Jewellery stores in the Mall here, ( after reading the post about Mall Stores) and were shocked at the low quality of stones most ER''s have in them. When we inquired about upgrading the stone, we got quite a run-around and the distinct feeling that we could not afford to upgrade(not a nice feeling). Plus, we seemed to be better informed than the sales person about the 4 C''s of diamonds

I have looked at Birks and fell in love with a ring there. It would be 18k white brushed gold .29c F colour sI1 Clarity.( Canadian Diamond) for 2600.00 or going to an independant Jeweller to have a ring custom made. I did not know that all sI1 clarity diamonds were different! I am learning so much on here! For the record, I will be upgrading that stone to a VS1.

My question is: Has anyone on here bought a ring through Birks?If so, how did you find the service?

I have to be honest and tell you that we have a pretty tight budget(3500.00) however, we still want the best quality that we can get. Thanks!

There is the ring I like from Birks. It''s simple, but yet elegant. I love the matte finish. I need something that will sit fairly flush as I do not want to scratch my daughter(1o months) and I work with my hands all day. I don''t want to risk bashing the diamond out! Horrors!

~Cathers

 

[feathers]

Hi Cathers, welcome to Pricescope!

I have purchased a few items (watch, bracelets, rings, earrings) from Birks and their customer service is quite good. However, none of the pieces I bought has much diamonds in it as I find the diamond price preminum at Birks quite high. For example, a "diamond cut quality serach" here at Pricescope for F SI1 diamond yields the following:

0.32ct F SI1 $584US (This is not an ACA but an expert selection.)

Using that diamond price, the 18K brushed gold setting costs about $1800 CDN. That is a LOT for the setting. Your local independent jeweller should be able to do much better. The jeweller can even order a ring from a place like Stuller and do the brushed finish for you. I recently obtained an estimate for a semi-bezel ring from my jeweller and here is the breakdown (in CDN$):

Band: 14K gold $200 or 18K gold $250
Head: 18K gold $100 or PLAT $250
Setting the diamond: $50.

So if the ring is done in 18K, the total cost (without diamond) is $400. I already got my diamond from WF

Good luck with your purchase.

 

[Cathers]

Thanks for the reply and the welcome, feathers. I have done some more reading of the posts on here today, most of them involving Birks. LOL. WELL! do I ever feel silly now! Funny, I have always associated Birks with excellent quality, but I thought I could never afford them. We stopped in S''toon and were treated very well(considering we had 2 small children, one in a car seat and I was dressed a bit like a grub) It seems that a lot of people have mixed feelings about Birks. I know they are higher priced, 2 of our friends have purchased E-rings from there "for the name" of Birks. Well, I made that mistake once when I bought my Maytag Neptune(Hellllllooooo Lawsuit!) paying top dollar "for the name". I intend on visiting my Independant Jeweller, the only trouble is that he is 4 hours away from me. We have been corresponding through email, so he knows what I like. I like the idea of supporting"the little guy" because I am a small business owner as well, but the (for lack of better word) spoiled brat in me would love to wear Birks. LOL. Terrible, aren''t I? I feel so incredibly snobbish for even typing that....

 

[Cathers]

I forgot to add the word shallow besides snobbish...

 

[valeria101]

#1 Love that ring!

#2 I would like it even more with two drops of colored diamonds (e,g,) rather than sapphires one the sides...

#3 That's quite a premium!

#4 I live a few thousands miles from the next Birk's store and having vaguely heard of them as a top Canadian retailer, the name that means allot to you... well, you guess. Do I have my own die hard preferences for a 'name' in jewelry - sure

And ... no, I don't think I can buy their stuff either, unless it might be a Hell of a deal in some estate sale (which is easy with some signed jewelry, fortunately).

I think you could have a version of the ring made with higher quality or larger stones if you wanted. The question is... what counts more... The diamond could be half carat F/VS2 or the ring could have the right stamp inside.

Just a 2c idea

Anyway, I really, really like this one!

 

[diagem]

I heard they are pretty reliable and have a name that means "high-end"
I know they bought up "Mayor''s jewelers" in the US.