San Francisco Gift Center

[darling]

For years now I have been hearing about the San Francisco Gift Center being the place to go to for diamonds. Do any of you know anything about it? I will be in SF tomorrow just looking and trying settings on (for a future EC), and I am curious if the place is worth going to.
If anyone has any other interesting Bay Area sources (custom jewelers, fun places to look), I would appreciate that info also.
Thank you.

 

[belle]

i know the gift center has been mentioned on here before, as well as other places to visit in the sf area. i''m not from the area, so i can''t help out but you should try doing a search on here. i know there are applicable threads to get you started.

 

[bookworm21]

The Gift Center isn''t all that great, in my opinion. If you''re just trying on settings, then it''s a great place to look, because of the sheer concentration of the number of jewelers in one building. If you''re looking to purchase, I would decide what setting you want, then purchase from an online vendor. The prices at the Gift Center *can* be competitive, but the last time I looked (6 months ago) they don''t provide as much info as online vendors do.

I personally would not buy from a jeweler in the Gift Center, but if you find something you love there that you can''t find anywhere else, then go for it.

Since you''re going to be in the area, go downtown and look at Cartier and the other two stores right next to it. They''re the high end jewelry stores, but there''s nothing wrong with trying on settings; I''ve done so numerous times just for fun, and the sales people are generally really polite and accomodating. Cartier in particular have some gorgeous settings. (They''re on Post Street, if that helps.)

Don''t go to any of the jewelry stores along Union Square or on Powell Street. Those are rip-offs and some of the sellers remind me of used car salesmen.

Hmm....one last place I''d recommend is Zwillinger & Co. I think you should call them tomorrow and make an appointment before you go though. Their website is www.zwillinger.com.

Hope this helps.

 

[darling]

Thank you Belle.. I did do a search and it was helpful. I have been lurking around here long enough to know that shopping online is better, but I still need to do some looking and research. Cinderella, you gave me the answers I was looking for. Thanks.

 

[sanfranciscoellen]

I really enjoyed looking at Union Street Goldsmith on Union Street. They have a website....And there are three or more pretty great jewelers within a few blocks... Stuart Moore, Simayof, and Robert S something...

Union Street Goldsmith

 

[darling]

I like USG on Union St. Bought a ring there once.
This time I am looking for ideas for a platinum setting for a 2+ EC (which I don''t have yet). I am having trouble deciding what I like, can wear everyday with my active and busy life, not too big, not too small...
I am hoping this experience will be more exciting than exhausting.

 

[FireGoddess]

I have been to the SF gift center, and I think it is worth a look. However, you usually have to call a vendor ahead of time to make an appt, so you can get a pass into the GC for entry. You must go to that vendor, but can then go look around at others. There are several jewelers there.

Derco is quite a good store and definitely worth a look. They also have another location at the Santana Row Shopping Center in San Jose.

 

[sanfranciscoellen]

I saaw an incredible 1.7ct EC from Simayof''s...very simple classy setting with thin tapered baguettes. I''ve always liked that style for EC even though I usually don''t want sidestones for myself.

If I were you, I''d call Simayof ahead of time and say you are looking for an EC in the 2ct range and ask them to bring in one or two for you to look at, and tell them to make sure they have a selection of settings for that size stone. Never mind that you know you won''t buy theirs! They are the kind of store that brings things in for an appt, so you''ll have much better selection if you call ahead.

The good thing about simayof is they have a billion unset settings. So you can take their 2ct and hold it onto/put it into their settings to get a feeling.

For some reason, I feel better in their Union St store rather than their Union Square store. Feels nicer and less pushy.