What s in your jewelry box?quality over quantity?

[jewelerman]

After a 3 month dry spell I finally visited a friend and ex-co worker of mine while job hunting today.Because it was slow he invited me to stay..and play...he showed me all the new inventory from some great designers...Michael Boudry,Greg Ruth,A Jaffe...he showed me white diamonds,fancy diamonds(natural color)pearls and colored gems...I thought of the forum when I louped a VS-G- 3.5 ct. emerald cut white diamond set in a Gregg Ruth platinum ring surrounded by natural light pink and light blue diamonds...then we tried on the watches...Breitling,TAG,Ebel and Tissot...I LEFT THERE SO JEWELRY HUNGRY....I vowed that from now on that I would not buy every piece of jewelry that I saw and liked(and believe me,Ive never met a piece I havent liked!)and that I would once again try to be more discerning and buy only quality over quantity...then I stopped by T.J.Maxx and saw this stainless/18KT/and Diamond(I1-J-K)gents bangle bracelet for$60.00...I am proud of myself...I PASSED IT UP...

NOW THE QUESTION....Does your jewelry box(s) prove that you are jewelry obsessed and contain the good,the bad,and the plastic... you have even forgotten that you have certain pieces that will never get worn past a few times ...OR are you the type that wants only a handful of serious/sentimental pieces that get daily wear and will be worn forever and through everything you go through...my bet is that most people on the forum are like me and is jewelry obsessed.

 

[FrekeChild]

I used to be a quantity girl and now I''m a quality girl.

 

[Circe]

Both.

I''m from a "jewelry family," so I have a fair amount of stuff that came as gifts: some of it I adore, some of it will probably need a bit more time to be appropriate on me (see, the many broaches I received in high school). But I''m also a magpie extraordinaire, so I''m surrounded by glitzy, shiny, pretty things that have very little actual value ... except for the fact that they bring me a lot of pleasure.

 

[oobiecoo]

I think I''m kind of inbetween. I have just a few really nice items and a couple of "costume" or inexpensive silver pieces that I mix in. I''ve definitely cut back on buying cheapie pieces and can''t stand to spend money on jewelry that isn''t silver or gold or have some sort of real stone in it. No more "silver-tone" for me!

 

[Elegant]

Lots of jewelry that I got/bought/was given to me as a child through high school, so not very high quality at all. My mom gave me some chokers from when my parents were married, and I have a lot of costume jewelry that was from my grand mother's cheapo collection. These pieces are very sentimental to me.

I, myself, haven't bought many pieces of jewelry - been in college so long I haven't. But when I do buy, I tend to buy quality over quantity. I wanted a Tiffany piece and bought my first Tiffany piece - a $900 yellow/white gold heart bracelet.

I also tend to buy things that are unique. I bought a pretty chalcedony pendant at a gem show that wasn't too pricey...I wasn't sure and I'm still not too sure of the value of the chalcedony in the pendant actually. But I haven't seen another one like it.

I need to start filling it up, that's for sure!

So...I would say a mixture...

 

[kittybean]

Mine is a really crazy mix of stuff. A few examples:

- Tiffany promise ring from ex-bf (going to start a thread on what I should do with this)
- A few Tiffany silver necklaces and bracelets
- An amazing yellow gold, garnet, and diamond cocktail ring that was my mom''s
- Ukrainian beaded necklaces made for me by my 94-year-old great-aunt
- Grandmother''s Ukrainian-made rose gold rings, one with yellow topaz, one with two pink sapphires set into the band
- A few plastic charm bracelets
- About 10 different plastic bracelets in a variety of colors
- A bunch of earrings, only about half in pairs, from every color of dangly Claire''s ones to Na Hoku Hawaiian pearls to silver ones bought on the street in Mexico
- Blue topaz pendant on a white gold chain given by FMIL as a "welcome to the family" gift
- Some long bead necklaces, including a garnet, a jade, and an amber one (the nice ones from my mom)
- A bunch of cheap "statement" necklaces I''ve gotten at Forever 21 and the like

Bascially, it''s a mess. Where do all of you store your jewelry when you aren''t wearing it? I know there isn''t much reason to store a bunch of plastic bracelets, but I need to find a good way to store my better/more sentimental stuff.

I am trying to make a commitment to only buying and wearing quality jewelry now that I have an engagement ring and will be starting a real job soon (where I believe most of my jewelry collection would be frowned upon). We''ll see...I think I should get myself over to the Colored Gemstones forum and start learning about those!

 

[Madam Bijoux]

Both quality & quantity for me.

 

[D2B]

hmmm, starting to go down the quality over quantity route.
I will buy the odd costume jewellery, but now it also has to be a special piece.

d2b

 

[Pandora II]

Quality always. I have very few pieces!

Although I do have a couple of fake chokers for evening wear as I''d need a lottery win to afford the real thing.

 

[simplysplendid]

Date: 7/17/2008 6:11:23 AM
Author: Madam Bijoux
Both quality & quantity for me.

Me too. I have too much quality stuff too.

 

[coatimundi_org]

I''d say quality--don''t have many pieces. I''m working on having a quantity of quality!

 

[Daydreamer7130]

Quality is foremost. My box is full of very nice genuine stones and pieces and I do have a 21/22K 19gm hand-carved gold bangle bracelet (gift from Saudi Arabia) that I actually have never worn but I will inherit my mom''s box and it screams OMG.... so many stunning quality pieces so there is quantity and quality there!

 

[MonkeyPie]

I don''t have much, and most has been acquired in the past few years so it is quality. However, I do have a lot from when I was younger that is definitly "silvertone" lol.

 

[iluvcarats]

Quality. Not tons and tons, but I love what I have.

 

[risingsun]

Quality. Some of my pieces are less expensive than others. I love some of the contemporary jewelry artists and can sometimes find pieces that don't break the bank; however, they are beautiful and unique items. I have things in my jewelry box, both quality and "fun" pieces, that I no longer wear. My tastes have changed and these pieces no longer appeal to me. I'm thinking of trading in some of the gold necklaces for something new. Hmmmm

 

[purrfectpear]

I own nothing cosmetic (though I admire some lovely things on other people).

I have a few pieces inherited from relatives in Europe (coral, amethyst, tourmaline rings, 22kt. gold brooches), a few Mikimoto necklaces, a Rolex datejust, and several diamond rings. I don''t really wear the majority of it. Too much trouble to remember to put it on in the morning.

 

[strmrdr]

I don't wear jewelery but...
I shop midrange to low end that looks kicken to me.
It don't have to cost a million bucks to look like a million as long as I selected the stones and settings :}
I like 14k gold and silver with kicken gemstones the best.
By doing it the way I do the bling factor is well above the price I pay.

For example these rings here:

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/wifey2bs-4th-of-july-red-flash-bling.89383/
For what they cost me the premade stuff in the same price range is hideous and these rock.

 

[2Artists]

I like having just a few pieces that are quality. Just what could fit in the palm of my hand not fistfuls. But I do love admiring other peoples treasures. While it''s not the thing for me, a big overflowing jewelry chest can be just magical.

Mrs.2Artists

 

[surfgirl]

Quality, always. A lot of pieces I''ve inherited from my great grandmother and my grandmothers. The rest are pieces from my husband.

 

[diamondfan]

I love jewelry.

I like nice costume stuff that is just fun to wear and I enjoy taking it on trips.

I also have a lot of nice real stuff too, which I enjoy immensely. I love watches too.

 

[angel_nieves]

I go for quality over quantity. I do have a large collection of sterling silver though, nearly all Native American. My father likes me to keep in touch with my Indian side. I also have a large collection of beads from across the world; again my father would pick them up on his trips and bring them back to me. For the most part I would rather save my money for one nice thing than multiple pieces that are costume pieces.

 

[partgypsy]

I don''t differentiate between high quality (price) or not. Few things in my (full) jewelry box are worth much money, but I''ve enjoyed purchasing almost everything in there. There are some things in there I have inherited or gotten as gifts that may not be my personal taste but I keep them because they remind me of the person, and who knows someday my daughters might like the pieces..

One lucky thing for me is that I detest cheap settings with tiny poor quality diamonds. I think that has saved me from many an impulse buy.

I was trying to do the buy fewer but nicer things, but I don''t think it''s in my nature. At the beginning of the year I purchased a set of diamond earrings that was my whole jewelry/gem budget for the year. Though I love my earrings, I love wearing a variety of things and it has been hard to refrain from purchases for the remainder of this year. I''m looking forward to buying things next year that are simply fun, inexpensive purchases.

 

[Harriet]

Quality.

 

[FrekeChild]

Yes Harriet, but if you''d stay in Colored Stones more, we''d start working on that quantity part for you too.

 

[Harriet]

Ha! Haven''t I done enough damage for the year already?

 

[FrekeChild]

No! Never!

 

[Harriet]

Would you believe me if I told you that I''m done for the year? I''ve decided to buy a few top pieces rather than whatever catches my fancy (one of my dealers is very good about keeping me disciplined).

 

[FrekeChild]

I know, I know. What''s on your list for next year?

What happens if you find something you can''t live without?

 

[Harriet]

Date: 7/17/2008 6:08:33 PM
Author: FrekeChild
I know, I know. What''s on your list for next year?

What happens if you find something you can''t live without?

I don''t know yet.
I''ll cry.

 

[iwannaprettyone]

Quality.

E-RING
WF ACA Studs
5 ish carat Cirtrine with .50ct baguettes
Grandmothers Ruby ring
Tiffany atlas ring (3 stone diamond)

Thats about it....