WOW! Very "educational" day at the mall jewelry store...

[Lynn B]

Well, I actually got to the Big City

yesterday and had a little extra time... so I went into a couple of jewelry stores to just nose around and ask questions.

OH. MY. WORD. It''s really BAAAAD out there! I had no idea!

For starters, the majority of the staff are completely clueless about diamonds. And most of the diamond quality was just so... mediocre! I looked at several J/SI2s (like my gorgeous new stone from DI

) and well, I gotta tell you - all J''s are NOT created equal. The Js I saw in the stores were VERY tinted, definitely yellow... and almost "muddy" looking (but that was probably the cut, too). And the SI2s... egads! So many large, black, VISIBLE inclusions... I was shocked!

And the prices for these poor, sad specimens? OUTRAGEOUS!

Beside me at one store a young couple was asking the sales clerk, "What''s most responsible for making a diamond sparkly? The color or the clarity?" The salesgirl said, "Oh, it''s a combination of both, of course... but mostly color." I was really biting my tongue -- no one was mentioning CUT!

I am sure happy to be back "home" here in PSville! It''s SCARY out there!!!

Lynn

 

[Kaleigh]

I am constantly amazed at the lack of knowledge the sales people have and the diamonds are just awful. I feel bad for those that don''t know any better. It''s a shame!!!!

 

[Mara]

Haha, this story reminded me....last nite we were at a friend's housewarming where we know alot of the people...

One guy is this somewhat pompous rich guy with somewhat lacking social skills, horror of horrors my girlfriend actually set us up on a date about 3.5 years ago...during my breakup time with Greg. Her excuse, oh he looks kind of like Greg.

I am so mean, I call him the Poor Woman's Greg.

We see him sometimes at social events like this. He's a nice guy, just kind of out of it with what to say vs not.....aka the last time I saw him he said 'what size is your diamond? a 3/4 carat?'

Anyway, the guy has family money and doesn't really need to work, so he was telling me that he is doing some sort of data computer systems management stuff for a chain of local family owned jewelry stores and really likes it...change from corporate etc.

So I told him, take a look at Greg's wedding ring, it has a diamond in it...(This was after he says to Greg...yeah I know you are really into diamonds (UM THATS ME ASSCLOWN!)) so G shows him the ring and this guy is blabbing on about how that's a nice diamond (uhhh yeah I hand chose it!) and this and that and then I swear I heard him say something about how SYMMETRY of the diamond is really important for the tension settings. I just bit my tongue and smiled.

Then a few minutes later he pulled off this RHR he had on and showed us and said it was a Hearts on Fire (nice guy's ring actually)..I said oh is that a Dream and he said yes. So I looked at it, pretty, and then I said well we looked at these when we first started looking and found them beautiful but just couldn't justify the markup on them vs a regular well-cut round.

So then he starts saying how they are cut SO PRECISELY and how all the equipment to do that and stuff just makes them that much better than other diamonds, and that's why they are expensive because of how precise the cut is, and the equipment costs. Umm okay. So I said, yeah Greg's stone is a Hearts and Arrows as well. He said oh yeah nice..and then said something else about how RARE the HOF are or something.

Guess he doesn't realize that HOF is just a brand, just like the ACA stone in Greg's ring. And both are cut probably equally precisely. But whatever! It was a fun convo and I kept giving Greg the EYE....

 

[Lynn B]

Haha, great story, Mara! What a knucklehead that guy is! I am learning fast that most people are just so clueless about diamond-buying. Thank goodness for PS, or else I''d be one of them... wearing lord-only-knows what kind of a crappy diamond, and having paid a FORTUNE for it, too! EGADS, scary!!!

Lynn

 

[fire&ice]

Date: 7/10/2005 2:38:22 PM
Author: Mara
and this and that and then I swear I heard him say something about how SYMMETRY of the diamond is really important for the tension settings. I just bit my tongue and smiled.

I kept giving Greg the EYE....

You MUST have been on your best behaviour!

I simply avoid the jewelry stores. I can''t keep my mouth shut.

 

[perry]

For starters, the majority of the staff are completely clueless about diamonds. And most of the diamond quality was just so... mediocre!

Yup !

What I found really interesting is that many of these "clueless" staff will tell you how many years thay have been selling diamonds and that they are "diamond professionals."

My experience is that all they are professional at is ignorance.

I will mention that I did find about 10% of folks who were reasonably knowlagable, all of them in independent jewery stores.

Perry

 

[hlmr]

Yup, I don''t think I ever heard the word cut used in any mall stores I have ever been in except to describe the shape of the diamond!

Heather

 

[Kaleigh]

I got my rings cleaned at Tiffany''s yesterday and the girl asked me what jewelry cleaner I use and I said SS. I almost fainted when she said that she uses it too. I then asked her if she knew about Pricescope. She didn''t, but does now and she''s thrilled!!!!

 

[WTNLVR]

I was in a mal store the other day just for the heck of it and asked to see EC rings. The girl knew nothing. She said- is that like a princess cut?? I left immediately. It was a big name store too!

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 7/10/2005 2:38:22 PM
Author: Mara


Then a few minutes later he pulled off this RHR he had on and showed us and said it was a
Guess he doesn''t realize that HOF is just a brand, just like the ACA stone in Greg''s ring. And both are cut probably equally precisely. But whatever! It was a fun convo and I kept giving Greg the EYE....

i''ll say one thing.the guy was lucky that you didn''t have your baseball bat with you.

 

[Lynn B]

Date: 7/10/2005 8:28:18 PM
Author: kaleigh
I got my rings cleaned at Tiffany''s yesterday and the girl asked me what jewelry cleaner I use and I said SS. I almost fainted when she said that she uses it too. I then asked her if she knew about Pricescope. She didn''t, but does now and she''s thrilled!!!!

Kaleigh,

Where do you get your SS? Whiteflash?

Thanks,

Lynn

 

[s95]

style="WIDTH: 99%; HEIGHT: 59px">And the SI2s... egads! So many large, black, VISIBLE inclusions... I was shocked!

And the prices for these poor, sad specimens? OUTRAGEOUS!

I actually saw this the other day! I saw stones that were more than the eye-clean stone that I purchased that had big black spots in them! I could see them in the case and didn''t even have to have the salesperson take it out of the case. Is this normal? Do people really buy diamonds like this? I could imagine it if it was $100 or something like that, but spending thousands of dollars on a stone with a huge black inclusion.....?

 

[partgypsy]

About a year ago I was browsing in what I thought was a decent BM jeweler and asked to look at their stud earrings. The price was pretty good but I noticed they looked a little hazy so I asked about its clarity. It was an I1 or I2. I asked to see their SI quality studs and they said they didn''t carry them. After he noticed my mouth dropping open he said, "well there''s not much call for them".

 

[AChiOAlumna]

Date: 7/10/2005 8:24:05 PM
Author: hlmr
Yup, I don''t think I ever heard the word cut used in any mall stores I have ever been in except to describe the shape of the diamond!

Heather

Heather...honestly, many "mauls" do limit their definition of cut to the shape of the diamond! When we were shopping for an engagement ring 11 years ago, that is exactly what we were told "cut" meant. The internet and places like PS didn''t exist, so research was more difficult. So while I got a beautiful stone for the time, looking back on it, we could''ve gotten something much more nicer in cut.

When we got my upgrade this year, much more information was available and "cut" meant MUCH more than shape!!

 

[Skyblue]

It is funny because before I found PS and DT, I had absolutely no clue about diamonds and just went with what the stores said.

It is like my eyes were not able to "see" the stones. Now, it is like a blindfold was lifted and you really notice all the .. dare I say awful.. characteristics in some diamonds. I just wish I could rip off the blindfold from everyone''s eyes.