Help with emeralds rings? expert opinions please...

[LLJsmom]

Hi PSers,

I am so bad. I am not supposed to be on here, but I have had the MOST stressful week and am seriously considering treating myself to some jewelry therapy.

I have always liked emeralds, and unfortunately know nothing. I've read what I could on this site, but still am extremely ignorant. Unfortunately, I have a very limited budget, so I know anything I could afford would be small, included, and treated. Thus...I have been trolling ebay. Of course, this would be a dangerous prospect for a person who could not even be considered a novice.

Can you tell me what you think about these rings as far as price, quality, (is it really an emerald? omg), overall value. Please keep in mind my budget is less than $1000 and I know you get what you pay for...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/400550198453?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

http://www.ebay.com/itm/300954664542?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

http://www.ebay.com/itm/111152975798

http://www.ebay.com/itm/151095441712?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

http://www.ebay.com/itm/141005878859?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

http://www.ebay.com/itm/231032668607?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer. And if all of these are BAD ideas, just say so. Maybe I'll shake this crazy week off another way...

 

[pregcurious]

If a fine looking emerald does not come with a report, I would expect the worst and assume it is a synthetic. There are synthetics now with inclusions. I would be willing to pay for the cost of the setting.

Aesthetically, I like the 2nd ring the best.

 

[chrono]

Have you considered what form of treatment you are willing to accept?
How much treatment (level)?
How clean or clear?

Most eBay emerald advertisement tells you nothing about the treatment. Some could be reconstituted emerald (bits glued together) or dyed or both. Most of those shown look opaque as well.

 

[livannie]

I don't know if I am allowed to say this, but I know from experience what you would get if you bought a ring from one of the sellers that you posted rings from. You would cry with regret, I promise. I don't know how some ebay sellers rig it so it shows 100% positive feedback. It should be illegal. But you live and learn. Just do alot of research and you wont cry too much.

 

[LLJsmom]

I don't know if I am allowed to say this, but I know from experience what you would get if you bought a ring from one of the sellers that you posted rings from. You would cry with regret, I promise. I don't know how some ebay sellers rig it so it shows 100% positive feedback. It should be illegal. But you live and learn. Just do alot of research and you wont cry too much.

Have you considered what form of treatment you are willing to accept?
How much treatment (level)?
How clean or clear?

Most eBay emerald advertisement tells you nothing about the treatment. Some could be reconstituted emerald (bits glued together) or dyed or both. Most of those shown look opaque as well.

If a fine looking emerald does not come with a report, I would expect the worst and assume it is a synthetic. There are synthetics now with inclusions. I would be willing to pay for the cost of the setting.

Aesthetically, I like the 2nd ring the best.

Thanks everyone. I get it and am moving on. Only PS recommended sellers for me.

Thanks. No crying for me...

 

[rocks]

Oldtreasures is an honorable vendor. He has some terrific values, although you have to know what you are looking at. He also has a "no questions asked" return policy. If you see something you like, it is worth the risk. I have bought some beautiful things from him, and have had afew items I returned. Never a problem.

 

[livannie]

I will never buy a ring again from someone who doesn't post a ton of pictures, including a hand shot of the ring they are selling. And I am now hesitant of buying a solitaire ring. I always make sure it has diamonds surrounding whatever I am interested in also, because at least if it turns out to be a poor looking stone, you at least have a pretty setting and didn't get ripped off too badly. My favorite seller on ebay is ihavejewelryproblem but she doesn't sell during the summer. She has sold me only amazing things. So watch out for her.

 

[pregcurious]

I don't know if I am allowed to say this, but I know from experience what you would get if you bought a ring from one of the sellers that you posted rings from. You would cry with regret, I promise. I don't know how some ebay sellers rig it so it shows 100% positive feedback. It should be illegal. But you live and learn. Just do alot of research and you wont cry too much.

You are allowed to say this, and further to tell us the name of the vendor. Please.

 

[livannie]

I will say this, it is the only vendor who is selling the rings without diamonds in the settings. I have only bought 1 ring from them but they seem to sell the exact same rings everyday, same exact pictures. They claim they sell estate rings but I believe they are all just reproductions of the same thing over and over again. The ring I bought was supposedly 14k gold but it was not marked and the band was so thin, you could bend it, in fact, it was bent. I spent over a couple hundred dollars for it in a bid I won. I know that's not a ton of money but when I took it to my local jeweler/gemologist, he said if he were to buy the ring, he would pay no more than $20 for it and throw what was supposedly the solitaire sapphire away. I didn't ask to return it, I guess I should have, it just seemed like too big of a hassle. Plus, it was my fault for buying something that was only advertised with 2 vendor pictures and not looking at all their bad reviews. It says they have 100% positive feedback but I have noticed they have like 10 good reviews in a row from the same exact people all the time. Like fake people or something. They have alot of bad reviews but after each one there is always many good reviews from the same exact person, so somehow they always bring it up to 100%. When they advertised the ring I won, it also said it was a $3,000 estate ring. Which only a gullible person would believe. But I have seen the exact same ring, the exact same picture, everything on there, listed many times and the exact same setting on almost all the supposed 14k gold rings. So I have learned my lesson. I am very careful now. I guess that's how the game goes, you win some and lose some. Unless you pick out your own stones and settings like I see a lot of people on here do, you never know exactly what you are getting. Maybe someday I will be able to afford to do that