Tiffany solitaire vs. Lucida solitaire

[soon to be mrs]

Hello all,

I am new to Pricescope and I was hoping that someone would be kind enough to help me. I have narrowed my engagement ring choices down to two but now I am having great difficulty deciding on which one. My first choice is a 1.5 ct. Princess cut Tiffany solitaire - which I think is beautiful but I am worried that it might be too thin of a band, and will not look good. My second choice is a 1.5 ct. Tiffany Lucida solitaire - my issue with this is I am not sure what it will look like on my hand and we don’t have a Tiffany’s near by for me to try it on.

Now for my questions, if you will. Between the two is there much difference other than the band? With the Lucida is it a high setting? I don’t want a “pointed” looking setting, if that makes sense. Will the diamond look smaller in the Lucida setting appose to the Tiffany solitaire setting? Any input or pictures would be greatly appreciated. I thank you for your time.

Stephanie

 

[MissAva]

Personally I think both are very lovely. What size ring do you wear? I havent seen a princess cut in their tranditional setting, but that may just be at the tiffanys next to me. Where do you live? Have you tried calling a Tiffanys and asking them any questions? What sort of wedding band are you planning on getting?
The Classic Solitaire
Lucida
Location Finder

 

[headlight]

Are you actually planning on purchasing these from Tiffany?
It was my understanding that Tiffany did not carry Princess cuts, but I could be wrong.

 

[soon to be mrs]

I wear a size 7, stupid question but does that make a difference?, I am very diamond illiterate so I was wondering. I live in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada the closest Tiffany’s would be in Toronto, Ontario Canada.

I haven''t tried calling Tiffany''s but that is a very good idea. As far as a wedding band, I''m not too sure now. If I was going to go with the Tiffany solitaire I was going to go with a thicker band with three rows of diamonds, the middle being pink. But now if I go with the Lucida, I''m not sure if that band would work?!

Thanks for your input and the links!

 

[soon to be mrs]

I was not aware that Tiffany did not produce Princess cut stones. Thanks for pointing that out, I was hoping to get a Tiffany ring. Told you guys I didn''t know anything, lol. Good thing I found this board to help guide me through this.

 

[baltneu]

Soon---

Some people on this forum buy from Tiff..........

Most buy from other sources, such as the e-vendors who support this site..............

I think you can get what you want, depends how much you want to spend, then again save (Tiff vs. other sources).

You will get a nice product from Tiff, at a price, of course, others on this site love the process of education, learning, and getting the best bang for the buck, and buying what many claim is a superior stone to Tiff, at a savings. Check out some posts.

The choice is certainly yours, some want that "baby blue box" others don''t care. I wonder how many people get asked where the ring was purchaed when they show it to friends and co-workers. Recently, I have not heard of the wearer of the ring telling their friends it came from Tiff, HW, or others of like kind.

My 2 cents, the best of luck in your purchase.

 

[Islandia]

Date: 5/24/2005 10:54:56 AM
Author: soon to be mrs
I live in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada the closest Tiffany’s would be in Toronto, Ontario Canada.

I haven''t tried calling Tiffany''s but that is a very good idea.

If you are dead set on getting a ring from Tiffany''s, the nearest store to you would actually be the one in Bellevue, Washington, USA. It is just across the lake from Seattle and if you are traveling from Vancouver it is 320 km. The store is definitely worth going to check out, though you may miss out on some great stones since they sell only pre packaged rings down to I in color and VS2 in clarity. If you look in the "Show me the ring" section there are tons of pictures of wonderful J colored stones and SI type diamonds. Depending on how long the wait at the border is you could probably plan a day trip to go check out the store.

BELLEVUE
105 Bellevue Square
Bellevue, Washington 98004
425-451-8844
Store Hours
Monday -Saturday: 9:30-9:30
Sunday: 11-7
[email protected]

 

[baltneu]

Well, if you are coming to the state of Washington, could you keep driving to Oregon and make a trip out of it, I think I remember that there is a Tiff in Oregon and NO sales tax. On a $20K stone +, that is a lot of wood to save! Somebody on this forum posted something about living in Ca, flying to Oregon to pick up a ring, save the tax, even worth it with the price of a cheapie plane ticket. Could you fly and make it worth your while?
Good luck

 

[Logan Sapphire]

The choice is certainly yours, some want that ''baby blue box'' others don''t care. I wonder how many people get asked where the ring was purchaed when they show it to friends and co-workers. Recently, I have not heard of the wearer of the ring telling their friends it came from Tiff, HW, or others of like kind.

In the ads that Tiffany has been running in my paper, they obviously are aware of this sentiment b/c the ad is a single Tiffany solitaire with the tagline, "She''ll always know." I have to laugh everytime I read this b/c I always think to myself, "they must be reading PS!"

 

[soon to be mrs]

I''m not sure if FH will want to fly or drive out there, but thank you for the idea.

 

[valeria101]

Date: 5/24/2005 10:23:08 AM
Author:soon to be mrs

My first choice is a 1.5 ct. Princess cut Tiffany solitaire - which I think is beautiful but I am worried that it might be too thin of a band, and will not look good. My second choice is a 1.5 ct. Tiffany Lucida solitaire ...

One way to get a princess cut in a "Tiffany" ring is to buy something close from elsewhere... since Tiffany does not sell princess cuts. The closest might be the X-prong setting by Vatche (very much like the Lucida seting) with a princess cut. try DVatche.com for pictures of this.

If it must be Tiffany, that is perfectly fine, of course. You might want to take a look and make a call to Signedpieces (sellers of signed estate jewelry - mostly new pieces) before deciding - most of the time they do have larger Tiffany solitaires on consignment. Of course, this doesn not work if you simply hate discounts ! Just an idea...

 

[dobie]

Date: 5/24/2005 7:18:28 PM
Author: soon to be mrs
I''m not sure if FH will want to fly or drive out there, but thank you for the idea.

Why don''t you go to Holt Renfrew in downtown Vancouver? There is a Tiffany inside on the upper lady''s floor (street level). I don''t know what kind of selection they have since it is a very small store but they should have at least the 2 styles you''re looking for. We usually get stuff from the Tiffany in Seattle and/or Bellevue. My GF and I just started ring shopping. We''ve already checked out Birks (our Canadian version of Tiffany) last weekend. We were considering going to Bellevue this weekend to check out semi-mounts at Bailey Banks & Biddle and erings at Tiffany but decided not to because it is a long weekend in the US. If you do get a Tiffany ring, it might not be a bad idea to shop in Portland, OR. If you''re considering a custom ring, try Davidson Designs in W Vancouver. I just contacted them yesterday to ask if they work in rose gold.

 

[Nicrez]

The truth is if you want to own a Tiffany diamond ring, you will do whatever you need to do to own one. Starting out with calling the company and arranging a way to get to see their selection. If name, quality, branding and the Tiffany name are important to you, then this is your option. This is the place to go for a stunning round or Lucida cut solitaire if you can afford the 1.5ct price range. By the way, what they don't carry, they can order for you, so your selection should not be limited to what is in a store only, if you can wait. I was told in NY that it would take a few weeks, but it would come in to my specification. I believe all stores have that policy.

If you are just looking for a quality princess cut in a lovely setting, look around Pricescope for online and store vendors who can give you that. Sure it's a gamble sometimes, but i think when you read about them here, it gives you a good idea of who you'll be working with. Without the brand and the image of Tiffany's you can get a larger stone for your budget (although I don't know what it is). When we went to Tiffany's and priced out an e-ring, our budget alotted for a 1.35 ct stone, whereas in the market we could get an almost 2ct with the SAME color and clarity.

For a difference in price you do also get a higher resale value, should your ring ever sell again, as well as knowing that you have an established outlet of fine jewelry that can always answer for their products. It is a decision you need to make with your fiance, so decide which is most important to you, and if you want a better deal, perhaps size and price will show you a vendor that is closer or perhaps one that carries princess cuts.

Good luck and I hope you find that perfect ring that speaks to you either way!!!

 

[baltneu]

Tiff is a big place, lots of stores, they carry limited supply in each store, but they will be happy to check their nationwide inventory which is available to the salepeople to call in a size stone/ring from another location. When I was looking for a ring, and considering Tiff, on more than one occaison they had a few rings shipped from another retail location to the store I was dealing with. Good luck.

 

[dobie]

Date: 5/25/2005 9:01:38 AM
Author: baltneu
Tiff is a big place, lots of stores, they carry limited supply in each store, but they will be happy to check their nationwide inventory which is available to the salepeople to call in a size stone/ring from another location. When I was looking for a ring, and considering Tiff, on more than one occaison they had a few rings shipped from another retail location to the store I was dealing with. Good luck.

Yes, however they might not be so willing to send the ring(s) across the border to the Vancouver store. The only other Tiff in Canada I know is in Toronto so the Canadian inventory is limited. It is best to shop in Bellevue or Seattle. So far my purchases from Tiff have been limited to a few k''s USD so I paid the sales tax each time. I did at one time asked them about their non-US customer policy regarding sales tax. I mentioned that if I were spending more I would probably buy from the Portland store and the sales lady said they will make a deal so I won''t have to drive another 3 hours to Portland.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 5/24/2005 12:04:13 PM
Author: baltneu
Well, if you are coming to the state of Washington, could you keep driving to Oregon and make a trip out of it, I think I remember that there is a Tiff in Oregon and NO sales tax. On a $20K stone +, that is a lot of wood to save! Somebody on this forum posted something about living in Ca, flying to Oregon to pick up a ring, save the tax, even worth it with the price of a cheapie plane ticket. Could you fly and make it worth your while?
Good luck

Hi,

I just wanted to mention to the OP that the drive from Seattle/Bellevue to Portland is approximately four hours (depending upon how fast you drive and how often you stop

). The drive from Vancouver to Seattle is around three to four hours. . .the combination will make for a LONG day. . . If you do drive down, be sure to come down on a weekend, or you''ll be hitting TONS of communter traffic!

 

[dobie]

My GF and I just got back from Bellevue a few hours ago. We were at Bellevue Square to check out the Tiff and Lucida rings. Well, she didn''t like them at all. She found the knife-edge cuts into her other fingers and the Lucida rings'' bands too thick. In the same mall, we also checked out the designers'' settings at BB&B. A block from the mall, we spent quite a bit of time at E.E. Robbins. They had an excellent selection of designers'' settings. We basically narrowed down to a simple solitaire with a full or half pave band from Vatche, Ritani or Simon G. The drive from Vancouver to Bellevue or Seattle should be about 2.5 hours. Portland should be another 3 hours. In the next few weeks, we plan on driving all the way to Nice Ice. After that we will make the final decision to either buy one of the designers'' settings or have a ring made locally at Davidson Designs.

 

[cangirl]

Hi, I just wanted to suggest another place to get your ring (if no one else has already)... I got mine from Diamonds Direct in Vancouver. You just need to make an appointment and they make any kind of ring you want. I got mine made there (Tiffany Lucida Solitaire style) and I love it. They make it just the way you want. The number is 604-689-RING. You should check it out.