UK Engagement Rings

[Spongy]

Hi there

I''m sort of looking for an engagement ring over n the UK and I am wonderng if anyone out here has bought a rng from a UK retailer?

I noticed that most here are from the States and I would be extremely grateful f anyone out here who has bought an engagement ring from a UK high street or personal jewellers, if you would care to share with me your experience:-

1. Where did you go?
2. How would you rate their service?
3. Pcture of the ring if possible and
4. Approx price paid for the ring? I agree this is rather sensitive, and if you''re not comfortable disclosing this, by all means leave ths part out.

''m sort of looking at the moment but I''m confused as I can''t tell the difference ( usng my eye) between the high street store and the ring from the personal jewellers. If someone out here can point me n the right direction I would be grateful

Many thanks!

 

[poptart]

Welcome! I am in the states, but one of my all time favorite designers is Harriet Kelsall and she is located in the UK. She does custom work as well if you are looking in to that at all. Here''s the link: http://www.hkjewellery.co.uk/ Good luck on your search!

Marisa

 

[glitterkitty]

Hi there, I''m in the UK - there are a few of us here!

If you are considering buying in the UK, I would seriously consider avoiding many of the high street chains. I find them over-priced and generally stocking poor quality stones compared to what is available from Independent jewellers or online.

A lot depends on where in the UK you are, and whether you have an independent in your town or city. I''m really fortunate that I have two great jewellers in my city, both of whom will source certificated stones which is something of a rarity.

Obviously the exchange rate for sterling and the $ is really good in our favour at present, so buying online from the states is very tempting - but don''t forget you will have to pay duty on your purchase when it arrives in customs. Its still a pretty good deal tho, so you might like to have a look at some of the retailers who advertise here.

good luck!

 

[Spongy]

poptart: Thank you so much for the link. I have just been to the website and the rngs look gorgeous! I will need to look into it sometime this weekend as I ahve an exam tomorrow and I''m on this forum now! haha

glitterkitty: It''s ncie to know there are a few Uk ppl out here..I seem to have missed their post I guess, as I don''t remember coming across a UK post. But anyhow, thanks for the advice. t''s rather interesting your comment regardng hgh street jewellers and the quality of the stone. To an unsuspectng person like me, the rings/stones look quite lovely really! The drawback is that , they have rather limited designs..not like the states where u get more varied/updated designs in my opinion.

Thanks for your help ladies. If you ahve any website or have a jeweller to recommend in the UK preferably near London, I would be most grateful!
Ta

 

[darling]

I don''t know if this is your style, but I love www.malcolmbetts.com

 

[poptart]

Date: 11/7/2006 6:28:59 PM
Author: darling
I don''t know if this is your style, but I love www.malcolmbetts.com

YUMMY! I love earthy rings!

Marisa

 

[Pandora II]

Hi, I''m from London.
I go to Antwerp for diamonds - but I was a jewellery designer for several years in Italy and so do everything through my old contacts. Still, I wouldn''t go to anywhere on the highstreet, it''s all overpriced.

Bluenile and other online companies are pretty good and you''ll get more bling for your £££

 

[MustangFan]

I lived in England for several years and now back into the states.

If you live in the states I think it''s generally cheaper to buy something here.
Also our gold standards are 14k not 10k like in the UK.
So, unless there is a particular designer in the UK, I don''t see it worth it for the majority of us (Americans) to deal with UK jewelers.
If you are comfortable with it, I think you''ll get a lot more for your money if you buy from a US jeweler online.

IMO

 

[Spongy]

darling: thanks for the link. unfortunately, i''m not so fond of earthy rings at teh moment..perhaps, it''ll grow on me later, but thanks anyways for chipping in

Pandora II: i''ve heard that the damonds in anstwerp are one of the best n the world but i thnk i will just buy onlne for the sake of convenience.

MustangFan: i would love to buy a stone from a us ste, but the only thing keeping me from buyng online is that i won''t be able to see the stone n person before actually purchasing, and that to me is a major downside.
on the upside, is obvously the huge cost savings

have any of you heard of hatton garden? ''ve heard from my good mates that they have pretty good jewellery there..or would you consider that hgh street as well?

thanks for all your input, greatly appreciated!

 

[Mrs Mitchell]

Hi, where are you in the UK? I got my e-ring in Glasgow, Argyll Arcade. There are a few guys there (upstairs) who do mostly custom work. Also a couple of good stores on the ground floor, doing their own designs and / or custom. The Antwerp Diamond Co are there, and Hilson Diamond Design, both well worth a visit. A few vintage / antique selections too.

I''ve bought from various stores there a few times and always been really pleased with what I got. My e-ring and custom wedding band were done by Rooney''s (upstairs). A great experience- we looked at settings and finished pieces, then gave up and sat down with a sketch pad. I got exactly what I wanted and the whole thing was fun. He made the setting up in silver to make sure I was happy with the feel of it on my hand before doing it in plat.
The other thing you might want to consider is getting in touch with LMG (loss management group). They work with insurers, and their guys can make exactly what you want. I got to know about them when I was replacing some pieces that were stolen, but some of their guys also do custom work privately, not through insurance. They did a really gorgeous 3ct tennis bracelet in white gold, bezel set for me and I really do love it. I''ll try to dig out their details if you''re interested.

Can''t wait to see what you choose!

Jen

 

[Cehrabehra]

I''m not fond of the "earthy" rings per se, but I would love the stones in the omc/french cut ring!!!!!!

 

[Fran Fine]

Hi guys!

I just returned this evening from visiting family in Cambridge and Suffolk, and while I was there, I snapped a couple of pics of some engagement rings in two store windows, one on Trinity Street and the other somewhere nearby. I''ll post them as soon as I get a chance to download my camera, but I have to say that I was SHOCKED at what they were charging for small albeit beautiful diamond rings. There was one window that had a beautiful asscher cut diamond in a pave band for 14,000 pounds!! $26,773! That was quite shocking because the entire ring was 1.50 carats including the stones in the band. Now, it did say, if I remember correctly "IF" so maybe that attributed to the mark-up, but still...My unofficial verdict is also that you get more bang for your buck in the States.