3 Stone Leo v. building my own?

[johncdbass]

Hello all, I would like some opinions on some things:

1) Purchasing a 3 stone Leo from Jared $10k. Center stone is SI1, G/H, 1ct, two sides .50ct, SI1, GH with 18k gold setting - versus building my own buying online. I think that it would come out even after all is said and done adding taxes and setting costs with slightly better quality stones.

2) Is there any sites that show alot of 3 stone settings? I really like the Leo setting.

Thanks alot for all your advise, John

 

[valeria101]

You will certainly get more control over the details of your ring by having it made. The price seems to allow leisurely for top H&A diamonds (maybe F-SI?) and a high quality setting (which would forever mean custom made for me, at least).

From the not very detailed pictures I could find of the Leo 3 stone setting, it appears to be a combination of yellow gold and platinum similar to the DVatche Truffle or what is more often called 'trellis' setting (somewhat like THIS one).

You may want to inspect THIS site for a long list of designers. A certain Pricescope thread (HERE) has amassed most ring sources ever mentioned here... not at all few

On top of it all, diamond sellers also list their own settings and would most likely be able to outsource designer settings for you.

 

[fire&ice]

I'd step away from the Leo & Jared's. When I was looking for diamond e.r. for my nice, I wanted to go look at the Leo. First, to me, it looked like broken glass - very confusing & unappealing light return. Second, wow - were they expensive. No one would wait on me & I overheard the BS from the sales people. Gave me the creeps.

I think for the price you can find any of the PS vendors who could build your three stone for less & ulitmately, IMHO, a nicer product.

Just my experience & 2 cents for what it's worth.

 

[Mara]

Its funny you should mention this since recently my fiance and I were in a Kay Jewelers (I know, sacrilege) because we were having him sized for his wedding ring (which we are buying online and having custom made).




I don't have my engagement ring with me right now, it's at WhiteFlash as they custom-make my wedding ring to match. So I'm really jonesing for something on my ring finger.




Next to the mens' bands was a case of Leo diamonds. Never having actually seen one up close, I figured I'd go for broke and try one of the bigger ones on. Must note here that after not having a ring for 2 weeks, everything else looks REALLY big to me, my sense of size is completely out of wack.




I pointed at one, a 3 stone ring and tried it on. It looked huge. Amazed to note that it was only .80c center and .40c each side. It looked bigger!




Anyway, what was interesting is that the stones were very beautiful. I usually scoff at some of these extra faceted stones, to me it's along the lines of, why can't you cut a beautiful stone with 58? What dothe extra 8 actually do. To be honest, I couldn't pinpoint it, but the things were very sparkly with alot of sharp glass sparkle, and alot of fire.




They come with Bscope reports, so a good way to determine just how well-cut these things are since they aren't throwing Sarins at you too. The Bscope results were very good, along the lines of a high High, or a low VH. Nothing like some of the H&A amazing scopes we have seen, but no slouch either.




I was surprisingly impressed. Could be that I hadn't had dinner yet and was slightly light-headed too.

I really liked their setting too. It had filigree hearts on the sides of the diamonds and was indeed a mix of YG and platinum/WG (not sure which).




The only thing that was not quite as impressive was the price. The price for this one was $7000. The stones were 'near colorless' and noted H-I and clarity was a vague SI. Didn't see any inclusions, so we'll assume SI1 for posterity's sake.




So after we left, I was craving this ring something horrible. Desperate for something on my poor lonely finger!! Visions of turning my e-ring into a 3 stone danced in my head. Anyway, I started calculating in my head while at dinner if the $7k was really overpriced and by how much.




Came to this conclusion a day later with some actual research online. You can easily get something like a .80c H SI or I SI H&A for around $3000 if not slightly less depending on vendor. The side stones at .40c each with H or I SI eye clean H&A would be about $600 each. So now we are talking $4200 for the stones. The setting, we'll use Vatche truffle which seems to be very popular and is a beautiful classic setting will run something like $1500 without stones (I think?). So that is now $5700. Shipping is usually free, and assuming you don't pay taxes.




So in reality the Leo was overpriced but not by SO much and definitely not by the 40% that a Tiffany or EightStar carries. More like 20%. If someone wants the brand, wants a ready-built, wants to pay the markup...they'll get a beautiful ring for slightly more than piecmealing it. Normally I don't agree with pre-built or the branded extra-faceted stones, but in this case, the ring was stunning, and the Bscopes were beautiful enough to let me know that these stones were NOT duds. If that is all someone wants, at least it's not a typical maul purchase.

Sorry it's so long! Good luck, whatever you decide.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

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On 3/20/2004 10:23:15 AM fire&ice wrote:

I'd step away from the Leo & Jared's. When I was looking for diamond e.r. for my nice, I wanted to go look at the Leo. First, to me, it looked like broken glass - very confusing & unappealing light return. Second, wow - were they expensive. No one would wait on me & I overheard the BS from the sales people. Gave me the creeps.
. ----------------

Leo diamonds are expensive. I've also comparison shopped earrings and found the Leo ones were far more pricey than any online vendors, PLUS if bought locally, I'd have to pay tax on top of the markup that was charged at the mall jeweler. For your 10K you can do MUCH better than Leo.

Michelle

 

[fire&ice]

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On 3/20/2004 2:14:01 PM Mara wrote:


[FONT=>I was surprisingly impressed. Could be that I hadn]quote]

I think you need to re-visit after a light lunch when you aren't feeling separation anxiety w/ your ring

. It looked like someone had taken a mirror & broke it into slivers. At first glance, they are sparkely - but in that broken glass sort of way - very assymetric looking. Maybe if the stones were set they would take on a different look. All of the stones were loose that I saw. [/FONT]

 

[Jennifer5973]

Mara, what an excellent analysis.

 

[pqcollectibles]

That was a good comparison, Mara!

I've seen 1 Leo up close and in person. I know other people haven't had the same experience, but the Leo I saw looked like a misshapen ball. That was when I was pendant shopping and the one I looked at was mounted in a pendant. It was roundy with a pooched out spot where the cutlet was supposed to be.

Maybe a bad piece of rough to work with??!!

I would build my own ring with standard cut stones for several reasons.

#1 Price. You can do well by becoming and educated buyer. Make informed buying decisions and purchase on-line.

#2 Performance. I didn't care for the Leo cut. Lots of little sparklies that didn't even grab the eye of the person at the next counter in the store. I'd much rather have a diamond that will be seen across a room.

#3 Resale. Nobody wants to consider this possibility when buying jewelry, but it does happen. No diamond will bring in return what you paid for it. But, a standard cut will have a broader market appeal and be much easier to sell for a higher price than the Leo. Any jeweler in any shop anywhere will buy a standard well cut diamond. The Leo diamond has the mental stigma of being associated with a particular chain store.

JMHO, of course.

 

[Mara]

F&I...as noted I was surprised that I thought the sparkle was quite lovely. Greg also agreed that the stones were very beautiful. Didn't see any loose stones. However, this was jeweler lighting which of course makes poo look sparkly, but with the Bscopes for each stone all showing very good results, these were not 'dud' stones. Worth the markup? Probably not. I don't think any stone is worth a markup if you can match it or better it for less. But better than most of what is in the maul nowadays!