Best Jewelers in NY?

[Girl505]

My boyfriend and I are planning a trip to New York and would like to go to reputable jewelers who could give us the best bang for our buck. We are planning to go to diamonds by Lauren and Good Old Gold, but would like to know what other jewelers we should consider visiting? I am also considering going to forever diamonds although I have not found any information on them. If anyone is familiar with this jeweler and can provide information, it would be appreciated. Looking forward to hearing everyone’s suggestions!

 

[lovedogs]

Definitely add ID Jewelry to your list!

 

[sledge]

ID Jewelry (IDJ) is right around the corner from Diamonds by Lauren (DBL) as I understand it. I've not stepped foot in either of their places, but lots of people rave about IDJ and the quality of products he's able to provide for limited budget. Ask for Yukitel (spelling?), and tell them you expect "Pricescope quality" stones.

 

[MollyMalone]

"Forever Diamonds" doesn't ring any bells with me (nor are there any comments about them here on PS), but I see they have a number of Yelp and Google reviews.

Will you be trying to accomplish everything in 1 day or will this visit span 2+ days; do you have any particular dates in mind?

 

[Austina]

If you’re interested in old cuts, Old World Diamonds is a must.

 

[BlingBlingLova]

ID jewelry. I just purchased a jewelry piece from them last week and Lisa and Yekutiel were beyond amazing!

 

[rockysalamander]

GoG is out on Long Island, about an hour away from Manhattan, not right in the city. IDJ, OWD, and DBL are within easy distance from each other. But, I'd make sure to contact them first to set up appointments with stones at hand in your price range/size.

 

[DAF]

Alex Park is also great for old cuts. He's on Jeweler's Row.

 

[missy]

It depends on what you are looking for specifically...genuine antique cuts, newly cut stones to look like old cut stones or modern diamonds or are you more interested in designer brands. Lots of flavors and many jewelers but each have strengths in their specific areas.

 

[Girl505]

"Forever Diamonds" doesn't ring any bells with me (nor are there any comments about them here on PS), but I see they have a number of Yelp and Google reviews.

Will you be trying to accomplish everything in 1 day or will this visit span 2+ days; do you have any particular dates in mind?

It will just be one day. Right now, we are still in the stages of doing our homework and trying to find out what I like best by trying on different rings and styles. We also want to narrow in on jewelers we would like to work with so that in 2 months when we are ready, we pay another visit to start the process of building a ring.

 

[Girl505]

GoG is out on Long Island, about an hour away from Manhattan, not right in the city. IDJ, OWD, and DBL are within easy distance from each other. But, I'd make sure to contact them first to set up appointments with stones at hand in your price range/size.

My boyfriend and I are very new to the whole process of purchasing a ring. This trip is to find jewelers we would like to work with in the very near future, but also to see what styles I like best on my hand. Would an appointment be necessary for that? I have narrowed it down to the cuts I like, but I’m trying to determine the setting and we do have a budget in mind as well. I would just hate to have a jeweler do all this work to bring in stones when we aren’t ready to buy just yet or is this a normal part of the process? I can say that having an appointment and seeing the quality of stones a jeweler can offer in our budget will definitely help us narrow down who we would want to work with in the next few months.

 

[Girl505]

It depends on what you are looking for specifically...genuine antique cuts, newly cut stones to look like old cut stones or modern diamonds or are you more interested in designer brands. Lots of flavors and many jewelers but each have strengths in their specific areas.

I am interested in cushion, princess and radiant cut diamonds. I am not interested in any designer brands. However, I would love a designer quality ring. The rings we saw in Harry Winston were just beautiful, but way out of budget.

 

[marymm]

OWD and DBL are upstairs in secured environments ... you will have to have appts to meet with them, and giving them a loose idea of the diamond specs you're interested in would be helpful. Be sure to indicate this is a pre-buying trip meant to guide you to the right diamond vendor when the time to purchase arrives.

IDJ is at street level and open to walk-ups. That said, the 2 or 3 times I went to IDJ on an ad hoc basis I was told Yekutiel was busy and not able to meet with me, and I was underwhelmed by the assistance given to me by the staff people. You can browse settings but not diamonds.

You can take the LIRR out to GOG and just walk in, but again, if you want to be sure someone is available to meet with you and show you diamonds, it is best to make an appointment so they can pull some diamonds and allocate time to you. Again, you can browse settings but not diamonds.

 

[MollyMalone]

Clarifying fyi: IDJ is no longer in the street-level "booth" where marymm paid a visit; they moved several years ago to nicer digs on the 3rd floor of 15 W. 47th Street.

Yep, you definitely want to make an appointment in advance with everyone for a better experience -- and to make sure they're open for business (e.g., a surprising number of NYC Diamond District vendors shutter their doors for the entire Labor Day weekend).

Might you be able to come to NYC on a weekday? DBL is closed on the weekend; IDJ closes on Fridays at 2:30 PM, is closed on Saturdays, and open on Sundays from 10 AM - 3 PM; GOG, however, is closed on Mondays. For a weekday trip in the next several weeks, keep in mind that Rosh Hashanah will be observed this year on Monday-Tuesday, September 10-11 & Yom Kippur, the highest of the Jewish Holy Days, is Tuesday-Wednesday, September 18-19.

If you'll be taking the Long Island Railroad out to GOG, you're looking at a round-trip commuting time from Penn Station of 2-1/2 hrs with the best of connections. If you'll be going by car between now and September 9, check on current traffic conditions that day to help you decide on the best route: the US Tennis Open is happening & that has an adverse impact on, e.g., the Long Island Expressway. Midtown Manhattan congestion is likely to be worse than usual -- due to a combination of more vehicles plus street closures for security reasons -- from September 18 to October 5 because the United Nations General Assembly will be convening & there are other UN events during that timeframe. And NYC Fashion Week is September 6 - 14. Sorry about all that!

 

[marymm]

^ yes, I forgot IDJ changed digs - thanks MollyMalone for catching that!

OP, I think the take-away is to make appts with the vendors - it really does end up being a time-saver for you so you don't waste time waiting around - and it is entirely acceptable for this to be a scouting trip - diamonds are a big purchase and jewelers are accustomed to people looking/talking/browsing in order to make future informed purchases. Have fun on your trip!

 

[Girl505]

Clarifying fyi: IDJ is no longer in the street-level "booth" where marymm paid a visit; they moved several years ago to nicer digs on the 3rd floor of 15 W. 47th Street.

Yep, you definitely want to make an appointment in advance with everyone for a better experience -- and to make sure they're open for business (e.g., a surprising number of NYC Diamond District vendors shutter their doors for the entire Labor Day weekend).

Might you be able to come to NYC on a weekday? DBL is closed on the weekend; IDJ closes on Fridays at 2:30 PM, is closed on Saturdays, and open on Sundays from 10 AM - 3 PM; GOG, however, is closed on Mondays. For a weekday trip in the next several weeks, keep in mind that Rosh Hashanah will be observed this year on Monday-Tuesday, September 10-11 & Yom Kippur, the highest of the Jewish Holy Days, is Tuesday-Wednesday, September 18-19.

If you'll be taking the Long Island Railroad out to GOG, you're looking at a round-trip commuting time from Penn Station of 2-1/2 hrs with the best of connections. If you'll be going by car between now and September 9, check on current traffic conditions that day to help you decide on the best route: the US Tennis Open is happening & that has an adverse impact on, e.g., the Long Island Expressway. Midtown Manhattan congestion is likely to be worse than usual -- due to a combination of more vehicles plus street closures for security reasons -- from September 18 to October 5 because the United Nations General Assembly will be convening & there are other UN events during that timeframe. And NYC Fashion Week is September 6 - 14. Sorry about all that!

Looks like my timing is perfect since we will be going on a Thursday and Friday. It will be September 13-14th. Also glad to know I’ll be there during NYC fashion week! I think we will make GOG work by taking a car.

 

[MollyMalone]

Looks like my timing is perfect since we will be going on a Thursday and Friday. It will be September 13-14th. Also glad to know I’ll be there during NYC fashion week! I think we will make GOG work by taking a car.

It's a plan! Do you need a hotel room? Fashion Week does send up hotel rates here (all of September is priced high, often obscenely so). If so, post on the Hangout forum where I and I'm sure others will be happy to help

 

[Rockdiamond]

DBL is closed on the weekend

Hi All!
Correction- we sometimes see clients on Saturdays or Sundays by appointment

 

[Girl505]

It's a plan! Do you need a hotel room? Fashion Week does send up hotel rates here (all of September is priced high, often obscenely so). If so, post on the Hangout forum where I and I'm sure others will be happy to help

Yes, I do! Thank you!

 

[Girl505]

Still wondering if anyone might know anything about forever diamonds?

 

[The Stig]

I also recommend Brilliantly Engaged and Designs by Kamni. When I was shopping around for my better half’s eRing a month ago, BE, Kamni, IDJ and Good old Gold impressed me the most. IDJ ultimately won my business, but BE came a close second. Although IDJ put out the best stone IMO, I also found their customer service to be phenomenal. Unfortunately I visited BE after the IDJ visit, so they had a very high hurdle to overcome, however, I found Chris to be a straight shooter, and when I showed him the scope images of the IDJ stone, he even admitted it was an oustanding one. He did pull out a stone that came close though. Other notables were Zolands, and especially Fred who was the one who educated me seeing I visited his store first, had a good chat with David from Diamonds by Lauren, and the Kims from Jangmi. Also has a positive experience visiting LaurenB, although found them to be too expensive compared to the competition. Visited other stores, but not impressed anywhere else.

Hope it helps!

 

[missy]

I am interested in cushion, princess and radiant cut diamonds. I am not interested in any designer brands. However, I would love a designer quality ring. The rings we saw in Harry Winston were just beautiful, but way out of budget.

So IDJ is a good place to go as Yekutiel has many beautifully cut diamonds.

Also a less well known fact is Adam @oldworlddiamonds has access to many modern cut diamonds as well as antique cuts so I would definitely give him a call and tell him exactly what you are looking for and your budget.

 

[Girl505]

Thank you all! Still wondering if anyone might know a thing or two about Forever Diamonds? All their rings are beautiful and the kind I could envision myself wearing, but a diamond is a big purchase and I’d rather get the opinion of those more knowledgable than me.

 

[lovedogs]

@diamondlove_ I'm sorry about you idj experience being poor! Did you speak with Yeutekil (spelling) or Shulamit? They are amazing and knowledgable!

 

[diamondlove_]

@lovedogs yes I did! I guess everyone has different experiences. Good thing there are a lot of other great jewelers to choose from

 

[ringo865]

I've not heard mention of forever diamonds before your query.

 

[MollyMalone]

I’ve been looking for an upgrade, though have been taking my time since this will be my forever stone. During this process, I reached out to ID jewelry and had an unpleasant experience. Their service was very poor and left me with a bad feeling. I would definitely not recommend them, though it sounds like I’m the minority here. I also reached out to GoG and they were absolutely fantastic. Super honest and patient. Definitely worth the trip if you’re in NYC.

Ah, I see from your May 24 thread that you were (maybe still are) in the market for a 4-5 ct, I VS2 (or thereabouts) ideal, quite possibly a super ideal, diamond -- and hoping for the opportunity to view several different "varieties" of such stones side by side. That makes you a fairly rarefied customer, as evidenced by the fact that almost no jeweler will have any 4-5 carats in stock (use the PS Diamond Search feature & you'll see that there are only 19 stones in the entire, in-house/vetted database; 10 of those are J+ in color).

Much as I consider IDJ to be solid (and they have oodles of happy customers), their business model is not that of a "niche" jeweler like HPD, Whiteflash; they are "more things to more people." So it may be (this is merely a hypothesis on my part) that IDJ thought you and IDJ weren't a good fit for each other. If that were the case, it would have been better imo to say something like "Given what you've expressed, I think you'll be better served by another jeweler" and even suggest someone else, rather than drop the ball & leave you with a poor impression.

Whatever the reason, I'm sorry yours was an unhappy experience, but thank you for sharing it. Hopefully, Girl505 and her husband-to-be will be much more pleased by their interaction with IDJ -- and that we soon will see your upgrade!

 

[DAF]

I was not happy with my IDJ experience. Paid extra for PS quality diamonds for earring jackets and got one with a big old black carbon inclusion visible to the naked eye.

 

[PintoBean]

I was not happy with my IDJ experience. Paid extra for PS quality diamonds for earring jackets and got one with a big old black carbon inclusion visible to the naked eye.

@DAF I saw that you have a thread from 2016 where you were happy with the IDJ earring jackets. If you noticed the inclusion subsequently, did you contact them about swapping out the melee?

 

[The Stig]

@MollyMalone I don’t want to go into detail about my negative experience with IDJ, because I’m not trying to bash them in this forum. Just trying to help the OP with my own recent experience. But it has nothing to do with their inventory and more about their attitude and ethics.

I understand you don’t want to bash them, but you kinda are by your statements above (“attitude and ethics”), especially when you make those statements without ellaborating further. This does both IDJ and others on this community a disservice, especially when those looking at IDJ now see a negative comment about their ethics without any further details. It’s only fair that you now elaborate further. If you never intended to do so or bash them, then you should never had mentioned it in the first place.

Personally, I am about to hand over approx 15k to IDJ for my lady’s eRing, so it would be very helpful to me if you can please ellaborate what ethical issues you dealt with and why you don’t recommend them