Diamond Cross

[Smith1942]

Hi, here's my diamond cross. It's half a carat, set in 14k white gold, G diamonds, really sparkly. I got this from - yes, you guessed it - E.B. Horn in Boston! I've had it about 8 months. I originally ordered Blue Nile's half-carat cross for $1,000, I-colour diamonds, and it was beautifully sparkly but the setting was clunky. It had square corners at the end of each part of the cross, and the setting for the cross was thick and boxy.

So I went down to E.b. Horn - I'm telling you, they love me in there - and I got this one which has the pointed ends so looks exactly like the Tiffany version. These diamonds are G and they are also very sparkly. And.....drumroll....it was $660 including tax!!! God, I LOVE E.B. Horn! The problem is that I live within easy walking distance of the place.

The photos make the diamonds look darker than they really are. In reality, the cross is very white and sparkly. More photos coming up!

 

[Smith1942]

I think the last shot, the neck shot, is a good representation of how the cross really looks.

 

[charleston1]

That is gorgeous, a classic cross. The price is great too! Congratulations

 

[Rosebloom]

It's a beautiful size! Is this one also .5ctw?

 

[CharmyPoo]

Very pretty but I have to be honest ... it doesn't look like the Tiffany version. I have a Tiffany diamond cross.

 

[Smith1942]

Thanks everyone! Yes, it's half a carat. Here is the link to the Tiffany half carat cross. My photos are very close up but if you look at the fourth pic down, you can see its Tiffanyesque proportions. Both are half carat divided into 11 diamonds with a setting which has a claw on the end of each cross arm, giving it a pointed as opposed to square look. Come on, Charmypoo, what's the difference between them?

Maybe your version is bigger. Mine and the half-carat Tiff look pretty identical to me. Not that it matters. I just like my cross whatever. I'm not sure why you felt the need to pull me up on such a detail, Charmypoo.

http://www.tiffany.com/Shopping/Item.aspx?fromGrid=1&sku=GRP02372&mcat=&cid=&search_params=s+1-p+1-c+-r+-x+-n+6-ri+-ni+0-t+cross&search=1

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Very nice! You are fortunate to have a nice jewelry store nearby, even though it has a lot of tempting things!

 

[Smith1942]

DS, you have no idea. They have a case of diamond brooches starting at 20k, and you should see those things. Great sprays of diamond flowers, studded with baguettes, emerald cuts - oh, it's amazing. When I moved here from England six years ago I thought I'd waved goodbye to jewellery shops dating back to the nineteenth century, but no! They have photos of the shop from 1890 and all the cabinets are the same! For a while I didn't go in there because I assumed the best bargains were to be found online, but I've had some whoppers from E.B. Horn. Remember the pre-loved diamond Tiffany etoile ring in pristine condition for $650??

 

[Monnyjay]

Love it Smith, what a great buy - good thing that shop is miles away from me I would there NOW!!!

Lovely, enjoy wearing it

 

[Enerchi]

That is a perfect size for your neck - a lot of bling factor coming off of those diamonds!!

I think I'm going to request a shopping trip to your favourite jewelry stores, if I ever get back to the Boston area --- you seem to find the most amazing pieces in these shops!!

 

[CharmyPoo]

You are right ... It doesn't matter. I am sorry ... I only bought it up because you mentioned the parallels in your post
. Your cross is beautiful and it makes no difference what my opinions are in comparison to the Tiffany version. My comment was inappropriate for this forum. I have the small Tiffany one in platinum.

 

[justginger]

That is just beautiful - I'm terrible with small details, so to me it looks identical to the Tiffany one as well. I assume there are nuances of differences, which Charmy as a Tiff owner would be able to easily see, but all I can see is sparkle.

Add this to my list of powerball purchases...

 

[Smith1942]

You are right ... It doesn't matter. I am sorry ... I only bought it up because you mentioned the parallels in your post
. Your cross is beautiful and it makes no difference what my opinions are in comparison to the Tiffany version. My comment was inappropriate for this forum. I have the small Tiffany one in platinum.

Too late, I hate my cross now. I don't want to wear it anymore. I think I might sell it.

Only joking!!!! Apology accepted!

 

[Smith1942]

That is a perfect size for your neck - a lot of bling factor coming off of those diamonds!!

I think I'm going to request a shopping trip to your favourite jewelry stores, if I ever get back to the Boston area --- you seem to find the most amazing pieces in these shops!!

Yes, come to Boston Enerchi!

Thanks for everyone's comments about my purchases. I won't be around much after today as I'm going to our place in South Beach for a month then I'm going home to England for a month to visit my mother who is ill, and I'm not taking the camera. I might squeeze in some photos between trips, as my stud upgrade will arrive.

Untill then, fare thee well, Pricescopers! Buy lots of jewellery in my absence xxx

 

[motownmama]

Hey Smith College '42............. I LOVE your cross! It looks really looks substantial and beautiful on you! Great price too - I wanna go to your store! ROADTRIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Laila619]

Gorgeous cross, Smith! It honestly looks just like the Tiff and Co. one to me! Can't see any difference.

Enjoy it!!

 

[nala]

I will be in London in April....are there any estate jewelry shops you would recommend?

 

[Enerchi]

Take care smith. Hope your mom improves while you are there... Aging parents and distance, are stressful on us sandwich generation people! Have a great time in South Beach and pop in when you can

Road trip to Boston???....it's a possibility....ya never know! But I'll be calling on you for some shopping skills

 

[Smith1942]

So, the weather isn't very summery here in South Beach, meaning I have some time to hang out on Pricescope!

Enerchi - Yes, ageing parents and distance are difficult, but I expected to be dealing with that in my fifties, as my parents did when their own parents were in their eighties. I'm only in my thirties. My mum has terminal breast cancer recurring from 1999, which I only found out about on December 20, 2012. That was a fun Christmas. I found out at the airport on the way to South Beach and then had to host my demanding, judgemental mother-in-law for ten days on her visit from England, on which she had invited herself! But things could be worse - despite having been back for quite a few years, we are told, my mum's metastatis isn't too extensive yet. Her mother also died of breast cancer so clearly we have a propensity for it.

Nala - I don't know any of those shops in London, since I always did my UK jewellery shopping in the famous Laines in Brighton. That's a well-known jewellery quarter, consisting of little Dickensian alleyways lined with antique jewellery shops - I don't know how many, but at least 100. People travel down from London to shop for jewellery in the Laines. I've never seen so many antique jewels in one place in my life. Brighton is a well-worn day trip from London as it's a short direct train ride from Victoria Station in London, or from London Bridge or Blackfriars. I think the Victoria trains are quicker. If you get a fast one which only stops at Gatwick and Haywards Heath, the journey takes 50 mins. At Brighton station, as you exit there is a long street which leads directly down to the sea. Walk down it until you reach the clock tower. Cross over and continue down towards the sea. Shortly after the clock tower you'll see a pedestrianised street on your left called Duke Street. At the end of this street you will be at the beginning of the Laines. You'll know because the streets in the Laines are all red brick underfoot.

Look at the image of the shop front on this website, Selby's. All the shops in the Laines look like this. If you look at the top left of the window it says "jewellery hospital"!!

http://www.selby-jewellers.co.uk/

Here's another one:

http://www.fidra.com/

Brighton is quite a unique place and well worth a visit. It's the UK's most bohemian town, known for its alternative lifestyle and therefore has an eclectic mix of unique shops and restaurants. It's also very expensive since so many celebrities live there, so it has some very upscale shopping and beautiful places to eat. Not to mention the fact that it's right on the ocean. If you walk down Duke Street, on your left you will see a lovely restaurant called Havana. It's all cream decor, dark wood, lazy ceiling fans, a grand piano and a waterfall. Great place to go. About three miles out is Brighton Marina, the largest marina in Europe. It's gorgeous, with many restaurants looking out over all the yachts.

www.visitbrighton.co.uk

www.havana.co.uk

 

[Smith1942]

Motown - what is Smith College? I've never heard of it, since I'm not from the States.

I went here, Royal Holloway College, University of London:

http://personal.rhul.ac.uk/Shared/Images/Founders.jpg

Matthew Vassar copied Vassar from this. He knew Royal Holloway's founder, Thomas Holloway, and decided to set up Vassar along the same lines. So they're kind of sister colleges. Except, since Royal Holloway is in the UK, it was absolutely free to go there! You had to get the grades, of course.

 

[Enerchi]

Wow! Its like you went to school in Downton Abbey!!! Gorgeous structure!!!

 

[Smith1942]

Yes, Thomas Holloway was a Victorian philanthropist, and he and his wife had no children so he used his money for the greater good. He made his fortune selling pills and ointments in the 19th century. He thought that women should be educated so he built this college for women, which opened in 1888. It's based on Chambord chateau in the Loire. It became one of the seven colleges of the University of London in the Sixties, I think, (the others being King's College, UCL, LSE etc) and became co-ed at about the same time. Today though, well over half the student body is still female.

Holloway also built another building like this a couple of miles down the road. It's the same size, the difference being that the towers are square not round. It was a sanatorium for the mentally insane, but today is luxury flats. The American author Bill Bryson was working at the Holloway san when he met his wife. The two buildings are linked by tunnels. A security guard showed us the entrance. We went through about five locked doors before we saw it.

I lived in this building, Founder's Building, for my first year. It's old inside with no heating but it had the original Victorian furniture. Behind this building is the entire modern campus, with thousands of modern dorms, all the academic departments, etc. But on my accommodation application form I wrote a begging note asking to pretty please be placed in Founder's Building, and it worked!! My dream to live in this red-brick fairytale palace came true and I felt like a princess.

Boys were housed on one side, and girls on the other. The fire alarms often went off and of course when everyone vacated the building in the night, you would have thought the whole place was mixed accomodation.

Inside all is intricate stonework, very Hogwarts. When you went to the loo in the middle of the night there were all these ghostly white gargoyles leering at you in the moonlight, and it was quite a walk to the bathrooms.

To continue the Hogwarts theme, I have been told more than once - including by my own husband - that I look and sound like Hermione Granger!

More pics:


http://www.sadeghian.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/2-Founders-full.jpg

http://www.wondermondo.com/Images/Europe/UK/Surrey/HollowayFounders.jpg

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3181/2688740288_352e6c01b2_z.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7080/6899521570_38416d6e1e_z.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/RoyalHollowayFoundersLondon-Seabhcan.jpg

http://placepics.triposo.com/W__24202969.jpeg