Distraught need Opinion Lab vs Mine grown studs for upgrade

[heididdl]

I understand the need to vent.
I understand the hurt and frustration.
I apologize if my reply was harsh and snarky. I took your negative comments in post 117 to be geared towards the many helpful and compassionate replies you’ve received in this thread.
If that’s not the case, and I took it the wrong way - I apologize.

I do know that this is all so selfish and that is why I keep it here in the forum. Thank you for understanding

 

[AllAboardTheBlingTrain]

@heididdl I understand how you feel, but I wonder if it might help you to reframe the thought process a little in the following way - You paid $14k for the pair, right, and a comparable pair of GIA stones would’ve been double (so $28k)? Now that you’re selling your stones, you’ve been quoted 2-2.5k per carat which is ~5k for the pair. If it was a GIA pair you’d be able to recoup 2-2.5x that, let’s say $12.5k. So you’re upset because it’s like you “lost” $7.5k. But if they’d been GIA stones to begin with, your initial outlay would’ve been double as well!

So to recap - you spent $14k, recoupable value is $5k; “loss” = 9k.
if it had been GIA, you would’ve spent $28k, recouped $13k... and still been out $15k!

I don’t know if it’s helpful to think this way but that’s how I would put it to myself to feel better. After all, what’s done is done. The stones clearly were beautiful enough to buy in the first place and once you buy an upgrade, you can find a use for these or gift them to your daughter if they’re “tainted” for you. Don’t feel bad! Think of it as an opportunity to collect even more bling (never a bad thing!) and if you look at cost per wear you probably paid pennies!!

 

[heididdl]

@heididdl I understand how you feel, but I wonder if it might help you to reframe the thought process a little in the following way - You paid $14k for the pair, right, and a comparable pair of GIA stones would’ve been double (so $28k)? Now that you’re selling your stones, you’ve been quoted 2-2.5k per carat which is ~5k for the pair. If it was a GIA pair you’d be able to recoup 2-2.5x that, let’s say $12.5k. So you’re upset because it’s like you “lost” $7.5k. But if they’d been GIA stones to begin with, your initial outlay would’ve been double as well!

So to recap - you spent $14k, recoupable value is $5k; “loss” = 9k.
if it had been GIA, you would’ve spent $28k, recouped $13k... and still been out $15k!

I don’t know if it’s helpful to think this way but that’s how I would put it to myself to feel better. After all, what’s done is done. The stones clearly were beautiful enough to buy in the first place and once you buy an upgrade, you can find a use for these or gift them to your daughter if they’re “tainted” for you. Don’t feel bad! Think of it as an opportunity to collect even more bling (never a bad thing!) and if you look at cost per wear you probably paid pennies!!

I would be thrilled if I could sell them for $5,000 no luck at all so far. I never ever thought I'd get anywhere close to what I paid. My initial hope was $7000.

The price scope feedback as no way. So now my hope is for $5000 or trade in to upgrade. I have been told to trade in stones that weren't sold by that dealer ,they would be able to give me less as right because right now with lab grown stones being so popular in the 1 carat range that it would be better for me to sell privately.

So that is what i was trying to do even before the GIA certs came back

I have no changed my ads to reflect $5500 with hopes of getting $5000. Id be thrilled . So no I didn't have high expectations
My only other thought was annoyance with EGL internationals (sold to me by retailer ) as F color stones that are actually K.....that was a hard blow

 

[Snowdrop13]

I totally get your upset on this. If the current value of the stones is around $5k then the initial vendor made a huge profit no matter how you look at it. I think this sort of story is partly why Pricescope came to be in the first place. There is no other luxury purchase that could be so badly misrepresented like that, not cars or watches, or even art, possibly. It is pretty poor and takes real advantage of people. At least now you know what you have.

I wonder, did you notice any tint in the earrings before you got the GIA certs?? If not, then maybe you could widen the criteria in your search for the 3 carat pair? These look lovely, and if you can get a sale for your earrings then you’re getting there on price. Also WF have a great upgrade policy for the future.

Diamond pair details | Complete characteristics for chosen diamond pair

The most carefully chosen diamond pair. Every diamond is unique, but we choose the most similar diamond pair

www.whiteflash.com

 

[Mreader]

I would be thrilled if I could sell them for $5,000 no luck at all so far. I never ever thought I'd get anywhere close to what I paid. My initial hope was $7000.

The price scope feedback as no way. So now my hope is for $5000 or trade in to upgrade. I have been told to trade in stones that weren't sold by that dealer ,they would be able to give me less as right because right now with lab grown stones being so popular in the 1 carat range that it would be better for me to sell privately.

So that is what i was trying to do even before the GIA certs came back

I have no changed my ads to reflect $5500 with hopes of getting $5000. Id be thrilled . So no I didn't have high expectations
My only other thought was annoyance with EGL internationals (sold to me by retailer ) as F color stones that are actually K.....that was a hard blow

I personally think that 5K is a really fair price for stones that size. It's just hard to sell items on LT that are higher priced in general. I notice the things that are hundreds of dollars sell more quickly than things that are thousands of dollars. There is an incredible ring on there right now that is 15k and an incredible deal for what it is, but it will take awhile to sell something that is 15k because, well, it's 15k! As I mentioned before I sold my 2ctw stones that were uncerted for 4900 at a local jeweler, but I went to about 5 stores before getting that offer. The other places were lowballing me at 2500-3k. Before that they sat on LT and on eBay for months. Now that you have GIA certed stones, I would try to go to different local jewelers and see if you can get to the closer price point you are looking for.

 

[heididdl]

I totally get your upset on this. If the current value of the stones is around $5k then the initial vendor made a huge profit no matter how you look at it. I think this sort of story is partly why Pricescope came to be in the first place. There is no other luxury purchase that could be so badly misrepresented like that, not cars or watches, or even art, possibly. It is pretty poor and takes real advantage of people. At least now you know what you have.

I wonder, did you notice any tint in the earrings before you got the GIA certs?? If not, then maybe you could widen the criteria in your search for the 3 carat pair? These look lovely, and if you can get a sale for your earrings then you’re getting there on price. Also WF have a great upgrade policy for the future.

Diamond pair details | Complete characteristics for chosen diamond pair

The most carefully chosen diamond pair. Every diamond is unique, but we choose the most similar diamond pair

www.whiteflash.com

I have a vendor already where i will buy my new stubs just need to sell these first i have them listed in other places as well thanks

 

[winnietucker]

Have you contacted Grace? I think that might be a better option here. When I was selling my K I had considered buying it a friend for earrings or a toi et moi (before I bought the OECs) because it wasn’t moving and was told one to match mine would be $4-$5k. The best offer I got while trying to sell on my own was only $2500. People expect big discounts on the preloved market... Plus PS seems to skew toward super ideals for MRBs so maybe PS frequented sales sites aren’t your target audience?

Grace has a bigger audience and probably more people feel comfortable buying something from her, an established business, vs us random people on the internet.

 

[heididdl]

Have you contacted Grace? I think that might be a better option here. When I was selling my K I had considered buying it a friend for earrings or a toi et moi (before I bought the OECs) because it wasn’t moving and was told one to match mine would be $4-$5k. The best offer I got while trying to sell on my own was only $2500. People expect big discounts on the preloved market... Plus PS seems to skew toward super ideals for MRBs so maybe PS frequented sales sites aren’t your target audience?

Grace has a bigger audience and probably more people feel comfortable buying something from her, an established business, vs us random people on the internet.

I hav not what type of commission . I am looking for $5000 so i guess if she puts them and sells at $5500 i don’t know i won’t have stones back till Wednesday. Don’t know if i should leave them lose or put them back i settings

 

[elizat]

I hav not what type of commission . I am looking for $5000 so i guess if she puts them and sells at $5500 i don’t know i won’t have stones back till Wednesday. Don’t know if i should leave them lose or put them back i settings

20 percent under $10k or $600, whichever is greater.

 

[winnietucker]

I hav not what type of commission . I am looking for $5000 so i guess if she puts them and sells at $5500 i don’t know i won’t have stones back till Wednesday. Don’t know if i should leave them lose or put them back i settings

All I’m saying is that’s it’s worth the contact. She’s a nice lady. Took me prob 5 min max to email her asking about consigning my original diamond and then to shoot off another email saying ok let’s do it. Selling privately (especially when something isn’t moving or only gets lowball offers) is a little frustrating. Your experience def sucks and then selling for a large loss also sucks. I think most of us have been there. Just good to explore all the options IMO. Never know what could work out until you inquire.

 

[sledge]

Don’t know if i should leave them lose or put them back i settings

Definitely keep them loose!

You have to break the mentality these are a set and must be used for earrings. Wrong. These are two individual diamonds, both of 1.20 carats that someone may want to use as earrings, or may want one for a pendant, e-ring, etc.

Stop defining the market the stones fit in and instead let potential buyers determine how they want to use the stones.

20 percent under $10k or $600, whichever is greater.

That actually seems like a really fair offer. Especially when you consider Grace will be dealing with RETAIL customers and should be able to get a little better ask price than a private party transaction.

Not to mention I think pushing an I1 and I2 stone is going to be a tough sell regardless. So having someone experienced with the right audience is very important IMO.

 

[PreRaphaelite]

Sending them to Grace is an excellent strategy. That's exactly what I would do in your situation. Good luck!

 

[heididdl]

All I’m saying is that’s it’s worth the contact. She’s a nice lady. Took me prob 5 min max to email her asking about consigning my original diamond and then to shoot off another email saying ok let’s do it. Selling privately (especially when something isn’t moving or only gets lowball offers) is a little frustrating. Your experience def sucks and then selling for a large loss also sucks. I think most of us have been there. Just good to explore all the options IMO. Never know what could work out until you inquire.

I wrote to her waiting for response

 

[distracts]

I don't agree with the person who said the original jeweler didn't misrepresent them. They absolutely did. I think any jeweler would know the difference between a GIA K and GIA F, and they intentionally sold them to Heidi as an F, at an inflated price, rather than being honest. That this is common doesn't make it RIGHT. We see enough people posting here with this story and it is enraging every single time.

 

[heididdl]

I don't agree with the person who said the original jeweler didn't misrepresent them. They absolutely did. I think any jeweler would know the difference between a GIA K and GIA F, and they intentionally sold them to Heidi as an F, at an inflated price, rather than being honest. That this is common doesn't make it RIGHT. We see enough people posting here with this story and it is enraging every single time.

I really would like to go back and say I am ready to upgrade my studs. "What is your upgrade policy" If he gives me 100% credit for these and then add $7-10,000 for GIA certified stones I'd be down with that

If he doesn't have an upgrade policy I might tell him then buy them back for Fair market value if $5000 for the pair and whip out the GIA certs to say you represented these studs inaccurately and I would like you to buy them back
If they say no I open the Social Media floodgates

 

[denverappraiser]

Consigning with Grace is a reasonable solution. Low clarities and low colors are difficult to sell in an online environment and they're obviously not what does well here. That's ok, there's still a market. PS is a very specialized marketplace. I suspect they're pretty, and THAT is what will sell them, not the papers. A more 'in person' sort of experience is almost certain to do better. Let her give you the price instead of the other way around, and she's going to want to see them in order to do that. I also second the comment of leaving them out of the settings. They are not the same and it makes sense to price them individually. An I-1/K/xxx will bring quite a bit more than an otherwise similar I-2/J. Listen to her advice. That's part of what you're paying for (assuming you hire her).

I agree that it's likely the original jeweler did misrepresent them, but that sort of thing is difficult to prove. EGLI used a different grading scale from GIA. They are not interchangeable. That was the secret to their business model. This has happened a LOT, and it's still happening even though EGLI is out of business. Threatening the retailer with Social Media retaliation doesn't normally help. If they'll give you a refund for what you paid, take it and run, but be very careful about getting into a trade-in sort of arrangement where they credit you against some other purchase where you don't know the details of what you're getting the 2nd time either but you're still committed to buying.

 

[sledge]

As usual, very well said @denverappraiser.

FYI, I did look up the jeweler and they have a good reputation and all their current stones appear to be GIA graded, at least the ones they posted in their online database/search engine.

The true tragedy is the disparity in the various grading labs, which made it easy to fleece a sale. It’s a very frustrating reality that I don’t think legally would be declared as “misrepresentation”.

 

[lovedogs]

Threatening a vendor with social media retaliation 10 years after you bought and wore earring is unreasonable, IMHO. Yes, it sucks that EGL and GIA have such different grading systems, and especially sucks when jewelers use that to sell inferior products for $$. But there is nothing you can do about it now, and I think you need to accept that and try to move on. Consigning with grace is an excellent idea.

 

[heididdl]

Evidentially I emailed the wrong Grace ....
The contract for consignment is really a long term commitment they say 4-6 weeks to prepare your piece to be sold
You must send the piece to her
if you sell privately and need the piece back you still need to pay minimum of $545. ...a lot to consider before consigning with Grace

 

[Bron357]

My 5 cents.
The difference in size between a 1.20 carat diamond and a 1.50 carat diamond is a mere .5 of a millimeter.
That size differential is very small.
I understand your desire for the ”magic” 3 carat total weight but is it worth losing not only $5,000 or more selling your existing studs before outlaying many more thousands to acquire the 3 carat total size?
If sparkle in the ear is important, I’d invest my money into decent diamond jackets. That way you can dramatically increase diamond presence on the ears but also create another earring wardrobe by buying alternative gemstone studs ie pearls, sapphire, aquamarine to use with the diamond jackets.

 

[Lookinagain]

One last suggestion for you. You say that you like the stones and were happy with how they looked for 10 years but you are stuck on increasing the size to 3 ctw. You also, I think, said (this is a long thread so I may have missed something) that you have only been offered something like $2500 and you paid $14,000? (Am I right here?) You would have taken $7k, now you think you'll take $5k. Why not keep them (you like the stones) and bezel them? Bezels will add size and may scratch that itch until you can save up and buy the 3ctw that you want. I have a pair of studs that are bezeled. The stones are 5.3 mm. I have another pair that are set in prongs. Those stones are 6.1 mm. Yes, the 6.1's look larger than the 5.3's but not by as much as you would think, because of the bezels. Here's a hastily snapped, lousy, photo but I think you will get the idea. I think that is what I would do. Accept the loss, move on, and make the best of a bad situation.

 

[heididdl]

My 5 cents.
The difference in size between a 1.20 carat diamond and a 1.50 carat diamond is a mere .5 of a millimeter.
That size differential is very small.
I understand your desire for the ”magic” 3 carat total weight but is it worth losing not only $5,000 or more selling your existing studs before outlaying many more thousands to acquire the 3 carat total size?
If sparkle in the ear is important, I’d invest my money into decent diamond jackets. That way you can dramatically increase diamond presence on the ears but also create another earring wardrobe by buying alternative gemstone studs ie pearls, sapphire, aquamarine to use with the diamond jackets.

Thanks for your 5 cents. I have beautiful jackets. Never wear them. I want the larger ones for psychological reasons as well as additonal sparkle . The jackets actually make them to dressy for everyday. The simplicity of the stud is what i love. I have to tell you no on has ever complemented me on my studs in the ten years. I wear them for me.

 

[heididdl]

One last suggestion for you. You say that you like the stones and were happy with how they looked for 10 years but you are stuck on increasing the size to 3 ctw. You also, I think, said (this is a long thread so I may have missed something) that you have only been offered something like $2500 and you paid $14,000? (Am I right here?) You would have taken $7k, now you think you'll take $5k. Why not keep them (you like the stones) and bezel them? Bezels will add size and may scratch that itch until you can save up and buy the 3ctw that you want. I have a pair of studs that are bezeled. The stones are 5.3 mm. I have another pair that are set in prongs. Those stones are 6.1 mm. Yes, the 6.1's look larger than the 5.3's but not by as much as you would think, because of the bezels. Here's a hastily snapped, lousy, photo but I think you will get the idea. I think that is what I would do. Accept the loss, move on, and make the best of a bad situation.

Thank you I really dislike the bezel for look for myself, But I do appreciate the input. I now know that my current stones are 3x but not great color and clarity I am resolved to just raise additional funds to get the 3.00 . I don't think I will ever reset the current stones and will sell them as individuals somehow . I don't ever want to wear them again. They make me sad.

 

[heididdl]

Threatening a vendor with social media retaliation 10 years after you bought and wore earring is unreasonable, IMHO. Yes, it sucks that EGL and GIA have such different grading systems, and especially sucks when jewelers use that to sell inferior products for $$. But there is nothing you can do about it now, and I think you need to accept that and try to move on. Consigning with grace is an excellent idea.

I don't think I'd have the guts to actually bad mouth them on social media as I know what that does to a business. In my job we try to hard for 5 star reviews. I looked into consigning . It is a very long timely process and she might not even accept them .

 

[elizat]

Evidentially I emailed the wrong Grace ....
The contract for consignment is really a long term commitment they say 4-6 weeks to prepare your piece to be sold
You must send the piece to her
if you sell privately and need the piece back you still need to pay minimum of $545. ...a lot to consider before consigning with Grace

The reason you would want to consign with Grace or anyone is because you don't have to worry about selling it privately. If they are accepted for consignment, you send it in, you do the paperwork, and you just wait. It's easy and no fuss. Her business handles it all.

I say this is someone that is in the process of using her services.

You are paying for reaching a larger audience as well as the convenience factor. People are much more comfortable sending money to a known entity.

Yes, she does have requirements that the piece has to be there a certain period of time or there are fees for the cancellation, but that makes sense, because she is a business and it's going to cost her money to deal with your stuff.

Also, not being rude, but the idea that you are going to sell these to a private party buyer and need to pull them from her is not likely. You have been trying to sell them for a while and they didn't move. I think you are borrowing trouble by thinking about what the penalty fee might be if you pull them early. Further, you have no idea what the pricing would eventually be if she does accept them, because presumably she would be charging more than you would sell them for, so even with her commission you still might come out ahead or just break even without the headache. Frankly, shipping loose diamonds of a value that you are talking about If you want it to actually be legitimately fully insured where you can collect, is another threshold in and of itself to deal with.

I agree that you need to read the terms and conditions, but the terms of her consignment are actually quite reasonable. The rate that she takes is extremely reasonable given what her reaches and the fact that each piece comes with a appraisal that is done prior to sale, which gives the buyer confidence.

It is possible she would not even agree to take these. However, most businesses have requirements when it comes to consignments like this.

I think you have to accept that these stones are going to take some time to move unless you basically give them away at a rock bottom price.

Not everyone is looking for a J or a K diamond that is I1 or I2, which I understand is how they ended up being graded.

I think that there are certainly buyers out there, but it's going to take time and it's going to take the reach of someone that reaches a lot of customers.

 

[heididdl]

The reason you would want to consign with Grace or anyone is because you don't have to worry about selling it privately. If they are accepted for consignment, you send it in, you do the paperwork, and you just wait. It's easy and no fuss. Her business handles it all.

I say this is someone that is in the process of using her services.

You are paying for reaching a larger audience as well as the convenience factor. People are much more comfortable sending money to a known entity.

Yes, she does have requirements that the piece has to be there a certain period of time or there are fees for the cancellation, but that makes sense, because she is a business and it's going to cost her money to deal with your stuff.

Also, not being rude, but the idea that you are going to sell these to a private party buyer and need to pull them from her is not likely. You have been trying to sell them for a while and they didn't move. I think you are borrowing trouble by thinking about what the penalty fee might be if you pull them early. Further, you have no idea what the pricing would eventually be if she does accept them, because presumably she would be charging more than you would sell them for, so even with her commission you still might come out ahead or just break even without the headache. Frankly, shipping loose diamonds of a value that you are talking about If you want it to actually be legitimately fully insured where you can collect, is another threshold in and of itself to deal with.

I agree that you need to read the terms and conditions, but the terms of her consignment are actually quite reasonable. The rate that she takes is extremely reasonable given what her reaches and the fact that each piece comes with a appraisal that is done prior to sale, which gives the buyer confidence.

It is possible she would not even agree to take these. However, most businesses have requirements when it comes to consignments like this.

I think you have to accept that these stones are going to take some time to move unless you basically give them away at a rock bottom price.

Not everyone is looking for a J or a K diamond that is I1 or I2, which I understand is how they ended up being graded.

I think that there are certainly buyers out there, but it's going to take time and it's going to take the reach of someone that reaches a lot of customers.

You are absolutely correct.

 

[Jax172]

The reason you would want to consign with Grace or anyone is because you don't have to worry about selling it privately. If they are accepted for consignment, you send it in, you do the paperwork, and you just wait. It's easy and no fuss. Her business handles it all.

I say this is someone that is in the process of using her services.

You are paying for reaching a larger audience as well as the convenience factor. People are much more comfortable sending money to a known entity.

Yes, she does have requirements that the piece has to be there a certain period of time or there are fees for the cancellation, but that makes sense, because she is a business and it's going to cost her money to deal with your stuff.

Also, not being rude, but the idea that you are going to sell these to a private party buyer and need to pull them from her is not likely. You have been trying to sell them for a while and they didn't move. I think you are borrowing trouble by thinking about what the penalty fee might be if you pull them early. Further, you have no idea what the pricing would eventually be if she does accept them, because presumably she would be charging more than you would sell them for, so even with her commission you still might come out ahead or just break even without the headache. Frankly, shipping loose diamonds of a value that you are talking about If you want it to actually be legitimately fully insured where you can collect, is another threshold in and of itself to deal with.

I agree that you need to read the terms and conditions, but the terms of her consignment are actually quite reasonable. The rate that she takes is extremely reasonable given what her reaches and the fact that each piece comes with a appraisal that is done prior to sale, which gives the buyer confidence.

It is possible she would not even agree to take these. However, most businesses have requirements when it comes to consignments like this.

I think you have to accept that these stones are going to take some time to move unless you basically give them away at a rock bottom price.

Not everyone is looking for a J or a K diamond that is I1 or I2, which I understand is how they ended up being graded.

I think that there are certainly buyers out there, but it's going to take time and it's going to take the reach of someone that reaches a lot of customers.

Agreed. And her photos/videos are fabulous and will really highlight how amazing your diamonds are. People will fall in love with the sparkle and then be less inclined to hesitate at the grading.

 

[Rfisher]

If Grace thinks they are pretty, she’ll say so in her write up. They’ll also have her independent appraisal.
those two things mean a whole lot to many people who are her customers / potential customers.

Grace isn’t perfect. She’s human. But all that said above instills a trust to purchase from her much more than random P2P for many buyers.

 

[Bron357]

My other thought would be making two solitaire rings out of them. Just simple 4 prong 18k white or yellow gold.
The reason being a solitaire diamond ring reduces the price point and increases the pool of potential buyers.
You could sell them as ”brand new”,

 

[heididdl]

If Grace thinks they are pretty, she’ll say so in her write up. They’ll also have her independent appraisal.
those two things mean a whole lot to many people who are her customers / potential customers.

Grace isn’t perfect. She’s human. But all that said above instills a trust to purchase from her much more than random P2P for many buyers.

So just send the stones and forget about them What if they get there and she decides not to consign them they come back. Too much stress