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Engagement Ring (Time Sensitive)

clueless89

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Jan 6, 2016
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Happy New Years everybody! I'm located in the New York area and am looking to purchase an engagement ring. I'm in a rush and need to place an order by this weekend (at the latest) with the expectation that it arrives early to mid- next week. I don't want to make a rash / impulsive decision, so decided I would reach out to the experienced diamond community for your thoughts / input. From the threads I've been able to read already, everybody has suggested James Allen, Brian Gavin, Whiteflash, Good Old Gold and/or High Performance Diamond. I could physically visit GOG to view diamonds in-person, which would be nice, but have also read they charge a slight premium relative to the online retailers (given their brick & mortar presence, reporting and educational materials). Would anybody be able to recommend the best bang for my buck? Ideally looking to spend around $15k all-in (with setting), but could stretch up to $20k if you believe the different would be noticeable. Looking for something simple / conservative, yet elegant. Nothing too flashy.

Separately, any thoughts on platinum vs. white gold?

Thanks in advance all!
 

PintoBean

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Any nickel allergies? If so, opt for platinum.

I second IDJ if you can make it to NYC, even faster turnaround.
 

clueless89

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Jan 6, 2016
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Yeah, I'm in the city, so just a short subway ride away. No nickel allergies that I'm aware of, but she also doesn't ever wear rings...

How do they compare to GOG?
 

PintoBean

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If you are already in the city, IDJ is great fun to visit in person. Call ahead, tell them what you are looking for, and arrange an appointment time. They will have diamonds and settings ready for you to look at.

I haven't worked in the city since 2011, but when I did, I would pop in at lunch, pick out jewelry, get it set, resized, etc., and pick it up the next day at lunch or after work. In their old location, the bench seemed to be in the same building or close by for the turnaround to be that quick.

My friend got an engagement ring from IDJ this year. He got to visit IDJ at their current location, which I haven't had the pleasure of visiting yet. He called or emailed ahead and gave them his budget, target specs, and links to settings he liked as a starting point. He used the gabriel and co website to pick out settings he and his now wife liked. IDJ ended up creating the setting in house at a price that was more competitive than the Gabriel and co setting my friend liked. My friend took two lunch break visits to pick the diamond out. Lolol. He's efficient! My brain is a bit fogged up since I'm a congested mess pumped full of DayQuil, but I think the turn around was less than two weeks for this ring. My friend then took it to an independent appraiser in NYC david Wolf I think his name was? I wanted my friend to have peace of mind with his purchase, so I encouraged him to take the ring to an independent appraiser.

I hope this helps, and isn't the mad ramblings of Pintobean with a cold... :whistle:
 

diamondseeker2006

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ID Jewelry is known for good value for the money, while Good Old Gold is known for a wide variety of excellent cut diamonds including some specialty cuts (they show you light performance, too). GOG also has great lifetime upgrade policies on most diamonds. I think either one may be able to get you a diamond set by the middle of next week, but you need to make an appointment with one or the other immediately and tell them your budget and some preferences as to color and clarity and diamond shape so they can have stones ready for you to view when you come in. I personally think Saturday is pushing it for a finished ring early next week. I'd try to go before Saturday, if possible. I am not sure if IDJ is open on Saturday or not, but GOG is. I have personally dealt with GOG multiple times and recommend them highly.

Definitely platinum, but you will be at the mercy of what they happen to have in stock as they won't have time to order a setting.
 

Gypsy

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They are more affordable than GOG.

Also go to Brilliantly Engaged. Actually they are my favorite NY vendor.

Call and make an appointment at them. You will DEFINITELY find something great between these vendors.
 

PintoBean

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I would say, call IDJ in the AM and see if you can pop in at lunch tomorrow or Friday. They shut down Saturday for religious observances.

As for GOG, if and when you have time to go out to Massapequa, when you make your appointment, confirm that their bench guy (Pete? I don't remember but I think it was Pete when I was there years ago) is there or when he will be there next in case they have a diamond and a setting In stock that makes your heart sing.

BE is one of my favorites as well, they made my holy grail settin that is my avatar, and other precious pieces.

But for in person, quick turnaround, and bang for the buck, I would say try IDJ first. If you just don't click with them, move onto BE and GOG.
 

victorian10

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Nov 6, 2015
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I just got my wedding band through Michal C. Fina online, they are discontinuing their Tacori line and were offering 60-70% off all settings! Too bad I already had my Tacori. We purchased my ering from Since 1910.... if you put a designer ring in your cart, your cost is lower on the diamond than the diamond would be by itself. My sister has white gold.... hand sanitizer eats away at the plating on white gold. I have platinum and I love it!
 

clueless89

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Perfect - thanks for the recommendation everybody! Keep them coming - the more, the merrier.

I'll definitely start out with IDJ - will try to swing by before the weekend. I definitely love value - it's not at the expense of quality though, right?
 

PintoBean

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clueless89 said:
Perfect - thanks for the recommendation everybody! Keep them coming - the more, the merrier.

I'll definitely start out with IDJ - will try to swing by before the weekend. I definitely love value - it's not at the expense of quality though, right?

Not at all! Like I said, for peace of mind, go to an independent appraiser to verify you got at least what you paid for!
 

PintoBean

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Independent appraisers I found under the resources tab that are in NY:

https://www.pricescope.com/appraisers/new_york

The one my friend used in NYC - david wolf, is a part of just appraisals. He had a good experience with him.

I have used Barry Block a few times myself, but he's in Nassau County, which might not be as convenient, unless you'd like to make a day of it and hit up Roosevelt Field Mall :dance:
 

clueless89

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Jan 6, 2016
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Thanks very much, all. Very, very helpful. In terms of diamond quality / specs, what can I expect to get for my price point? Everybody rants and raves about the H&A cut, so that's what I've been leanings towards (but haven't seen anything yet). Just wanted to get a benchmark so I know what I'm getting myself into before shopping.
 

PintoBean

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Do you know what shape, size, setting style she likes? It sounds like you understand that she wants something not flashy.

Can you talk to her about her expectations and desires in an e-ring? Is she color sensitive?

For example, one friend was advised by his MIL that if he wanted his now wife to wear her e-ring every day, keep it in a solitaire and not go over a carat.

My friend who went to IDJ recently had already looked at maul stores with his wife, found what they saw to be too tinted and pricey, poorly cut, etc. so he and his now wife had an idea of what they don't want, using their eyes and wallets as gauges. His wife knew that she wanted princess cut in a halo. He wanted minimum parameters 1 ct, h vs2 excellent polish, symmetry, GIA or AGS and to split his budget a certain way for halo and diamond. He did do better and went over 1 ct a little, and color and clarity higher.

Since you are in a time crunch, you will have to put your faith in IDJ's hands to get you the most band for the buck. If you had time, you could put stones on hold and have a dialog with fellow PSers about the pros and cons of each stone.
 

partgypsy

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With your price point I'd definitely do platinum. It is classy, do not have to worry about chemical reactions and does not wear down like a gold setting would. I think it would be good to get a wee bit of guidance from your intended, such as what diamond shape she prefers and what size range. Once you have that information, to go to the vendor with your specs. I also believe try to get an ideal cut stone for your price range. Read the tutorials here before you go. If you post specs on possible stones others here can give you feedback.

(deleted the AV I posted, as that is such a different look than idea cut round brilliant, better for him to look in person what appeals).
To me the below would be a great choice, as it can be ready in 3? days? It seems GOG has more hearts and arrows idea cuts to choose from than ID jewelry, if you wanted to stick with a hearts and arrows stone.
http://www.goodoldgold.com/ecommerce/platinum-mark-morrell-pettite-torchiere-engagement-ring-w-1-25ct-hearts-and-arrows-round-diamond.html
 

clueless89

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Jan 6, 2016
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Thanks, guys. Very helpful. I'll definitely go for Platinum then. I like the "Mark Morrell" ring you forwarded from GoG. I'd go for a slightly thinner band though. See attached for the style / look we're going for and let me know your thoughts. Any further guidance would be much appreciated. picture_3.png picture_2.png picture_1.png
 

partgypsy

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Both vendors should have styles very similar to what you posted, which is a very classic look. It just boils down to who has the stone you want and whether they can set it for you in your very short time frame.
 

wildcat03

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Apr 11, 2011
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I think the Mark Morrell setting is done custom for each stone, so that takes time (although I adore it!). I strongly suggest the vatché u-113 which both stores carry.

I'd suggest IDJ (call ahead to let them know so they can pull some stones) and would strongly endorse Brilliantly Engaged after a phone call I had with Mark Turnowski recently. I've never worked with Good Old Gold but their reputation is stellar, so you can't go wrong there.

Since your timeline is quite short, I'd call all these vendors and ask them to have some suggestions ready.
 

Blingalingaling

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Hi! If you're planning to be on Long Island, you might try HL Gross & Bro. Jewelers in Garden City. They are "Since 1910.com" on-line and this is their B&M store. They can source you a stone or they might have something you're looking for right there. They have a beautiful selection of settings from Tacori, A. Jaffe and many other major companies. I found them to be extremely helpful and easy to work with! The store is beautiful, they're open on Saturday and Sundays and they have a wonderful selection! Good luck to you!
 

cinnamonstick

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Another vote IDJ. :) GL! Update us!
 

solgen

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clueless89|1452458155|3973784 said:
Purchased the following ring and setting:

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/engagement-ring-thoughts-on-this-1-5ct.218698/

What are people's thoughts on an independent appraisal? Thanks to everybody for their advice - much appreciated!

Depends on your reason for it. Even for insurance purposes it's not really needed as the GIA cert should suffice unless you had some elaborate $5k+ setting. If it's for peace of mind then that's up to you but I personally would not bother.
 

cinnamonstick

Brilliant_Rock
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Jun 14, 2009
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572
IA?

I spent $65 on an independent appraiser and pretty much was a waste of $. I really honestly don't feel like she knew "as much as I did" stalking PS. Maybe should I say, her advice/ input was not any better than anything I heard on PS. She disagreed that a whisp could impact light refraction and I read mostly to the contrary

I ended up returning the diamond that she looked/evaluated. I purchased one that I consider better (crisper). I trusted the vendor that I worked with, so no need to return to her. It was good for my peace of mind but once I built trust with my vendor, there was no need to return to her. And again, I'm going to go ahead and say the advice here on PS was free. Her advice cost me $65 and I do not feel it was nearly as good.

If you dont go with a trusted vendor on PS, then absolutely! Otherwise, you're probably safe. Save the $ and do your homework w PS.
 

clueless89

Rough_Rock
Joined
Jan 6, 2016
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https://www.instagram.com/p/BAgC4QIudZn/

Finally picked this beauty up today. Seamless experience with ID Jewelry (IDJ). Thanks to everybody for their recommendation! I can't stress how pleasant it was to work with Yekutiel and his team. Extremely professional and knowledgeable about the trade. All I did was mentioned I was from PriceScope and provided him with my budget. I didn't have the slightest idea of what I was looking for, but he certainly did. Fell in love with the first diamond he showed me. Looked at similar diamonds online through PriceScope, Blue Nile, James Allen, Brian Gavin, Whiteflash, etc. Every outlet was at least $2-3k more expensive. Also price checked through friends and referrals - anything that cost less also ranked terribly on HCA. Extremely quick turnaround as well (<1 day). Thanks PriceScope and the IDJ team!

Will be proposing Saturday - wish me luck! :angel:
 

Gypsy

Super_Ideal_Rock
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OMG. What a gorgoeus ring!!
 

cinnamonstick

Brilliant_Rock
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Messages
572
clueless89|1452739351|3975722 said:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BAgC4QIudZn/

Finally picked this beauty up today. Seamless experience with ID Jewelry (IDJ). Thanks to everybody for their recommendation! I can't stress how pleasant it was to work with Yekutiel and his team. Extremely professional and knowledgeable about the trade. All I did was mentioned I was from PriceScope and provided him with my budget. I didn't have the slightest idea of what I was looking for, but he certainly did. Fell in love with the first diamond he showed me. Looked at similar diamonds online through PriceScope, Blue Nile, James Allen, Brian Gavin, Whiteflash, etc. Every outlet was at least $2-3k more expensive. Also price checked through friends and referrals - anything that cost less also ranked terribly on HCA. Extremely quick turnaround as well (<1 day). Thanks PriceScope and the IDJ team!

Will be proposing Saturday - wish me luck! :angel:

Holy smoke I JUST...literally..... commented and <3 the video! Lol! Hahaha!

It's pretty for sure! I am thrilled to hear IDJ took care of you! Great choice and setting! :appl:
 

cinnamonstick

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jun 14, 2009
Messages
572
Good luck on Saturday....not that you will need it! Jaw will drop to the FLOOR! ;-)
 
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