ERD and an appraisal

[bboy1977]

Hello All,

I am considering purchasing a ring from Mark Turnowsky at Engagements Rings Direct. The diamond is GIA certified. Is it reccomended to still get an appraisal? What is the purpose/benefits? How much does it typically cost?

Also, would anyone reccomend ERD for settings. He didn''t seem to have many at his office location. Reading this board I gather he sends them out to another person for the mounting.

Thanks

 

[jaz464]

Does ERD provide an adequate appraisal for insurance purposes? If not, you would need one to give to your insurance company.

 

[neatfreak]

Hi Bboy,

I can answer your questions hopefully! Mark includes two appraisals with the ring. 1 is what you paid, other is the retail value. This is helpful when you go to insure your stone, and that plus the GIA report and pictures is more than enough to insure it without problems. If you want an appraisal after, it would only be for piece of mind, as Mark is a trustworthy guy and his paperwork is perfectly fine for insurance purposes.

As for the settings, lets just say that Mark has/can get more than he might have in his office. He has a lot of connections, so my suggestion would be to browse around, see what you like, and ask Mark about any settings you find that you might like. He has GREAT people who do custom work for him, but he also has access to other things that he might not have for display in his office. Have you seen his website? He has a ton on there. He also has access to other things, so it's always worth an ask with him. He knows people.

Mine is from Mark and I couldn't be happier. His customer service is excellent and he went above and beyond to help me out.

Please let me know if you have more questions!

 

[EAT]

Yes, it is important to get an appraisal for insurance purposes. Mark first appraised the stone in a temporary setting, and then we brought it back to him for another appraisal after it was finally set.

 

[laplacz]

Was in his office today. He will do the appraisal for you for submission to an insureance carrier. I had a great experience today. Highly RECOMENDED

 

[bboy1977]

Thanks for all the info everyone. I didn''t even think about an appraisal for insurance purposes. Is there a tutorial, guide or reccomended thread on engagement ring insurance? I know Mark provides an in-house appraisal with the purchase of a diamond. I thought the purpose of the appraisal was to get a 3-rd party opinion on the quality of the stone and that it was a must when using any NYC Diamond District vendor. I did a search on his name i n these forums and have seens quite a bit of praise for him. So I''m thinking I might need the independant appraisal.

I checked out his website, like you mentioned. There are many wonderful settings on the site, but I''m confused as to how this works. For vendors like ERD, Whiteflash Blue Nile etc. do they have these diamonds and settings in stock? Where do they get them from? When I went to their offices I told them what I was looking for and they then conducted a search on the internet and then told me to come back in a few days while they gather the diamonds for viewing. Do different vendors have access to the same inventory? If it''s the same inventory, why choose one vendor over the other?

Sorry for all the newbie questions, but this is my first purchase.

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 5/8/2007 10:41:47 PM
Author: bboy1977
Thanks for all the info everyone. I didn't even think about an appraisal for insurance purposes. Is there a tutorial, guide or reccomended thread on engagement ring insurance? I know Mark provides an in-house appraisal with the purchase of a diamond. I thought the purpose of the appraisal was to get a 3-rd party opinion on the quality of the stone and that it was a must when using any NYC Diamond District vendor. I did a search on his name i n these forums and have seens quite a bit of praise for him. So I'm thinking I might need the independant appraisal.


I checked out his website, like you mentioned. There are many wonderful settings on the site, but I'm confused as to how this works. For vendors like ERD, Whiteflash Blue Nile etc. do they have these diamonds and settings in stock? Where do they get them from? When I went to their offices I told them what I was looking for and they then conducted a search on the internet and then told me to come back in a few days while they gather the diamonds for viewing. Do different vendors have access to the same inventory? If it's the same inventory, why choose one vendor over the other?


Sorry for all the newbie questions, but this is my first purchase.

No apologies necessary! We ALL had the same questions when we joined PS.

I'll try to answer them all.

Appraisal: At this point, it's for your own peace of mind. Mark IS a very trusted vendor and will not intentionally cheat you. But mistakes do happen occasionally, so some would still recommend a third party appraisal. We haven't had one because we trust Mark based on his reputation here. But by ALL MEANS get an independent appraisal for your peace of mind if you want one. Mark isn't just any random diamond district vendor. He gets most of his referrals from PS and is a stand up guy. No worries about working with Mark. He's not the same as working through a random booth in the diamond district.

Settings: Mark stocks Vache, some antique settings, some basic settings, etc. If you order something "designer" like Vatche, mark would order the setting from the company custom made for your stone. But due to connections in the business he might have access to other settings too. So if you find something you like elsewhere, ask him about it. He might be able to get it. He ALSO does custom design work in house and has a number of trusted jewelers that he contracts out with for custom work. His custom stuff is also top notch.

Diamonds: Mark just like any other vendor, has access to a number of the same stones. Many stones are "virtual" in that none of the vendors has them, but they can all access them. You should choose a vendor based on your trust for them, their prices, and their customer service. Mark excels in all these areas, and his prices are always very competitive. Places like Whiteflash and GOG DO have a number of stones in-house, but can also call in "virtual" stones. The nice thing about working with Mark is that he sees a lot of stones being in the DD and he can easily access thousands of virtual stones for you.

MANY of us have worked with Mark, and I can say with confidence that he is a really great guy. With a really great eye for quality stones. If you can just trust him to call in some winners he will save you a LOT of looking and hard work on your part because he will weed out the dogs. If you go to Bluenile for example, no one is screening the dogs for you, you're on your own. So that's the difference there.

Hope that helps!

 

[bboy1977]

great! Thanks for all the info