First time buying an engagment ring

[bruce23]

Hi everyone,

First off I want to say thank you to pricescope and everyone on here because I have searched and searched and found tons of useful info on this site. Now, I am buying an engagment ring probably by Friday and want to see what everyone thinks of my options. The total I will be comfortable spending is $4000 max. We are from a small town and she only knows jewelry quality from local mall stores like kay and zales, she recently researched and found for that they are way over priced and can get a better deal online, she told me this and I am glad but also so confused and nervous on what to buy.

I been searching for probably a total of 100 hours online and have found that b2cjewels seems to have the lowest prices on loose diamonds, I also know that my gf really likes the round halo setting. I seen many reviews on b2c and they all seem great, the only thing is I have never seen it talked about on here, unless I overlooked it or didn't search hard enough. So if anyone has bought from them it would be greatly appreciated to know what you thought of their quality, or even if you can post a pic!

Anyways here is the setting I would be getting if I buy from them: http://www.b2cjewels.com/Diamond-Ac...nd-Engagement-Ring-14K-White-Gold-6037-1.aspx

And here are a couple diamonds I been looking at:

http://b2cjewels.com/dd-2342538-0.90-carat-Round-diamond-I-color-SI2-clarity.aspx

http://b2cjewels.com/dd-2661431-0.93-carat-Round-diamond-J-color-SI2-clarity.aspx

http://b2cjewels.com/dd-2538299-0.91-carat-Round-diamond-J-color-SI2-clarity.aspx

http://b2cjewels.com/dd-2874767-0.90-carat-Round-diamond-J-color-SI2-clarity.aspx

http://b2cjewels.com/dd-2701883-0.85-carat-Round-diamond-J-color-SI1-clarity.aspx

http://b2cjewels.com/dd-2756240-0.86-carat-Round-diamond-I-color-SI1-clarity.aspx


Does anybody have any feedback or a better diamond for that price? ($3000 max for the diamond as the setting is $1000)

Does anyone reccomend another site that would have better prices?

Any help and comments/feedback would be greatly appreciated, Thanks!

 

[slg47]

Hi and welcome!

I recommend starting with an excellent cut diamond. Also, with SI clarity grades, it is best to select from a vendor who has the stones so they can tell you if the diamond is eye-clean (no visible inclusions).

I would recommend a slightly smaller diamond with an excellent cut, for example
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-SI1-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1473429.asp

here is a setting that could work
http://www.jamesallen.com/engagement-rings/pave/-18k-White-Gold-Pave-Set-Diamond-Engagement-Ring.html

 

[Kekoa82]

I was in a similar boat to you. Never bought an engagement ring, felt flustered, and was not sure what to look for. I ended up buying a diamond and setting from Good Old Gold. I spoke with Marie from there. She was great. I kind of knew what setting I wanted and luckily they worked with that vendor. She also gave me some other vendors to look at who made similar settings. She also found me a diamond and schooled me on some common diamond knowledge. I then posted links here for the setting and the diamond to get people's opinions.

Good luck.

 

[webdiva]

I was in a similar boat to you. Never bought an engagement ring, felt flustered, and was not sure what to look for. I ended up buying a diamond and setting from Good Old Gold. I spoke with Marie from there. She was great. I kind of knew what setting I wanted and luckily they worked with that vendor. She also gave me some other vendors to look at who made similar settings. She also found me a diamond and schooled me on some common diamond knowledge. I then posted links here for the setting and the diamond to get people's opinions.

Good luck.

Ditto - here's a nice diamond that's only .17 mm smaller in diameter than some of the .90 cts you posted:
$3271 with the wire discount.

Another option in different optics - some trade off in fire but still sparkly:
http://goodoldgold.com/diamond/8829/ - $3197 - add to cart to see price

Vintage style diamond (different type of sparkle/glow - see Good Old Gold's videos to see the difference):
http://goodoldgold.com/diamond/8246/ - $3087

Ask Marie to source a halo for you around $800-900. If not, find out the halo price and we'll find a diamond in your budget. She can also suggest diamonds to you. Another source of lower budget stones/settings is IDJewelry in NY. Good luck and congrats!

 

[bruce23]

Thanks everyone for all the help! I was jist wondering if there was a reason nobody is recommending b3cjewels since they have lower prices then other places? Just curious and I know you all have a lot more experience at this then me but it dont make sense to me of paying more for the same stone at another vendor. Thanks again

 

[farmer gal]

I would contact IDJ and tell them you are from pricescope and the style and specs you are looking for along with budget. They really do beautiful work at great prices.
http://idjewelryonline.com/index.php

 

[slg47]

Thanks everyone for all the help! I was jist wondering if there was a reason nobody is recommending b3cjewels since they have lower prices then other places? Just curious and I know you all have a lot more experience at this then me but it dont make sense to me of paying more for the same stone at another vendor. Thanks again

because with SI1 and SI2 clarity stones they might not be eye-clean so you want to make sure the vendor can evaluate them for you. Also it helps to have images and I do not believe b2c provides either of these services.

 

[webdiva]

Thanks everyone for all the help! I was jist wondering if there was a reason nobody is recommending b3cjewels since they have lower prices then other places? Just curious and I know you all have a lot more experience at this then me but it dont make sense to me of paying more for the same stone at another vendor. Thanks again

Because they're NOT the same stone. There are many different specifications that are different and you need to get an ASET and Idealscope to see how the diamond performs. IDJewelry and GOG can do this for you. GOG already provides them, saving you time. It's like the difference between a BMW 325 and an M3. They're the same shape but they have completely different performance. The stones I posted are the M3s. If you want a ring by Friday, your best bet is those two vendors.

 

[bruce23]

Just a quick update, as I have been taking all your advice and thank you for taking the time to help.

I put b2c on the back burner for now and contacted idjonline and am waiting for a response, but found this loose stone by browsing, any opinions on it?

http://idjewelryonline.com/diamond_...thfrom=&depthto=&tablefrom=&tableto=&item_id=


Looks like a good price for a VS2 and exc cut, unless I am missing something. The only problem is I havent really seen a setting I like, I guess worse case is I good buy the setting from b2c and the stone from idj? I'm not sure if idj would be able to make that setting for the same price. Well tomorrow I am going to look at GOG just wanted to post that for now and say thanks I really appreciate the help!

 

[farmer gal]

that diamond looks like it has some possiblity

Here are some halo settings you could inquire about if you like them

http://idjewelryonline.com/product_info.php?cPath=95_100&products_id=14842

http://idjewelryonline.com/product_info.php?cPath=95_100&products_id=15386

http://idjewelryonline.com/product_info.php?cPath=95_100&products_id=15384

http://idjewelryonline.com/product_info.php?cPath=95_100&products_id=14698

http://idjewelryonline.com/product_info.php?cPath=95_100&products_id=14917

http://idjewelryonline.com/product_info.php?cPath=95_100&products_id=9479

http://idjewelryonline.com/product_info.php?cPath=95_100&products_id=13354

http://idjewelryonline.com/product_info.php?cPath=95_100&products_id=9471

http://idjewelryonline.com/product_info.php?cPath=95_100&products_id=13355