Gong to L.A diamond district tomorrow-Advice?

[jcox]

First of all-Thank goodness for Pricescope!! I have been obsessed with the website for the past couple of weeks. Thank you for all the great info! My soon to be fiancee and I are going to the Jewelry district downtown L.A. tomorrow. I have been e-ring shopping and am not opposed to buying online, I''m just not sure what I want. I think, based on personal taste and photos that I want a radiant, cushion or asscher cut in a white gold, solataire setting. I am anxious to finally try some on! The budget is $5,000. Any advice on where to go for the best selection and reputable dealers?
So far, I am thinking:
Oscars
Inta Gems
Bridalrings
Icing on the Ring

All advice on this matter is greatly appreciated!
Thank you!
Jenny

 

[neatfreak]

Look, but DON''T BUY! Get specs of the stones (copies of certs, prices, pictures if possible, etc.) and bring them back here before you buy anything. There are some unscrupulous vendors out there especially in the DD that will make you believe you are getting the deal of the century and will put on the high pressure sales tactics to close the deal.

 

[trillionaire]

I don''t have any advice, but have fun! All of those lovely gems! Like a kid in a candy store It could be a great place to find your dream shape and setting, then have a PS recommended vendor get it for you!

 

[jcox]

Oh, thank you both!! You can get copies of the certs? Just ask them for it? I had no idea. Okay, one more question (well, for now

). A couple of the downtown vedors (Inta Gems for example) also sell online. Can I find a ring in the store and then come home and buy the same ring online to avoid sales tax? Surely not, right?
THANKS!

 

[coatimundi_org]

Hi Jenny,

Bridalrings is a good choice. They are certainly not pushy. I had a very nice experience with them--hopefully you will work with Cathy Lee. She''s a graduate gemologist and excellent to work with. They have a small lab in the back--have fun looking at stones through the microscope! We made a larger purchase there, and we would not hesitate to give them our business in the future.

I would be wary of the ground floor booths, as those vendors can be quite pushy. It''s a different experience upstairs--where it''s best if you make appointments with vendors. Intagems is on the ground floor, but they are reputable.

It varies in the mart, because there are literally thousands of vendors. Really though, they don''t all use high pressure sales tactics--at least not from the vendors I have used.

Don''t forget to check out Single Stone if you like antique styles!

Good Luck and have fun!

 

[coatimundi_org]

Date: 8/19/2008 6:38:46 PM
Author: jcox
Oh, thank you both!! You can get copies of the certs? Just ask them for it? I had no idea. Okay, one more question (well, for now

). A couple of the downtown vedors (Inta Gems for example) also sell online. Can I find a ring in the store and then come home and buy the same ring online to avoid sales tax? Surely not, right?

THANKS!

I always just jot down the numbers from the certs (the stone measurements and report #). You can do that, hop online, and run those numbers over here on PS.

 

[jcox]

Wow. This is all such an eye opening experience. Thanks for all the good wishes. I ''m actually kind of nervous! What about making an appointment? Is it totally necessary for the vendors I mentioned above? I''m not sure what time we''ll get down there tomorrow...

 

[panda08]

I''ve only been to one vendor in the L.A. Jewelry District and that was Single Stone. I made an appointment. I was looking for a loose diamond and before my appointment, I sent them an email letting them know specifically what I was looking for and gave them my budget. I thought that was really helpful because they had pulled out things ready for me to look at, which made my visit much more productive.

Have fun! I thought I knew what I was looking for by reading up on all things diamonds but I learned SO much more by looking at diamonds and mountings in real life.

 

[JoeNewbie11]

Here''s my advice:

- Figure out what carat weight of a stone $5,000 will get you if you buy on-line through a trusted PS Vendor and view those at the B&M. (If you go by how much $5,000 will get you in a B&M, you''ll be looking at smaller stones than if you buy online)

- Then when you go to look at stones in person, ask to view these carat weights in a variety of colors, I would recommend looking anywhere from F to I with your fancy shapes. See how color sensitive you are with the different shapes.

- I would also try to see different cut grades if possible (bring in the cut grade specs that PS offers on fancy shapes to the B&M). See if you can notice differences in brilliance, fire, scintillation, etc. Try to get away from the artificial lighting environments offered in their viewing rooms, these will make poor performers look good.

- Try not to get too emotional when viewing diamonds (this is hard). When you get emotional, they all seem to look amazing.

- Don''t buy anything on the first trip. Go back home and reflect on what you''ve seen. Bring back specs of you favorite stones and let the experts here help you in your evaluation.

- HAVE FUN!

 

[Kelli]

Joe in California has some great advice. What he said!

 

[kcoursolle]

Date: 8/19/2008 7:12:29 PM
Author: panda08
I''ve only been to one vendor in the L.A. Jewelry District and that was Single Stone. I made an appointment. I was looking for a loose diamond and before my appointment, I sent them an email letting them know specifically what I was looking for and gave them my budget. I thought that was really helpful because they had pulled out things ready for me to look at, which made my visit much more productive.

Have fun! I thought I knew what I was looking for by reading up on all things diamonds but I learned SO much more by looking at diamonds and mountings in real life.

If you are going to the DD, I definitely recommend going to single stone...especially if you are looking for a cushion or an asscher. They have some beautiful rings and have a lot of antique stones.

 

[:)]

Ditto to above - I have a friend whose ring came from BridalRings and she and her husband were extremely happy with the service they received (sounds like Coatimundi had good luck too). Agreed about the bottom floor stuff - stuff on the street level can be annoying because everyone kind of badgers you. Just smile and say 'just looking' - often they start trying to pull out stones and rings for you to try on wihtout even asking. I also ditto the Singlestone recommendation.

Nice try with the on line thing , but since they are based in CA (which I am assuming you are too), you would have to pay tax to ship to CA.

Just to clarify for the GIA report check - get the GIA report # and the 3 digit carat weight of the stone (if it is 1.1 carats you will enter 1.10). You need both the weight and report # to look them up at home.

You will have a fun time looking. Just browse to look at lots of shapes and get a feel for GIA or AGS graded colors so you can see what your preferences are.

 

[jcox]

Okay-you guys are all so smart and helpful. I have an idea of what I want from looking and reading about dozens of (PS recommended) stones online. I guess I''ll just ask to see everything that they have in my range and go from there. We definantly aren''t buying tomorrow! I will be back blazing tomorrow night with a lot more obnoxious questions for you all. I''ll bet you can''t wait!

Thanks again all!!

 

[zebramoray]

I would highly recommend Howard Goodman @ (213) 624-2331. Address below. I just flew out there last week from Dallas to looks at 7 large diamonds he brought in for me. 3 of them I requested he bring in from Pricescope searches that I did, the other 4 he grabed there locallly from the dealers.. He beat all PS Vendor pricing, and gave me a 2 week return policy. Very easy to work with.. His is the 2nd Generation of his Familiy Jewelery store.. Very easy to work with, no hassel or pressure.. He also lists some of his jewelery on Ebay... I have purchased 2 large diamonds from him over the past 1.5 months..

611 Wilshire Blvd Ste 900, Los Angeles, CA 90017

 

[jcox]

Just wanted to stop in and say what a fun time we had at the DD today!! My mind is swimming in diamonds! We went to Inta Gems, Bridalrings, and Singlestone. Everyone (Abir, Cathy Lee and Patti and Ari) were so helpful. I would really trust any of them. Now the trouble is choosing! I thought I had it all figured out until I tried on my first vintage cushion at Singlestone. Holy smokes it was fab!! Now I''m not sure between vintage and modern...

Thanks for all the great advice!