Heard of Vanguard? Looking for amazing benchman in NYC...

[Piglet9j7]

Has anyone used Vanguard Jewelry (http://www.vanguard-jewelry.com/) to have anything custom made? What is their reputation? And/or what was the experience like?

A friend of mine had her e-ring and wedding band made by them and they are gorgeous, but she found them on a whim on 47th Street and doesn't know much about diamonds herself. Their work looks to be comparable to Leon Mege's, but I'm wondering if anyone has first hand experience working with them.

 

[Harriet]

Re: Heard of Vanguard? Looking for amazing benchman in NYC.

I haven't worked with them, but have looked at their pieces. Their pave work is good, although their prongs and shanks could be daintier. For what it's worth, they used to bench for Tiffany (a friend who worked for Tiffany questioned them and confirmed their claim).

 

[Piglet9j7]

Re: Heard of Vanguard? Looking for amazing benchman in NYC.

How do you think it compares to Leon Mege? Keeping in mind I would rather bring a picture and have the setting copied, or slightly altered.

 

[ChunkyCushionLover]

Re: Heard of Vanguard? Looking for amazing benchman in NYC.

How do you think it compares to Leon Mege? Keeping in mind I would rather bring a picture and have the setting copied, or slightly altered.

Just by looking at the photographs they don't compare. The prongs are bigger, metal is thicker, more metal on the adge of halo bezel's etc. No comparison although you might want to see both in person in normal magnification.

What are the prices like for Vanguard pieces?

 

[Harriet]

Re: Heard of Vanguard? Looking for amazing benchman in NYC.

How do you think it compares to Leon Mege? Keeping in mind I would rather bring a picture and have the setting copied, or slightly altered.

Their metal work is not as dainty, but they say it can be if that's the look you want. They are less expensive than LM. I'd recommend them to someone who can't or won't work with LM.

 

[Gailey]

Re: Heard of Vanguard? Looking for amazing benchman in NYC.

I'm not sure we're looking at photographs of actual pieces of jewellery. Could they be high quality CAD generated images?