Help New Here and thinking of buying studs

[cali6869]

Need help guys, Im brand new here, not even 5mins...
Anyways...I''ve been reading how you guys feel about buying at the "maul" stores. But I came across this deal, and I want to know what you guys think about it.
First off I dont have too much money, Im looking into spending $1K or maybe a 1.4k on a set of diamond studs set on white gold.
So I went to macys and they had this set of studs 3/4 ctw siting on white gold. It said it retailed for 2125.00 and they had the "superbuy" for $999.00, but I can also get employee discount from someone I know, so gives me an extra 20% for do you gusy thinik I should get it? for $799?
The stone of course dont come with certificate, as far as I can tell, they didnt have anything inside, they might have some color, but honestly is hard for me to tell since Im only a rookie when it comes to diamonds.
What should I do, buy them or just wait a lil and buy from here?

 

[Mara]

cali..I'd save your pennies because Macys studs are going to be a piece of crap. Or rather two pieces of crap.

I too have coveted some of their pretty jewels but in my heart I know that they are selling me frozen spit for alot more money that it's worth. I mean in reality, when is a diamond bracelet that is $1800 going to be 'marked down' every few weeks to $695. They still have to turn a profit. So what that means is that that diamond bracelet is probably worth all of $400 or similar and they are still making a profit off of the sucker (almost me) who giddilby buys it for $695, not even to mention who buys it for $1795! Now factor your earrings into that same equation. Discounts of that magnitude just don't make sense. There's no reason Macys needs to discount below their own cost or their comfortability price in order to sell a pair of earrings, or a diamond bracelet. I have a feeling that most of their jewelry type diamonds are I or J in color and maybe SI at BEST in quality, but with no certs and no cut information, you really have no idea what you are getting!!!




That said, $1k is a good amount for a build your own pair of studs--especially online with some of the vendors who deal with smaller stones. You can get something like a .35c on each ear for (.70ctw) with H color and SI clarity which means they will be white and eye-clean; and I guarantee you hands down these studs will knock the Macys crap out of the water and probably even look BIGGER due to their much better cut.

I am a huge fan of build your own studs especially since they usually end up being the same amount for 100% better quality as something in a store that would be pre-set. Pre-set to me is pretty scary because what are they trying to hide under those prongs that I can't see? And no cert? Forget it!

Shop on your own buddy, you are much better off.




Ran a quick search on Pscope and found these through www.goodoldgold.com . They are brokered Hearts and Arrows stones with excellent symmetry and HCA scores, and Jonathan is excellent to work with. Also in an excellently cut stone, the 'I' color should not be a problem at all...but if the stones were not well cut (ala Macys) you would see more color.




Recently some others have also done build your own using Jonathan's smaller stones. Add in something like $100 maybe for the white gold settings and you are at about $1150, but hands down you have something way more amazing and also personally built.

Pair #1:




.35 I SI H&A AGS0 $500


.36 I SI H&A AGS0 $506




Pair #2:


.35 H SI H&A AGS0 $531


.34 H SI H&A AGS0 $511

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

Hey Cali...Ijust did a real quick search on GoodOldGold and found this pair...Click on the link...

Studs 0.734cttw. H SI1 H&A

With these stones set in White Gold you should be right at about your budget limit of $1400.These stones are awesome and have great light return results and I think are a great balance for price, size, and CUT..H will face up very white and Jonathan is discriminating when it comes to si-1's..

Good luck and check out the link...

 

[Jennifer5973]

You cannot appreciate just how BAD most diamonds sold at department stores, like Macys, are until you put them up side-by-side with quality diamonds, like those sold my many of the reputable vendors here.

Years ago, I didn't know any better either and bought a couple of things for myself at a dept. store...when i hold up these pieces against the newer things I've gotten, it is literally amazing...the dept. stuff looks like frozen spit next to my clear, icy hot dimaonds, even the SI and G-H stones...

Once, i was in a local, high-end dept store (a big one in the Northeast, but not Macys) and I asked what the quality of the diamonds was in a ring I liked....she told me "superior" and I said, "that's nice, but I want to know color & clarity...." She repeated, "Well, they are SUPERIOR diamonds." It was like talking to a wall becasue no matter how I explained myself, she kept answering that everythng was "Superior" quality. needless to say, I left and never looked back at another dept. store for diamonds. I'll buy a funky pair of gold earrings or something, but never gems.

Mara is right on and I second that opinion. A wise old man once told me "Do it once--do it right." I think this applies to jewelry and diamonds, even if it means waiting until you have the cash together.

Good luck.

 

[cali6869]

Wow! you guys are great! thanks for all the great help.
Im convinced that I wont buy from macys, Even if they give me employee discount!
anyways for the ones that you guys showed me, how do I know which one is the best deal or value. Seems like all of this are great deals, just dont know how to pick.
Mara, is there a way you can link me to those .88 studs? I wnet to the website, but I dkont konw how to find them.
Thanks
CArlos

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

----------------
On 12/19/2003 1:14:51 PM Jennifer5973 wrote:






Mara is right on and I second that opinion. A wise old man once told me 'Do it once--do it right.' I think this applies to jewelry and diamonds, even if it means waiting until you have the cash together.

Good luck.

----------------

Hey Jen:

This applies to women too...

Sometimes it's hard finding a good apple in the bunch...

 

[Mara]

Jennifer, I completely agree. I get the Macys catalog in the mail every few weeks and I see the same stuff marked down. Plus the other interesting (scary) thing is that there are these 'premium cut' diamond engagement rings for friggin expensive amounts considering what you are getting. A 1c for $4999....with no information color, clarity or cut. Just that it's a premium engagement ring. Really scary.

 

[fire&ice]

I'm confused. Are the Macy's earrings .75 total carat weight or for each ear?

I'm not going to say buy the Macy's earrings. But, I went to our local department store. I passed the "fine" jewelry section on my way to my mission. They had about 5 pairs of .25 each .50 TCW diamond studs. I had to look as I am planning on getting my niece a pair for her graduation. 9 studs were a cut above frozen spit. But, 1 little stud screamed at me. So, I wonder if one can pick & choose. The price was *very* inexpensive. I want to say around $300.00 or so.

That said, I would have no qualms using good I1's as studs. Very few people get up close & personal to your ears. I wonder, since the diamond sits *so* close to the ears if color would become more of an issue? But, if one wants to set in yellow gold, would the color matter as much?

I know white jewelry is the flavor of the day. I wonder if yellow gold will stand more a test of time. She's a hip kid & wears mostly white jewlery. But, she will probably wear these for a long time. I wonder if gold is more prudent for the long run?

I do like the idea of 1/3 of a carat in each ear. But, because this size is out of the melee range, how much more will it be?

 

[Jennifer5973]

Hi there.... Shouldn't "do it once, do it right" apply to just about everything??????

I dunno...While I think you can play aorund with studs' quality more than an e-ring, I know I notice the diamonds in women's ears and if they sparkle or not. You may do well with SI's, G-H-I or even J with some flourescence in there, but you still need a decent cut and some sparkle. But hey--what do I know?

And Mara--you should have been there with that woman and the "superior" conversation...it was like "who's on first" but worse... You would have flipped out at how bad the saleperson was...

 

[fire&ice]

Maybe some of the nicer stores like Sax sells h/i/j already set diamond e.r. I would venture that PQ is right department stores probably sell in the M range. They may say they are g/h/i; but, I don't believe it.

 

[Mara]

Yeah but a H/I/J at a Saks would cost you about 2ce what it would in a regular store...markup in those upscale dept stores is ridiculous on every item. People who tend to buy jewelry in a Saks or similar are usually those who would shop there regardless, hence more disposable income.

 

[Mara]

I'd love to see the pictures of the .88c set...if you want to email me the pictures at [email protected] I can post them to the thread. Basically she probably sent you images of the stones themselves, IdealScope images (red and black with arrows) and the certification reports.




Did she note they are eye-clean? They should be realllyyyy nice. Anyhow I agree on the 3 prong white gold basket settings, that will show off as much of the stone as possible. I personally like screw-back settings, but some like the poussette which is like a tension clip thing....but screw-back for me has been very secure though sleeping in them wouldn't work, too pointy.

 

[cali6869]

Sure Mara, I'll send you the pics right away, can you give a lil analysis or summary of what you see? I have no idea of what Im looking at.
Thanks
Carlos

 

[Mara]

Yes I'll post the pictures and then comment...that way others can chime in as well

 

[fire&ice]

I got my Sax catalog (or rather "book") a couple of weeks ago. I was very surprised that they were in the engagment ring biz. Seems like in a big way. The catalog featured some pretty heavy hittin stuff. Their baguette setting looked amazingly similar to my Vatche. I wonder if they make Sax's settings as well. Add that one to the rumor mill. They have always had a nice bridal department (albeit, as you say, very pricey). I was surprised about the diamonds though. Have I just never noticed or did they just get into that business?

 

[fire&ice]

O.K. - everyone can beat a little on me. She's just a kid & wouldn't know the dif. between super loupers & department store. She'd be happy they were real. I'd like to get something nice & average - above average than anything sold at dept. stores or maul stores. I'm thinking a nice make J/I1 stone. I've got a year. I've just begun planning.

 

[Mara]

IdealScope image of the first stone. This is taken using the IdealScope tool which measures light return from the stone to your eye. RED means light returned from the stone to your eye, it is desirable. Black is contrast which is desirable in certain amounts as well (arrows are great contrast, as well as various other areas of the stone). What you don't want to see is 'clear' or 'white' areas. A stone like this picture will be amazing in person. The slight leakage along the edges is very typical of a regular H&A stone and you shouldn't be worried.

 

[Mara]

Picture of the actual stone...very nice!!!! Look at those arrows. You will not see those in a regular maul cut stone!!!

 

[Mara]

2nd Stone: AGS report, again showing the primary inclusions and the color, carat weight, etc.

 

[Mara]

2nd Stone: Hearts, again with the excellent symmetry. Plus it's fun to tell your girl... I got you Hearts and Arrows stones ...for LESS than a typical pre-set pair

 

[Mara]

2nd Stone: Inclusion again eye clean--primary in the table...will be covered by intense sparkle and non-magnification.

 

[Mara]

2nd Stone: IdealScope image, another eye-popper

First one looks paler but it could be the lighting, in any case you really don't want to see white or leakage in the table, which neither of these stones has.

 

[Mara]

2nd Stone: The image of the actual stone....*swoon*.

This picture is awesome, I love the sparkles.

 

[Mara]

Bottom line? These stones are amazing especially for the price!!! They are 'I' colored but I don't see a tinge of yellow in those stone pictures. Really nice.




For comparison....listen to this. My fiance got me 1ctw H VS earrings about 2 years ago for the grand ole discounted price at a local 'friendly' jeweler for $2400. Retail price in the store was normally $3000.




So basically if you get this .88c pair, they will look almost as big as my 1ctw earrings because yours are better cut, and they are about $900 cheaper than what we paid 2 years ago. For visually in color/clarity about the same look. Congratulations!!




That is why I will never buy pre-set earrings again!! I want to choose my own next time...and there are some beauties out there.




I say go for it. Your girlfriend is going to pass out with happiness when she sees these charmers!

 

[Mara]

Ooh I can't wait to see the pictures

They should be stunning.




Happy Holidays!

 

[Summer]

Wow Carlos, nice to see how easily this worked out for you!

I started out looking at the pre-set diamonds at the mall stores and knew that wasn't what I wanted for myself. Besides the poor cut, clarity, and color, the stones didn't even match in terms of the size and they were suppose to be a pair....they were just awful looking! When I went to a higher end store the quality improved but the price was outrageous. I did end up getting my requirements met and am very happy, however I did alot of shopping first. I wasn't aware of Pricesope at the time. I also chose loose stones, but it took me a bit longer than it just took you.

I hope you'll be really happy with your purchase.

 

[san di]

hi carlos and mara,

these stones look really great! carlos, congratulations on your purchase. i know that linda usually sends a description of the inclusions with the pictures. can you please tell us what she said about what type of inclusions these are. although she said that they are eye clean, i'm curious to find out more about them.

thanks!

happy holidays!
san di

 

[san di]

thanks so much mara! i appreciate the info.

-san di

 

[pqcollectibles]

WOW! Mara! Great work! You should be the Price Scope personal shopper!

Beautiful earbobs, they will be! Can't wait to see the pics!

 

[cali6869]

Just wanted to say thank you to everyone here.
Thank god I found pricescope.com, otherwise I would be buying crapy earings at macys right now. I learned (tried) so much in one day, from thinking aobut buying crap at the mall, an hour later I was convinced not too, and I decided to follow everyones advise.
Now I feel so much better about buying this! Even though they are double the price from that deal at macys, I feel way better, I know Im getting great diamonds.
Even though Im not in the business of diamonds I will stick around this boards in search of my new "project", I want little diamonds for my dog tags. Does anyone know where I can look for these?
Also I will also be in search for another pair of studs, for myself now.
I'll probably get some .34 - .40, as long as they are smaller than my fiancee, otherwise I get in trouble. I will be contacting Mara again for this project

.
Well thank you everyone.
Mara You are the best!