How big is too big?

[1000cranes]

Thanks for the info. Alot of great ideas. I would like it to be a surprise so that rules out taking her to pick. In the past we have looked at rings when we are out and about, so i feel I have a good idea of what she likes. I even asked her what she thought I should spend on a ring when we where window shopping. She said,"At least $50,000" and then after a little chuckle she said,"You dont have to spend that much, around $2,000 is fine." So I was thinking around $4,000. Put it on credit and pay it off later. I guess no more toys for me for awhile.

Well after some thought and looking around I''m decided on .7 carats +or-. I like the security and face to face of the B&M. SO its between Robbins Brothers and Kay Jewelers. Lets see if I can set them to bid against eachother, get me a smoking deal.

Thanks Again,
Daniel

 

[Mara]

eeee ixnay on the kay jewelers part. maybe robbins brothers if you give them criteria to follow. don''t you have any other jewelers who are reputable near you???

 

[JulieN]

No L I1s

 

[1000cranes]

Got any recommendations of jewelers in the San Diego area?

Why you not like Kay''s?

Thanks in Advance,
Daniel

 

[kcoursolle]

Ditto on what Mara said, kay jewelers doesn''t have great prices or great quality. Don''t be weary of online vendors, the folks here at pricescope can find you a beautiful .7+ stone and setting for under 4k. There are quality B & M dealers out there though.

 

[whatmeworry]

Daniel,
Check out Costco. Seriously.

 

[Mara]

There are a lot of San Diego gals here, hopefully they can recommend some local jewelers other than maul jewelers, but I would also recommend online PS vendors, I have purchased multiple times and been very happy with the quality, some of the best cut stones are found from PS vendors!!

 

[1000cranes]

So funny I was thinking about Costco at work today. I''ll go tomorrow and see what they got. I got like $500 dollars off a bed I just bought there. Mattress discounter bah.

All smiles,
Daniel

 

[rogue]

Ooh! San Diego! I''m from there but live in NY now. A girlfriend of mine bought her ring from Robbins Brothers in Mission Valley. She knew what kind of specs she wanted, she knew it had to be GIA for her, and she had done her research on Blue Nile and Pricescope. She didn''t even ask what their prices were. She had them lay out about 10 stones in front of her, and once she found the stone she wanted, then she asked the price. They told her something overinflated, of course. She simply whipped out a printout she made of Blue Nile and Pricescope, which clearly showed a tight range of prices for a number of stones with very similar specs, and said, "I will give you this much because this is how much I can get it for online." I''m not sure if that included tax too -- knowing my friend, it just may have. They looked at her in horror at first, but then said okay, on the condition that if they match they price, they match the "services" provided as well, in that they will not perform free checkups and cleanings and whatever else they say comes with a purchase, as the online vendors would not provide that generally. My friend got the security of being able to see the stone first (as she was looking for eye clean SI2s), and she got to see the differences between stones of G, H and I color. She had 3 separate printouts for each color depending on which she went with. Savvy girl.

 

[:)]

No Robbins Bros either - unless you study up REAL hard before you go in and make sure they know you know exactly what you are talking about.

Leo Hamel is in San Diego (off the 5 just north of downtown - you can see it on the east side of the interstate as you drive north) - prices MAY be on the higher side, but worth checking out

The pricescopers here probably would love to help you find one on line - you could save a ton that way too!

 

[devientdrow]

Date: 8/24/2006 12:55:57 AM
Author: 1000cranes
So funny I was thinking about Costco at work today. I''ll go tomorrow and see what they got. I got like $500 dollars off a bed I just bought there. Mattress discounter bah.

All smiles,
Daniel

You know believe it or not I was working out the other day and I noticed how gorgeous this girls ring was. She had a princess cut diamond in a yellow gold setting with channel set princess diamonds on the side. She was also doing the two band thing.....one diamond band on each side of the engagement ring. So I noticed how pretty her ering was and commented on it. She said she got it from costco! She said they gave her quite a bit of information on it as well, and I think it was even certified? I''m not sure though. So she had two bands on and I noticed one of the bands sparkled and the other looked dull. The dull one she got from Zales I think but the costso looked great.

I don''t know anything about Robbins Bros. I think they are here in MD as well and i''ve heard their adverts before. I would not go to Kays however. Kays, Gordons, Zales, Littmans ect ect I have been in them all. And I will get my genstone jewelry from them no problem. But please don''t waste your money on those places. Sometimes i''ll look in the window of what they have on display and some of the rings are pretty yes, in design, but i''m surprised at what they are charging for the quality! They are charging 5k to 8k for rings that I can visibly see inclusions in! With just my eyes! Through the glass! It''s insane. You could get such better size AND quality buy purchasing online. However if you are dead set against I understand. I know some people mentioned some places in your area above. Do you also have Edward Arthur? It''s another jewelry store we have in our malls here in Maryland. I got my husbands wedding band there and we took a walk in there the other day and I was surprised at some of the deals they had, in loose stones and in rings. You just have to know your stuff when you go in. They have GIA certs and EGL certs. I''d stay away from the EGL and stick to just looking at their GIA certs. I''d look through the tutorials on here and really get a feel for what cut/clarity/color you want and then go look. They actually had like 2 rings there that were really pretty, GIA certified NICE stones already in a setting for like 4k to 6k.

 

[Cehrabehra]

Date: 8/24/2006 1:13:46 AM
Author:
No Robbins Bros either - unless you study up REAL hard before you go in and make sure they know you know exactly what you are talking about.

Leo Hamel is in San Diego (off the 5 just north of downtown - you can see it on the east side of the interstate as you drive north) - prices MAY be on the higher side, but worth checking out

The pricescopers here probably would love to help you find one on line - you could save a ton that way too!

LOL I went to the robbins bros on friar road when I was down in SD earlier this month and it was fun... prices were WAY high so I doubled my price range to them so I could look at stones that were comparible to what I could get online. I never thought of going in armed. I wonder if that harp singing round is still avail at that other B&M and I could get the guy down from 30k LOL

It was funny, when I left RB the woman was trying to introduce me to a partner/team member so I could be served in her absence and she tells her a bit about what I want and then I swear she was sending a message to the other woman, she kinda tilted her head forwawrd and said, "She''s very educated on diamonds" and the other woman tilted her head back and said, "oooh" and nodded like it was some sort of code for "not much commission on her" LOL!!

 

[suzi]

Date: 8/24/2006 12:43:09 AM
Author: 1000cranes
Thanks for the info. Alot of great ideas. I would like it to be a surprise so that rules out taking her to pick. In the past we have looked at rings when we are out and about, so i feel I have a good idea of what she likes. I even asked her what she thought I should spend on a ring when we where window shopping. She said,''At least $50,000'' and then after a little chuckle she said,''You dont have to spend that much, around $2,000 is fine.'' So I was thinking around $4,000. Put it on credit and pay it off later. I guess no more toys for me for awhile.

Well after some thought and looking around I''m decided on .7 carats +or-. I like the security and face to face of the B&M. SO its between Robbins Brothers and Kay Jewelers. Lets see if I can set them to bid against eachother, get me a smoking deal.

Thanks Again,
Daniel

I think your decision on size is a good one. Anything from .75-1.0 carat will be a quite respectable size on her finger.

I also think you''d do better to look at some of the online vendors. I think your chances of finding a nice diamond are much better with one of them that it would be at a B&M. I understand your qualms about not seeing the vendors face to face, but most of them are more than willing to talk you over the phone and will send the diamonds out to an appraiser for you to see in person. The online vendors can usually give you more information about the diamond than B&M stores, from my experience...especially chain stores like the ones you mentioned.

Might I add a suggestion for the setting? With that size range of diamond, I think you could not possibly go wrong with a classic solitaire setting. Maybe a Tiffany replica or one of the nice Vatche settings. Just knowing she works in a hospital, I''m thinking she would not want something more fancy or blingy. She will most likely want to wear it to work, and a classic solitaire would be entirely appropriate.

Whatever you decide, I wish you good luck!

 

[Oleander]

Too big is when you are either embarrassed to wear the ring in public, or your lifestyle/workplace makes it so you can''t wear the ring more than 98% of the time (I picked that number randomly, but you get the picture).

 

[VINA]

Yes, there are stones that are probably too big for an average girl. But most of the guys here (in this forum) are not likely to have money to buy a stone that your ladies will consider flashy and too big. So that question can easily be answered by asking yourself how much you can afford?

Whatever budget you have, you will find a nice stone and put in on a nice simple setting and she will love it. What you will find on this forum is that everyone agree on an IDEAL cut diamond is a must; then find a color, clarity and carat that fits your budget.

Good luck.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Date: 8/23/2006 7:30:46 AM
Author: goodpointz
Daniel, asking us is like asking guys when are a woman's breasts too big. You'll get varying answers, but if you post the question on a We Love Big Boobs forum, well, just brace yourself

!

Oh gosh, truer words are rarely spoken.

I vote for 1 carat if you can get a nice one within your budget. That is a lovely size..not too big but not too small.

ETA: I later saw your budget was $4000. In that case you should be able to get an ideal cut .80 or so with decent color and clarity. That would be nice.

 

[whatmeworry]

Date: 8/23/2006 7:30:46 AM
Author: goodpointz
Daniel, asking us is like asking guys when are a woman''s breasts too big. You''ll get varying answers, but if you post the question on a We Love Big Boobs forum, well, just brace yourself

!

LMAO, I just saw this one. Could you post the link please?

 

[VINA]

Let see if we can convince this gentlemen to buy online. Personally, I feel more confident dealing with the online vendors here than my local jewelers (some of them I know personally). Not that they want to rip you off; they just don''t have enough information for you.

 

[coda72]

I am very late in responding, but I have a size 4 finger and a one carat diamond. I feel like this is a very good size diamond for my finger. Now, of course I would love to have a 3 carat diamond some day, but I don''t feel like my diamond is too small for my finger. I just like big diamonds! So, if you can afford it, 1 carat is a very nice size for someone with size 4 fingers.

 

[goodpointz]

No link to the "WLBB" forum

, but there was an interesting thread here a while back comparing diamond upgrades to breast implants. Something along the lines of:

Diamond size? Depends on where you live, you can get away with much bigger in NYC or LA.
Boob size? Depends on where you live- you can get away with much bigger in Las Vegas or Miami.
And can diamonds/breasts ever be too big?
They''re only too big if they''re not yours!
They''d say "It''s so big, it''s gaudy- she looks like Liberace."
We''d say "They''re so big, they''re ridiculous- she looks like a stripper."

What size is perfect, what proportions are beautiful? Depends on who you''re asking and about what!

 

[lumpkin]

Date: 8/23/2006 7:07:50 AM
Author: tdiddy
I would say the setting is the bigger concern as well. For a hospital job where you could potentially get your hands/prongs caught on all kinds of things and a large stone could pop right through a glove, I would go with a low profile setting with a 0.75-1 ct stone.

I agree. This would be my pick as well, and I''d add to say I think a bezel or semi-bezel would work best in a hospital.

My other thought is to forego an engagement ring and get a really, really pretty wedding band. If it has a lot of small stones/baguettes, though, it might be a maintenance issue, so the first idea would still be my choice.

 

[aquarius4u]

hi 1000cranes, welcome to pricescope!!!i work in a hospital too! my ring size is 3.75 and i have a have a 2.4 total ct e ring with a pear center stone of 1.82 ct. (very good cut ) i just bought it from WHITEFLASH and i am very happy with it but honestly , i am already thinking of upgrading it ...the bigger the better!GOODLUCK!

 

[darling]

1000cranes, welcome. Where do you plan on living after you marry? In some countries diamond rings are not popular. Obviously your girlfriend is O.K. with one

, but I would consider future lifestyle when designing the setting. Some people I know, who work in a medical setting don't wear any jewelry at all due to moisture under the ring and skin irritation. Myself, I have always been a fan of bands and bezel settings.