i bit the bullet! opinions needed :)

[SophiesDream]

Hi guys!!
So my partner and i finally but the bullet and bought a new e ring for me we ended up staying under budget with the total from ring / diamond/ exchange rates & gst being just under $4000.00

My diamond is quite small at .611 ct i will upgrade to a .9 ish when i can afford it in a few years. But at the moment we are a single income family with 3 kids.

Here is the link to the diamond diamond
can you give me opinions on this stones aset images and such.
to save money i dropped to an I colour as i only seem to be color sensitive in fancy cuts. I can see colour in a H cushion or emerald but only a little bit from the side in what was a j/k round at angus & coot jewelers.

So what can i expect here?
Is the diamond going to be more beautiful than the likes of michael hill diamonds , angus & coot etc or are these jewlers cutting brilliant stones as well?
Do H&A cuts usually face up slightly larger than jewlers stones ? I looked at a .5ct and a .75 ct and there was really only the slightest difference.
Am i going to notice the brillant cut being that the stone is so small?
Did anyone else purchase from whiteflash?
How did you find turn around time from a in stock setting (no custom work)
does everyone get the glamour shots of the ring they purchase ? Or only ones they feature on the website ?
And lastly can you give me some info on what those images are telling me ? I kind of dont know how to read the asets etc and just assumed that being an ACA it would still be good. I also got excited and didnt ask questions on this stone i was too excited to finally check out haha. Im ok with the colour as i looked at other I's through whiteflash and had some pics sent of them set and i couldnt notice the colour and clarity being VS2 im ok as well.
Just looking for all the info i can get.
p.s i chose whiteflash as the lady i worked with (sheerah) emailed me for months didnt get frustrated with me everytime i increased/decreased mu budget, changed my mind on the stone and settings, sent me pictures and info even though she was not 100% sure i was going to actually buy. Didnt force a deposit out of me before images or anything were taken just for me and was just



http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2914764.htm

 

[SophiesDream]

Sorry i accidently hit post!
Yes she was just all round helpful! White flash received my wire 2 days ago and no update since im so ancy to hear the next update but im aware i need to be patient. Im also aware that i did not spend as much as a lot of their customers would and i beleive i was still treated like royalty it came down to two vendors in the end and all that + the upgrade policy sold it for me ! THANK YOU WHITEFLASH!!
here is the setting


http://www.whiteflash.com/engagement-rings/diamond-settings/petite-diamond-engagement-ring-773.htm

i plan to mix and match and have a little stack going on so this suited perfectly! Feel free to post pics if you have this or something simillar x

 

[arkieb1]

Hi,

Are you an Aussie, just wondering since the shops that you mention are here in Australia....

 

[bibs]

HI SophiesDream,

I am assuming you are from Australia with your references to MH and A&C jewellers. Without sounding rude you but you could not pay me to buy from these jewellers. You absolutely have made the right decision in ordering from WF. I have not ordered through WF but have been in contact with them and they are most helpful as are Brian Gavin and Diamonds by Lauren. This is my first post here on pricesocpe but have used the info on here to assist me in ordering my 10 year upgrade. Six months on I am still researching.

Good luck.

Bibs

 

[SophiesDream]

Yes im in australia!! We almost bought a $5000 ring using fido about 1 year ago off angus and coot. I paid a deposit and came home to do some research... im so glad i did as they were trying to sell me a .5 ct j i1 for that!! With about .2 ct on the band i immediately got a refund on my deposit and spent the last 12 months searching i originally wanted F VS1 tripple ex.. did some more research went to H vs2 and just to get a little extra size and save money for imports we went to I knowimg id be happy and can upgrade later. Thanks for replying i truly appreciate it x

 

[Dandi]

Oh goodness yes, you did the right thing! I'm in Aus too and have bought from Whiteflash, Brian Gavin, Diamonds by Lauren and IDJewelry, all of which provided me with brilliant service and exquisite diamonds that would have cost three times more here. That said, I don't know that places like those you listed can source that kind of stuff, and if they did, the prices would be through the roof. Please post pictures of your beautiful new ring!!

 

[SophiesDream]

Thanks dan!
Quick question.. do you find the like of brian gavin etc
have a different cut to the "store diamonds?" Im gonna be pretty honest i might be slightly devastated if my diamond peforms simillar to the store diamonds. As they all nearly had sales from me and im very excited to go in to "try on wedding bands" lol!! They all did try and flog me garbage for top $$ so ill be stoked if i can walk in to one and show them what a real diamond should look like not to meantion they were rude esp MH as they have the best diamonds available apparently lol

 

[Dandi]

I worked for one of the commercial jewellers for 10 years, and you will be very, very pleasantly surprised how greatly your diamond outperforms the run-of-the-mill stuff you find locally Granted, a lot of places will source H&A stones if you want to fork out the huge premium for them, but as far as generic stock goes, you won't find anything in the stores that will come close to comparing to your WF stone. My diamonds aren't huge by any stretch of the imagination, but they get a lot of attention and comments from shop assistants in commercial jewellers when I visit!

 

[SophiesDream]

Thank you for that info!
I think future hubby is the one that needs to see the difference too.
Im so excited! I think my ring will be a perfect size for my current lifestyle and where i live those prouds cluster rings are about all you see :/ we could of put an extra 2k in the budget but until i am back in the work force and we move from the place we live it was pretty reasonable to stick to .6 ct ,
im so so so excited to get it and see one of these stones in real life. Ive already requested ACA martini 3 prong earrings .5ct total weight and a .5ct bezel necklace to match my new ring! I should also mention i dont wear jewelry. I have my ears peirced and dont even really wear earrings haha! I cant wait to have my every day simple staples.
I will definately post pics when i get them and the ring. I just hate waiting i refresh my email every 2 mins to check for an update lol!!!
Thank you for replying you have definately put some butterflys back in my belly xo

 

[arkieb1]

Thanks dan!
Quick question.. do you find the like of brian gavin etc
have a different cut to the "store diamonds?" Im gonna be pretty honest i might be slightly devastated if my diamond peforms simillar to the store diamonds. As they all nearly had sales from me and im very excited to go in to "try on wedding bands" lol!! They all did try and flog me garbage for top $$ so ill be stoked if i can walk in to one and show them what a real diamond should look like not to meantion they were rude esp MH as they have the best diamonds available apparently lol

Hi, my husbands family own a rock, crystal and gemstone museum in rural NSW. I can say there are VERY few chain stores here that carry the standard of stones of the vendors you mention in the US. Chain stores here in Australia are usually expensive and have poorly cut rubbish with low clarities that cost a fortune. Some high end jewellers here like Diamonds International have triple ex GIA stones but you pay an absolute fortune for them and there is nice (also exceedingly expensive stuff) in Hardy Bros and our high end vendors like Callegia etc....

No contest a triple ex H & A stone will outperform 95% of what you will see in chain stores. You might get lucky every once and a while and come across a nice stone in a chain store 5% of the time. There are some well priced diamond vendors in Melbourne and Sydney that have webstores, BlueNile has a Aussie web outlet now and Jogia Diamonds have some nice stones as well. By the time you pay the taxes and charges and the current exchange rates Jogia will be similarly priced. Back when I dollar was much higher it was cheaper to buy stones from the US.

You picked a really pretty ring, so hopefully when you get it you will love it!!!

 

[SophiesDream]

Thanks Arkie!!
I did not realised BN had an aus based store when i first started looking i was going to go through them, im uncomfortable woth the drop shipping aspect of BN though. All the info you are all giving me is giving me so much confidence in my decision! Ive never been huge on diamonds because ive only seen "store" diamonds. But if the ACa mesmerizes me im going to become an addict real quick!! Thank you for your reply!

 

[arkieb1]

Hi,

Do you live near a major city? I could suggest where to go and look at better cuts. I hope that your new ring makes your heart sing. If not then it might be the cut, we also don't see a lot of good different cuts here, I have fallen big time for antique cuts - even more difficult to find nice ones here!!!! We also don't have access to examples of well cut asschers, emeralds and other cuts much in rural and remote parts of Australia.

 

[SophiesDream]

No only jewlers in my town = michael hill, angus & coot, prouds ... they are the only jewelers ive ever been too. Went to tiffany once but dont remember the rings too well. We were frowned upon. Even though i was carrying 2 louboutin bags 3 chanel bags and a louis vuitton bag & a sass and bide bag. (Just been shopping in sydney & finances were far better with 1 child 2 incomes and no where to spend it due to living in a mining area.) Uh yeah they pretty much dissmissed us which is a shame as we probably would of dropped 10k on the spot. Too bad for tiffany we are much less well off now hahaha and wouldnt go back even when we do get back to being where we were when the babies grow up a bit

 

[arkieb1]

I live in Brisbane, my family all come from and I grew up in rural NSW. Tiffany's here is the same, they give great service to the foreign tourists buying tax free and ignore everyone else. I usually get around in jeans so I just kind of blend which is funny because I love jewellery. I buy a lot of stuff from overseas because its better made and cheaper. I have access to coloured stuff via my husband's family.

 

[SophiesDream]

Yes! We lived in mudgee before (not sure if you know it) and jeans were the go to however i have designer taste for shoes the occasional dress and a bag or two. I usually shop from overseas for everything but if we went to sydney id look around as a lot of the things i wanted sold out in overseas boutiques. Crazy mark ups though on everything!! You easy pay an extra $300 smackas on a pair of shoes its nuts!! And yeah tiffany were total prudes. They looked at me and my hubby like we couldnt afford to stand on their precious carpet let alone look for an engagement ring there. And the can i help you" could of done with out the snarky additude

 

[diamondseeker2006]

You made an excellent choice! I haven't ever seen an ACA that wasn't great!

 

[SophiesDream]

Thank you diamond seeker! I figured buying a ACA would be safe amd i can then focus on the other 4 C's so good to hear i made a great choice

 

[arkieb1]

Yes! We lived in mudgee before (not sure if you know it) and jeans were the go to however i have designer taste for shoes the occasional dress and a bag or two. I usually shop from overseas for everything but if we went to sydney id look around as a lot of the things i wanted sold out in overseas boutiques. Crazy mark ups though on everything!! You easy pay an extra $300 smackas on a pair of shoes its nuts!! And yeah tiffany were total prudes. They looked at me and my hubby like we couldnt afford to stand on their precious carpet let alone look for an engagement ring there. And the can i help you" could of done with out the snarky additude

Yes I know Mudgee!!!! My family live on the Orange side of Wellington and my husband's family own Crystal Kingdom in Coonabarabran. I like bags too and jewellery, not so much the shoes... I used to buy a lot of clothing from online stores overseas but not so much since kids.

 

[SophiesDream]

This gal was born in orange !! HaHa!! Amazing.
Brizzy is about 3 hours away from me. Looks like all the country people end up moving north at some point.

 

[arkieb1]

Yep its much warmer.... Let me know if you are ever in town. Will see if I can round up anyone else and have a coffee and cake day or something..... I can show you some cool antique jewellery shops and go to Tiffany's and Hardy Bros in the city or Diamonds International at Chermside.