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I'M BACK! HARRY WINSTON VS LUCIDA

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sbear

Rough_Rock
Joined
Apr 2, 2009
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36
Hey folks,

Sorry I was gone for so long. I need your opinion again. We finally got down to two rings and here they are:

HARRY WINSTON
F
VVS1
1.35ct
Radiant cut
negotiated with us

LUCIDA
H
VVS2
1.30ct
$15,400
would not negotiate

I like the Lucida more but she likes the harry winston more. The only problem is that the harry wisnton is
slightly over budget. The difference between the two is $2,600 (and the style of course). I''ll pay that much more if I get the winston and "save" that much if we get the lucida.

I really need your opinion. what would you guys do????
 
I would advise you to get what she likes better.
 
If she likes the HW more and you can squeeze the money without hurting-get it. She will be pleasantly surprised that you listened to her!
 
Date: 5/28/2009 4:26:24 PM
Author: neatfreak
If she likes the HW more and you can squeeze the money without hurting-get it. She will be pleasantly surprised that you listened to her!
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huge ditto!!!
 
Think of it this way ... you''re paying for the higher color of the HW ... not just randomly. Radiants show a LOT of color -- so its advisable to get a near-colorless one: F sounds perfect. It sounds like a lot of $$ now, but changing later costs WAY MORE.
2.gif
 
Honestly, I prefer the Harry Winston. But, you should get her the one that she would prefer. I just can''t imagine not LOVING the HW.
 
Harry Winston +1
 
I''d go with what she wants. I have a lucida and I adore it but if she prefers the HW, then that''s what I''d get.
 
I''d certainly get the one she wants, but I''d talk to HW and see if they can get in any others from another location with maybe G color or at least go down to VS1 or VS2 on clarity. You''d get that ring down closer to the price of the Lucida if you could get a stone that wasn''t so high in clarity. I wouldn''t go lower than G, probably, in a radiant, but you''re paying a big premium to get F VVS1.
 
thanks everyone. you guys are awesome!

what if she said, "I''m ok with either one. i like F color better but I feel bad that you have to spend that much more... it''s up to you"
 
Date: 5/28/2009 5:53:27 PM
Author: sbear
thanks everyone. you guys are awesome!

what if she said, 'I'm ok with either one. i like F color better but I feel bad that you have to spend that much more... it's up to you'
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Uhhh, listen to what she means, not what she said. The ladies can definitely chime in here, but I read "I really like the HW better and hope you will buy that one, even though my brain says that the extra money is quite a bit . . . . . please choose the one I like more."
 
Well, is the HW ring a solitaire or does it have the little diamonds all around the radiant? Because if it is a solitaire, I personally like the Lucida cut much better than an ordinary radiant. But again, you could go to G color in the Lucida if she likes a higher color than H. Both stores can call in rings from other locations. They''re just trying to sell you what they have on hand. I''d get what I wanted and not settle.
 
Date: 5/28/2009 5:59:52 PM
Author: jet2ks
The ladies can definitely chime in here, but I read ''I really like the HW better and hope you will buy that one, even though my brain says that the extra money is quite a bit . . . . . please choose the one I like more.''
Click to expand...


Ditto
 
diamondseeker2006:
we already asked the sales agent to find a radiant in the vs1 vs2 range but she doesn''t have any. They don''t have any G color right now and G at tiffany is too expensive. $19,200 G vvs2 1.31ct at tiffany, might as well get the 1.35ct from harry winston, right?

We do want to go bigger in carat weight and go lower in clarity, but neither of them have anything within our specs, so we''re stuck with the two i first mentioned.
 
jet2ks: LOL.... she is ok with either one (really) she wants me to decide
 
sbear I think you''ll make your fiance a verry happy girl if you go for the HW ring! I am biased as I love the HW ring so much more but I also think (as a girl) she doesn''t want to tell you that in so many words.
 
hmm... this is tough. if i get the harry winston, it''ll be 3k over budget. how many of your fiances/husbands went over budget? i''d really like to stick to my original budget and that''s one of the reasons why i was leaning more towards the lucida. she constantly tells me she feels bad i have to spend so much money on a ring for her, is that "normal"? did you guys feel bad for your fiances/husbands when he got the ring for you?
 
I tell my boyfriend at every gift and every turn NOT to spend extra money, that I feel bad cause we need the money for other things, that it's the sentiment and not the ring...I could go on and on for days with all the ways I say "don't" but it's because i would feel like a B if I said "I want that, I know it's more but I LOVE it, get it for me anyhow". She has made her preference for the HW she just hasn't made it in guy speak crystal clear...in girl speak it's clear as a bell.

ETA-I'd be happy even if I didn't get what I loved more and I would grow to love whatever I got, but it would make me feel more special to know he listened and that it was worth the splurge to get me what I loved off the bat.
 
How sweet you are to be really considering all the options in your decision here.

She might feel bad right now, but down the track when "your" money is "our" money I think she will potentially want to "upgrade" if she''s not totally in love with the one she has. I know it''s hard for you, as you''re probably thinking they''re both great options, but if it were me I would prefer you get the most perfect option because it will be worth it over the course of your lifetimes together.

I''m not saying that because the extra $3k is nothing, but because over time I think it''s worth it to have the most perfect option you can afford. As others say, if she gets the "upgrade" bug you''ll be paying for life!

It''s a shame she knows what the options are, because if it were just you choosing I''m sure she''d be completely thrilled with either, but because she knows one is more expensive than the other she may one day question why you didn''t put price aside and get her dream ring ... and the quality of the HW sounds amazing, she should love it forever. Good luck either way, I would be happy with both I must say!
 
and PS, it always feels good to think you got a great deal because someone negotiated with you
 
I would go with the HW.
 
If she likes both, but really prefers the HW, then that''s what I''d try to get her. But, I would highly recommend following ds''s advice. G is safe in any stone at almost any size for all but the most highly sensitive. Get the color down to G, and the clarity to VS1-2, and you will be back at your budget (or under). You''re paying big bucks, get what you want!
 
Date: 5/28/2009 7:47:29 PM
Author: Ellen
If she likes both, but really prefers the HW, then that''s what I''d try to get her. But, I would highly recommend following ds''s advice. G is safe in any stone at almost any size for all but the most highly sensitive. Get the color down to G, and the clarity to VS1-2, and you will be back at your budget (or under). You''re paying big bucks, get what you want!
Click to expand...

Ditto.
 
Are you in a rush? Any way HW can find you a G??
 
I too would get her the one she likes better. 5 years down the road you wont be sorry you spent the extra. It wont matter if she loves it, but if she compromises
for the sake of a relatively small amount of money she might always wish she had got the other one.

I would say that was true for me. I find if I take my second choice in something I end up spending more money in the long run.
 
i'd get engaged without a ring and save up the bit more so the HW is in budget
2.gif
it's possible HW can also be on the lookout for a lower clarity/color stone in the meantime? from your initial post it sounded like she really prefers the HW. I can see myself pre-marriage saying the same thing to my boyfriend b/c I surely wouldn't want him to spend more than he could afford or was planning. but, after years of marriage and settling for things that weren't exactly right I have learned it's best to just save up and get it right the first time. my hubby is actually the one who came up with my tag line b/c I am a bargain hunter or would settle of something because it was priced a little better and end up changing it costing us a lot more money in the long run. Ask her if she would mind waiting a little longer for the ring to get the HW if that is what she really wants and see what she says. she may say, she wants a ring now and will take the lucida (which I love too) or she may say she'd be willing to wait for the HW. my hubby proposed without a ring and I went ringless for a few weeks. it didn't make us any less engaged b/c I didn't have a ring. You could maybe get a nice band that could be used later as a stacking ring for her to wear in the interim.
 
thanks again everyone. you guys are helping a lot.

as for the G color, harry winston doesn''t have any. of course we want to lower the clarity so i can save some money but all they have are vvs1 and vvs2.

OK, some of you mentioned upgrading the ring. i told her what if i get the lucida now and upgrade it later. she said, "in that case" wait till next year so i can get her the ring she REALLY wants and avoid any upgrades in the future. should i just get her the "ok" ring now and then upgrade or wait and get her "dream ring"?

the two options we have right now are ok (she''s not in love with neither of them). what she REALLY wants is the 1.56ct, radiant cut from harry winston and it''s over 20k (ouch!)

i''m going nuts here. i''m glad i found this site and get advise from you guys because i''m the first to get engaged out of all my friends
 
Date: 5/28/2009 8:24:57 PM
Author: sbear
. she said, ''in that case'' wait till next year so i can get her the ring she REALLY wants and avoid any upgrades in the future. should i just get her the ''ok'' ring now and then upgrade or wait and get her ''dream ring''?
Click to expand...

there''s your answer. she told you she wants you to wait so she can get what she really wants right off the bat. If you are comfortable doing that they just wait and get her the dream ring. you can''t really get her the lucida and then upgrade to the HW. Does HW even have an upgrade policy?
 
some options (some serious..some not)
1. Get her a cigar wrapper and an IOU for the time when you can comfortably afford "what she rally wants."
2. Ask her to chip in the difference between what you can afford and "what she really wants."
3. Get the Lucida and wait for a year so you can trade it up for "what she really wants" -- but, wait, you would have to sell the Lucida on the secondary market and cut your losses on it or just keep it for a fab RHR, because I doubt HW would take it in trade.
4. Get the smaller radiant now and ask HW if they have a trade-up policy.
5. Look for the kind of girlfriend who would be over the moon at just the thought of receiving a Lucida :)
 
This may be stupid question, but does it absolutely *have* to be HW? I feel like you could get her dream size, with an equally nice if not nicer setting made by Leon Mege or Mark at ERD, and come out under budget...
 
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