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Is $7k reasonable for Leon e-ring & band?

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silverbuggy

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Feb 18, 2009
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I asked Leon Mege for a quote on a platinum e-ring and matching band and it came out to be $7100, with $4000 of that being the cost of labor. Is this a reasonable price?

I''m just looking for a really simple and thin pave design with little diamonds that go halfway down the bands, with requirement that the 2 rings sit flush. Kind of like Tiffany Novo but thinner and flush.

To buy a non-custom version of what I''m looking for would cost about $1800-$2500 for both rings together, so $7100 since like a high premium to pay. Is that how much he usually charges?
 
Here are some other options on the table to give you an idea of the design and prices:

Maytal Hannah -- quoted $2000 for the e-ring (not sure about band)

James Allen common prong e-ring & band for $1750:
http://www.jamesallen.com/engagement-rings/settings-with-sidestones/Platinum-Common-Prong-Ring.html
$2245

Excel Tiffany Insirpired pave e-ring & band for $2245:
http://www.exceldiamonds.com/-Engagement-Rings-5/Diamond-Accent-Engagement-Rings-12/Tiffany-Inspired-Pave-Diamond-Engagement-Ring-JENS188-1370.html
 
That doesn''t include the center?

Well... um. Yes, that sounds high, but it really depends on the specific request... although from the sounds, your request isn''t that complicated. What are we missing?
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I''m sure I read here that Leon will quote a ridiculous amount if he doesn''t want to do the job.
 
Yup, sounds quite high to me for a single row of pave...

I''d check out engagement rings direct, they have some beautiful custom pave rings that look very well made.
 
No, it doesn''t include the center. I did include a lot of requirements/details in my original request...I wonder if that drove him away? Does he prefer more flexibility to create something unique that he himself is inspired towards? Cuz I just really want something very simple, and from looking at his catalog, though everything looks really dazzling and well-made, nothing is *that* simple.
 
Date: 3/27/2009 7:40:25 PM
Author: silverbuggy
No, it doesn''t include the center. I did include a lot of requirements/details in my original request...I wonder if that drove him away? Does he prefer more flexibility to create something unique that he himself is inspired towards? Cuz I just really want something very simple, and from looking at his catalog, though everything looks really dazzling and well-made, nothing is *that* simple.
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Maybe, maybe not, he''s a bit of a crap shoot. Have you searched his name on here?
 
While Leon''s simple platinum only solitaire settings are very reasonable as soon as you add pave into the mix his prices go up considerably. I second contacting Maytal or Engagement Rings Direct. Both are likely to be much more reasonable and do beautiful work.
 
Date: 3/27/2009 8:33:56 PM
Author: neatfreak
While Leon''s simple platinum only solitaire settings are very reasonable as soon as you add pave into the mix his prices go up considerably. I second contacting Maytal or Engagement Rings Direct. Both are likely to be much more reasonable and do beautiful work.
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Ditto. And having used Leon, that sounds high to me. But mine didn''t have pave, etc...
 
Go with Maytal. Hers will be perfect and probably priced more reasonably.
 
Ditto Maytal, and ERD. And adding Ocean Pearlman who did my setting, and Brian Gavin Diamonds who is doing my pendant.

Leon is a different animal.
 
Date: 3/27/2009 8:49:59 PM
Author: Gypsy
Ditto Maytal, and ERD. And adding Ocean Pearlman who did my setting, and Brian Gavin Diamonds who is doing my pendant.

Leon is a different animal.
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Oh these avatars. I was like is Freke getting all that? Ok, threadjack is over...
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Same thing was happening to me! I was reading my own posts and thinking it was Freke. I put my dragon back as as result. It was too confusing for me. LOL.
 
Sounds really pricey to me, as well! Maybe he thought you would be a very demanding client, with all of the details? Regardless, I would look elsewhere.
 
I would also check with Bridget Durnell. You can see some of her ready made designs on Pearlmans website but she also custom makes rings and recently did one for a pricescoper that was amazing and they said her pricing is reasonable as well.
 
I think Leon doesn't like hassling with problem-customers.
At this stage in his career he doesn't have to.

Don't take this personally.
I'm not saying you would have turned out to be a problem-customer but perhaps he has learned from experience that " including a lot of requirements/details in my original request.." is a red flag for that possibility.

I can't say I blame the guy.
If I was a great artist with a big backlog of work I'd want to be respected and trusted.
I'd pick and choose the projects and clients I prefer, or give potentially problem-customers a quote that makes it worth my time.
 
Date: 3/27/2009 10:48:15 PM
Author: Moh 10
I think Leon doesn't like hassling with problem-customers.
At this stage in his career he doesn't have to.

Don't take this personally.
I'm not saying you would have turned out to be a problem-customer but perhaps he has learned from experience that ' including a lot of requirements/details in my original request..' is a red flag for that possibility.

I can't say I blame the guy.
If I was a great artist with a big backlog of work I'd want to be respected and trusted.
I'd pick and choose the projects and clients I prefer, or give potentially problem-customers a quote that makes it worth my time.
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I don't think being a "problem customer" or "having a lot of requirement/ details" hence possibly being a "problem customer" has anything to do with it. I just simply think that just having a lot of requirements is the key here. It sounds like it might be more work, hence more labour (as the OP pointed out).

Mine is an 811 Adriana on a 3.5ct pear, and that cost me $5,400 (just that ring, not any band). There was a recent thread about someone who had the 811 Adriana done for a 1 carat and they paid a couple of thousand dollars less. Here it is:

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/cost-for-leon-mege-811-adrianna.107861/

I thought that maybe Leon's quotes were inconsistent, but some other posters said it's because mine is a larger stone, hence more labour.

Silver, could you be able to share more details of yr designs, like size of centre stone and what are these "requirements/ details" you'd like him to do?
 
Mine is a very straight forward setting made by Leon. 3 sided pave, pave on the basket. I didn't request anything fussy and allowed him to make a change to my original request. The cost was still over $4K. It didn't have anything to do with me being a difficult customer or having a lot of design specs. It was labor, stones and platinum. It is exquisite, IMO. I've also gotten quotes from Maytal for custom work and she is not cheap either.

Gather your quotes and go from there. I'd want a breakdown of what is setting and what is band. Leon Mege does not like to put pave against pave. If you want your bands to butt up against each other he might have some custom setting in mind so they don't rub.

The 3-sided pave eternity band that is for sale is $3200.
 
I can''t comment much as I have a plain solitaire from leon along with the band for less than $2000. But $7000 sounds really high to me as well!
 
Date: 3/27/2009 10:48:15 PM
Author: Moh 10
I think Leon doesn''t like hassling with problem-customers.
At this stage in his career he doesn''t have to.

Don''t take this personally.
I''m not saying you would have turned out to be a problem-customer but perhaps he has learned from experience that '' including a lot of requirements/details in my original request..'' is a red flag for that possibility.

I can''t say I blame the guy.
If I was a great artist with a big backlog of work I''d want to be respected and trusted.
I''d pick and choose the projects and clients I prefer, or give potentially problem-customers a quote that makes it worth my time.
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With all due respect Moh I doubt many people have heard of Leon or what his temperament is like. Most people ordering something as important as an engagment ring would think they need to give as much information and detail as possible to make sure that its exactly what they want. I don''t think this is unreasonable. If Leon has lost touch with that part of ring buying it means he has become a bit conceited and thats not a great thing.
38.gif
 
That quote seems unreasonable. My HW micropave halo (with eternity shank) needed the entire shank rebuilt to size it down (6.5 to 4). The only thing I paid for was the labor seeing as the diamonds and metal I already owned. HW charged 3k to do the work and they said it takes about 40 man hours to set the stones just right. There is no doubt HW work is far superior to leon. Even their mathching micropave eternity wedding band is only $4500 (about .75ct). That''s almost the same price as leon labor quote!!! I would expect leon to be atleast 30-50% less expensive.
 
Can you show us a photo of something similar from his website? I'm curious what it is about your order that determined the price. For what it's worth, my setting was almost $5000 and my band was just over $1000 although it should be noted I also provided the stones for that one, therefore keeping the price 'down'.
 
Date: 3/28/2009 3:14:19 PM
Author: asforhim
That quote seems unreasonable. My HW micropave halo (with eternity shank) needed the entire shank rebuilt to size it down (6.5 to 4). The only thing I paid for was the labor seeing as the diamonds and metal I already owned. HW charged 3k to do the work and they said it takes about 40 man hours to set the stones just right. There is no doubt HW work is far superior to leon. Even their mathching micropave eternity wedding band is only $4500 (about .75ct). That''s almost the same price as leon labor quote!!! I would expect leon to be atleast 30-50% less expensive.
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asforhim- no offense, but uh... where did you get this idea?
 
Date: 3/28/2009 3:14:19 PM
Author: asforhim
That quote seems unreasonable. My HW micropave halo (with eternity shank) needed the entire shank rebuilt to size it down (6.5 to 4). The only thing I paid for was the labor seeing as the diamonds and metal I already owned. HW charged 3k to do the work and they said it takes about 40 man hours to set the stones just right. There is no doubt HW work is far superior to leon. Even their mathching micropave eternity wedding band is only $4500 (about .75ct). That''s almost the same price as leon labor quote!!! I would expect leon to be atleast 30-50% less expensive.
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You''re kidding, right?
 
Date: 3/28/2009 5:49:19 PM
Author: swingirl

Date: 3/28/2009 3:14:19 PM
Author: asforhim
That quote seems unreasonable. My HW micropave halo (with eternity shank) needed the entire shank rebuilt to size it down (6.5 to 4). The only thing I paid for was the labor seeing as the diamonds and metal I already owned. HW charged 3k to do the work and they said it takes about 40 man hours to set the stones just right. There is no doubt HW work is far superior to leon. Even their mathching micropave eternity wedding band is only $4500 (about .75ct). That''s almost the same price as leon labor quote!!! I would expect leon to be atleast 30-50% less expensive.
Click to expand...
You''re kidding, right?
Click to expand...
swingirl.. I know! It''s not like Leon does work for HW, or anything
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hehe
 
Hi Silverbuggy,

I own the ring asked for here - I''m sorry I did not see this:

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/cost-for-leon-mege-811-adrianna.107861/

I paid about $3,700 for both materials and labor. Some might think the price is excessive, but for me, it is worth it.

I consider myself an extremely difficult customer (read my prior posts, I''m as bad as it can get). Trust me, I drove the man insane. I asked him a gazillion and one questions. In conclusion, I fully qualify for the "difficult customer premium". I don''t know if there is such a thing, really. It turns out that the price I paid is along the lines of what Leon quoted others for the "811 adrianna" at a similar carat range.

It seems that to me that the only pricing variable for a particular design is the carat weight of the center stone. The higher the carat weight, the higher the cost.

My suggestion is that you call Leon and ask him to explain the estimate to you. He will gladly do so. That is, if you still want to work with him. There are other designers / jewelers doing fabulous work for maybe less. Good luck !
 
Hi, just wanted to update everyone! Below was the original request I had sent to Leon:

I really like the Tiffany Novo and matching band (both are 2mm wide), however they do not sit flush and together look slightly gaudy on my small hands. My knuckles are slightly thicker so I need a really delicate look. I am deciding between a 1.61 and 1.69 carat diamond.
Ideal criteria:
- Matching wedding band sit FLUSH with e-ring
- Smallest width and thickness possible (<= 1.8mm ideal)
- Thin & delicate 6 prongs (Tiffany solitaire prongs not bad though the bottom protrudes a bit which prevents flush)
- Center diamond set as low as possible given flush constraint
- Approximately 1 pointer side diamonds that go down half way similar to Tiffany Novo (1/2 pointers might work if set closely together. 2 pointers are slightly too big.)
- I think micropave or beadset is what I want. From the side profile, I don''t want to see v-step/fishtail that makes the ring have ridges or jagged lines. It should be smooth.
- Less metal sandwiching side diamonds to achieve thinness (so definitely no millegraine and no channel set)
 
Have you gotten quotes from other jewelers? Maytal or WF?
 

I called Leon this morning and he was actually really nice and friendly! The only "attitude" I got was his opinion that he really doesn''t like the Tiffany Novo. If people are right in that he charges more for projects he doesn''t want to take on, then maybe it''s because he thought I wanted a direct replica of the Tiffany Novo?


In any case, he went back to the drawing board to recalculate the numbers and came back with $4100 total for the e-ring and matching band. Does this sound reasonable?


Here are the details:
Six prong with thin shank and v-cut set small pave 3/4
Shank 1.6 mm wide
matching band set eternity our style 201
The estimate of the ring will be based on a verbal description of the
design.
Style: RING SOLITAIRE “TULIP™”
Finger size: 4 1/4
Material - platinum.
Keystone: 1.69 ct
Total cost of labor: $2,500
Identical matching band will cost $1,600
 
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