LIW ...the wait is killing me!

[RedheadDoll]

Hi ladies... I was a lurker on this board for a few week. I decided today to join you on this board. My boyfriend and I went ring shopping at Tiffany's a few weeks ago. I am absolutely and totally in love with both him and Tiffany's Round Brilliant Ribbon Ring. Somehow though, we are having so many discussions about the ring, the price of Tiffany's and so forth, that half the fun of gearing up for engagement is turning into stress. I don't want my boyfriend to spend more than he is comfortable with on our engagement, at the same time though I want him to see that this in a one in a lifetime expense. We are both well-off and in our 30's. I want a ring that is under a carat... probably around 0.7 - 0.8 carats. When we went ring shopping, he was really into it. We had a romantic evening and he loved the Ribbon Ring too. Now he keeps mentioning that maybe we should compare this with other rings. I have been looking at rings for months though, and this ring make my heart skip a beat. Hopefully this board will help me cope with the waiting and the suspense of hoping that I get the ring of my dreams! Thanks for listening.

 

[Blackpaw]

Welcome the ribbon ring is beautiful, its such an iconic setting without being at all common! But alas waiting does suck...

i hope you're engaged soon with the ring of your dreams

 

[ChloeTheGreat]

I know it can be stressful, but it will all work out in the end!
You never know, you may fall in love with a more cost effective ring that will make you and your man happy!

 

[gummy-bear]

Welcome RedheadDoll, the Tiffany ribbon ring is very nice. Has he discussed a budget that he's comfortable with? I agree this is a very exciting and stressful time. Take his advice though and look around though for his sake. I saw a setting that I thought was THE setting but after looking round I found one that better suited me. Hope you guys are able to figure it out together.

 

[asymons412]

Hey there! If you are willing to let go of the Tiffany name, Excel diamonds is well-known on these boards for their quality replicas of Tiffany settings. If you post on RockyTalky or ShowMeTheBling anyone will quickly recommend their work.

http://www.exceldiamonds.com/-Engagement-Rings-5/Diamond-Accent-Engagement-Rings-12/Inspired-by-Tiffany-Round-Brilliant-Ribbon-Ring-Engagement-Ring-Replica-CME-2574-1929.html

Would you consider this as a compromise so that the price can be a bit easier on your fiance-to-be's wallet? You can probably get a much better quality stone (than those available through Tiffany's) in this setting for a very reasonable price! Hope this helps! And welcome!

 

[Hospatogi]

I totally understand where you are coming from. Once I found the design I loved it was hard to like settle for anything else. However is it the design you love or that its from Tiffanys or both? Its def possible to find a gorgeous round brilliant that is likely just as high quality or better and a larger carat weight for what you would spend at tiffanys especially with the help of ladies and gents on this board. I highly recommend contacting Good Old Gold. They have amazing diamonds and also now do custom settings. I believe their benchmen have done previous work for Tiffanys so I would def contact them with the tiffany design you want and see what they can do for you. They are absolutely fantastic to work with !
However if you really want a ring from tiffanys than I really hope you get it

 

[Amys Bling]

Hey there! If you are willing to let go of the Tiffany name, Excel diamonds is well-known on these boards for their quality replicas of Tiffany settings. If you post on RockyTalky or ShowMeTheBling anyone will quickly recommend their work.

http://www.exceldiamonds.com/-Engagement-Rings-5/Diamond-Accent-Engagement-Rings-12/Inspired-by-Tiffany-Round-Brilliant-Ribbon-Ring-Engagement-Ring-Replica-CME-2574-1929.html

Would you consider this as a compromise so that the price can be a bit easier on your fiance-to-be's wallet? You can probably get a much better quality stone (than those available through Tiffany's) in this setting for a very reasonable price! Hope this helps! And welcome!

great suggestion! I think you need to figure out what is more important.... getting the size and quality stone you crave at a more affordable price (this is a great setting suggestion and many pricescope vendors sell spectacular stones a lot less than Tiffany's).... or getting the Tiffany name??? I think it's something that only you can answer...

 

[RedheadDoll]

Thanks for all your suggestions ladies. I know with certainty that I do not want a replica of this ring. If I don't go with the Tffany Ribbon, I would go with something different and unique to another designer. I have looked at a lot of other rings. i just adore this ring so much. As well, we are located in Canada.... that makes buying from any of the American dealers more daunting because I have no idea what duty would cost. As well, I think we would both be more comfortable with seeing what we are buying first.

 

[Blackpaw]

Thanks for all your suggestions ladies. I know with certainty that I do not want a replica of this ring. If I don't go with the Tffany Ribbon, I would go with something different and unique to another designer. I have looked at a lot of other rings. i just adore this ring so much. As well, we are located in Canada.... that makes buying from any of the American dealers more daunting because I have no idea what duty would cost. As well, I think we would both be more comfortable with seeing what we are buying first.

That's fair enough, if you are keen on the tiffs version, you should buy it in the US - despite the Canadian dollar being worth more at the moment the prices in the US are still cheaper, and if you go to a tax free state you can avoid that too. Plus at the moment at least you'll win on the exchange rate...

If you did purchase online, you will pay tax and thats it. Im in AB so its just GST but if you have PST/HST or what not you'll have to pay that...

 

[vintagelover229]

Have you thought about the pre-owned route? Here are 3 that I found on ebay alone and Tiffany will size the ring for you and transfer ownership (there's a thread on here some where about someone buying a Tiffany ring and re-setting the diamond into a new setting of theirs...and they gave the old setting back which she then sold on ebay saving even more money!)

http://cgi.ebay.com/Tiffany-Co-Platinum-Ribbon-Engagement-Ring-/220788693060?pt=Designer_Jewelry&hash=item3368081844

http://cgi.ebay.com/TIFFANY-CO-PLATINUM-RIBBON-DIAMOND-ENGAGEMENT-RING-/200614410891?pt=Designer_Jewelry&hash=item2eb58cfa8b

http://cgi.ebay.com/TIFFANY-CO-Platinum-61-VVS1-Diamond-Ribbon-RIng-/270754368346?pt=Designer_Jewelry&hash=item3f0a37cb5a

Being in Canada myself I would personally rather pay the lower prices in the states and then pay the HST tax then pay the full price at Tiffany but it's really up to you.

I've also bought jewelry on craigslist and had it shipped up here and it checked out. Here is a larger ctw then the 3 listed on ebay. I bet if you contact the seller they would set up an ebay listing to sell it to you that way, so you both are protected.

http://tulsa.craigslist.org/jwl/2375373397.html

I love the ribbon ring It's so unique!

 

[RedheadDoll]

Have you thought about the pre-owned route? Here are 3 that I found on ebay alone and Tiffany will size the ring for you and transfer ownership (there's a thread on here some where about someone buying a Tiffany ring and re-setting the diamond into a new setting of theirs...and they gave the old setting back which she then sold on ebay saving even more money!)

http://cgi.ebay.com/Tiffany-Co-Platinum-Ribbon-Engagement-Ring-/220788693060?pt=Designer_Jewelry&hash=item3368081844

http://cgi.ebay.com/TIFFANY-CO-PLATINUM-RIBBON-DIAMOND-ENGAGEMENT-RING-/200614410891?pt=Designer_Jewelry&hash=item2eb58cfa8b

http://cgi.ebay.com/TIFFANY-CO-Platinum-61-VVS1-Diamond-Ribbon-RIng-/270754368346?pt=Designer_Jewelry&hash=item3f0a37cb5a

Being in Canada myself I would personally rather pay the lower prices in the states and then pay the HST tax then pay the full price at Tiffany but it's really up to you.

I've also bought jewelry on craigslist and had it shipped up here and it checked out. Here is a larger ctw then the 3 listed on ebay. I bet if you contact the seller they would set up an ebay listing to sell it to you that way, so you both are protected.

http://tulsa.craigslist.org/jwl/2375373397.html

I love the ribbon ring It's so unique!

Thanks for all the rings on Ebay and Craigslist. I have had a search set up on Google for some time, so I was aware of these four rings. None of them are priced well though, compared to what I can get for new here at Tiffany's. The one that interested me was the one on Craigslist. I emailed that guy over a month ago though, and never hear back. The suggestion of having him list on Ebay, so that I could buy it there and be protected, is a great suggestion! I think though that there would still be brokerage charges and duty on a ring being shipped into Canada from the States. In order for the ring to be properly insured for shipping, the accurate value would have to be declared. Am I wrong on this? Are there any other Canadian ladies on this board who have purchased from the U.S.?

As well, my boyfriend and i have entertained the idea of going to Tiff's in New York to buy the ring. I had a sales agent send me a few specs. The rings are about 10% less expensive than they are here in Canada. The cost of going to the states though would quickly diminish any savings that are to be had. After lots of consideration, I think the store here in my local city is where we will be giving our business to.

 

[gummy-bear]

I believe the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) makes diamonds duty free. Depending on who you ship with you may have to pay brokerage fees. Fedex doesn't charge brokerage or it's included in their shipping. I'm also from Canada and boyfriend only paid for the sales tax on pick-up.

 

[RedheadDoll]

I believe the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) makes diamonds duty free. Depending on who you ship with you may have to pay brokerage fees. Fedex doesn't charge brokerage or it's included in their shipping. I'm also from Canada and boyfriend only paid for the sales tax on pick-up.

Thanks for the info Gummy-Bear! Maybe it's not so hard to buy from the U.S..

 

[Blackpaw]

yep that's correct, there's no duty, just tax...the brokerage fee is minimal too, pretty sure not more than $100 - ive just bought a ring from the US myself but cant tell you the exact fee as its in my SO's hands!

 

[Winks_Elf]

I've been in love with the Ribbon ring for over 14 years now, and owned a .32ct center Ribbon years ago. I had to sell it back to T&Co when I was expecting #1, and always knew I'd replace it some day. I found a .67ct I/SI1 Crafted By Infinity that has all that I wanted (between .6 and .8 carats, warmer color, under $2k for the diamond), and I'm having it mounted in a Ribbon ring by Vatche.

Everywhere I went people grabbed my hand when I wore my little .32 T&Co ribbon. I loved it because there are no prongs holding the center diamond, and the diamonds on the shank go underneath the center stone like a little river of bling. It's a great low-set piece, and the impact with the loops holding the diamond is huge.

 

[RedheadDoll]

I've been in love with the Ribbon ring for over 14 years now, and owned a .32ct center Ribbon years ago. I had to sell it back to T&Co when I was expecting #1, and always knew I'd replace it some day. I found a .67ct I/SI1 Crafted By Infinity that has all that I wanted (between .6 and .8 carats, warmer color, under $2k for the diamond), and I'm having it mounted in a Ribbon ring by Vatche.

Everywhere I went people grabbed my hand when I wore my little .32 T&Co ribbon. I loved it because there are no prongs holding the center diamond, and the diamonds on the shank go underneath the center stone like a little river of bling. It's a great low-set piece, and the impact with the loops holding the diamond is huge.

Hi Winks_Elf... I think I read an older post on PC about how much you loved your Tiffany Ribbon. The Ribbon Ring does have a really big impact, which is partially why I love it so much. I have been obsessively looking at rings online and here in Toronto. At first I really thought that we should go with Blue Nile, or else with something from an estate store. I have tried on tonnes of rings in the last six months. I tried new rings, vintage rings, halos, solitaires, three-stone rings. Nothing has pulled at my heart strings the way the Tiffany Ribbon ring has. I went to Tiffany's once a few month ago by myself, then I went a few weeks ago with my boyfriend. I love this ring, even in .7 carats, more than some of the 1.5 carat rings I tried at other stores. This ring is so pretty and delicate. I can't stop thinking about it.

Your new ring from Vatche sounds like it will be amazing. I can't wait to see a picture!