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Looking for Rings is hard!!

Jenny405

Rough_Rock
Joined
Jul 10, 2018
Messages
2
08EC49CC-48F0-4152-B446-F3C49B988ACF.jpeg 73457EFB-7DB4-400B-B14E-FC90BF2AE459.jpeg B1F85AAA-5A66-406E-893B-E170E6EEEDD6.jpeg My daughters bf asked me to take out me daughter to find something she would like. After 3 stores and 6 hours she finally found something at Zales. I felt uneasy because the woman showing the rings could not answer questions about the diamonds. She just kept saying “ color and clarity doesn’t matter because it’s so sparkly” the woman wanted me to put it on layaway and she said she could discount it. I uploaded a pic. The ticket said it was a 1/2 ct. total wt. and the center was 1/5ct. He has a budget of $5000 and she gave us a price of $3500 including the two bands. Neither of us really know about pieces or pricing. She wants a pear shape, single halo( this was double halo) and the woman said it was more “brilliant” . A vintage style dainty diamond band all in white gold was also requested by my daughter.
 
Welcome to the forum! I’m fairly new as well and was able to locate a great diamond for my recent e-ring upgrade thanks in large part to the knowledgeable folks on this forum. I will say that mall store diamonds/rings are not well regarded here and for good reason. Once you do a bit of research on the quality of diamonds available in general vs those being sold at mall/chain stores (Kay, Jared, etc.), you will see why. I’m sure the fine folks here can point you in the direction of some options that far exceed anything available at mall/chain jewelry stores within your daughter's boyfriend's $5k budget.
 
Thank you! I was supposed to be the “ spy” and help him find the ring to purchase, but I am under qualified for this task! It’s such a large investment I would hate to steer him in
wrong direction. I am so nervous of online stores, and not seeing it. It seems there has been some great online stores recommended here so I’m hopeful!!
 
Now you/he know what she likes in terms of style, we can find you stones that are actually cut properly and settings that are made well ;)
 
He can do much better than Kays.
Here is a list of halos from JA that he could do (obvious the $3k is out of budget). He needs to stick with GIA or AGS certed stones.
https://www.jamesallen.com/engagement-rings/halo/

You can also see JA pears in halo settings in his price range here
https://www.jamesallen.com/diamond-...ngs/?Settings=491&MinPrice=3000&MaxPrice=4999

Nice pears with good light return are not easy to pick. You need to ask for help. @farrahlyn has picked some nice ones. This is my
favorite of her selections. We can make more suggestions if/when her BF comes for help. FyI...My ering is a pear.

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/pear-shaped/0.91-carat-g-color-vs2-clarity-sku-5167544

This one also looks to have nice light return but you would have to have evaluated to see if it is eye-clean
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/pear-shaped/0.91-carat-f-color-si1-clarity-sku-4552492

When looking for pears you want the rounded end to resemble a round brilliant (for best light return). You also want to make
sure that nice bright facets go down towards the pointed end as the stone turns. Try to eliminate as much mush as you can down
towards the pointed end (mush here is very common).

What size is your daughter's finger? Does the $5k budget also include the dainty wedding band? Just trying to figure out what the budget is for
everything.

Let me repeat...do not buy from Kays...the quality is just not there. Everything looks sparkly in a jewelry store. Outside of the jewelry store though...
probably not so much.

Edit...if she loved that setting but wants it in a single halo with a better stone, David Klass does custom work at a reasonable price. Here is someone that is having a pear setting made by DK right now.

https://www.pricescope.com/communit...al-advice-for-e-ring-cad.241864/#post-4370121
 
I just wanted to second @tyty333 and really try to dissuade a purchase from Kay, Zales, Jared or any other chain jewelry shop. Their products are simply sub-par to what you will find working with an online vendor (or even with an independently owned jeweler, though their prices tend to be higher than working with an online vendor). And as you experienced, their sales people are usually less than knowledgeable. Another bonus with online vendors is depending on the state you are located, you may be able to avoid sales tax on the purchase. I was reluctant to purchase online at first as well, but you can rest assured if you are working with an online vendor recommended here you will definitely get a better product and a diamond that is AGS or GIA certified, which are the most respected certifications for diamonds.

I'm sure you will get a lot of great suggestions from the experts here!
 
Glad you found this forum, your daughter's BF will be able to find a better e-ring & wedding band than from one of the mall stores. I too was wary abt "online" what if it's a bait and switch sort of thing but I have purchased two pieces of jewelry from two different well vetted vendors here and have had -zero- issues.
 
First off, welcome to PS. Coming here is one of the best things that you could have done. There is an entourage of vendors, prosumers and common folk that will help you pick the best possible stone and setting for your money, or in this case...your future SIL's money. :lol:

I think the combo your daughter picked out is pretty and unique. You don't know my story or journey, but I was able to select a diamond (super ideal gorgeous stone from BGD :love:) for my girl pretty easily but the setting was a bear. We found her inspiration setting at a Jared's. I didn't want to settle for their quality, but she was really wanting me to just take the no fuss option. Like most things in my life, I chose the hard way. And I couldn't be happier, nor can she now that it's over and I've proposed. If you want to read about my journey, see below:

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/dk-bgd-custom-setting-the-home-stretch.240843/

My point is that mall store quality really is crap. Their sales people are inexperienced, as you already learned. You will stretch your dollars further and get much, much higher quality stone & setting if you let the people here help you.

A few things I noticed and had thoughts on:
  • The double halo was likely done to make the ring look more substantial. The outer halo is separated from the inner halo by a thin air line. The inner halo has no such separation so it bleeds into the actual center stone more, and appears to make it look larger than it really is (until you look closer and realize it's a double halo).
  • I personally like a single halo better myself, but the reality is a double halo gives more finger coverage for less money. Depending how much is spent on the pear center stone, this may make sense until they can upgrade the pear stone later for a bigger one.
  • I like the unique shape of the diamonds on the e-ring portion, and think it provides some separation from the traditional eternity bands on each side. But it may also be more difficult to find this style of band. For instance, the IDJ band is beautiful but it lacks those style of stones and is just a regular pave band. To me, that is a major detour from her inspiration set.
  • Does your daughter want double eternity bands on each side? Or is she just going to use one when she gets married?
  • Have you guys considered having this custom built? It may sound ludicrous and cost prohibitive but that is exactly what I did and while it took more effort than throwing money at a problem, the final product was much better and about the same cost had I bought the clunky and bad quality Jared's inspiration piece. But the design for my girl was complex with swirls, twists, graduated stones, lots of side stones, etc. More simple designs might be a cost savings. I'd take some photos and reach out to DK Jewelry in Los Angeles for a quote.
  • If you decide to custom build a setting, then consider keeping the diamond purchase and setting build at the same place. It doesn't always work out, but it can be easier.
  • Is the $5k budget inclusive of the diamond, e-ring and wedding band(s)?
 
"I personally like a single halo better myself,"- I too like the single halo better . . . I do think if your daughter's boyfriend looks on line he could get a larger center stone... good old gold seems to have quite a few pear shapes . . . they also are great w/ their recommendations and will make videos
 
I haven't had to pick a pear so will leave you with other people to help you select a good pear shaped stone. I know that @farrahlyn helped tremendously with my journey and I trust her.

As I noted earlier, I ended up buying my stone from BGD. Brian and his team are well known for providing some of the most excellent cut diamonds available. Add to the fact you get to deal with Lesley and him, and it's a winning combo. Truly exceptional customer service, spectacular stones and fair pricing with a generous upgrade program!

I looked on their site but they didn't have any in-stock pear shapes. That said, I would entrust BGD to "custom build" you a diamond. They do this by allowing you to choose basic specs and then finding the rough material and cutting it to maximum precision. It takes about 3 weeks. All stones are cut to BGD Signature standards, and for a small fee you can have it cut to his signature (and even better) Black series cutting standards.

Here is more information. If you are seriously interested, please contact Lesley at BGD for more specific details.

https://www.briangavindiamonds.com/custom-design/custom-cut-diamonds/
 
With non-rounds, the search begins with a diamond. Get your future SIL to post here with a budget and let folks help him get that stone. Then, based on budget and other needs, we can guide him on a setting.

Friend don't let friends buy from mall diamond stores.
 
Don’t go to “Zales"................
Would you buy a car if all the car salesperson could say was “it goes vroom vroom” or a lounge suite by looking at it through a glass window with the salesperson saying “look how confortable it is”.
Mall type jewellers often sell clarity enhanced diamonds, the outside looks good but the clarity has been achieved by drilling with laser into the diamond to “zap” the inclusions. You could be buying a “Swiss cheese” diamond, one modest whack and it could break.
The other issue is that those diamonds won’t look like that once you get home. Jewellery stores spend literally thousands of dollars on specialized lighting so the diamonds look spectacular and sparkle like crazy. Under normal lighting, like at home, they look completely different.
I know buying online seems scary but trust us, we have been buying diamonds, settings, other gems on line for collective centuries! We know from first hand experience that it is the best way to get an amazing selection and ultimate value for money.
No one ever has had a diamond ring purchased with PS guidance and knowledge and said “wish I had gone to Zales”.
 
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