Looking to buy an engagement ring - opinion

[ste05]

Hi,

I've been looking at several sites to create an engagement ring. I'm thinking below is a good option for a Sapphire. What are your thoughts on this stone and do you think it's good value? I'm located in Australia so looking for websites that ship globally.

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Thousands of customer reviews prove that GemsNY is the industry leader in making rings of exceptional quality & providing highest customer satisfaction.

www.gemsny.com

Open to other suggestions and I also like cushion cut.

Thank you for any input.

 

[LilAlex]

Sure, I'll sell you my engagement ring opinion

EDIT: OK, I had a good experience with GemsNY on a stone at about that price point many years ago. I think that looks like a reasonable gem -- unheated, decent cut, not overly deep. Not priced like a killer color so maybe expect it to be a bit less vivid. Mine was a precision-cut pastel that was actually better IRL than their listing, but I would not expect that for this stone.

 

[ste05]

Thanks for your thoughts appreciate that and gives me some confidence to get it. I was also looking at https://www.gemsny.com/sapphires/1.68-Carat-Cushion-sapphire-SU43386ACU/?type=ring&r=718844115 but it had some inclusions I could see from the GIA report that I was not a fan of.

 

[Bron357]

Hi, fellow Aussie here.
I presume those US prices? Seem a little on the high side for sub 2 carat. Don’t forget about import duties to Australia, at least 10% GST.
A few things.
Blue sapphires come in many hues or tones from pale pastel to inky black blue. What colour does your intended prefer/ desire? Check before purchase, surprises are all well and good but you want to get it right.
Is unheated non negotiable? You’ll get better value for money with “Heat only”.
Always check the gem dimensions. Sapphires are a dense gem, smaller in size for equivalent carat than diamond. Sapphires can also have “fat bottoms”, basically that carat weight you pay for but can’t see because it’s underneath the girdle.
Have you checked vendors here in Australia?
Did you know that Australia used to be the No 1 producer of sapphires. True, our blues can be overly dark but nice blue exists here. Would avoid extra fees like currency conversion effect and import taxes.
Bespoke Gems here in Sydney (Doug) is a gem cutter and he has a lovely selection of sapphires. Both Australian and Ceylon. Worth a look I’d say. No prices on website but message him, he’s a lovely guy.

 

[ste05]

Thanks for the suggestion I gave Doug an email. Yes the prices are in USD but they are also offering me a 25% instead of the 20% on the website which brings it down a bit to make up for GST/import duties somewhat. In relation to heated stones when I was on the gemsny site I wasn't particularly looking for unheated but this one stood out to me. I did try and deal with a local seller which seemed to have a reasonable price on the Sapphire stones but then getting it made into a ring put up the price a considerable amount.

 

[Autumn in New England]

Welcome to the forum, mate (sorry, I couldn't resist)! GemsNY is a very reputable dealer here in the US, so no worries there. I fully agree with @LilAlex... this is certainly a quality sapphire for this price range. What I found interesting was that, unlike every other vendor grading system I've seen, they have "intense" as the finest saturation and "vivid" as one below it. IMO, those two grades are transposed. The terms are all subjective anyway, but I just find that a little confusing. In any event, good luck with your hunt!