victoriouslegion
Rough_Rock
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2012
- Messages
- 33
Team,
I hope this thread eventually becomes a bit of a reference where people can share their experiences and wisdom during the research and purchase phase and extend this beyond my own experience.
The ring is being ordered -- I thought it would prove fun/informative if I highlighted the experience and my research as I went through it then followed up with some super high res pictures of the piece. Decided to go with Mark Turnowski because the experience thus far has been spectacular, and he's continually re-affirmed his commitment to deliver excellence. More details below.
Ordered ring is a 6.8 carat piece with 40 pointer stones -> excellent cut F/G SI1 eye clean, clear, no clouds, carbon, etc. I am a kong time semi-prosumer with a family that is pretty passionate and fairly informed about beautiful diamonds.
The following write up is just a partial summary of my somewhat grueling research experience that I hope benefits other eternity ring shoppers as they make a decision.
This ring is about 20 years in the making, and I thought it potentially fun to, as I have the ring completed, post the thoughts that went through my head and the inquiries I made before making my purchase. It's been a pretty emotional journey -- and that's before the piece was ever made, but my hope is PriceScopers can use this reference on an ongoing basis to support them as they work to make an informed decision about the right vendor to go with. I have put more hours of research into this than I care to mention!
Here's a couple things I've learned thus far:
-Let Vendors Know You Are A Pricescoper
Pricescopers are an important and influential bunch; I believe plain mentioning you are on the board is accretive/important to you securing a positive experience. So make sure vendors know!
-Set Expectations with Examples
Make sure you set expectations with regards to the diamond quality you are seeking -> reference threads in your emails, and I say anyone who is scared of agreeing to your exact specifications you should pass on. For future reference folks, feel free to highlight some of the comments from the following threads to help make your case:
1. The Big Eternity Band Thread: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/show-me-your-big-eternity-band.156144/
2. LA Love's Monster 100% Eye Clean Monster: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-5-6-carat-id-jewelry-eternity-band.151728/page-5
3. Aascher_Girl's ERD Masterpiece: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-4-5ct-erd-u-prong-eternity-band.172648/
-Write Clearly About Your Ring Specifics
For my approach of multiple vendors, I always was emphatic about the exact specs I wanted [prosumers, feel free to add additional details].
-.40 Carats / 4.8MM stones / Size 9 / 6.8 Carat of Excellent Cut, Natural Untreated Diamonds
-LA Love Quality Price Scope Diamonds
-100% Eye Clean / Cloudless / No Carbon Specks / Clear, Non-Murky Diamonds
-U Prong Lowest Setting Available in 14K White Gold
-Extreme Brilliance / Uniform, Handpicked Diamonds
-Carefully select a vendor
-I was between Mark Turnowski at Engagement Rings Direct and Yekutiel's team at IDJewelry. I'm sure other reputable vendors exist, but I'd say these for a number of reasons became my top choices during my research.
-Here's the reality as I researched it: Mark replied to emails more promptly, offered to handpick my diamonds, had a custom CAD setup for my piece, guaranteed the quality of the stones repeatedly, has 30+ years of GIA experience, and has a great reputation. IDJewelry is known on these boards, has an awesome upgrade policy, has very friendly and attentive staff, and they are the first company I saw testimonial after testimonial on the quality of their eternity bands.
-Pricing was a bit more competitive from Mark but to speak transparently, you can guess at how expensive a 6.8 carat eternity band is, and the different in price was negligible considering how much total capital was involved during the purchase -> it was about quality and a vendor who would do whatever it took to make it right.
-At the end of the day, Mark ended up replying faster, offered to handpick the stones as mentioned earlier, and was simply unperturbed when I repeatedly indicated I had high expectations, would take a lot of pictures, and expected massive brilliance. He was just unperturbed and followed up repeatedly. So in an act of extreme faith, I'm giving him a go. I admit, it does feel riskier.
-I Think A Bit of Nerves is Far From Unreasonable
-I suppose this is just the human aspect of it. I felt like I was genuinely torn between choosing between two vendors, but at the end of the day, I decided to go with Mark -- though I realize going with someone who has, in the eternity band arena, what seems like fewer testimonials on the boards. He was just on top of it, and Asscher_Girl's review was simply too heavenly.
-Include pictures for the PriceScope family!r
-Once the piece is completed, I will put up some high resolution pictures of the piece. I plan to do the whole electronic measurement bit as well as a hearts and arrows set of loupe pictures.
/ Disclaimer: This is just one person's viewpoint -- use this knowledge at your discretion and do your own research before coming to a conclusion. /
Best regards,
Victorious
I hope this thread eventually becomes a bit of a reference where people can share their experiences and wisdom during the research and purchase phase and extend this beyond my own experience.
The ring is being ordered -- I thought it would prove fun/informative if I highlighted the experience and my research as I went through it then followed up with some super high res pictures of the piece. Decided to go with Mark Turnowski because the experience thus far has been spectacular, and he's continually re-affirmed his commitment to deliver excellence. More details below.
Ordered ring is a 6.8 carat piece with 40 pointer stones -> excellent cut F/G SI1 eye clean, clear, no clouds, carbon, etc. I am a kong time semi-prosumer with a family that is pretty passionate and fairly informed about beautiful diamonds.
The following write up is just a partial summary of my somewhat grueling research experience that I hope benefits other eternity ring shoppers as they make a decision.
This ring is about 20 years in the making, and I thought it potentially fun to, as I have the ring completed, post the thoughts that went through my head and the inquiries I made before making my purchase. It's been a pretty emotional journey -- and that's before the piece was ever made, but my hope is PriceScopers can use this reference on an ongoing basis to support them as they work to make an informed decision about the right vendor to go with. I have put more hours of research into this than I care to mention!
Here's a couple things I've learned thus far:
-Let Vendors Know You Are A Pricescoper
Pricescopers are an important and influential bunch; I believe plain mentioning you are on the board is accretive/important to you securing a positive experience. So make sure vendors know!
-Set Expectations with Examples
Make sure you set expectations with regards to the diamond quality you are seeking -> reference threads in your emails, and I say anyone who is scared of agreeing to your exact specifications you should pass on. For future reference folks, feel free to highlight some of the comments from the following threads to help make your case:
1. The Big Eternity Band Thread: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/show-me-your-big-eternity-band.156144/
2. LA Love's Monster 100% Eye Clean Monster: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-5-6-carat-id-jewelry-eternity-band.151728/page-5
3. Aascher_Girl's ERD Masterpiece: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-4-5ct-erd-u-prong-eternity-band.172648/
-Write Clearly About Your Ring Specifics
For my approach of multiple vendors, I always was emphatic about the exact specs I wanted [prosumers, feel free to add additional details].
-.40 Carats / 4.8MM stones / Size 9 / 6.8 Carat of Excellent Cut, Natural Untreated Diamonds
-LA Love Quality Price Scope Diamonds
-100% Eye Clean / Cloudless / No Carbon Specks / Clear, Non-Murky Diamonds
-U Prong Lowest Setting Available in 14K White Gold
-Extreme Brilliance / Uniform, Handpicked Diamonds
-Carefully select a vendor
-I was between Mark Turnowski at Engagement Rings Direct and Yekutiel's team at IDJewelry. I'm sure other reputable vendors exist, but I'd say these for a number of reasons became my top choices during my research.
-Here's the reality as I researched it: Mark replied to emails more promptly, offered to handpick my diamonds, had a custom CAD setup for my piece, guaranteed the quality of the stones repeatedly, has 30+ years of GIA experience, and has a great reputation. IDJewelry is known on these boards, has an awesome upgrade policy, has very friendly and attentive staff, and they are the first company I saw testimonial after testimonial on the quality of their eternity bands.
-Pricing was a bit more competitive from Mark but to speak transparently, you can guess at how expensive a 6.8 carat eternity band is, and the different in price was negligible considering how much total capital was involved during the purchase -> it was about quality and a vendor who would do whatever it took to make it right.
-At the end of the day, Mark ended up replying faster, offered to handpick the stones as mentioned earlier, and was simply unperturbed when I repeatedly indicated I had high expectations, would take a lot of pictures, and expected massive brilliance. He was just unperturbed and followed up repeatedly. So in an act of extreme faith, I'm giving him a go. I admit, it does feel riskier.
-I Think A Bit of Nerves is Far From Unreasonable
-I suppose this is just the human aspect of it. I felt like I was genuinely torn between choosing between two vendors, but at the end of the day, I decided to go with Mark -- though I realize going with someone who has, in the eternity band arena, what seems like fewer testimonials on the boards. He was just on top of it, and Asscher_Girl's review was simply too heavenly.
-Include pictures for the PriceScope family!r
-Once the piece is completed, I will put up some high resolution pictures of the piece. I plan to do the whole electronic measurement bit as well as a hearts and arrows set of loupe pictures.
/ Disclaimer: This is just one person's viewpoint -- use this knowledge at your discretion and do your own research before coming to a conclusion. /
Best regards,
Victorious
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