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My "Maul" Diamond Extravaganza Experience

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soocool

Ideal_Rock
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Jan 10, 2009
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2,827
So today I ventured to Gordon''s Jewlers for the most anticpiated "Diamond Extravaganza"!

I was only interested in 2 things:
1. To try on a setting style that I had in mind so I could get an idea of what it would look like on my hand
2. To see different color and size RBs

First, they claimed that they would be bring in hundreds of different ering styles. No they didn''t. They had loads of halos, a lotof solitaires, and not enough settings with sidestones of any appreciable size. That is ok, because at least I got to see something slightly similar to what I wanted to see, plus he showed me a semi-bezel with 2 sidestones which I also liked, which he said is suited for the athletic person.

Secondly, he brought out the diamonds. I do not talk about how much I will be spending and he gets annoyed. I said I am most interested in the cut quality and that since I have decided on going with a yellow gold setting, I wanted to see some I and J colored diamonds in the 1.25 - 1.75 ct range. So first he shows me a 2.0 carat because it is there. A so called "G". Ok it looked nice and big. Then he gets out an "H" 1.72 ct and plops it into the head. Yes, I could live with a stone that size, but I really did not like the way it looked. I asked about the certificate and he pulled out this little card that said"GS" and all that it had on it was the:

color: G
cut : Premium B
p&s: excellent
clarity: I1
stone size was 6.89 x 6.90 price was around $10,000.00

I asked where''s the rest of the information. And he asked, "what rest of information? That''s all you need to know." I said, but what are the stats for the table %, paviliion%, crown & pavillion angles. Plus where''s the plot of the inclusions. He looked at me as if I had multiple heads.

Then I heaved a heavy sigh and said, "Ok, now show me some of your ideal cut stones." His reply, "We don''t have any, but we can get some in." I said, "forget, it" and left.

There you have it. PS has made me an extremely educated consumer, because before PS I never ever would have asked any of those questions and probably would have made an extremely stupid purchase.
 

Feralpenchant

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Feb 12, 2009
Messages
427
Gordon''s is the best.

I go there when I''m feeling really dumb. They make me feel better.
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MichelleCarmen

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Feb 8, 2003
Messages
15,880
That is too bad! A few weeks back I was in Ben Bridge and the sales associate was entirely up-to-date on diamond knowledge. She was aware that cut was more important than color and clarity and showed me some gorgeous examples. The closest comparable to my E VS2 pendant, was an E SI1 and it was perfectly cut, however, 2.5 times as expensive! Some mall jewlers are coming around in many areas, except price.
 

luvmyhalo

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Dec 4, 2007
Messages
1,170
Date: 4/17/2009 3:35:53 PM
Author:soocool
So today I ventured to Gordon''s Jewlers for the most anticpiated ''Diamond Extravaganza''!

I was only interested in 2 things:
1. To try on a setting style that I had in mind so I could get an idea of what it would look like on my hand
2. To see different color and size RBs

First, they claimed that they would be bring in hundreds of different ering styles. No they didn''t. They had loads of halos, a lotof solitaires, and not enough settings with sidestones of any appreciable size. That is ok, because at least I got to see something slightly similar to what I wanted to see, plus he showed me a semi-bezel with 2 sidestones which I also liked, which he said is suited for the athletic person.

Secondly, he brought out the diamonds. I do not talk about how much I will be spending and he gets annoyed. I said I am most interested in the cut quality and that since I have decided on going with a yellow gold setting, I wanted to see some I and J colored diamonds in the 1.25 - 1.75 ct range. So first he shows me a 2.0 carat because it is there. A so called ''G''. Ok it looked nice and big. Then he gets out an ''H'' 1.72 ct and plops it into the head. Yes, I could live with a stone that size, but I really did not like the way it looked. I asked about the certificate and he pulled out this little card that said''GS'' and all that it had on it was the:

color: G
cut : Premium B
p&s: excellent
clarity: I1
stone size was 6.89 x 6.90 price was around $10,000.00

I asked where''s the rest of the information. And he asked, ''what rest of information? That''s all you need to know.'' I said, but what are the stats for the table %, paviliion%, crown & pavillion angles. Plus where''s the plot of the inclusions. He looked at me as if I had multiple heads.

Then I heaved a heavy sigh and said, ''Ok, now show me some of your ideal cut stones.'' His reply, ''We don''t have any, but we can get some in.'' I said, ''forget, it'' and left.

There you have it. PS has made me an extremely educated consumer, because before PS I never ever would have asked any of those questions and probably would have made an extremely stupid purchase.
Oy vey!!! A 1.72 with those dimensions....I bet it was purty
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Tuckins1

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Apr 13, 2008
Messages
8,614
D''oh! Another maul store foiled by PS!
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Imdanny

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 21, 2008
Messages
6,186
I don''t go to malls. I''m not trying to be "snotty" or "elitist." I don''t like malls. The only malls I like are outdoor malls, in other words ones where the stores have front doors that open unto an outside patio or "mall" I guess you''d say. I keep hearing about "maul stores" though and it makes me sad that people pay some big prices for some low quality stuff. The posts from guys that say they bought such and such at a mall and say what the stats are and the price was and then just flat out say that they were ripped off tug at my heartstrings.
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I don''t know why chain stores in malls have to sell what they do for the prices they charge. It just seems wrong.
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DearBuddha

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Apr 24, 2008
Messages
698
Maul stores are fine if you go in with the knowledge that you''re really getting what you pay for.

I never look at the diamonds, simply because I know how "gumball machine" they''re likely to be. I have a few gifted pieces from Kay''s that aren''t so bad from a distance, and up until I signed on here, I had no clue how low quality they really were.
 

MonkeyPie

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Apr 23, 2008
Messages
6,059
Date: 4/17/2009 4:20:23 PM
Author: MC
That is too bad! A few weeks back I was in Ben Bridge and the sales associate was entirely up-to-date on diamond knowledge. She was aware that cut was more important than color and clarity and showed me some gorgeous examples. The closest comparable to my E VS2 pendant, was an E SI1 and it was perfectly cut, however, 2.5 times as expensive! Some mall jewlers are coming around in many areas, except price.

Ben Bridge in my area is pretty decent, too. Plus they aren''t NEARLY as pushy as most maul stores.

I have bought diamonds from a maul store, but generally don''t go out looking for it. Mostly I go to look at the settings.
 

peaches

Shiny_Rock
Trade
Joined
Mar 27, 2009
Messages
436
I love how the sales guy took it upon himself to decide just how much info you actually needed. AND he had the nerve to get annoyed when you wouldn''t share your budget with him?? That''s comedy gold!
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MichelleCarmen

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Feb 8, 2003
Messages
15,880
Date: 4/18/2009 3:06:00 PM
Author: MonkeyPie


Ben Bridge in my area is pretty decent, too. Plus they aren''t NEARLY as pushy as most maul stores.

I have bought diamonds from a maul store, but generally don''t go out looking for it. Mostly I go to look at the settings.
Yep, I''ve made a few mall purchases too. My palm tree pendant was from BBB. It sparkles nicely and is a fun necklace to wear in the summer.
 

jstarfireb

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Mar 24, 2007
Messages
6,232
I like mall jewelry, but more for the colored stones than the diamonds. Mall diamonds are almost always poorly cut and heavily included. But some of the chain stores I''ve been to have lovely colored stone pieces, at least lovely by my standards and to my tastes!
 
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