Need to part with my ring

[anna211]

Hello all.

First, a disclaimer. I do not know the best place to post this message so please forgive me in advance.

I was first made aware of this forum when I was looking at engagement rings back in 2004.
I remember looking at all the rings and pictures and sending my then boyfriend suggestions and literally teaching him about buying a diamond.
I asked a TON of questions, and got a ron of great advice. I think I announced my engagement here first, before most of my friends even knew.

I want to thank you for your advice, help and for sharing pictures of your sparklies.

Life has been a bit tough and I need to part with my engagement ring, I will keep my wedding band.

(sidenote: Unfortunately, my marriage did not work. He decided alcohol was more important than a marriage but that''s another story.)

I lost my job last December and as of November 5, I am no longer eligible for unemployment assistance.I can show you HUNDREDS of jobs I have applied to, it''s just hopeless.

I barely made my rent payment in November and money just isn''t there for January and beyond. I have only paid my insurance and car payment in November. everything else will go unpaid.

I need a place to sell my ring, that will get me at least more than wholesale. The sale of this ring will be my only income for the forseeable future, besides a paltry part-time seasonal job at a clothing store for the holidays.

I am asking you, pricescopers, for advice on where I can sell it. It''s a good quality diamond, size, GIA cert..yadda yadda yadda.
I have taken the ring to several diamond buyers, jewelers and even listed on Craigslist. Wholesalers are giving me less then half of what was paid for the ring and I cannot stomach that. I understand I am going to take a loss on this...but people offering 1/2 ( and less) than what was paid is making me ill.

If anyone has any suggestions on where I can sell my ring that would be wonderful. I am in Philadelphia but can sell online as well.

I am not trying to take advantage of people who claim they are in bad financial shape when in reality are simply trying to prey on the sympathy of others. I will gladly show my unemployment letters, etc. if someone is looking to help get me above water and was in the market for a great princess cut sparklie.

Sorry I am rambling but I guess I am turning to the people who helped me so long ago and asking for your advice and assistance.

thanks in advance

 

[sassy_sax]

Sorry to hear about your situation. I don''t know if you''ve looked at the following pricescope page about what to expect when reselling:

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/reselling-gems-jewelry-what-can-you-expect.17952/

Wishing you all the best.

 

[Sizzle]

maybe if you tell us about the ring we''ll be able to help with ideas.

 

[anna211]

Thanks for posting that link, it''s helpful information

 

[anna211]

Date: 11/14/2009 11:59:32 PM
Author: Sizzle
maybe if you tell us about the ring we''ll be able to help with ideas.

Hi Sizzle,
Here are the specifications:

Center stone:
1.10 carat Princess cut Diamond

GIACertified
Measurements: 5.77 X 5.56 X 4.19
Clarity: VS1
Color: F
Fluorescence: None

Proportions:
Depth: 75.4%
Table: 79%
Girdle: Extremely thick to thin
Culet: None

Finish:
Polish: Excellent
Symmetry: Very Good

Setting: Platinum with two (2) pear shape diamonds weighing .25 total carat weight. F/G color, VS2-SI1 Clarity

I have a few pics too that I will upload.

 

[anna211]

Here''s a pic

 

[anna211]

Do''h. Chose the picture that''s off-center but you get the idea. I''ll stop posting now.

Thoughts everyone?

 

[sonnyjane]

I'm sorry you're going through this! I too have been unemployed for an entire year, despite applying to everything under the sun, including retail jobs for which I'm "under-qualified" (generic email response) despite my three degrees!

I don't have advice, but hopefully someone here will be able to make a suggestion. I think it's only realistic to tell you that half really might be the best you can recoup, but I'll hope for your sake you get a little more.

 

[Callisto]

I know commonly recommended around here are pearlmans. Or maybe ebay? At least ebay is a little bit more reputable than craigslist.

 

[Sizzle]

Anna I too am sorry to hear of your misfortune. HAve you looked into the new extentions for unemployment that was just signed? Perhaps it could help you out a bit more.

 

[anna211]

thanks Sonnyjane and Callisto.
Sonnyjane: I hope you find something soon.
Callisto: I will check out those two, thanks for the reccomendations.

 

[Diamond*Dana]

I am very sorry to hear about your situation, it is such a difficult time for so many people out there

Your ring is beautiful, and it is a shame that you have to part with it...I am sorry that your marriage did not work out.

I hope that you are able to find a resolution that works for you...I wish you all the best.

 

[Lynn B]

Awww, that just stinks, Anna... I am so sorry.

I know VERY LITTLE about this, but I do know that you would probably do better financially by finding the END USER of the ring yourself, rather than going through a jeweler or other vendor who would (naturally) need to have some commission.

I wouldn''t discount word of mouth, tell everyone you know! Maybe even make up free little business cards and give them out, and post them everywhere. Does your paper or local penny saver offer inexpensive or free classified services?

And last but not least, I don''t know what is reasonable to expect to be a good resale price. That''s so tricky. We all know diamonds are lousy investments and the resale value is discouragingly low... so do keep your price *reasonable* (whatever you feel that may be)... and I wish you all the best.

 

[neatfreak]

Anna I am so sorry. That stinks.

First, there are a number of message boards for diamonds/gems that you can sell jewelry on. I can't mention them here because of PS rules but I'd bet if you do some googling you can find them.

Also, you could try ebay with a fixed price format to make sure you get what you'd like for it. Not guaranteed of course, but many people are looking for a great deal now. So with some good pictures and detailed info about the appraisal docs/certificates you might be able to get a good price for it.

I agree with Lynn about finding the end user rather than a middleman. You'll get more $ for it that way.

 

[marcy]

Sorry to hear about your marriage and unemployment status. Good luck finding a job. Glad ot hear you have some holiday hours though. I would try locally at first as well. We have a local traders thatis very cheap to advertise things for sale. Good luck.

 

[HVVS]

Hi, Anna. It''s a mean old world nowadays. I''m sorry to hear about what''s happened.

Read https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/reselling-gems-jewelry-what-can-you-expect.17952/. "Used" e-rings might have a stigmna. You might consider removing the center diamond and mounting it as a pendant fro resale. And sell the empty mounting as a semimount. People will buy those for gemstones, sims, or sometimes for a diamond RHR.

 

[2Artists]

Hi anna211

. I am so sorry things are so tough for you right now. What you are dealing with is no fun at all. We dealt with a layoff last year in our household so I can certainly vouch for the fact that facing getting laid off in this economy can feel soul crushingly stressful and especially sharp around the holidays. Plus it sounds like you have had some other very tough things to deal with as well. No matter how dark things look there is always a glimmer of hope.

About selling your ring I would probably go with eBay or Craigslist so you can get the most value you can as the direct seller. There can be pitfalls to both and you need to be very careful because sadly there are always people out there looking to take advantage. Some police buddies my husband has talked to say don't use Craigslist period because there are so many scammers on there. However we have bought and sold a fair amount on Craigslist. With Craigslist it helps to do cash and local pickup only. Don't deal with anyone who tries to get you to take a money order or asks you if you will take 20-30 dollars over asking price and accept money order and remove your listing asap (that type thing is a scam). If you get any odd or "off" sounding emails you can google the text-they are often form letters scammers use.

Meet potential buyers in a public place like a bank where there are other people around and security and you can verify the authenticity of their cash and directly deposit it to your bank right away so you are not out and about carrying large amounts of cash. Never go alone. As far as making your ring as appealing as possible-make sure you have a great thorough appraisal and that your ring is fabulously cleaned and freshly polished in a beautiful box. Details count. Make sure you have some gorgeous well taken clear photos of it from a variety of angles. Also helps to have a clear well written and possibly entertaining description with personality and wit.

It can help reach a wider audience with your listings if you sell more that one item from more than one category at once and link all your listings-like if you sold an old side table or purse or fruit bowl, book etc at the same time and mention in your listings to check out all your other wonderful items. You can get more eyes on your listing that way.

We sold a ring on eBay a while back and having a great and thorough appraisal was really worth it. We included pictures of the appraisal in the listing as well. If you sell it on eBay make sure to send it with certified mail that requires a signature. Take every extra precaution to protect yourself because we found that Paypal cannot be counted on in our dealings with them.

Good luck selling your ring and good luck with the job hunt and everything else. If you need a laugh and enjoy dark humor check out the blog "stuff unemployed people like" for a much needed smile. It cracked me up when I was feeling low.

Best Wishes
Mrs.2Artists

 

[freefly]

Hi Anna, so sorry to hear about your troubles. Sorry I can''t help you on the reselling issue, but just wanted to say that I hope things start to look up for you very soon. It''s especially difficult this time of year to be short on money. I wish you the best of luck.

 

[yssie]

I, too, want to wish you the best, and hope things work out for you. It''s a tough time for so many people, now

.

I also agree that ebay/craigslist are likely to be the best way to get the most back. A princess centre with pear sides is not a commonly sought combination, add to that the "stigma" of a used e-ring and I''m thinking you might have better luck selling the centre as a loose stone and the setting as a semimount.