Settings & Trends

[Smith1942]

There are two jewellery trends that have developed over the last 10-15 years, between England and America (I moved) which are bothering me. First is the price of settings, and second is the price of semi-precious stones.

I wrote about this on another thread, but it was a bit of a threadjack so I removed it and am posting it as a separate topic. I also wrote about the settings issue on PS a few weeks ago, but didn't get many responses.

The price of settings in America is absolutely eye-watering, in my opinion. I've never been in a country where settings are so through the roof in terms of price. My ring was Hearts on Fire and it was a plain basket solitaire, a few hundred dollars in 2005 I think, and I can't see what the ring would have gained by having setting costing $1500 for plain metal. In England the settings are equally beautiful, I have much jewellery from there including very nice intricate pave settings with sparkly melee, and they were only a few hundred pounds. My personal opinion is that these designer settings like Mege and Kirsch (which can run to many thousands of dollars) are a racket and the jewellers must be laughing all the way to the bank! That's where they have their serious mark-up, on the settings, not so much the diamonds.

I suppose it's also about trends in jewellery. Time was, the setting was a minor part of the price, but now settings are jewellery items in their own right. But I'm amazed that no one else is squeaking about this except me. I feel like a lone voice in the wilderness. The crux of the matter? These settings are so, so much more than other jewellery pieces of similar materials value and level of workmanship. American consumers have a reputation for demanding value for money. That's why it suprises me that so many people seem OK with paying prices for settings that do not represent fair value. I just don't see how a pair of plain leverback settings in 18k can cost a thousand dollars - no stones, just the settings. For plain leverbacks. I got a half-carat princess G-colour 14k eternity ring which sparkles like crazy from a reputable Boston jeweller for the same price. I've also seen the same leverback setting elsewhere for $250. I guess I just don't understand why no one seems to be questioning the price of settings when it seems so outrageous to me.

I also don't understand the price premium for "handmade" settings. If it's handmade, isn't it more likely to be wonky?

I also don't like the trend for homemade jewellery. I've received about five items of homemade jewellery as gifts (costume, not real) and every single one has fallen apart after a few outings. So much for handmade! (Only joking - I know it's not the same thing as handmade by a proper jeweller. The homemade thing just occurred to me as a related topic.)

Also, speaking of trends, 15 years ago semi-precious gems like citrine and topaz were inexpensive as they are not rare, but now various top-end designers sell semi-precious stones at precious prices, and people buy them. I'm talking about people like Kiki McDonough, the London jeweller who sells her things to the Royal Family. Diana and Fergie wore her designs, now Kate Middleton and her sister wear them. www.kiki.co.uk Blue topaz/white topaz should never cost this much - it is a plentiful stone.

So my questions are:

1) Why are settings so expensive, even the plain metal ones?
2) Why do semi-precious stones now often sell at precious prices?
c) Why do we put up with it?

I'm British! I'm not supposed to be the one banging on the table demanding better value - I'm supposed to be taking tea and talking in measured tones! I'm doing your job for you here, Americans!

I am actually off to have a cup of tea now - no joke. The proper type, hot with milk!!

 

[Smith1942]

I posted the below in another thread regarding the quality of the halo on a DBL ring, then realised I'd done a total threadjack so am posting here:

I need to be educated on this, because for me the expensive setting thing is a mystery. Tell you why - I've got some inexpensive halo settings which I think are so beautiful. They are thin, delicate halos, true, which I happen to like because they make the stones pop in my three particular rings. Here are three examples of inexpensive settings which I just love. Could you educate me as to what would be different if, say, I got them re-set in a delicate Kirsch halo or a Mege one? Or a BGD/WF? I'm not trying to prove a point - I'm very interested in what I'm missing. Admittedly, I haven't seen any of the very high-end settings in real-life so maybe that's the issue - pure ignorance!

The following all cost under a thousand dollars for each piece, from reputable jewellers. Except, the citrine was bought a while ago and now sells in England for about $1200. I appreciate that the diamonds are not the level of BGD Signature melee, but I have some of that and these halo diamonds are not so very far off, although clearly not the same. I get plenty of compliments on all these. I appreciate melee differences so I guess I'm really asking about differences in metalwork/craftsmanship. Anyway, here goes:


[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-hexagonal-diamond-and-citrine-ring.172087/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-hexagonal-diamond-and-citrine-ring.172087/[/URL]

[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-4-carat-london-blue.171961/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-4-carat-london-blue.171961/[/URL] Shank is a bit dirty on this one - please ignore.

[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/2-carat-marquise-amethyst-and-diamond-ring.171781/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/2-carat-marquise-amethyst-and-diamond-ring.171781/[/URL]

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Do I think some settings are overpriced? Yes, particularly designer brands. But I do not think Victor Canera, Steven Kirsch, and Mike Robinson are really over priced. I think their quality is at the absolute top of the scale, and their settings take hours and hours to make by hand, and they produce an almost perfect piece of jewelry. Some handmade jewelry certainly is not to their quality level and I wouldn't buy it at any price. But if I were having something made of pave, those would be my choices.

Metals prices are a lot higher than they were in 2005, and that is another cost factor. Gold closed at $272 in 2000, $513 in 2005 and closed at $1664 at the end of 2012!!! Platinum was $619 in 2000, $965 in 2005, and $1527 in Dec 2012. So as you can see, metals are many times higher than they were in 2000 and 2005!

Your rings are all very pretty! I think the settings are of appropriately good quality for those particular gemstones. I would only commission someone like the three men above it I were setting a diamond or significant colored stone such as a sapphire, ruby, emerald, paraiba tourmaline, or some other very expensive gem.

 

[WillyDiamond]

Perhaps SK and VC are commanding a premium for the settings. I think we are seeing now some other vendors like ERD coming into their space, also with beautiful stuff. Is it the exact quality as the former? I could not tell you the answer to that. In my opinion, and just my opinion, I think one can shop around and get great quality for settings that look like SK and VC for alot less. I have done this research and found this to be true for myself.

As far as prices on diamonds are concerned, I hope you are not looking for logic! Diamonds are not priced by the good old formula of "supply and demand", rather they are purely manipulated by a couple of the big manufacturers. I think that the sad part is that as the US economy gets better, people will pay these price and we will not see what is called an orderly market (supply and demand).

I am glad that I bought my wife's ER in 2004, today I may not do it. I feel sorry for young people buying this stuff today.

 

[Smith1942]

Thanks DS, that's very interesting. I would like to see the settings from the three you mentioned in real life. I see pix on PS but perhaps they don't really capture the quality or sparkle adequately.

 

[Smith1942]

Thanks, WillyDiamond. No, I'm talking about settings and metalwork, not diamond prices, which I know about - and I'm not talking about metal prices either, referred to in the post by DS. (I bought a 24 carat gold ring in Dubai in 2004 that is now worth ten times what I paid.)

Metal prices are the same for all jewellers, so why is one PS vendor charging a thousand dollars for plain leverback earring settings and another just $250? That's my point. And that for a thousand dollars, you can have a G princess half-carat eternity - that's half a carat divided into just nine diamonds, bigger melee is more expensive than smaller - very sparkly, for the same price as those leverback settings. That eternity is a ring from one of America's oldest reputable jewellers, dating back to the nineteenth century in Boston, so it's not that price due to bad quality. Blue Nile is reputable and their half-carat eternities are about that price point too.

My point is that some sellers seem to be making a mockery of consumers with these setting prices, and I'm fed up with it because it annoys me, and also no one else seems to notice the inflated prices. I'm not necessarily talking about the designer pave, which may well be worth it. I haven't seen it. I'm talking about plain metal settings going for $1000 - $1500 dollars! Those prices aren't fair and I object to them. I know people don't have to buy, but they do because they've been misled by the price point, have busy lives and don't do the amount of research that we on PS do.

Interestingly, there was a James Allen bezel ring setting that I loved, but it was $1700 or $1800 just for the setting. Then, about six months ago, the price dropped to under a thousand. Maybe he realised it was a crazy price for a plain metal setting, or maybe no one was buying it, I don't know.

 

[fashionbabee]

As a Brit I have to disagree on the setting issues from what I know and have seen on my journey. I have been looking at rings/settings for months now. I have been to many UK jewellers and especially in and around London. I have found lots of cheapish pave settings but nothing that is on a par with the SK and VC pave halo rings that I covet. I cant speak for plainer settings or semi precious stones as they are not my area of interest or concern.

What I have noted, firstly, is that a decent replica of my favoured HW inspired halo setting is not to be found. I have only seen bulky not so good, almost replications of it,none that are an actual representation so that is my first problem.

Secondly on the ones I have seen the delicateness and pave of SK and VC is completely lacking, so much so that I am considering custom from the US and paying imprort tax and VAT. Trust me I would not want to do that if I could find anything on a par here. Logistics may prevail and I am currently debating custom or not but if there were no logistical objects to overcome (such as the additional cost of Vat and import tax etc) I would be ordering a hand forged setting in a flash!

I also think that years ago buying from a brand such as Tiffany had a lot of cache but in todays mass market artisan work like VC and SK almost carries an anti brand cache! The fact that a consumer has chosen to not go with a big brand like Tiffany and have something uniquely custom is as much, if not more, aspirational for a lot of people. This has probably mean an increase in demand and the likes of SK and VC can charge accrodingly (and of course also for their time and workmanship).

My opinion is: If the product was not good, by the rules of supply and demand, I dont think they would be doing as well as they are doing and having their praises sung by th pickiest of consumers and enthusiasts on this forum.

Just my thoughts!

 

[dianabarbara]

smith, I think your questions are very legitimate. Some setting prices are painful to look at, and probably not always justifiable

I don't have a huge jewelry expertise, so I will not comment on VC vs SK vs less expensive settings. But I wanted to say I see a huge value in handmade pieces that show great craftsmanship.

I don't mind at all stock settings for fun stones, because I always feel like it would not make a lot of sense to invest much argent in a ring whose centerstone does not make my heart sing.
On the other hand, I love very detailed, original work, and this is hard to accomplish with large scale built settings.

 

[Smith1942]

Yes, all good points fashionbabee. (Love your screen name!) I'm sorry you can't find what you want in the UK. Have you tried the Brighton Laines - that's the jewellery quarter, if you didn't know. There must be at least 100 jewellery shops down there and the selection is nothing if not eclectic. You might find just what you're looking for. They do sell intricate settings with GIA-certified stones.

I haven't seen the designer pave in real life so as I said, maybe it's pure ignorance.

But in terms of brand name, I'm sure the designers talked about here do great work but a Steven Kirsch, say, means nothing to me. I hear what you say about anti-brand aspirations, and I can imagine lots of people feeling that way, but I don't. Let's take Brian Gavin as an example (poor Brian!) His jewellery is absolutely top-notch, although on the pricey side, and I have three of his pieces. They're all stunning, with perfect workmanship. But as good as he is, hardly anyone's ever heard of him outside Pricescope and let's face it, he won't last forever. What happens to his brand when he's no longer around? It's Brian himself that contributes the magic. When you buy from a global brand like Tiffany, DeBeers etc you can be pretty confident that they will be there for a long, long time and therefore, if I were going to spend a lot of money and go high-end, I'd be more likely to go with - well, actually, if I was going to buy a 2-carat D/E VS, I'd probably get something from Blue Nile. You don't have the blue box price premium or the extra for an exclusive small designer like Kirsch, but BN is pretty solid and represents value for money.

I have lots of pieces from Tiffany, something from DeBeers, stuff from WF/BGD so I am not averse to buying the items from them that represent fair value.

We've got a little off-topic: I haven't seen the pave, so can't compare - my own inexpensive pave looks fine to me, and the designer seems very expensive, but each to their own. What I really can't get over is the prices for plain metal settings and semi-precious stones.

 

[Smith1942]

Good points, bianco. I think I really need to see some of these high-end settings in real life.

 

[rosetta]

Smith1942

Please direct me to the UK jewellers that do good pave work for lower prices than in the US. This is a genuine request, I can travel all around London and the south east. Many thanks

 

[Smith1942]

Rosetta: Check out this thread. You'll have to scroll down quite a bit. Find the post where I have replied to Nala about where to buy jewellery in the UK, including some links to various shops. If you are in the market for jewellery, you would have a very interesting day trip to my suggested place. I don't know if you know the Laines in Brighton, but they are certainly not all antique. Places such as Jeremy Hoye are modern custom jewellers, and last time I went, a few months ago, I noticed some new vendors but didn't write down their names. There is a large modern store with beautiful things opposite Piccolo's pizza place that you might like.

[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/diamond-cross.186638/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/diamond-cross.186638/[/URL]

 

[rosetta]

Rosetta: Check out this thread. You'll have to scroll down quite a bit. Find the post where I have replied to Nala about where to buy jewellery in the UK, including some links to various shops. If you are in the market for jewellery, you would have a very interesting day trip to my suggested place...

[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/diamond-cross.186638/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/diamond-cross.186638/[/URL]

I will peruse the thread. Thank you!

 

[Smith1942]

It's a pleasure. And I don't know, but you might be looking for something super high-end like many PSers want. I don't know if you clicked on my three rings in the second post of my thread, but I have three examples of inexpensive pave that is just stunning in real life, so it's hard for me to imagine spending thousands on pave settings. Each to their own though, I haven't seen it in real life.

The Laines is really more of a jewellery souk. I have never seen so much jewellery in one place except in Dubai's Gold Souk, and it didn't have as much variety as the Laines. I dare you to go and look round the Laines and not find something that makes your heart sing!

Hey, I'm coming home in about five weeks time. I live in Brighton. We could look round the jewellery together!

AND, I'll have my double-D 1.12 ctw stud upgrade, so you could see them IRL! If we have lunch at Piccolo's we can actually see the jewellery in the shop opposite as we eat, drooling everywhere...!

Edit: A bit about me, so you know I'm not a weirdo. I'm in my thirties, no kids yet, married to an American New York Times columnist. We met when he was working in London. I'm a book editor. My hometown is Brighton and I'm coming back for my mother's 70th in May. I'll be staying at my parents' house without my husband for most of the trip, so could do with meeting a fellow PSer to get out of the house, and I will be spending numerous hours in the Laines!

 

[oldminer]

One factor in the price increases seen in mounting costs beyond the major change in the cost of the underlying metal, is that the mark-up on diamonds among competitive dealers and vendors has gone way down from prices some years ago on the normal size and price range of diamonds. The sensitivity of the public to high diamond mark-ups has made it more or less mandantory that the profit center has moved from the gem material to the mounting. Jewelers have watch inglation, and virtually every cost increase while not doing a lot more business and seeing degradation in profit margins. There are other reasons why mountings, especially those of the highest quality and heavy in costly labor, have risen, but the willingness of the consumer to purchase what is perceived to be a high end, quality product is evidence that these costly mountings are filling a need of the consuming public.

COnsumers can certainly find well made, far less costly substitute mountings made by firms like Stuller in standard configurations for fairly reasonable prices. Pricescope shoppers tend to look for the better quality diamonds and want a mounting that their peers believe fits the quality of those diamonds. These designer rings do seem costly, but many are finely constructed and show much care in their manufacture missing from mass produced chain store mountings made in China or India. Some of the "custom" mountings made by CAD software are unique and clean, but I find them often needlessly thick of rather lumpy instead of fowing and attractive. Not every "designer" or custom made item is a great design, well made or entitled to a premium price, but the consumer makes that judgment.

 

[Smith1942]

Thanks for your input, Oldminer. I found it all really interesting, especially the transfer of the profit centre from jewel to mounting. I have definitely observed that. I've been scratching my head thinking, well, I'm sure settings were nothing like this price a few years ago, even accounting for metals prices. You've gone some way to answering my questions. I appreciate it!

Do you have any thoughts on the transformation of semi-precious gems such as topaz into stones commanding precious-gem prices?

 

[Treenbean]

Why are setting so expensive?
1- Metal prices are higher and it is terribly wasteful and expensive to mine precious metals
2- Labor costs are higher even for cheaply made settings
3- Supply and Demand
4- Monopoly mark ups

Why are semi precious gem prices increasing?
1- Expanding middle class of developing countries are driving gem and jewelry prices to the brink of insanity.
2- Ask most of the cutters where the top world class materials go to now a days.
3- Star systems (not the outer space kind) in filmmaking, entertainment, celebrities, celebrities wives, royalty, socialites etc. The image is emphasized instead of the substance so after being inundated with their squawk people begin to want what they have to "be like them" because "they have whats good" example: Kiki and Kate Middleton, Kathy Waterman and Anna Paquin, Me and Ro and Julia Roberts.

Why do we put up with it?
Whats the alternative?

I own Mike Robinson, Leon Mege, and Brian Gavin pieces.
Why do I buy from such vendors? Because when I buy jewelry from them, the potential exists, that when I am long gone those pieces might still be left behind. There is a quality to there work that can't be reproduced in casting. Hand forged is a dying art form.
Die striking is a dying art form. We are moving away from what America used to be; Manufactures (tool and die makers used to be indispensable), producers, forgers and putting emphasis on I don't know what.

Art= Works produced by skill and imagination
Rant over

 

[CharmyPoo]

I haven't read the full thread yet but I have a few thoughts:

1. Some people can't tell the difference between a fake LV purse and a real one. Some people would never dream of paying thousands of dollars for a purse. I think the same applies to settings - people are just different in their taste and standards. I am extremely picky with my settings so I can clearly see a difference in quality and it is not always dictated by price. There are tons of photos that I have seen on here that people rave about - I keep my mouth shut and my feelings quiet but I don't feel the same way. I have seen super high end designer settings in real life that cost a load and I find their quality worse than LM and SK.

2. We pay what we are willing to pay. If the price is too high for an individual, they will go else where ... there is no right or wrong answer for each person. They have to decide what they like and are willing to pay for. People can argue about who has a better setting all day but in the end .. it's just about what one person can see and what another can't.

 

[CharmyPoo]

Smith1942 - I think beauty is in the eye of the beholder and not on price. My favorite setting only cost me $300 and has a chipped melee. It is still my favorite setting and my stone looks beautiful in it. When a top bench sees it, they can pick out everything wrong with it .. but that doesn't change the fact that I love the setting and it is beautiful to me.

 

[Smith1942]

Charmypoo - I agree that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I have some expensive items that are easy for anybody to love, but some cheaper ones which are babies that only a mother can love!

Treenbean - thanks for your input. You make excellent points about expanding middle classes driving prices, and also about dying craftsmanship. I don't really understand the difference between the casting and the hand-wiring. I would assume that many of my rings are cast and they seem really sturdy. Surely they would last, too? I have Tiffany and DeBeers pieces. I really don't know if they're cast or made with wire.

I addressed the question of materials value and the disparity in plain settings still exists. As I said above, metals prices are the same for all jewellers so why is a plain leverback setting $1,000 at one reputable jeweller but $250 at another reputable jeweller?

I reserve judgment on the pave - I haven't seen a Kirsch or a Mege in real life so perhaps I would get it if I did. Charmypoo - how interesting that you have seen really expensive high-quality settings in real life which aren't as good as Kirsch/Canera etc.

Treen asked what the alternative was - well, it's to buy the settings that are same quality but which cost much less! Again, I'm talking about the example above that I gave of plain settings rather than the pave.

 

[Treenbean]

I'm not a jeweler but I love this topic and metallurgy.
Precious metals have a Crystalline structure or lattice. Heated to it's melting point you disrupt the lattice and it loses it crystalline form. As the metal cools it reforms its structure.

In Casting the crystal reforms and are fairly strong but can be affected by many things; alloy content, speed of cooling, micro-bubbles etc to form a fairly durable but not super durable form. Fast, Cheap. Typical. Tiffany casts some of their pieces but die stamps others and then also has their high end, hand made pieces. If I'm wrong please chime in people!

VC, Robinson, SK, and LM start with metal casting grains, melt them but then instead of pouring it into a mould they do a process of quenching then cutting out pieces and running the metal through a rolling mill (machine that flattens and compresses the metal) to a desired thickness or run the metal pieces through a draw plate( strong metal plate that has a series of holes round or square) to make wire for shanks and prongs. The beauty of this process is that is causes the metals crystal structure to become very very durable even if the wire is fairly thin.
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/hand-made-jewelry-an-art-form-sk-vc-rdg.173420/

Van Creynest, Jabel and Whitehouse Brothers are die stampers or make die struck settings. Which makes extremely durable pieces by using high pressure to force the metal into very intricate designs. This also makes the crystal structure very durable. Some people have had issues setting stones that are softer than diamonds in die struck settings and I wonder if it is because of how strong the metal is.

http://www.langantiques.com/university/index.php/Die_Struck

Certain metals are too soft to be cast 18k green gold for example.

I think its a matter of taste to leave out the melee or not on pieces. I like truly wearable things, as well, so sometimes I opt for simple.

 

[CharmyPoo]

I reserve judgment on the pave - I haven't seen a Kirsch or a Mege in real life so perhaps I would get it if I did. Charmypoo - how interesting that you have seen really expensive high-quality settings in real life which aren't as good as Kirsch/Canera etc.

For clarification, I have never seen Victor's work in real life. I am comparing to Leon and Steven's work - not just pave but also the metal work While I say I believe it is better, the other work is not bad by any means. Most people will be pretty happy with them. For me, I was actually shocked with the prices in Toronto - they are more than our PS vendors. I was at a high end mall jeweler (not a chain) and they wanted $8000 for a setting that I know SK, LM will charge under $5000 for and the cad/cast in the $3000 range. Their quality of work did not compare as I inspected examples up close. I must say I love the shop though - amazing service and beautiful brand name settings and designs.

 

[SB621]

I reserve judgment on the pave - I haven't seen a Kirsch or a Mege in real life so perhaps I would get it if I did. Charmypoo - how interesting that you have seen really expensive high-quality settings in real life which aren't as good as Kirsch/Canera etc.

For clarification, I have never seen Victor's work in real life. I am comparing to Leon and Steven's work - not just pave but also the metal work While I say I believe it is better, the other work is not bad by any means. Most people will be pretty happy with them. For me, I was actually shocked with the prices in Toronto - they are more than our PS vendors. I was at a high end mall jeweler (not a chain) and they wanted $8000 for a setting that I know SK, LM will charge under $5000 for and the cad/cast in the $3000 range. Their quality of work did not compare as I inspected examples up close. I must say I love the shop though - amazing service and beautiful brand name settings and designs.

I was actually thinking the same thing. The last big names stores I went to were in Italy and NYC. I was really disappointed with some of the quality. And I don't mean Tiffany's which I think has gone down hill in terms of quality greatly over the last decade but places like HW, Cartier and the like with designer/ brand names. The rings were nice but it wasn't the quality of my VC or SK rings. The general manager commented on my ering actaully saying how impressed he was with it. He even asked to loup it and brought over a sales person to explain how the pave was set perfectly. Regardless I have pieces by Tiffany's, Cartier, SK, VC, WF, my favorite jeweler out of HK (JJ) and a few other PS vendors. I like to shop around for best prices but at the same time I don't ever want to sacrafice on quality of a setting or my vision for it. Been there, done that and it only results in me selling it for a lot less then what I paid on DB/LT.

 

[Smith1942]

It's very interesting to hear your observations, Charmypoo and Sarahbear. Thank you.

And Treen, thanks so much for all that info! When I get a break from my work, I'll have to read and absorb. Thanks for the links!

 

[oldminer]

I see one reason for folks paying what seems to be very high mark-ups on relatively low value gemstones is the lack of a worthy grading and valuation system underlying any of the the colored gems. DIamonds have such a well described and widely understood system, that consumers can make excellent choices. Colored stones are in the dark ages by comparison. Dealers with years of experience find it very frustating to discover they likely will never understand the colored gem pricing that exists. Mostly, that because there is no real system at work. It is a free market and comparison shopping sets the willingness to pay while the supply of any particular gem material can vary greatly along with demand. Colored gems don't fit comfortable slots in a matrix like most diamonds. When a gem becomes popular, people will pay more to be in style. When a gemstone is not fashionable, they are sold for far less.

 

[bcavitt]

Certain metals are too soft to be cast 18k green gold for example.

The second half of this statement is definitely not true! This ring we cast ourselves and is available for sale:

http://www.imagesjewelers.com/products/id/525

Even electrum, which is 75% gold and 25% silver, can be cast (technically 18 Karat).

 

[Kismet]

I think where the business is located and how it's run would drive a lot of price differentials. Do they have a brick and mortar store that they need to staff and pay rent on? Are they in an urban center where rents and salaries are higher? What kind of inventory or raw materials do they keep on hand and how would that affect their insurance costs.

 

[Treenbean]

bcavitt- I'm not trade nor jeweler, just going by personal experience, when I asked for a green gold setting, that's what I was told.

 

[Smith1942]

Thanks for your replies, Oldminer and Kismet.

I was so puzzled by these two trends in jewellery - the price of settings and the price of semi-precious gems - and I have received some really good responses here, shedding lots of light on the matter. I'm very grateful to everyone.

 

[Polished]

It's expensive to get a stone set here in Australia, so I look at the setting prices of places like BGD and Whiteflash and think they're not too bad. I also think, as others have said, that the competitively priced diamonds are offset by a mark up in setting price. I'd rather pay for this though than the other way around.

I also think we're not typical here on PS when we might be in the market for more than one setting. It puts us in the know of who has what, what prices are, how they've altered over time. Are jewelers, especially those making a living predominently from sellings erings, tapping into that psychology, that it's a one off purchase, where the buyer is in the mood for paying a premium for something they believe is special?