Gemhunt review, 3 vendors: Finewater Gems (Gary Braun), AfricaGems (Marc Sarosi), GemsNY (Vishal)
Background: looking for an untreated, royal blue squarish cushion cut sapphire with face between 7x7 and 9x9mm, 2-5 cts.
Finewater Gems (worked with Gary Braun)
Gary was a pleasure to work with. His photography and videos were excellent as was his website. Having now seen a stone from his site in person, I understand better how colors from his photos would translate in-person. He was very responsive on emails and his written descriptions accurate as well regarding color, clarity, cut, 5.21 ct size etc. This was my first internet buy so we used escrow.com for comfort. Was able to work with me on pricing. Very nicely cut, though I don’t believe it was done by Gary, which I think is also unusual for most of what he sells. Fast shipping. Color of the stone was a little lighter than I’d hoped but again his description was accurate, just my inexperience. Beautiful stone all in all, and as he said in his description, would certainly make for a stunning center stone in an engagement ring if we were looking for an oval/that color (my girlfriend and I ended up re-confirming our slight pref for cushion). Look forward to buying other stones from him again as anniversaries etc come up, and pushing friends to do the same. Came with GIA cert as untreated unheated. Overall, an A+ transaction.
AfricaGems (worked with Marc Sarosi)
Had a great experience working with Marc. Purchased a stone without having seen it in person. Very pretty 3.6 ct cushion cut blue sapphire from him. Shipping - fast both ways and included, which was helpful to me as I had time constraints. Wired him the money directly for the stone given his reputation and independent review sites, including Pricescope. When the stone wasn’t 100% to my girlfriend’s specific ideal, he was fast to get me a return shipping label and also return my funds (sizable amount for me). I felt badly that the purchase didn’t work out, would have liked to give him business as he worked with me on the price too. Very responsive on emails; I was a demanding customer with a tight schedule and he made it work. Stone itself was well described in emails. Pictures/videos on his site did not do it a favor given their magnification vs in person beauty, but I trusted him on the written description and because PS has him as a recommended vendor, and was rewarded with a strong contender in my gemhunt. Came with an AGL cert as untreated unheated. Stone was probably the runner up ultimately. Wouldn’t hesitate to work with Marc again or recommend to a family member. Overall, an A+ transaction.
GemsNY (worked with Vishal)
Vishal’s office was my girlfriend and I’s third in-person stop (and done before i purchased+returned both of above), and truthfully where my girlfriend and I learned the most about what we liked and didn’t like in terms of color, clarity, cut, sizing, etc, because he had such a large inventory readily accessible. He was extraordinarily patient across multiple visits, and I did end up buying the center stone for an upcoming engagement ring from him. Stone is smaller than others reviewed above, however the color and squarish cushion was just right for us. Really pretty purplish blue and a slightly darker, though the depth being shorter seems to help the stone keep its brilliance. Though I personally feel as though I didn’t get as good a value on a $ per ct basis as I would have above with the internet vendors, I’m very happy with my purchase and more importantly so is my girlfriend - she is thrilled and super excited to have found her ideal stone. Further, I understand GemsNY business model/costs may be different than internet vendors and am OK with paying for the education and in-person selection GemsNY offered. As Vishal said within 5 minutes of meeting us, what is most important is color, and that’s exactly what drove our final decision almost 6 weeks later after lots (and lots and lots) of research and 100s if not 1000s of stones. Was not pushy at all and would buy from him again, and recommend him as definitely worth a visit for other [first time] gem buyers in the NYC area.
Gary, Marc, Vishal – welcome your comments below if I can further clarify anything. I appreciate your patience, help, and the enjoyment you all brought me through the process, and hopefully these reviews can help steer folks your way in the future.
Background: looking for an untreated, royal blue squarish cushion cut sapphire with face between 7x7 and 9x9mm, 2-5 cts.
Finewater Gems (worked with Gary Braun)
Gary was a pleasure to work with. His photography and videos were excellent as was his website. Having now seen a stone from his site in person, I understand better how colors from his photos would translate in-person. He was very responsive on emails and his written descriptions accurate as well regarding color, clarity, cut, 5.21 ct size etc. This was my first internet buy so we used escrow.com for comfort. Was able to work with me on pricing. Very nicely cut, though I don’t believe it was done by Gary, which I think is also unusual for most of what he sells. Fast shipping. Color of the stone was a little lighter than I’d hoped but again his description was accurate, just my inexperience. Beautiful stone all in all, and as he said in his description, would certainly make for a stunning center stone in an engagement ring if we were looking for an oval/that color (my girlfriend and I ended up re-confirming our slight pref for cushion). Look forward to buying other stones from him again as anniversaries etc come up, and pushing friends to do the same. Came with GIA cert as untreated unheated. Overall, an A+ transaction.
AfricaGems (worked with Marc Sarosi)
Had a great experience working with Marc. Purchased a stone without having seen it in person. Very pretty 3.6 ct cushion cut blue sapphire from him. Shipping - fast both ways and included, which was helpful to me as I had time constraints. Wired him the money directly for the stone given his reputation and independent review sites, including Pricescope. When the stone wasn’t 100% to my girlfriend’s specific ideal, he was fast to get me a return shipping label and also return my funds (sizable amount for me). I felt badly that the purchase didn’t work out, would have liked to give him business as he worked with me on the price too. Very responsive on emails; I was a demanding customer with a tight schedule and he made it work. Stone itself was well described in emails. Pictures/videos on his site did not do it a favor given their magnification vs in person beauty, but I trusted him on the written description and because PS has him as a recommended vendor, and was rewarded with a strong contender in my gemhunt. Came with an AGL cert as untreated unheated. Stone was probably the runner up ultimately. Wouldn’t hesitate to work with Marc again or recommend to a family member. Overall, an A+ transaction.
GemsNY (worked with Vishal)
Vishal’s office was my girlfriend and I’s third in-person stop (and done before i purchased+returned both of above), and truthfully where my girlfriend and I learned the most about what we liked and didn’t like in terms of color, clarity, cut, sizing, etc, because he had such a large inventory readily accessible. He was extraordinarily patient across multiple visits, and I did end up buying the center stone for an upcoming engagement ring from him. Stone is smaller than others reviewed above, however the color and squarish cushion was just right for us. Really pretty purplish blue and a slightly darker, though the depth being shorter seems to help the stone keep its brilliance. Though I personally feel as though I didn’t get as good a value on a $ per ct basis as I would have above with the internet vendors, I’m very happy with my purchase and more importantly so is my girlfriend - she is thrilled and super excited to have found her ideal stone. Further, I understand GemsNY business model/costs may be different than internet vendors and am OK with paying for the education and in-person selection GemsNY offered. As Vishal said within 5 minutes of meeting us, what is most important is color, and that’s exactly what drove our final decision almost 6 weeks later after lots (and lots and lots) of research and 100s if not 1000s of stones. Was not pushy at all and would buy from him again, and recommend him as definitely worth a visit for other [first time] gem buyers in the NYC area.
Gary, Marc, Vishal – welcome your comments below if I can further clarify anything. I appreciate your patience, help, and the enjoyment you all brought me through the process, and hopefully these reviews can help steer folks your way in the future.