Was going to buy online but .........now I dunno

[Ring a ring]

I''m an Aussie so I was going to buy from icestore - other vendors located overseas have asked me to call to obtain further information which put things in the too hard basket- but have had trouble with icestore getting back to me and can''t screen diamonds very well online because often the crown and pavillion angle information is left out. So I went to a recommended jeweller and they are getting some stones in for me at no charge. The price seems OK ~ $2000 AUS for an 0.5 brilliant E-F SI1-2 hermitage stone. I''ve asked for a clean stone with inclusions that can be masked by the prongs in the setting. Any tips for checking how good a stone is in the store without an ideal scope? What should I look for? I''ve heard that the average person can pick between a good and excellent cut stone just by looking at it??? Any one have any experience with hermitage stones?

 

[just_looking!]

Hi! I''m sure others will dive in who have bought online and live in Australia.

I''m in the Middle East and have bought online. You definitely get more for your money, but sending it back if you don''t like it is the difficult part as most courier companies won''t ship jewellery on behalf of the public despite the fact that they do it for their trade customers!

I''m pretty sure that good old gold have sent stones to Aus - maybe contact them to discuss? I bought from Whiteflash and was very pleased with their service. My engagement ring was much more complicated (stones from 2 different places, ring made elsewhere and then sent to the appraiser in yet another state) so we went over to the US to pick that up.

Hope that helps!!

 

[strmrdr]

You can get Garry to ship you an IS pretty quickly.
You may be close to one of his stores also.
MDX is also located down there.

 

[Ring a ring]

Been reading a bit about the IS but they appear to come from the US only - Is this right???? Is it affected by the overhead lights in the stores even with the light source? I''m actually nervous about taking one into the shop and looking like an absolute goose

 

[strmrdr]

Date: 1/7/2006 2:01:05 AM
Author: Ring a ring
Been reading a bit about the IS but they appear to come from the US only - Is this right???? Is it affected by the overhead lights in the stores even with the light source? I''m actually nervous about taking one into the shop and looking like an absolute goose

Garry the designer of the IS is in Melbourne and could get one to you pretty quick most likely.

 

[strmrdr]

His stores website:
http://www.preciousmetals.com.au/

 

[Ring a ring]

thanks for the details - I am thinking about buying the IS

 

[rubybrierley]

Hi,
Am also an Aussie - thinking of buying online but am the same as you - put off by the hassle involved. Just wondering where you are in Aus and which jeweller is getting stones in for you? I''m after a cushion cut and have found most of the B&M stores either really rude - our budget for the whole ring is $3500 - we had a guy actually laugh at our budget or they have no idea what a cushion cut is - one guy told me that ''in the trade'', a cushion is the next cut from an emerald! Pricescope is great because it means you can actually have an idea about things when you go shopping.
Cheers
Ruby

 

[Hest88]

If I were in Australia I''d contact Garry first. I believe he has two retail stores. I don''t know how his pricing is, since most PSers seem to be from the U.S., but I don''t doubt that Garry could get you a gorgeous diamond.

 

[Ring a ring]

Hi Ruby, I''m in Sydney and if you want to email me I''ll let you know the name of the jeweller who''s getting the stones in for me. I''m still having trouble getting an appointment with icestore or even an email reply but have since done a google search for diamond merchants in sydney and come up with a few results - a friend recommended Israel P (Diamonds) Pty Ltd on King St. Any experience with diamond merchants in Sydney anyone? Almost wishing I knew nothing and just went shopping