Engagement Ring Shopping

So pretty much everything obvious has been exhausted. I am curious as to where the best deals are because everything seems ridiculously expensive or gaudy. I have heard some good things about Costco from a few friends, but the only thing I think of when someone mentions Costco is my four-pound box of Cheerios. Has anyone ever gotten a ring there? If you have ran through the ring gauntlet, who had the best quality for the best price? Thanks guys.

 

Yes... Cosco would be a good place to look.

My youngest bro bought the ring there and it is beautiful and top quality.

 

Wish I could help you but it has been 32 wonderful years since I bought momma's rings.

 

You're getting married? Is it to an aircraft?

 

Say again.
All after engagement ring.

Some unsuspecting man actually proposed to you?
Hell has indeed frozen over.

just kidding by the way

 

Congratulations.

 

I'll believe it...when I see it.

 

Vintage is best.
But it depends on what stone you want and what not.

 

Dahhhling, you never say congratulations to the bride. You say "best wishes".

 

I stand corrected. Best wishes to the toughest lady on earth.

 

Cubic zirconia, a mans best friend...

 

I'll take the under. Loser buys lunch.

 

Well as much as I'd like to stick around and get a sitrep on this...

I'm out till Monday.

take care kronik.

 

Have a good one

 

Who is the ring for?

Yes, I know, but last time you spoke about men (which seems like a month ago) you didn't have one. So I'm assuming it's for someone else...

Oh if it's for you, congratulations.

 

This mayor may not be helpful. There are the four "C"s (one of which is actually a K).
Color
Cut
Clarity
Karat.

Unless you're going Harry Winston - which it doesn't sound like, here's some tips:
You can sacrifice a LOT on color for anything other than a solitaire setting. The yellow of the gold will make a colorless stone less so. So you can go all the way to say "H" or even "I" without it being too noticeable.
Same goes with clarity. Salespeople may say you "need" to have a VS rating or better but when was the last time you whipped out a loop to look for inclusions in a rock? So an SI1 or better will probably be fine.
That leaves us with cut and karat.
Karat is simply how big it is. That is a matter of personal taste. My wife liked a particular Tiffany setting that would have looked weird with a two kt rock in it. It's very delicate and feminine. So hers is around 1.25 kt and that looks great.
The last thing is the cut. This is the only thing that can get a little tricky for laymen. A well cut diamond will sparkle to the point that it almost looks like there is a little light inside it. Too deep or shallow and you might as well have glass. Don't look at it only under the direct light they will provide. See if it "catches" the light from different angles.
As far as pricing goes, I would check to see if there is a Diamond District in your area. This is where wholesalers will sell to the public at a small percent over rap. It's well worth the trip. If you let me know where you're at, I can check for you.
Cheers!

 

This mayor may not be helpful. There are the four "C"s (one of which is actually a K).
Color
Cut
Clarity
Karat.

Unless you're going Harry Winston - which it doesn't sound like, here's some tips:
You can sacrifice a LOT on color for anything other than a solitaire setting. The yellow of the gold will make a colorless stone less so. So you can go all the way to say "H" or even "I" without it being too noticeable.
Same goes with clarity. Salespeople may say you "need" to have a VS rating or better but when was the last time you whipped out a loop to look for inclusions in a rock? So an SI1 or better will probably be fine.
That leaves us with cut and karat.
Karat is simply how big it is. That is a matter of personal taste. My wife liked a particular Tiffany setting that would have looked weird with a two kt rock in it. It's very delicate and feminine. So hers is around 1.25 kt and that looks great.
The last thing is the cut. This is the only thing that can get a little tricky for laymen. A well cut diamond will sparkle to the point that it almost looks like there is a little light inside it. Too deep or shallow and you might as well have glass. Don't look at it only under the direct light they will provide. See if it "catches" the light from different angles.
As far as pricing goes, I would check to see if there is a Diamond District in your area. This is where wholesalers will sell to the public at a small percent over rap. It's well worth the trip. If you let me know where you're at, I can check for you.
Cheers!

 

Vintage, as in not a diamond ring?

 

No, there are tons of vintage diamond rings.
You can find lots of nice asscher cut and art deco looking diamonds.

 

Personally, I think the color and clarity is the most important aspect. Your diamonds look like junk if they're too yellowy and have lots of imperfections.
Some of us can tell when diamonds are crap. I think a lot of people (stupidly) get too worried about the size. A smaller but very high quality diamond is a lot better looking than a large cloudy/yellow thing. If they don't sparkle, what's the point?

 

Yeah, going all the way back to the ancient days of the 1940s when DeBeers started an advertising campaign to work on the inante gold digger in every woman.

 

Check out estate sales. You would be astonished by some of the jewelry that can be found.

 

Are you saying there were no diamond rings before the 40's? Because that would be an idiotic thing to say.
Were diamond engagement rings de rigueur back then? Nope. Did diamond rings exist? You bet.

 

You engaged? Wow! You're one dudette I didn't think would go that route .... well, at least not for quite awhile - but congratulations, good luck and I do wish you the best.

About Costco - I've shopped there a lot, usually for just paper products and foods..... but here's a little true story that happened to a friend....

This was about 7-8 yrs ago when a co-worker went to Costco and bought her husband a Seiko watch for $300. He needed a link taken out of band for a better fit, so Kathy took the watch to a jeweler here since Costco was out of town. He picked up the watch and said "Lady, this watch is black-market" and wouldn't touch it. After Kathy got over her shock, she tho't he must be wrong and took the watwch to another reputable jeweler.... only to be told the same thing.

So, my friend took the watch and receipt back to Costco where she bought it. There were quite a few people milling around the jewelry counter when a clerk went up to her and asked her if he could help her. She slapped the watch and receipt on the counter said loudly "Yes, I want to give you back the BLACK MARKET watch I bought for my husband! in this store!"
The clerk asked her if they could step over to the side and discuss it, but she wouldn't budge, demanding her $ back. After her gave her back her $, she asked for a scissors. Got the scissors and she cut up her Costco and never went back.....

I'll go there to buy by household supplies, but to buy electronics, jewelry, etc.... nope.

 

To myself obviously.

There might be some truth to this. Thanks.

This is precisely what I would fear and I would have no way of telling.

As for everyone else contributing, I appreciate it. I do not want a diamond or anything. I am looking for something I can wear at work. If I get some sort of stone put in it, I would not be able to wear it under my gloves and it would most definitely get lost if I took it off (because I am like that).

One of my best friends is coming out to visit and she is going to help me shop around, but I need a few good places to look so she does not have me running everywhere. I will not rule Costco out completely because I have heard multiple good reviews, but Hummingbird does have an anecdote that parallels my concern. Not that I care if it is black market, I just do not want him to pay the price for a non-black market ring.