Went shopping for rings today!

[JaimeLynne]

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Originally Posted by Rachelle E. Ooh...I really like the little diamond on the side! And it's definitely good to know you have lots of options for the WB. AND I was going to say, with the simpler setting of the Scott Kay you could definitely add a little bling to the WB and it wouldn't be too much. You know? Something with small round diamonds sounds like it would be perfect.

I think so too!

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Originally Posted by LC_Rachel I love the tacori ring- the detailing is beautiful. I guess I'm kinda partial because my e-ring (and WB- it's both since I didn't want a wb) has a ton of detailing and a hidden diamond too. As for custom ordering, does RB not have a jeweler that can do that? When we were looking for WBs, our jeweler said we could always custom order through them. I decided not to get a WB because i felt it took away from my ring, instead of complimenting it. However, either way, I love both rings. And I agree, a better quality, smaller stone is a good idea. It will sparkle much more!

I also like the detailing but like the hidden diamond you don't see it much. I'm sure RBs could get it custom made but I don't know what the price would be. Usually it costs extra and we're already at the top of our budget.

I think I am coming closer and closer to a conclusion, ladies....

[PenMarie]

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Originally Posted by JaimeLynne Have you tried Diamonds, Engagement Rings and Fine Jewelry at Blue Nile? From what I hear they are pretty good. I shopped around there first to get an idea of what I was looking for. Looks like a good site.

My ring is from Blue Nile, and I absolutely love it!! We got sooooo much more for the money by purchasing it here. Unbelievable!!

[starfish kate]

I lurk over on Diamond prices: comparison, statistics, education (Pricescpe) It is a great site for researching diamonds and e-rings. There are also great comments about Robbins Bros. For what it's worth, I LOVE the Scott Kay setting!

[JaimeLynne]

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Originally Posted by starfish kate I lurk over on Diamond prices: comparison, statistics, education (Pricescpe) It is a great site for researching diamonds and e-rings. There are also great comments about Robbins Bros. For what it's worth, I LOVE the Scott Kay setting!

Wow that site looks so thorough! I searched "robbins bros" though and I found a bunch of horrible comments on them Honestly the lingo on their forums is wayyy over my head. I have no clue what they're talking about. I don't know, I just got an overall good impression about Robbins Bros. Sometimes you have to pay a little more for good customer service and like I said I am in sales so I appreciate a good sales team!

Thanks for your vote on the Scott Kay! That's definitely the direction I'm headed

[Maura]

jaime, just to be a voice of reason.... you can take a photo of the kay ring to a jeweler to have it made... if we'd have bought my ring from tiffany it wouldve cost $16,000 for a 1 carat stone and identical band to what i got. we took the photo to a jeweler and had the same ring made with some custom differences and a much larger center stone for half the price. just my two cents. i think its really silly to pay retail.

[JaimeLynne]

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Originally Posted by Maura jaime, just to be a voice of reason.... you can take a photo of the kay ring to a jeweler to have it made... if we'd have bought my ring from tiffany it wouldve cost $16,000 for a 1 carat stone and identical band to what i got. we took the photo to a jeweler and had the same ring made with some custom differences and a much larger center stone for half the price. just my two cents. i think its really silly to pay retail.

Wow, that is a huuuuge difference! Our budget starting out (retail) is much smaller - max of $5k and that's pushing it. The Kay ring setting is $1200, do you really think a jeweler could beat that price by more than a couple hundred dollars? And do they get diamonds cheaper for some reason? I guess I'm just not very educated on all this yet.

[Maura]

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Originally Posted by JaimeLynne Wow, that is a huuuuge difference! Our budget starting out (retail) is much smaller - max of $5k and that's pushing it. The Kay ring setting is $1200, do you really think a jeweler could beat that price by more than a couple hundred dollars? And do they get diamonds cheaper for some reason? I guess I'm just not very educated on all this yet.

we went to a custom jeweler in chicago diamond district on wabash ave. my FI didnt want to spend more than 10K or else risk going into debt which i agreed was a bad idea, so i didnt expect to get a decently sized ring. we took a photo of the tiffany novo to the custom jeweler. i got a WG setting, same pave diamonds on the side as the tiffany novo. my center stone was a loose diamond (cushion cut) we picked with the custom jeweler and is 1.3 carats, the pave diamonds on the band add up to .2 carats, so my ring is a total of 1.5 carats of diamonds, there are 7 pave diamonds on each side of the center stone. its stunning. i had one change made to the design - i had it cathedral set, because the way the novo was, i would catch it on everything and snag clothes and stuff.

my ring cost just slightly over $5K and is appraised at $9K retail value.

basically when you buy retail, you are paying a HUGE markup for the costs associated with running a chain business (i.e. rent, electricity bills, etc etc etc). going to a custom jeweler in a diamond district will save you tons of money because they dont pay for an expensive storefront rent!

if you want, i can PM you all the specs of my ring. you really should be educated about your options before buying a ring -- retail IMHO is not the way to go. my FI basically saved $12K by buying from a custom jeweler in the diamond district because the tiffany ring wouldve been about $18K with tax added on. my ring looks almost identical to the tiffany novo except that its cathedral set. it was a much better value, i got a nicer quality bigger stone for a whole lot less money.

[Rachelle E.]

I will say that I agree w/ Maura on the cost effectiveness of a private jeweler. I hadn't really priced rings before I got mine - but David spent weeks on it and said he got a WAY better deal and a WAY better diamond w/ the private jeweler. Granted the guy we used is kind of an old family friend - he's done my sis and BIL's rings and any jewelry my BIL has ever bought for my sis otherwise - earrings, necklaces etc. So I'm sure we got a slightly better deal because of that. But overall it saved David a LOT of money.

 

My ring sounds fairly similar in stats to Maura's actually. my center stone is 1.19 w/ two pear shaped side stones at .15 each (1.46 total on the ring). I think the color is F (I think?) and I believe the center stone is VVS2? Anyway, they're gorgeous diamonds on a platinum band. (btw, he picked all of this out w/out me...I probably would have insisted he get WG instead of platinum had I know this was going on - lol! - and know the price differences. I really had no clue at the time) And it appraises for close to 10k...I don't know the exact amount he paid (I didn't want to - the guilt would overwhelm me! lol!) but I believe it was close to the 6k range, between 5-6k? I'm sure it was the price of the platinum that drove that up. But either way, we would not have been able to pay retail for that ring! no way! I've priced rings w/ similar stats on Blue Nile and stuff and about DIED when I saw the prices - usually over 16k.

 

It's definietly an option worth exploring...although I do understand that you like all the services and perks that come w/ the retail purchase. That being said if I ever encountered any issues w/ my ring, the jeweler would certainly fix them. And as far as cleaning and stuff, I get my ring cleaned at a store near where I work...and they're really great about it. They do NOT care that I didn't buy my ring there etc.

 

It may be just something you can look into, since Robbins Bros isn't going anywhere - you can always go back once you explore your options! :-)

[lucy106]

Glad you are having fun ring shopping! I personally vote for the Scott Kay. But they both are magnificent.

[JaimeLynne]

Maura & Rachelle - Thanks so much for both of your input!! I am going to relay this info to FI and we will look into it.