1 Ct Diamond Solitaire Ring, Engagement Ring Advice ?
Q.I am looking for an engagement ring and am looking for information regarding price. What are prices one might have seen for a 3/4 carat diamond solitaire? Prices for a 1/2 carat diamon solitaire? What do you think about a sapphire wrap for the engagement ring? Is one better off buying from a customized shop or a retailer such as Penny's or a mall jewelry store?
A.In theory you could buy a 1/2 ct diamond for as little as $20 or as much as $5000. The former being a "drill bit" quality diamond, the latter a near perfect solitaire. I went to a diamond merchant in the City of Pittsburgh(John Anthony, Downtown Clark Bldg.) who was able to order in several diamonds (loose) for me to look at. He showed me all about the 4-c's Color, cut, clarity, and Carat weight as well as proportion, luminesence (All subdivisions of the previous 4). I told him what I wanted, and he called a week later and said "I have 5 stones in. Come and take a look." So I did. But he wouldn't tell me the prices until I picked the one I liked the best. Then he put the other away, and told me the price. Mounted it and I gave it to my fiancee who loves it. BTW I paid 1/2 of what the same ring was at the mall (Comporable that is) -- I got a 1.14 ct. G-SI1 (1.14 carat, G color SI-1 clarity) for less than $3600. Not all the diamonds you see will be priced this way. Several I looked at in the malls were marked as SI's but I could see the inclusion (mark) with the naked eye -- therefore it was actually an I grade. Also, keep an eye out for the different grading systems. There are standards that the GMIA ( I think thats right?) are more rigid than the AGA. Its been a year since I bought the ring, and Everytime I look at it, I know how much it made her smile; and I don't regret the whole process of looking, and looking one little bit. When G.. and I got engaged, we had shopped for the ring for quite a while. We found that the smaller independantly owned stores treated us a lot better than the bigger chain stores, like Peoples. We went to Bogart's, a store in the local mall, and we were looking at a very expensive ring. The salesgirl tried to convince us to buy it there and then, saying things like "Oh,it is an original" and "If you don't snap it up now, it will be gone." Shen then proceded to tell us a story about someone who had that happen to them. Supposedly. Then at Peoples, a saleswoman treated us like we couldn't afford the ring, and basically treated us like we were wasting her time. So we bought the ring at Diamond Design. They were excellent. We spent more than a year choosing the diamond (not consecutively, but we'd go for an appointment one week, then go back three months later) and we spent time choosing the stone, which we chose out a variety of loose stones. Brenda took us through it, educating us about color, clarity, cut, and carat. She answered our questions, never made us feel like we were in over our heads at any time, and although the ring we chose was more than we expected, it was one we had chosen togther and were responsible for our decisions every step of the way. We even chose the design. The best part, is that the ring was handmade, and when I saw a wedding band I loved with a Victorian design, they were able to take my engagement ring and incorporate the design in it as well, so I'll end up with a matching set. All the work is hand done, which appeals to me, rather than being mass produced. It was created for me. I am getting George's wedding ring done there too. He wants a map engraved into his ring as he majored in Geograpy. It is nice to know that we can get exactly what we want. Anyway, this is not a plug for Diamond Design, nor is it a slam against Bogart's or Peoples. It is based on our experiences with these stores. As for advice, go with what you feel is comfortable. And educate yourself before you buy. It is a major purchase and is a serious symbol of your intent to make a lifelong commitment with your fiancee.
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