Engagement Ring Advice

[photon]

Blue Nile says they don't use conflict diamonds so that's good.

If I had to do it again though I'd probably try to do something different with the money than buying a diamond to meet social expectations for an engagement, or some combination like getting a Moissanite stone.

But then again I'm a lot older now and my values have changed.

But an engagement probably isn't the place to make a stand about social values on big diamonds, unless you really know her well and know she'd have a big positive reaction to that.

[ranchlandsselling]

Originally Posted by kunkstyle

Besides the advice already given (don't do it, and 10k is better spent on a house down payment ), all I'll say is do not go to Spence. Ever.


Moneysense magazine agrees.

http://www.moneysense.ca/2011/06/17/...stco/jewllery/

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by JiriHrdina

I bought my wife her ring at Spence and she loves it. I don't know why people don't like Spence - she gets constant comments about how gorgeous it is.

No knock on their product. The rings themselves are decent. <mod edit>changed to say you had a bad experience in an abundance of caution</mod edit>.

After the experience I had with my wedding band I will never shop there again, and certainly won't recommend them.

[jus_sum_guy]

I did something quite different...

Saw a ring i liked at jewels by maximes.
Hopped online to try and find the ring without a diamond.
Found it at Harold Stevens Jewelllers in San Diego for cheap!
Had it shipped in and then headed down to chinatown for the diamond. Chinatown had great quality diamonds for cheap! Was able to secure a near flawless diamond!!

After is was put together, took the ring to an appraiser and it was appriased at just over $4000 more than what i paid

A lot of work but saved a lot of money!!

[photon]

Lets keep the negative Spence comments as simple as possible please (i.e. "I had a bad experience with Spence and I wouldn't recommend them"), we've been contacted once before by Spence regarding defamation due to commends in these threads, I'm really not interested in having to deal with it again. Thanks.

[Locke]

What if you specifically want a ring with a conflict diamond?

Do they tell you the story and how many people died to bring you that diamond? Now that would attach some real value.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by photon

Lets keep the negative Spence comments as simple as possible please (i.e. "I had a bad experience with Spence and I wouldn't recommend them"), we've been contacted once before by Spence regarding defamation due to commends in these threads, I'm really not interested in having to deal with it again. Thanks.

Really? Actually knowing that affects my opinion.

[kermitology]

I highly recommend this custom ring designer. I know, custom ring design sounds expensive, but it's not really, and the customer service you get from Ellinor is out of this world. She's one of my favourite people.

http://evstenroos.com/

This is the ring I had designed for my very soon to be wife (June 16th)
http://flickr.com/gp/40859630@N02/f2e3T6

[Hockeyguy15]

Originally Posted by photon

Lets keep the negative Spence comments as simple as possible please (i.e. "I had a bad experience with Spence and I wouldn't recommend them"), we've been contacted once before by Spence regarding defamation due to commends in these threads, I'm really not interested in having to deal with it again. Thanks.

Maybe the internet is not a place Spence Diamonds wants to be.

[jaydaybay]

See below

[FlamesKickAss]

6-10K??, wow did I ever luck out. Got engaged and then got the ring and she split it with me 50/50.

We ended up going to Maggies and found one she like for like $1200.

My wife's uncle suggested blue nile, her aunt has a nice big rock from there...

[jaydaybay]

+1 positive experience from bluenile, same with some friends. Do some research/shop around to figure out what u want first. Good customer service. Good bang for your buck and dont have to deal with salesppl.

I agree with others that it is a massive waste of money, as many logical males would. But gotta do what u gotta do. Good luck.

[photon]

Originally Posted by Locke

What if you specifically want a ring with a conflict diamond?

Do they tell you the story and how many people died to bring you that diamond? Now that would attach some real value.

Lol well you may have a niche market there. At the very least you should start a fake website store that features that, and watch the outrage.

Originally Posted by Locke

Really? Actually knowing that affects my opinion.

Yeah, if I recall they were nice to deal with (some people that email us asking for stuff to be removed are raving lunatics that have no sense of proportion or reason), and I think some of the comments they specified did cross the line, but I still find the whole idea of searching the web for negative comments about your company and having them removed distasteful, but I understand why they do it.

[Bigtime]

Originally Posted by TurdFerguson

-Spence works really well if you don't have an exact style in mind. So much to choose from...the sales people are happy to just let you browse. I didn't end up purchasing a ring through Spence but I found there selection to be helpful all the same.

I would go to Spence, look around and then tell them I'd never buy there because they have the worst radio ads in the history of humanity (and I'm counting the unknown future in this statement too).



I didn't do this when I was looking for the engagement ring, however I did ultimately end up buying from Brinkhaus. Great service.

Edit: Just saw the Photon posts, hope this is on the right side of the line.

[3 Justin 3]

Originally Posted by photon

Lets keep the negative Spence comments as simple as possible please (i.e. "I had a bad experience with Spence and I wouldn't recommend them"), we've been contacted once before by Spence regarding defamation due to commends in these threads, I'm really not interested in having to deal with it again. Thanks.

Am I the only one that finds that hilariously funny. A company is bad mouthed over the internet (an internet forum no less) and I assume threatens to sue.

Oh how the world has changed.

[Senator Clay Davis]

That Spence is spending more time trolling internet boards to see if they're being mocked than they are fixing their almost universally recognized awful radio ads, should tell you all you need to know about them.

[OldDutch]

+1 on Brinkhaus, service is fantastic, they will try and be competitive, but you will pay for service. My wife's first ring was ordered there, but it got stolen.

++1 on going to the diamond district in NYC. My wife saw rings froma designer there and with insurance payout she got a new one that is .8 carrat bigger, for same price. So you probably can go same for less.

The ring was FedEx'd to our house, avoiding NY state tax. Also, if the ring is US made there is no duty, only GST. Remember that when shopping in the US.

I agree that rings are a waste of money strictly speaking. However, so are cars, so anyone with a 50K truck should not be giving lectures on responsible spending. Also houses can be a waste of money too, they aren't garunteed to make money either.

All I am saying is that if your girl has a good head, and will be an awesome mother, your marrying her for those reasons. If it also means a lot to her to have a nice ring, then spend wisely, but do spend. She will look at it everyday and remember.

If she is as great as my wife, then what you propose to spend is pennies in ROI. You'll come to see that a few years from now when she is taking the best care possible of you and your baby. That is the reason your marrying her right?

[ranchlandsselling]

Given that Spence employs people to harass Internet message boards (nice or not) and pay for all those awful ads and all their sales people, store, etc. makes it obvious you're not getting a great deal to begin with. Vrooom, vroom, vroom.... WOW

Originally Posted by photon

Blue Nile says they don't use conflict diamonds so that's good.

If I had to do it again though I'd probably try to do something different with the money than buying a diamond to meet social expectations for an engagement, or some combination like getting a Moissanite stone.

But then again I'm a lot older now and my values have changed.

But an engagement probably isn't the place to make a stand about social values on big diamonds, unless you really know her well and know she'd have a big positive reaction to that.

I debated the statement too - but caved as it's not the time to make a statement unless you believe it'll be shared. If that's the case though chances are you don't need to make the statement. I dropped $3k. Figured if it's nice and lasts forever that's not too much - but enough to satisfy the want on the ladies behalf.

[Lt.Spears]

Originally Posted by Icon

http://www.whiteflash.com

They were great to deal with and the ring turned out amazing. I found their pricing better than Bluenile / other online stores. And they have a large number of bands to allow you to customize how you want.

At the time I got mine I believe the majority of their diamonds were Canadian as well (not sure if that's still the case or not).

This is who i used as well.

What they have over Bluenile is that they actually have their diamonds in stock, so its not a virtual gallary like blue nile, they actually show you the diamond idealscopes and whatnot, its for more impressive to see what you will actually be buying.

I custom designed her ring in platinum and got a diamond that i thought was a nice size (.85ct) with really nice color and an excellent cut. (VVS2 Clarity as well.

Her ring would have been probably 3-4K more to buy from a local jewler, plus Whiteflash has excellent service. If you want i can give you my reps number and you can get a small discount as well (PM me).

[MarchHare]

I agree that rings are a waste of money strictly speaking. However, so are cars, so anyone with a 50K truck should not be giving lectures on responsible spending. Also houses can be a waste of money too, they aren't garunteed to make money either.

The difference is that everyone needs a home to live in (you don't have to buy real estate, of course, but many people do). Buying a property may or may not be a good long-term investment from a strictly financial point-of-view, but having a roof over your head serves an essential purpose in life. Likewise, having a vehicle is often necessary for employment/livelihood purposes for many people.

A diamond ring is nothing more than a frivalous luxury that serves absolutely no purpose other than being shiny.