The guy in this store definitely did not seem like any of the other salespeople. I got the sense that he was the actual jeweler since he seemed to know a bit more about the construction of the ring. It was a bit slow to deal with him since it was clear that his English was not the best. He tried very hard to diagram things that he couldn't adequately explain, and that was largely fine; I was able to understand what he was talking about.
He showed me one of the catalogs that the other stores use, but also mentioned that he would be able to customize some of the rings, adding the diamond accents I wanted. That was nice, but I didn't see any rings that I was particularly amazed with. They had other very nice looking jewelry that I looked at while I was waiting for him to find the information on the costs of emeralds and diamond accents.
What was nice about this guy was he went to greater efforts to give me a more accurate estimate, which is definitely helpful in determining where I would want to get the ring done. Overall, I think this was a positive experience, and I am thinking of coming back here to get my other bridal jewelery, but probably not the engagement ring.
Knowledge: B (might be higher, but there were language difficulties)
Demeanor: A
Selection of rings: B+
Willingness to find information: A
Estimated Price: $1350 (AAA emeralds + diamond accents)
Overall Grade: B++
Friday, May 8, 2009
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Jeweler 7: Littman Jewelers
This is another one of the more beautiful stores we have set foot in. They have a lovely set of rings laid out on display, and, as far as I could tell, the prices weren't bad either. We were the only two in the store when we walked in, and were greeted as soon as we got to the back of the store. The woman who greeted us was very friendly and introduced herself and referred to each of us by name.
After describing to her what we were looking for, she examined the diamond, and was able to tell that it was an antique. She wasn't completely sure at first whether it was a miner's cut or a cushion cut, but after looking at it for a little longer, determined that it was a miner's cut. That was enough to convince me that I could in fact deal with this person and she would actually be able to give me accurate information.
She offered several recommendations for a ring setting. Each of her recommendations was nice looking and would compliment the ring quite nicely. I asked her about different prong types and which is ideal for the diamond that we had. She didn't know, but immediately got her manager, who was able to identify the diamond right away, and even drew pictures of how each prong would look while explaining his recommendation. I think that really helped to visualize how each prong actually looks with the diamond, so that was nice.
The woman we worked with showed us several antique ring settings as well as some more modern ones. They were all very nice looking, but I wasn't totally sold on any of them.
When I asked for an estimate, she gave me a more complete estimate, explaining the different costs and fees that go into the ring.
Overall, she was very nice, as was her manager, she was quite knowledgeable, though she was more than happy to go find answers when she wasn't totally sure, and there was quite a selection of ring settings (in what seemed to be a different ring catalog than we had seen in other stores, though I think my fiance and I were both a little sick of looking at catalogs).
Knowledge: A+
Demeanor: A+
Selection of rings: B
Willingness to find information: A
Estimated Price: $1025 (some diamond accents)
Overall Grade: A-
After describing to her what we were looking for, she examined the diamond, and was able to tell that it was an antique. She wasn't completely sure at first whether it was a miner's cut or a cushion cut, but after looking at it for a little longer, determined that it was a miner's cut. That was enough to convince me that I could in fact deal with this person and she would actually be able to give me accurate information.
She offered several recommendations for a ring setting. Each of her recommendations was nice looking and would compliment the ring quite nicely. I asked her about different prong types and which is ideal for the diamond that we had. She didn't know, but immediately got her manager, who was able to identify the diamond right away, and even drew pictures of how each prong would look while explaining his recommendation. I think that really helped to visualize how each prong actually looks with the diamond, so that was nice.
The woman we worked with showed us several antique ring settings as well as some more modern ones. They were all very nice looking, but I wasn't totally sold on any of them.
When I asked for an estimate, she gave me a more complete estimate, explaining the different costs and fees that go into the ring.
Overall, she was very nice, as was her manager, she was quite knowledgeable, though she was more than happy to go find answers when she wasn't totally sure, and there was quite a selection of ring settings (in what seemed to be a different ring catalog than we had seen in other stores, though I think my fiance and I were both a little sick of looking at catalogs).
Knowledge: A+
Demeanor: A+
Selection of rings: B
Willingness to find information: A
Estimated Price: $1025 (some diamond accents)
Overall Grade: A-
Friday, May 1, 2009
Jeweler 6: Edward Arthur
We had heard that Edward Arthur was a locally-operated jeweler, and that they were amazingly knowledgeable about jewelery, so we were eager to check them out. The first thing that hit us when we walked into the store was how absolutely gorgeous the store was. Everything sparkles and shines in the most dream-like and amazing way. We definitely felt out of place with our graphic T-shirts and loose-fitting jeans. Regardless of the way we stood out like a sore thumb, the employees greeted us very nicely, introducing themselves, asking our names, and referring to us by our first names.
We described to the man we were working with what we were looking for. He led us over to the case that had all of their ring mountings. I just about fell over looking at how absolutely gorgeous their ring settings were. The lighting was set just right to knock the socks off of anyone. The rings here were a bit pricier than at other places, but you can definitely appreciate why that is. Not only did they have the emerald accents we were looking for, but there were diamond accents abound! Each ring was designed very beautifully and could be tweaked a little to fit someone's fancy.
What we had heard about their knowledge was absolutely true and we were both blown away by the amount of information the man knew about, not only our diamond and its cut, but all of the perfect ways to complement the diamond and to draw out its features in a ring. We left that store in such a daze that we actually forgot to get a card from the man we dealt with, and had to return for it.
The selection of rings is not very expansive, but my fiance liked that there was no need for a catalog in this store. We were both getting sick of looking at the same catalog over and over again, and actually getting to touch and see the ring up close was definitely a breath of fresh air.
This jeweler was placed immediately at #1 on our list of jewelers who we were considering getting the engagement ring done with.
Knowledge: A+
Demeanor: A+
Selection of rings: B
Willingness to find information: B
Estimated Price: $1500 (diamonds abound!)
Overall Grade: B++
We described to the man we were working with what we were looking for. He led us over to the case that had all of their ring mountings. I just about fell over looking at how absolutely gorgeous their ring settings were. The lighting was set just right to knock the socks off of anyone. The rings here were a bit pricier than at other places, but you can definitely appreciate why that is. Not only did they have the emerald accents we were looking for, but there were diamond accents abound! Each ring was designed very beautifully and could be tweaked a little to fit someone's fancy.
What we had heard about their knowledge was absolutely true and we were both blown away by the amount of information the man knew about, not only our diamond and its cut, but all of the perfect ways to complement the diamond and to draw out its features in a ring. We left that store in such a daze that we actually forgot to get a card from the man we dealt with, and had to return for it.
The selection of rings is not very expansive, but my fiance liked that there was no need for a catalog in this store. We were both getting sick of looking at the same catalog over and over again, and actually getting to touch and see the ring up close was definitely a breath of fresh air.
This jeweler was placed immediately at #1 on our list of jewelers who we were considering getting the engagement ring done with.
Knowledge: A+
Demeanor: A+
Selection of rings: B
Willingness to find information: B
Estimated Price: $1500 (diamonds abound!)
Overall Grade: B++
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Jeweler 5: CR Jewelers
Walking into this store, I can't say my fiance and I were terribly impressed. They had these cheesy signs up for buying gold and financing your jewelry. Definitely not as impressive as other jewelry shops we've been inside. However, the woman we dealt with was very friendly, albeit, very casual in how she talked to us. Though she looked to be quite young (thus, presumably, less experienced) she actually surprised us with her knowledge. She was very excited to see our diamond, recognizing the uncommon cut almost immediately and calling over her coworker to look at it.
She gave us many suggestions for what to do with the ring, how to shape the ring, how to set it, and things along those lines. We weren't extraordinarily impressed with the selection (since they use the same catalog as several other commercial jewelers), but we were definitely pleased with the service. She was definitely one of the more friendly people we talked to, and seemed to be very eager to find more information. She wasn't able to answer all of our questions, but she was the only person we talked to who actually called someone to find the information we requested.
Their cards, like the over-sized posters in the store, were very tacky. Definitely, at first glance, you would probably not want to deal with this store, but we had an overall pleasant experience with them and seriously considered them for our engagement ring.
Knowledge: B+
Demeanor: A
Selection of rings: B
Willingness to find information: A+
Estimated Price: $615 (no diamond accents down the sides)
Overall Grade: B++
She gave us many suggestions for what to do with the ring, how to shape the ring, how to set it, and things along those lines. We weren't extraordinarily impressed with the selection (since they use the same catalog as several other commercial jewelers), but we were definitely pleased with the service. She was definitely one of the more friendly people we talked to, and seemed to be very eager to find more information. She wasn't able to answer all of our questions, but she was the only person we talked to who actually called someone to find the information we requested.
Their cards, like the over-sized posters in the store, were very tacky. Definitely, at first glance, you would probably not want to deal with this store, but we had an overall pleasant experience with them and seriously considered them for our engagement ring.
Knowledge: B+
Demeanor: A
Selection of rings: B
Willingness to find information: A+
Estimated Price: $615 (no diamond accents down the sides)
Overall Grade: B++
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Jeweler 4: Royale Jewelers
There isn't much to say about this one. My fiance an I have heard that the brothers who own the store are very nice and friendly, so we decided to check them out.
This store was actually quite busy, so the man we talked to wasn't exactly able to give us a lot of the help that we were seeking. We didn't get to see very many rings, but the emeralds we saw weren't of the best quality. I can't say how any of their other stuff is, because I didn't see anything. Despite how busy the store was, the man we talked to still tried to be quite friendly to us, and greeted us as soon as he finished with another customer. He sort of did a rush job on the estimate for the ring since there were a few other people in the store who were looking to buy something.
This store probably isn't bad for getting pre-made stuff, but we probably won't be getting a custom ring from them; we didn't get enough information about the store.
Knowledge: ???
Demeanor: B
Selection of rings: ???
Willingness to find information: B-
Estimated Price: $625 (no diamond accents down the sides)
Overall Grade: B-
This store was actually quite busy, so the man we talked to wasn't exactly able to give us a lot of the help that we were seeking. We didn't get to see very many rings, but the emeralds we saw weren't of the best quality. I can't say how any of their other stuff is, because I didn't see anything. Despite how busy the store was, the man we talked to still tried to be quite friendly to us, and greeted us as soon as he finished with another customer. He sort of did a rush job on the estimate for the ring since there were a few other people in the store who were looking to buy something.
This store probably isn't bad for getting pre-made stuff, but we probably won't be getting a custom ring from them; we didn't get enough information about the store.
Knowledge: ???
Demeanor: B
Selection of rings: ???
Willingness to find information: B-
Estimated Price: $625 (no diamond accents down the sides)
Overall Grade: B-
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Jeweler 3: Zales The Diamond Store
We were both pretty hesitant about going to Zales since we had heard that they were basically the Walmart of jewelers and that they used lesser quality materials to make their rings. We decided to give them a shot anyway; we had time to burn and we may as well be thorough in our quest to find the perfect ring setting. To Zales!
The guy we dealt with at the Zales was nice enough. He didn't exactly wow us with any sort of manners like Helzberg did, but he didn't offend us by running away at the sight of us like Reeds did. Throughout the whole dealing, he continued to be nice enough, offering his best guess at prices through the whole process, but he, like the guy at Reeds, did not consult a manual. Maybe Zales is mean and lets their employees loose without manuals, or the manual was too far away and he was too tired to go get it. Who knows?
We told him what we were looking for in a ring, and he showed up the emeralds that Zales currently had. He picked out an emerald ring that was somewhat similar to our description of what we wanted and handed it to me to look at. He asked "Were you looking for something like this?" and, looking at the totally clouded light green emeralds, I thought to myself "Sure, but with actually good emeralds, you know, bring out the AAA emeralds, c'mon!" Instead, I asked him for an estimate on better quality emeralds in the ring setting that we described to him. His price estimate was the lowest we had gotten anywhere. Suspiciously low. Though we would love to spend so little money and get a really awesome ring, that sort of thing comes along the lines of unicorns and flying pigs.
Overall, we both thought of Zales as being overwhelmingly average. The guy waited for us to come to him, but wasn't rude or curt with us. He didn't really show us any selection of rings as in a catalog like Helzberg did, nor did he really seem to have the knowledge base that even Reeds had.
Knowledge: C
Demeanor: C
Selection of rings: ???
Willingness to find information: C
Estimated Price: $530 (no diamond accents down the sides)
Overall Grade: C
The guy we dealt with at the Zales was nice enough. He didn't exactly wow us with any sort of manners like Helzberg did, but he didn't offend us by running away at the sight of us like Reeds did. Throughout the whole dealing, he continued to be nice enough, offering his best guess at prices through the whole process, but he, like the guy at Reeds, did not consult a manual. Maybe Zales is mean and lets their employees loose without manuals, or the manual was too far away and he was too tired to go get it. Who knows?
We told him what we were looking for in a ring, and he showed up the emeralds that Zales currently had. He picked out an emerald ring that was somewhat similar to our description of what we wanted and handed it to me to look at. He asked "Were you looking for something like this?" and, looking at the totally clouded light green emeralds, I thought to myself "Sure, but with actually good emeralds, you know, bring out the AAA emeralds, c'mon!" Instead, I asked him for an estimate on better quality emeralds in the ring setting that we described to him. His price estimate was the lowest we had gotten anywhere. Suspiciously low. Though we would love to spend so little money and get a really awesome ring, that sort of thing comes along the lines of unicorns and flying pigs.
Overall, we both thought of Zales as being overwhelmingly average. The guy waited for us to come to him, but wasn't rude or curt with us. He didn't really show us any selection of rings as in a catalog like Helzberg did, nor did he really seem to have the knowledge base that even Reeds had.
Knowledge: C
Demeanor: C
Selection of rings: ???
Willingness to find information: C
Estimated Price: $530 (no diamond accents down the sides)
Overall Grade: C
Monday, April 27, 2009
Jeweler 2: Helzberg Diamonds
We entered this store quite frustrated with our experience at Reeds, but we were greeted by three bored employees. They seemed to watch us as we entered to determine first if we were actually interested in buying something, and seeing that we clearly interested to at least talk to someone, they all greeted us very politely, even introducing themselves, shaking our hands, and even speaking with us using our first names. They were quite patient with us as we both figured out what we wanted, changed our minds, asked to see other things, and asked questions. They obviously wanted a customer, and we were satisfied with them in that respect.
They made suggestions on the style of the ring, and gave us additional information. It turned out that some of the information that they gave us was not totally accurate (thank you, Internet). I asked them if it was possible to get a ring setting that would not catch threads (since I do a number of crafts). A classic or cathedral setting with more rounded thingies to hold the diamond in place (excuse my layman-ese), for example, would be the most likely to catch threads.
Classic setting: https://www.mdcdiamonds.com/images/ProductImages/ES521BR-1.jpg
Cathedral setting: http://www.novori.com/images/products/main/198/12872211RD0101075.jpg
However, a bezel setting would hide the unique shape of our diamond!
http://micelidesigns.com/60251%20.5ct%20Bezel%20Set%20Plat%20Ring%201989.jpg
So, they told us that a trellis setting would be the perfect solution.
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41oqSlKmAcL._SL500_AA280_.jpg
Of course, being a normal person, only the bezel setting looked different to me. The other three all look the same to my eyes, so, I wondered, how would there be such a drastic difference in thread-catching? Well, apparently there isn't when you have a diamond shaped like ours. We were moderately satisfied getting a small lesson in settings and differences between settings, so no hard feelings.
They also showed us a pretty nice selection of ring settings and even pointed out their personal favorites for the diamond they looked at. Though there were many to choose from, I can't say I was entirely impressed with anything they had. They didn't seem to know what cut the diamond was, though they did seem to have knowledge of which styles of ring complement the diamond we had.
We had heard people say before that Helzberg was a nice jeweler, but you will tend to pay $100-200 more for the same thing there as anywhere else. That turned out to be the case (sort of), except they were still cheaper than Reeds. They were also much nicer. Overall, Helzberg was a more pleasant experience for us than was Reeds.
Knowledge: C+
Demeanor: A+
Selection of rings: A-
Willingness to find information: B+
Estimated Price: $850 (no diamond accents down the sides)
Overall Grade: B+
They made suggestions on the style of the ring, and gave us additional information. It turned out that some of the information that they gave us was not totally accurate (thank you, Internet). I asked them if it was possible to get a ring setting that would not catch threads (since I do a number of crafts). A classic or cathedral setting with more rounded thingies to hold the diamond in place (excuse my layman-ese), for example, would be the most likely to catch threads.
Classic setting: https://www.mdcdiamonds.com/images/ProductImages/ES521BR-1.jpg
Cathedral setting: http://www.novori.com/images/products/main/198/12872211RD0101075.jpg
However, a bezel setting would hide the unique shape of our diamond!
http://micelidesigns.com/60251%20.5ct%20Bezel%20Set%20Plat%20Ring%201989.jpg
So, they told us that a trellis setting would be the perfect solution.
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41oqSlKmAcL._SL500_AA280_.jpg
Of course, being a normal person, only the bezel setting looked different to me. The other three all look the same to my eyes, so, I wondered, how would there be such a drastic difference in thread-catching? Well, apparently there isn't when you have a diamond shaped like ours. We were moderately satisfied getting a small lesson in settings and differences between settings, so no hard feelings.
They also showed us a pretty nice selection of ring settings and even pointed out their personal favorites for the diamond they looked at. Though there were many to choose from, I can't say I was entirely impressed with anything they had. They didn't seem to know what cut the diamond was, though they did seem to have knowledge of which styles of ring complement the diamond we had.
We had heard people say before that Helzberg was a nice jeweler, but you will tend to pay $100-200 more for the same thing there as anywhere else. That turned out to be the case (sort of), except they were still cheaper than Reeds. They were also much nicer. Overall, Helzberg was a more pleasant experience for us than was Reeds.
Knowledge: C+
Demeanor: A+
Selection of rings: A-
Willingness to find information: B+
Estimated Price: $850 (no diamond accents down the sides)
Overall Grade: B+
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