Engagement Rings (merged)

Becles

Well 3 years on and hubby hasn't overspent or got into debt problems.

Murtle

or try the Jewlley quarter in Birmingham for rings, similar reason to Hatton Gardens, but things are cheaper up north.....ok I don't know if they are really but we wen't to Birmingham!!!

I'd rather spend what I could afford and have something I adore then something I won't want to wear!!

x x

welshcakes

I used to be a buyer (many years ago) for a national company and the mark up was 350% on cost price so you are quite right fuzed, high street UK prices are far more expensive and a high price tag does not always reflect the quality of stones or setting.

My partner and I have decided to tie the knot and will be doing the engagement thing - we are fortunate to still have contacts in the business however I cannot fault the suggestions of a cheap trip abroad to purchase. A few years ago I visited Amsterdam and found it particularly good on price quality and beautiful styling of diamond pieces.

Certainly the savings would far outstrip the cost of a short break and you could combine it as an engagement suprise - "We're off to pick you ring darling...here are the air tickets!" Wow, would melt me!

Angel777

Hi there congratulations on your engagement!

I got my ring in November last year and i too wanted a big diamond! We went to the jewellery quarter in Birmingham. We stayed there in a hotel on the friday night and had a really nice meal then went for a few drinks, we then went shopping for the ring on the saturday. It just made the trip that extra bit special as there was that special sense of occassion to it!

There are loads and loads of shops there. We finally and funnily went back to the second shop that we had been in!

We got a gorgeous 3/4 of a carat diamond with d/e clarity and certified on a nice platinum band for £1600, it was valued later at £3,800!

I have seen similar things on the high street for over £2,500.

Definitely barter and barter till the end, dont be afraid to ask for a huge discount, if you dont ask you dont get.

Mine is perfect thankfully as i was worried as there are so many different styles available so perhaps do a lot of trying on and have in mind basically what you are looking for.

Hope this helps.

jamstaruk

black-saturn wrote:

Hope you don't mind me saying this but I would be wary of a man giving me a £2.5k engagement ring. I'd rather have a £150 one from Argos and save the rest for the future.

my other half picked a £300 ring she coulda had any one she wanted but realises better to keep money for wedding/baby house

gingin_2

welshcakes wrote:

I used to be a buyer (many years ago) for a national company and the mark up was 350% on cost price so you are quite right fuzed, high street UK prices are far more expensive and a high price tag does not always reflect the quality of stones or setting.

QUOTE]

I also hear that most diamonds are stockpiled in order to keep the price of those on the market up.

inkie

Must admit that I would not be happy with my OH spending that amount on a ring even if he could afford it - seems a bit extravagant. Each to their own.

fuzed

Guy, Thankyou ALL...

Yeah its alot to spend on a ring, but then her point was she's going to wear it for the rest of her life... so I'm fine with it...

I just wanted to get value for money, why would I want to line someone elses pocket and not get the best I can for my hard earned cash!

I'm going to find out what she wants style wise, then take it from there, I want to choose it... and suprise her... she's still deciding on whether she wants a classic ring or something contemporary...

I have family in the US, and I have a friends, friend in amsterdam... so I could well do that, although looking at the prices in Amsterdam (online) they do not seem to be much different from the UK now... I know years ago the prices were good...

welshcakes - I didn't realise how big a Mark Up there was on diamonds... I will be using that one to get the discounts I want... Im a bargin hunter, so I will ask... If I dont get then i'll move on

Thankyou all again for the advice, Its still a major purchase and the best advice you can get is from others that have been there an done that!

[Deleted User]

Is 2.5K overspending on an engagement ring these days? What ever happened to 2 months wages being spent on it? I've got 5k set aside for the big chunk of diamond I plan to propose with. I do like the Amsterdam idea, it'd be a great place to get away to choose.

Do diamond dealers over there give decent discount for cash buyers?

cupid_s

ringo_24601 wrote:

Is 2.5K overspending on an engagement ring these days? What ever happened to 2 months wages being spent on it? I've got 5k set aside for the big chunk of diamond I plan to propose with. I do like the Amsterdam idea, it'd be a great place to get away to choose.

Do diamond dealers over there give decent discount for cash buyers?

2.5k is way more than 2 months wages for my OH!

To the OP, have you thought about getting an antique one? So much of the cost of new jewellery is tax and so you get much better value buying antique. My friends antique engagement ring was gigantic and so beautiful and I know it cost nowhere near 2.5k.

Mine was an antique also. It was quite cheap as well as I feel like black_saturn does. But I know not that many women feel like we do. I had a cheap ring and an expensive honeymoon and I'm glad I did. Especially as I can't wear any rings due to an infection but I remember my honeymoon all the time.