Engagement Rings (merged)

Kavanne

gem, go to a few with your design and ask them to come up with a quote. Make sure they tell you the spec of the diamond included in the price.

Pick the one you want

claireanded

domyue

Try online as well - these guys are pretty good http://www.samarajames.com/bespoke.php and it'll be cheaper than the garden!

claireanded

lazyboi

I would certainly call these companies and you will find it a better way of getting what you want... I only had dealings with Samara James, but found them excellent in supplying my exact high quality spec (I got an Ex-Ex-Ex diamond):j

claireanded

I should just say I went to http://www.samarajames.com because they offered a choice of cut grade up front on their website as opposed to other suppliers like Marlows who don't say. I didn't go with Blue Nile as they had such limited designs and nothing out of the (very) ordinary. I also liked the Hearts and Arrows brand they sell as it is a really nicely cut diamond - I paid a bit extra for the X-X-X H&A spec but boy does it shine!

Baby_in_the_corner

Domyue, I got my ring from Hatton Diamonds and they were fantastic and gave us a great price. Can't remember the specifics, but I know that I have 0.8 of a carat in total (round brilliant solitaire with tiny pave diamonds down the shoulders) in a platinum setting for £2000. We built the ring from scratch by choosing a setting and then the diamond to go inside and it's an exact copy of a ring I'd seen in De Beers for approx half the price and double the diamond size!!! They're very accomodating, work to your budget, and give you honest advice - for example we were all set to buy wedding rings, but the lady told us to wait until nearer the time as the price of Platinum was very high at that time. Can't praise them enough x

claireanded

http://www.samarajames.com/acatalog/certified-diamond-round-brilliant-engagement-ring-4.html

have a look here (i think you are looking at shoulder set?) H&A spec is only for round diamonds, I had a look at princess too but round diamonds have better sparkle I think anyway.... I had to call them to make sure of the X-X-X grades but the H&A is there....

lazyboi wrote: »

Thank you for your feedback so far everyone!

Claireanded I have heard of that cut from looking around at different sites but I can't see it being offered on Samara James, when I select a ring, under cut all there is is 'good' and 'premium'. Can you tell me how you got that cut?

I'm really keen to use someone in the UK as many of the US ones don't except credit cards and that's how I intend to pay. From the big UK online stores I'm unable to find anyone who promises and backs up good quality cut and symettry etc. I like the hearts and arrows cut and also the cut qulaity of whiteflash in the US so looking to find someone similar here in the UK.

Any extra help would be great! Thanks everyone!

stumpjumper

I'm always slightly suspect of sites claiming to sell 'Hearts and Arrows' diamonds but dont show you pictures of their diamonds, or what they claim to be Hearts and Arrows.
Nor who does the 'gradings' - Hearts and Arrows is still a subjective thing - and subject to the individual cutters/vendors interpritation.
There are some who are ultra strict on their criterior on what classifies as 'H&A'

Some cutting houses will inscribe a message on the side of the diamond - which the grading lab then make a note of in their grading report. ie if a diamond has 'Hearts and Arrows' inscribed on the girdle of the diamond - then the GIA lab with report that such a inscription is etched into the diamond. But such a message doesnt mean the diamond actually shows the the pattern.

for instance- this is what i would class as near perfect images:


Saying that - Hearts images are extremly difficult to capturer on camera, as any slight deviation of the diamond from the dead centre of the lens will produce a distortion of the Hearts image:

as seen in this image. you can see the tips of the 'arrow heads' in the center of the image curve to a point thats not in the centre of the diamond - and as such a distortion is noticed in the rest of the hearts image. This isnt a problem - just a photography defect of the diamond not being in the dead centre of the lens.
But at least the diamond's photographs are there to see.

the standard for Hearts and Arrows i personally believe was and is Brian Gavin, who i feel perfected the cutting of theses stones from the inital work done by the Japanese
heres one of his stones from 1999

stumpjumper

dont forget the other parts of their terms.

If after 10 days, and within 1 year you want to just give the diamond back - they will give you 70% of the origonal price (far better than trying to resell yourself) within the first year.
or if you want to swap the diamond for another - then theres a 100% trade in value. ie they'll give you 100% of the origonal purchase price to put towards another diamond.

Tho - talk to WF about your holiday proposal plans - they may be flexible on the return period to a certain extent.

compare this to buying in the highstreet - once purchased theres no return period.

Laxe

Well I've been looking for an engagement ring myself for the past few weeks and have been to Jewelers all over - resulting in more than one headache from all the diamonds.

I started looking online and looked at 365-Diamond, Bluenile and Samara James primarily but have gone with Samara James due to their choice and (in my opinion) very good customer service. That and the fact that they can send you a silver sample of the ring before you buy is very helpful (£50 deposit which is returned after they receive the sample back). I read a lot of their feedback on Feefo and although I could not find many other reviews on the site I'm glad I emailed them regarding the diamond and budget. Currently am waiting for their silver sample of a solitaire ring (Leah) to arrive tomorrow before I place my order.

They've responded to many of my emails on the same day and also gave me a call to discuss light maps etc. from some of the certification offices. They also give you approximate dimensions of the ring with the diamond set as this was very important for me since my girlfriend is not a tall girl and I didn't want the diamond to protrude to much as I can imagine it would just be bothersome (dimensions bigger than 6mm in height was a big no no for me!). Certainly something people shopping for rings without their girlfriends' help should take into consideration with their choice in setting!

The overall price quoted is actually cheaper than stated on their website given the diamond qualities (for which I'm not complaining about). Suffice to say that having chosen to go for the 950 Platinum AND the carat of the diamond (for which I was not expecting to be able to afford) I am very happy with the price quoted. Should I like the sample they sent (which I'm certain I will but you need to make sure of these things) I will place the order tomorrow!

Will update with my experiences of Samara James though I have already been impressed with them so far. Remember they do free resizing as well as a 30 day money back guarantee (not including bespoke designs).

Sunshine12

Ringmaker do some amazing rings. They really focus on the "4 C's" so the stones are amazing.