Engagement Rings!!!

sparkle_3-2

HI!!!
Does anyone know of somewhere that i can get discount on a ring or anywhere that has good offers on?
Getting engaged this weekend and a bit strapped!!
thanks!

SammyPops

My other half bought mine from http://www.geraldonline.com

It's the gold half carat diamond one currently on the front page! It's a lovely ring and a lot nicer than what that price would buy on the high street. The stone is very sparkly and came with a diamond certificate, so it's probably a better quality stone than the ones we looked at in shops as they didn't have a certificate.

They come by mail though, so it might be pushing it a bit to get it for this weekend.

Congrats on the news Hope you are very happy together.

fatboyonadiet

Where do you live? I bought an engagement ring from the Diamond Trade Centre in Manchester and saved well over 30% compared to high street prices and got a wedding band from the Jewellery quarter in Birmingham saving over 40% compared to high street.

Well worth a visit as you get much more for your £$£$ and the service is ace.

Get in touch if you have any more questions, if you don't live in these areas may be worth the visit to Brum or checking if you're nearest city as any shops like these. High Street prices are too high and you can have rings made with your own individual touch in these places.

seth

Congratulations, you can get good value rings at most Asian jewellers; my wedding ring was basically the cost of the gold. It is all 22 carat UK hallmarked. The wedding rings cost me £100 for both. This compares to around £120 each for a 9 ct or £160 each for an 18 ct in the high street (Chiswick). I got mine in Wembley.

With the engagement rings I went to Hatton garden, got about £3k of the price. Remember diamonds are worth <10% of their retail prices so do not kid yourself they are an investment. The diamonds grown in factories (grown using semiconductor fabrication techniques MBE) are so good that the only way of telling them from diamonds that grew in the ground is with a computer!! The human eye became an unsuitable judge of diamond quality about 10 or 15 years ago!

Finally remember that many products advertised as diamond are fake stones in the main setting with tiny real diamonds around the main settings. These small diamonds are cheap <20p and so a £80 diamond ring may contain less than 20p worth of diamonds. Recently industrial stones have been used in these mixed settings. If you want to be sure get a single stone setting or do what I did buy the stones and get them set. Hatton garden or any decent jeweller will do this in a day or 2. GET A CERTIFICATE. Prices in Holland are good phone and get a quote, flights are cheap. Gold is cheap in Dubai and trip would be worth while for larger items not rings, again diamonds are good there too.

One tip I used on the engagement ring was to buy high brilliance white diamond, with cheaper precious stone. This cut my ruby costs by about £5k. Only works for a mixed setting, but these are the norm for engagements, based on "birth stone".

Haggle and pay credit card to get some cash back.

Congratulations once again.

boots_babe

Congratulations! My engagement ring was bought from http://www.diamonds.uk.com/. They had some good offers (although this was just before Christmas), but seemed generally good value even at their normal prices.

Good service too. Ring had to go back to be resized and we didn't have any problems at all

Poppy9

I agree you should definitely get your ring handmade. Visit any of the jewellery quarters or seek our a local jobbing jeweller. They will order a selection of stones for you to see so you can choose your colour and clarity. They will explain to you what the letters mean. Fake diamonds are good but most decent jewellery makers, repairs can spot them with the naked eye. My O/h trained as a diamond mounter and he just says its instinct. You just know there is something not quite right about the stone. For an engagement ring if I had my time again I would go for just one plain diamond in a simple setting. Never dates and you can really see the stone at its best. If you go for an 18ct engagement ring go for an 18ct wedd as 9ct gold is harder and will wear down and mark the 18/22 ct. Also having a stone set in platinum will cost a bit extra but not only is it harder wearing it will stay whiter and therefore show off the diamond. If you have white gold setting you will need it rodium plated every so often to keep its brillance.

Here is a link explaining what the diamond certificate means. Remember the certificate only details one persons opinion on the 4C's.

diamonds

bobber

Congrats!

My OH got my engagement ring from Warren James - seem to be in quite a few high streets and for some reason always have a sale on(?!). Looks a bit cheap on outside of shop.

We were sceptical at first as prices looked a bit cheap for the size diamonds etc. But it had my favourite design (we'd been looking everywhere for ages)so went for it - £385 for 1/2 carat and had a guarantee etc.

We were still worried as it looked too sparkly (strange I know!!) and so had it looked at by an independent jeweller and he valued it at over £1000!

I'd love it anyway whether it was £100 or £1000 or more - but it was nice to know we got a good deal!

supersol

Congratulations. As for the ring, this may sound strange but I have heard that Asda do brilliant (forgive the pun) value solitaire diamond rings at a far lower price than, say, Argos.

Jeryth

My engagement ring for my first wedding (!) cost £69, from a secondhand shop in Lincoln. My NEW engagement ring (divorce is good for something!) was about £200 from a local jeweller, who made it in white gold for me. My wedding ring will be cheap as chips coz I want it so. I wonder whether you might be better off considering a "ring set", to include the wedding band and engagement ring together?

OR, if your budget is REALLY tight, any ring you think is pretty, as a token for now, then replaced once you set the date, or next year's Valentine's, birthday, Christmas, sort of thing?

Silent_Bob_3

I work near the Jewellery Quarter in Brum (pop down few times a year) and I'd say get yourself down here on a daytrip and save yourself loads on high street prices.

Bought the missus some diamond earrings few years back for £50, got them valued on the high street at £400!!!

Viz_2

If you can go to Hatton Gardens in Farringdon, near Holbon tube, London. There is a wide variety of shops and they are willing to haggle. You find bargains even in the shop window prices over high street stores.
Top quality too !