Birmingham Jewellery Quarter

martin1977_2

Hi moneysavers!

I am posting under an altered username (i'm sure there are plenty of Martins to make it anonymous enough!!)

Anyhoo,

I've been searching for hours and hours for shop reviews on the Birmingham Jewellery Quarter (BJQ) as I've read on many threads in this forum that you need to be careful where you go to but no mentions of places to avoid...

I know what kind of ring I want, platinum, 3 stone, £1,500-2,000. Can anyone recommend any shops that are must visits?

I've been reading a lot on the 4 C's so I'm quite confident in picking a decent quality ring, my main concern is the certification of the diamond, i've seen that there are many places that offer certification. I assume some are much less reputable than others. Can anyone shed any light on this?

Thanks for any help!

littlecat29

You can go into any shop in the Jewellery Quarter - there are tonnes! and tell them exactly what you are after, my husband to be got his wedding band made to his exact requirements in a small shop and we are both really pleased with it, certificate of insurance came with the ring.

Spend teh afternoon there and just go into as many shops as you can face, its all part of the experience. Some shops offer 10% discount on certain days.

I dont know abt some shops being less reputable than others regarding certification of a diamond tho

Tyler_Du

Just don't pay the price listed for the jewellery, offer say 20% under and take it from there, this worked from me when I got my wife a present for her 40th birthday

martin1977_2

Thanks guys, yeah I'm definitely going in at 20% off as a bare minimum. My main worry is that some shops aren't going to be as high in quality. Surely some are going to be better than others?

I'm going to go in the next couple of weekends, any nice cafe's to go whilst i'm there?

notakid

Honestly I think you will be okay. Just browse round and go back to the shop you like the most. It is very "retail" rather then wholesale so you'll be okay I promise. The quality is great. After all, this is were they make it for the shops.

Depends what you want for lunch, there are a few sandwich/breaksfast places or if you want to go upmarket there are some nice places to eat. The vaults and lasans spring to mind but after spending so much on a ring you might want to save your money!:p

martin1977_2

Haha, yeah I don't think I'll be going to Lasan's after spending that much!!! I'll probably stick to the sandwich places.

I guess if the shops are bad they aren't going to be sticking around long with all the competition!

Can anyone offer any advice on the certification worries?

Wicky84

Hi

We got my engagement ring from a shop called Classic Diamonds in the jewellery quarter and I can't recommend them more highly. The ring came with all the relevant certification etc.

We went to a few shops and weren't impressed with some as the staff didn't seem interested in helping but the owner of Classic Diamonds was really lovely and helpful. We'll definitely be going back to her for our wedding rings.

Wicky xx

ps there's a lovely pub across the road from there which I'd recommend for lunch

Idiophreak

The simple thing to do is talk with one or two, come up with the design that you want - then just go door to door and ask for a quote for that ring. They're not stupid, they'll know that you're just after their best price, so will not waste their time on you - will just give you the price then you can carry on. I saved around 50% on my wedding ring by doing this.

In terms of places to eat, there's quite a nice greasy spoon just round the corner...can't remember the name, though

martin1977_2

Great info! Thanks!

I'll check that pub out opposite classic diamonds. Might be a good idea to use that as the starting point!

Any idea how long custom designs take to make? As I was just going to get something they had in stock? Would have thought custom meant more expensive?

Also, I think I know her ring size but not 100% sure (around 80%), as long as i'm close it can be altered right?

Idiophreak

martin1977 wrote: »

Any idea how long custom designs take to make?

I've had experience of a couple - they've both quoted around 3 weeks..but they've both taken 6-8. My wedding ring was supposed to be 1 week, took 4...basically, take any agreed dates with a healthy pinch of salt...

martin1977_2

Idiophreak wrote: »

I've had experience of a couple - they've both quoted around 3 weeks..but they've both taken 6-8. My wedding ring was supposed to be 1 week, took 4...basically, take any agreed dates with a healthy pinch of salt...

ahhh, that kinda puts that out the picture then as I'm planning to do it about a month after getting the ring!