Platinum/Diamond Ring

Brighty

Hi guys n gals

Have decided to do the decent thing and make an honest women out of the better half, so am looking for engagement rings.

Platinum ring with diamond is on the cards, either solitaire or 3 stone.

Any suggestions of alternatives to the usual high st jewelers (h samuals, ernest jones etc) to get a good quality ring with as much rock per buck as possible(without looking vulgar of course:D )? Looking to spend a grand at the very very most, preferably £700 to £800. A bit wary of the web based ones google throws up, for something this expensive and important.

Any help much appreciated.

Ta

Brighty (doomed man, doomed i tell ya)

Jem8472

Platinum is expensive, so you will find that the rock in the ring will probably be smaller than if it was in a gold ring.

But just try the smaller jewlers and haggle. I got an 18k gold ring, with platinum setting and 0.50ct diamond. It cost me about £600ish, it was a secondhand ring. But looks perfectly new and my GF loves it.

Jem8472

Also I personally would avoid 4 claw settings, It is just that if you lose one claw then you can easily loose the diamond. my gfs ring has 8 claws on it, so nice and secure.

gk172

Weve just bought a 1ct ring from an internet site and picked the ring up whilst on holiday in florida and we saved at least £2000 than if we purchased here so it can be done online, one uk site is bluenile.co.uk they also have a us site. But the best place to look is www.pricescope.com forums they were great at helping me with my diamond choices and advice on where to buy from, also there are a few us sites - whiteflash,abazias (i used them), james allen where you can buy and have shipped over here and with the exchange rate being nearly $2 to the £1 you will save big style but will need to include uk taxes in the price.

ellie14

If youcan get to b/ham they have a jewellery quarter, you could look round and see whats on offer for your money ,white gold not platinum comes in a lot cheaper ,I feel you need to look at what your getting,also you get a guarantee.WHY NOT LOOK AT ARGOS FIRST SEE WHATS ON OFFER FOR THE PRICE,then shop around,diamonds differ such a lot,colour clarity,size get a certificate with your ring telling you what size and clarity of diamonds are in your ring.
Hope ive been some help,used to be a jeweller

timread

I'd second ellie14 - if you can get to Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter, or Hatton Garden in London, you will definitely see better prices than in the usual high street stores. Don't be afraid by window price tags - ask for their best price. They may also do you a deal if you get your wedding rings made there.

White gold will be cheaper than platinum - at the price you're thinking of spending, it will mean you can spend more on the stone. Speaking of the stone - I'd suggest going for the best colour and clarity ratings you can afford. Poor colour stones definitely impact on the 'wow' factor of an engagement ring. Likewise, poor clarity means inclusions (impurities and visible 'specks' in the stone - this will impact on its ability to reflect light, thus impacting on its 'sparkliness'. Certificated stones will cost a little more, but give you peace of mind on what you're blowing your hard-earned on. Also a solitaire setting will concentrate your funds on one better stone.

Look for G.I.A certificates if possible - Gemological Institute of America. Some certificates are held in lesser regard in the trade.

Blacksheep1979

If you can get yourself a cheap flight to Holland you can also pick up some bargains there.

Something else to look out for other than clarity and colour is the cut, the cut (quality of not just shape) can also affect how well the diamond reflects light and its 'sparkle'. As others have reccomended platinum will cost you double what white gold will so may be an idea to think whats more important - the size of the stone or the metal.

You're also going to have to forray into the wide range of 'cuts' brilliant, emerald etc with some costing more than others.

As people have said have a look online and get a rough idea of prices and what you like before heading out. Smaller jewelers are probably more likely to haggle than places like Argos or high street jewelers (although they should shift a bit) etc.

gk172

A few other things to think about is white gold will need replated every couple of years to keep it white if not it turns yellowish in colour, i have white gold in my wedding ring and its needing redone, also with stones the princess cut faces up smaller than the round cut but watch out she may not like the rounds If you let us know where you are that might help as there is good jeweler in glasgow Macintyres we have bought a few things from there.

ajaxgeezer

Remember that it's not just the size of the stone that matters..... you can get a cheap large stone and an expensive small stone. What really matters for value is the shape cut, clarity, length/width ratio and other factors which define the stone. Always ask for a certificate so you can check these..... don't see two 0.5ct rings in two different shops and think that the cheaper one is a bargain - the chances are that it is much more overpriced than the more expensive one.