Brett at Besco Jewelers did an amazing job on the future Mrs. Hatchback's engagement ring. We're using him to design out wedding bands, too. Very nice guy with lots of experience. He does post on TA occasionally, so you might get his attention...

Hey I know this guy.

No love for BlueNile.com? I bought my wife's from there. Got a lot more rock for the money versus local brick and mortar stores.

in case you missed the other post,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, WAIT!!!!!!!! U R 2 YOUNG!!

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No love for BlueNile.com? I bought my wife's from there. Got a lot more rock for the money versus local brick and mortar stores.

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You might get a bigger rock, but you have to consider the quality of the ring and the setting.

I paid a hair more to get a ring custom designed from Besco than I would have to get something similar from Blue Nile. But, it looks MUCH nicer. My wife was amazed when she found out how little I paid for it. The overall quality of the ring and the setting just make the diamond look bigger and better.

I'll put in another notch for Chuck from Fifth C.

Cru bought my diamond from Blue Nile. it's gorgeous and quality. the key is to go to a wholesaler and compare diamonds side by side. pick out the one you like, get its specs. order diamond with same specs that is GIA certified from Blue Nile and pay less. what.

I have no idea so I thought I would post to let you know that.

pawn shop from other peoples broken dreams

I'd recommend three places.

The first is www.bluenile.com

My second recommendation would be....hmmmm....www.bluenile.com

And the third place I'd recommend would probably be....www.bluenile.com

Cracker Jack box

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Cru bought my diamond from Blue Nile. it's gorgeous and quality. the key is to go to a wholesaler and compare diamonds side by side. pick out the one you like, get its specs. order diamond with same specs that is GIA certified from Blue Nile and pay less. what.

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Exactly. I found a diamond my gf liked at a local jewelry store. Went back a few days later alone to buy a ring with said diamond. I asked if they would give me a discount for cash and they offered me a discount of less than 1%. I got the GIA report and compared it to similar diamonds on Blue Nile. I spent the same amount on Blue Nile that I would have at the local store, but since I didn't have to pay 8.25% sales tax and Blue Nile was about 10% cheaper before tax than the jewelry store, my wife ended up with approximately 18.25% more diamond for my money versus the local store.

i also would recommend blue nile. what ever you do stay away from david gardners. DG will screw you out of rings. they will show a ring and tell you it is one metal and then when it come to the time to talk price they go oh you wanted this in blank that metal is going to be 700 more dollars.

Bluenile.com


very satisfied

Another vote for Chuck Konderla at Fifth C. My engagement and wedding rings came from him. I was living in College Station at the time so I got to meet him, but my finace (now husband) was still in Tennessee. They talked on the phone, I met Chuck and looked at loose stones, and Chuck and my husband made the decisions. Very nice to work with, Chuck's an Aggie, and he was less than anywhere we had looked. And because my husband was out-of-state, he didn't pay sales tax.

I also vote for Blue Nile. If you are knowledgeable in the 4 C's of diamonds, their search function is easy to use and the stones are certified. I have not purchased diamonds from them, but my husband gave me a pearl necklace for Christmas that he ordered from Blue Nile. Gorgeous, cost less than anywhere he looked, shipped quickly, and they have a 30 day return policy.

Good Luck!

Arlington Gold and Silver Exchange off of Bowen and Pioneer Parkway. I got a hell of a deal on almost 2 carats. chck em out

Arnie... Which guy do you know? The OP?

Yeah

My husband spent a long time looking at rings in both College Station and Houston and he did a lot of research and couldn't find anything that could beat Blue Nile.

I have to defend David Gardners. I bought an engagement ring and wedding band there and everything was really easy. I was looking for a specific designer setting so I stuck with them. Flash forward to less than one month before the wedding and the door of my apt gets kicked in. Ring was stolen. Did I mention I hadn't added the wedding band to my insuance yet (I know it was a stupid move and it won't happen again)? Not only did they get a replacement to me ASAP, they also gave me a huge discount.

They took care of me and I am very appreciative! That wouldn't have happened with an online retailer.

[This message has been edited by jag1075 (edited 1/28/2010 9:42p).]

I bought from a private jeweler. Chain stores, and "well known" stores are way too pricey.

Do what the others said and go to a store to learn and look at diamonds, and buy nothing. Then get what you want at www.bluenile.com and you will get a great diamond and band for the price.

Another vote for bluenile.com.

Buy a diamond tester, diamond loop, and a book on the 4 C's on ebay for <20 bucks, then start shopping craigslist heavily. Focus on solitaires and buy a new setting if need be.

Kubes Jewelers in Ft. Worth, right across the street from the TCU campus. They're a whole family of Aggies... took great care of me and my brother.

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but my husband gave me a pearl necklace for Christmas

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this.thread.delivers.

Although I havent bought the actual ring yet, Id strongly recommend 5th C, also. Last summer I called Chuck and explained my situation where I wouldnt be ready to make the actual purchase for a year-year and a half. He still --like was said-- talked my ear off, we ended up just shooting the breeze for a while. Got pictures of a similar ring with an explaination of changes we'd make, how to insure a ring being shipped to Hawaii, his personal preference for setting, metal etc (huge pet peeve of mine is when I ask a salesman about his preference and they play it off for fear of affecting the sale).

I know this is all just small beans without getting an actual ring in hand, but I can say assuredly that the customer service is top notch.

That reminds me, its about time to put in that call myself...

Independent jeweler, oh and... TOO YOUNG

If you're serious about looking around, then get educated first. The best place to do that online is here:

http://www.pricescope.com/

My SO and I just got engaged, and he had the ring made by Brett at Besco.

I love it...I can't stop staring at it. Brett did an amazing job, and I can tell he and my fiance spent a lot of time making it just right for what my style is.

I HIGHLY suggest asking your mom and her mom if they have any family diamonds that could go into the ring. My ring's central stone is from my paternal grandmother's engagement ring, and the side stones are from a set of earrings my maternal grandmother got from her husband on their wedding day. Having these stones makes the ring infinitely more special, to me.

[This message has been edited by Maia Nyx (edited 1/29/2010 7:49a).]

[This message has been edited by FoxtrotDeuce97 (edited 6/7/2010 6:58a).]

Be sure to at least check out prices on bluenile.com and Adiamor.com ...

And a lot of jewelers are trying to pawn high-priced gold off on people right now because they purchased raw material when it wasn't so inflated. The gold/platinum spread should be closer than usual.

ETA: the inclusions aren't all that important (unless there are a lot of them). Cut is harder to quantify but it is a bigger indication of how good a diamond will shine. Pay extra $$ for a smaller diamond with an excellent cut rating, it will sparkle more. And the sparkle is what wimmen notice, which is what she wants.

[This message has been edited by SWCBonfire (edited 1/29/2010 7:29a).]

Jt,

Dont know if it has been posted yet, but I recommend Collections in Saginaw. Worth the drive, the selection is great and the pricing is really nice.

Sunjewerly.com is a pretty cheap place to go...my buddy got his engagement ring there and his super rich grandma gets all her diamonds from there.

I bought mine at helzburg diamonds because I knew the manager and he gave me it at cost, about 5k off. They also have a lifetime garuntee on diamond replacement if it is lost and they will clean and resize for free for life.

Another Besco customer! Went in with a picture from a magazine and he was able to do a custom CAD from it. Very pleased.