engagement ring advice

Mike Hoxbig said:
Lol another engagement thread :D All the best mate, hope it goes off as well as you plan! When are you planning on popping the question?

I've decided to go the private jeweller route as well. Busy looking at designs on the net, and will take the one that I decide on to a jeweller to have it made. So far one of the better sites I've come across is http://www.diamondrings.co.za/showproducts.aspx?subcategory=7.

The trickiest part for me was finding out the ring size, but I managed to get that sorted out by trying on one of her rings and it turns out that it fit on my baby finger :)

PS: don't listen to anybody telling you how much to spend on a ring. Spend whatever you're comfortable spending, and if your gal loves you then she'll appreciate whatever you get her because it's the gesture that counts, not the price. After all you still have a wedding to plan, honeymoon to go on, housing expenditure and possibly kids at some point. All these things cost dough, so best not to blow it all right now.
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not anytime soon mate, just gathering intel (need to get a rough idea of how much of my bonus I need to save!!)

thanks for the very honest and helpful post, will take a look at that site when I get a mo
 
HTC_guy said:
man made stones? Whats that? :confused:
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You buy your stone(s) from a gem dealer and cut out the markup of the jeweller. the stanes can either be natural(as in found in ground) eg rubies, diamonds, tanzanite etc. or man made.

However because all stones are organic by nature, we are able to produce replica stones with all the same characteristics of a natural stone in a laboratory. basically you put a recipe in a pressure cooker add heat, time pressure etc and voila a crystal will grow..google it. eg http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/savinganddebt/p97816.asp

90% of diamonds used in industry are man made. they are absolutly genetically the same..just not mined and dont cost a fortune. most jewellers cant tell the difference.

And you dont need to fall for the whole diamond only engagement ring con . some girls like their birth stones etc. My wife ended up with an Alexanderite stone as her main piece and it way rarer than any diamond.

but its up to you..pm me if you want more info.
 
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etwylite said:
You buy your stone(s) from a gem dealer and cut out the markup of the jeweller. the stanes can either be natural(as in found in ground) eg rubies, diamonds, tanzanite etc. or man made.

However because all stones are organic by nature, we are able to produce replica stones with all the same characteristics of a natural stone in a laboratory. basically you put a recipe in a pressure cooker add heat, time pressure etc and voila a crystal will grow..google it. eg http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/savinganddebt/p97816.asp

90% of diamonds used in industry are man made. they are absolutly genetically the same..just not mined and dont cost a fortune. No jeweller can tell the difference.

And you dont need to fall for the whole diamond only engagement ring con . some girls like their birth stones etc. My wife ended up with an Alexanderite stone as her main piece and it way rarer than any diamond.

but its up to you..pm me if you want more info.
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Maybe i misunderstand you....but you are saying you make your own diamonds?
If this is so viable, why isnt there an abundance of diamonds....
 
hi

no i dont make my own diamonds, there are companies who do. "sixth element" actually have a factory in benoni. And there are far more diamonds than you think. the idea of their rarity is a pure marketing effort by de beers etc. " a diamond is forever" was voted marketing slogan of the 20th century. The vast majority of mined diamonds are not gem grade (ie dont end up in jewellery) they end up in industry for cutting and polishing marble, granite etc because of their hardness.

hope that clarifies

check out for info re some pricing ideas http://www.geolite.com/
 
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tau1z said:
Maybe i misunderstand you....but you are saying you make your own diamonds?
If this is so viable, why isnt there an abundance of diamonds....
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Who said there is not an abundance? :confused:
Approximately 130,000,000 carats (26,000 kg) of diamonds are mined annually, with a total value of nearly US$9 billion, and about 100,000 kg (220,000 lb) are synthesized annually
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See, more diamonds are made than mined... But of those man made diamonds, few are made to gem quality (although that is slowly changing)
Saucy
 
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tau1z said:
have you used either of these ppl?
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Marius is a friend and all my friends use him for their stuff ( not a diamond girl myself ) He is the lecturer at Wits for goldsmith.
Susan Roos has her stuff at the Irene market and I looooooooooovvvvveeee her things. But like I said not a jewelery girl so no I do not own any stuff.
I just posted the two I know as it is very different styles. But I know Maruis will be able to make you things that looks like Susans.
 
etwylite said:
hi

no i dont make my own diamonds, there are companies who do. "sixth element" actually have a factory in benoni. And there are far more diamonds than you think. the idea of their rarity is a pure marketing effort by de beers etc. " a diamond is forever" was voted marketing slogan of the 20th century. The vast majority of mined diamonds are not gem grade (ie dont end up in jewellery) they end up in industry for cutting and polishing marble, granite etc because of their hardness.

hope that clarifies

check out for info re some pricing ideas http://www.geolite.com/
Click to expand...

Archer said:
Who said there is not an abundance? :confused:

See, more diamonds are made than mined... But of those man made diamonds, few are made to gem quality (although that is slowly changing)
Saucy
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Wow, thanks for the info!

Mila said:
Marius is a friend and all my friends use him for their stuff ( not a diamond girl myself ) He is the lecturer at Wits for goldsmith.
Susan Roos has her stuff at the Irene market and I looooooooooovvvvveeee her things. But like I said not a jewelery girl so no I do not own any stuff.
I just posted the two I know as it is very different styles. But I know Maruis will be able to make you things that looks like Susans.
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Awesome, I really like some of Marius's stuff! thanks for the link!
 
ok well this is all news to me... I never knew that we could actually MAKE diamonds.... wow! :erm:

seems that the coloured ones are the manufactured ones and the white ones are the mined ones (as a general rule).

thanks to everyone who has sent me PM with details on all their contacts.

Now Im just wondering if someone here has a contact with a gem dealer? It sounds like, to me, that getting a stone seperately is ideal and then you take it to a jeweler

anyways, Im not that far in the process... Still trying to get an idea of what design she wants to I can start looking around at prices
 
HTC_guy said:
ok well this is all news to me... I never knew that we could actually MAKE diamonds.... wow! :erm:

seems that the coloured ones are the manufactured ones and the white ones are the mined ones (as a general rule).

thanks to everyone who has sent me PM with details on all their contacts.

Now Im just wondering if someone here has a contact with a gem dealer? It sounds like, to me, that getting a stone seperately is ideal and then you take it to a jeweler

anyways, Im not that far in the process... Still trying to get an idea of what design she wants to I can start looking around at prices
Click to expand...

Also looking for the gem dealer!! So everyone, please let me know as well!!
Thanks for the piggy backing HTC :)
 
The guy I sent you does everything. He's a gemologist and cuts his own stones. He also deals in Tanzanite and can get very good prices for AAA. Normally about $700 a carat, he will do for roughly half.
 
HTC_guy, the contact I gave you - he will source the diamonds at near cost price for you, so no need to find a gem dealer. And dont worry, he does get the certificates as well. In fact, he'll first get the diamonds on appro (along with the certficates), let you see them and make sure you are happy with them, and only then start the job.
 
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