Buying jewelry

wolram

To me it all looks the same 10 pence worth of metal and a few shiny stones cobbled together and sold to mugs like me for a 1000% profit. the thing is i have to buy some ear rings for a present and i plan on spending up to £50 ,so how do you know if you are getting good value?

Greg Bernhardt

Buy from an online jewelry store, like bluenile.com. It has a good reputation with good prices.

Evo

Go to a reputable jeweler that you trust. Ask for the color and clarity, white as possible and SI1 or SI2 (Si slightly included) should be what you're looking for at that price for a small diamond. Ask to look through the jeweler's loop, if you see any black spots that is carbon and it lowers the price. Also fractures are bad, they lower the price. A good symetrical cut is desirable. The diamond should be clear not milky or cloudy.

wolram

The time i visit a jeweler will be the first, this is the worst sort of present for me to select, hopeless is putting it mildly, thanks for the diamond advice.

out of whack

Unfortunately, fifty pounds won't give you two real diamonds that are visible to the naked eye. Or if they are then so will the big chunks of black coal inside (women see these subtle things that we guys don't). You may have to settle for cubic zirconia, but this could leave an impression of "fake" jewelry. In your situation I would go for semi-precious stones instead, perhaps her birthstone. These will be real gems, certainly pretty, and the personal touch of actually knowing her date of birth will earn you romantic points (and if you know her name then try to fit that in as well). Save your diamond fund for a more significant event.

turbo

Even some birthstones will be problematic in that price range, unless you are willing to compromise on quality. Here in the US, for that price range, you will get inky-murky dark sapphires, pale pink rubies, or fractured and heavily oiled emeralds with no shine. High-quality rubies and emeralds command higher prices than diamonds simply because they are much rarer.

I don't know if these folks ship internationally, but they have a great assortment of silver-mounted jewelry featuring semi-precious stones.
http://www.blackstarjewelry.com/

Jimmy Snyder

I don't know what that is in real money, but it sounds like more than 1000% to me. I promised my wife that for our 100th wedding anniversary I was considering getting her a diamond and a microscope. She told me that on our next anniversary I was considering getting her a diamond and a wheelbarrow. When you spend more than a few hundred dollars US on a diamond, the issue of value comes up because the thing has resale value. Below that, there isn't much resale value regardless of the quality. For your price range, I would say the value is in how much it pleases the recipient, not the monetary value.

ShawnD

For fitty pounds, you won't find anything other than glass. They like to use the term "crystal" but that's just a fancy way of saying glass.

Take a bunch of jewelry that is in your price range, put them all together, and pick the one that sparkles the most. It might also be a good idea to take a woman along, preferably somebody who is part of the same generation as your girlfriend (boyfriend?), to help you pick the best one. Don't bring your mother for this job; she will pick the ugliest thing ever and not even realize it.

J77

2 words:

Elizabeth. Duke.

Evo

Just buy gold earings. (I don't know whay I was thinking diamonds). Look at her style and buy something similar. The gold is stamped, get at least 14 carat gold and go to a reputable place.

wolram

They are for my mom ROLF.

Mk

Good advice ShawnD!

turbo

For your mom? Might I suggest a pair of opal stud earrings? They are modest, colorful, though not flashy, and they go well with lots of outfits. If she's got a pearl necklace and really wants to dress up, the opals will coordinate with the pearls (white base color) and accent them with the opalescent colors.

Evo

I love opals, but they break without proper care, like pearls you have to be careful not to get perfume or hairspray on them. I"ve given up on regular opals and gone with Australian black opals. BLING!!!!

http://www.australianblackopals.com/.../frontnew1.jpg

You can get mosaic black opal jewelry set in silver for nothing and they are quite beautiful.

turbo

Like pearls, opals benefit from regular handling/wearing (skin oils) and yes, they should be the last touch after dressing up (after cosmetics, hair spray, etc) and the first jewelry to be removed and stored upon returning home. Pearls and opals benefit from skin contact and warmth and stay lustrous when they are worn regularly.

Moonbear

I never knew that about opals. I had only ever been told that about pearls. I have quite a few opals, because it's my birth stone, but also a very pretty stone that I just enjoy. I guess it was never an issue since they're my favorites, so get worn the most of out all the jewelry I have, so get the oils on them anyway. I rarely wear hairspray, and never wear perfume, so I guess I got lucky taking care of them by accident. All my opals were bought for me when I was in my pre-teen/teen years, when my parents decided I was old enough to take care of some nicer jewelry, except for a ring that I inherited from my great aunt...it's opal and coral and I just love the color combination and setting (she had loaned it to me to match an Easter outfit I wore one year as a kid along with a necklace I also inherited, and I loved it then, so I think that's what inspired her to leave them as a gift to me...I was surprised when she passed to get them, and hadn't realized she remembered loaning those to me all those years ago).

Evo

Opals are quite delicate, after replacing the opal in a diamond ring I had for the 3rd time, (the opal was surrounded by a ring of diamonds, pretty, but stupid, I could never get the diamonds clean because of the damage jewelry cleaners would do to the opal) I had it replaced with a cheap garnet. I love rhodolite garnet.