Need advice on buying a diamond and engagement ring...?

The engagement ring is almost paid for having purchased it on layaway from the Shane Co. I wanted to have it paid for before selecting my stone.





Now I'm looking at the 3/4 to Full ct range. I walked out of the store without any financial commitment today, but certainly experienced the 'hard sell.' Would like advice on the following:


1. Can a jeweler flex their price...i.e. can I ask for a discount?


2. Is it really so beneficial to buy the stone and setting from the same jeweler? Warranty issues etc...


3. Any other advice/concerns you'd like to share. Thanks!Need advice on buying a diamond and engagement ring...?
1.) Yes. A jeweler can be flexible on the price, but you have to put pressure on him by having a backup plan like a quote from another jewelry store.





2.) Yes. If something goes wrong like defect in workmanship, a stone becomes loose, you can bring it back and breathe down their necks.





Just make sure that the warranty covers those things.





Also, make sure that they give you free cleaning every 6 months.





3.) Check online resources. You can save some major $$$ there:





I got my wife's ring at Diamond Brokers of Florida:





http://www.dbof.com/





http://www.diamondring.com/forums/forumd鈥?/a>





Or you could check out these other online sources:





www.WhiteFlash.com





www.GoodOldGold.com





www.ExcelDiamonds.com





www.BlueNile.com





Blue Nile's database is good, but they don't provide you with photos or analysis reports of the diamond. I wouldn't go with them for that reason.





Happy hunting.





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*Need advice on buying a diamond and engagement ring...?
You can barter. You don't have to get it all in one place. Get an inexpensive one for this marriage. When you get a divorce in a couple of years and remarry, you can get a much more expensive one for your next marriage. You know how it is, you get married, then you get a divorce. The world keeps spinning.
use the MILT15 code at http://www.mdcdiamonds.com/ and you will get 3% off the diamond and 10% off the setting and they have almost every setting and they customize
My two cents- 3/4 ct is TOO SMALL- i started with 1 and fast moved to 2... But its my preference and it depends on your wallet... Have you kinda gotten a scoop on what your girl likes??? You dont have to purchase the stone from same jeweler... Good luck!
Ok don't listen to the person who says that 3/4 is too small!! My center stone is 1/2 carat and it looks really big on me because I have small hands. You don't want something that is just overwhelming because they can look obnoxious and fake.





And don't listen to the insensitive jerk who is talking about divorce... rude!!





And yes you can talk them down on the price. My fiance and I shopped for my engagement ring together. We originally went to one store and then went to another store (same company) in a town nearby. We asked them what they could do for us if we bought the ring from them instead of the other store. They gave us $500 bucks off!





I am not sure about buying the stone and setting from different places, so I can't really help with that one. Sorry!





Good luck :)
No....You don't have to get the setting at the same jeweler...shop around at another place to price compare. We were fed up with our jeweler where we bought our stone...he wasn't designing our ring within the time frame he had given us so we took our stone to a more reputable place. I'm very happy we did that in the end. Just make sure you know what kind of setting your fiancee would like...if you propose to her with a temporary setting...i.e. go to a new jeweler tell him about the awful experience that you had at the last place with the hard sell. Tell them you don't want the hard sell...say I want my fiancee to help choose out her setting so can we put the engagement stone into a ';temporary'; setting and then come back for designing the ';real setting'; this way you win...she gets some say in what kind of ring she is to wear the rest of her life, she can tell you if she wants platnum and all of the rest of the details. No matter how much a guy tries to help pick something out, you want your bride to be happy!!!!! Get creative on how you ask her as well...she'll want a good story to share with her friends, and your future children.