Engagement ring help - Cork

tonydude

Hi guys, im looking for some helpful tips, id love some help in getting an engagement ring to my long term girlfriend , something ive been wanting to do with a long time now. Ive arrived home from Oz and have a job at the mo to help this endeavour. Whats the usually type of ring and diamond involved, i have a couple grand to spoil her with, its just i dont know where to begin. Help

mordeith

tonydude wrote: »

Hi guys, im looking for some helpful tips, id love some help in getting an engagement ring to my long term girlfriend , something ive been wanting to do with a long time now. Ive arrived home from Oz and have a job at the mo to help this endeavour. Whats the usually type of ring and diamond involved, i have a couple grand to spoil her with, its just i dont know where to begin. Help

Just pop into Keanes on Oliver Plunkett street and they'll advise you I'm sure. Obviously try and make sure it's an ethically sourced diamond.

On a personal note I don't agree with dropping a couple of grand on a ring for an engagement. I reckon you're better off saving the money to go towards a deposit on a house or whatever because that's where your relationship/marriage will develop and mature into (hopefully) something happy and lasting. (the whole diamond engagment thing was just a marketing ploy dreamt up be De Beer's in the 30s apparently).
I'm very happily married for 14 years. My wife's engagement ring cost €300. It was the sum total of my first pay check
I did buy lovely white gold wedding rings in case the girls are going to brand me a cheapskate!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5kWu1ifBGU

Red Nissan

Call into a jeweller.

They will show you a few varieties and styles in your price range. I did that and they were ready when I returned with my unsuspecting girlfriend.

That way she got to choose from a selection that I knew the prices of and she got a massive surprise too.

She has hardly taken it off in 34 years.

kub

Give Brendan Walsh a shout, I was refereed to him recently and this guys knowledge of rings and diamonds is unbelievable.

If i may be so cheeky here is a link http://www.platinumworks.ie/

ABajaninCork

Certainly, Platinum Works looks the best bet. AFAIK, you can give him your budget, and he'll design you something nice. Keane's is overpriced IMO and trades purely on name.

Alternatively - why don't the pair of you pop over to either the Jewellery Quarter in Birmingham or Hatton Garden in London. Bit more bang for your buck there.

hoodwinked

mordeith wrote: »

Just pop into Keanes on Oliver Plunkett street and they'll advise you I'm sure. Obviously try and make sure it's an ethically sourced diamond.

don't!

ABajaninCork wrote: »

Keane's is overpriced IMO and trades purely on name.

i can second this ^ opinion on Keanes, bought my engagement ring in there, i fell in love with a white gold ring, and thought because it was Keanes i was getting a good quality ring,

sure enough we bought our wedding bands in another jewelers where a friend works and he recommended white gold due to the fact my engagement ring was white gold and fitted the band to the engagement ring, but since i got my wedding band i've noticed

a: it feels better quality than the engagement ring, when they both fell on a tiled bathroom floor the engagement ring makes a hollow sound where the wedding ring sounds (after i tested it on other rings) exactly the same as other peoples white gold rings.
and

b: it yellows so much faster than my wedding ring, i even got both dipped at the same time last year and it was yellow long before the wedding ring, despite me wearing both constantly

if it wasn't for its sentimental value i'd replace it, but i will never buy from Keanes again.

ABajaninCork

I've always thought Keanes weren't all that. Years ago, my husband wanted to buy his niece a really nice watch for her 21st. My brother loves his watches and is a bit of a horologist. He recommended a Raymond Weil. Went over to London and bought a beautiful one with a metal strap and mother-of-pearl face. Bargained the owner down to £400 from £700. Happy days!

Back here in Cork, I noticed the same watch in the window of Keane's. Price? E1200. And that was in the days of the Euro being 1:1 against the £ :eek:

I'm on the hunt for an eternity ring (He promised! ). I won't be buying it here. Either it'll be the Jewellery Quarter or Hatton Garden where I got my engagement ring.

bee06

tonydude wrote: »

Hi guys, im looking for some helpful tips, id love some help in getting an engagement ring to my long term girlfriend , something ive been wanting to do with a long time now. Ive arrived home from Oz and have a job at the mo to help this endeavour. Whats the usually type of ring and diamond involved, i have a couple grand to spoil her with, its just i dont know where to begin. Help

OP, if you don't know where to begin then let her pick her own ring. It's a big risk if you don't know what type of ring to go with.

Red Nissan

bee06 wrote: »

OP, if you don't know where to begin then let her pick her own ring. It's a big risk if you don't know what type of ring to go with.

Can't really agree with this unless one has an unlimited budget. It's certainly a big risk if she picks out a €250,000 ring and won't settle for anything less.

bee06

Red Nissan wrote: »

Can't really agree with this unless one has an unlimited budget. It's certainly a big risk if she picks out a €250,000 ring and won't settle for anything less.

Well if he's getting married to her then I'm sure they are mature enough to discuss the ring budget?

Red Nissan

bee06 wrote: »

Well if he's getting married to her then I'm sure they are mature enough to discuss the ring budget?

NO. NO. NO.

The ring is essentially a gift to the girl, afterwards they can discuss the budget for a bed or a setee or an oven or pot or a kettle.

NEVER discuss the budget for the ring, and certainly NOT beforehand, it kills ALL, all repeat ALL the romance.

pwurple

Take a look at blue nile. Online. They ship to Ireland.

All your pesky diamond questions answered. My now husband got my ring there. Got it valued in Keanes afterwards for insurance. They valued it for nearly double what he had paid. We got ky wedding ring there also.

I would strongly recommend against some of the small jewellers in Cork unfortunetly for diamonds, and usually I am a big fan of supporting local. I know someone who had to take one of them to court over a diamond with a fraudulent certificate. I know another who went to have a ring valued and the base metal was not what it should have been.

bee06

Red Nissan wrote: »

NO. NO. NO.

The ring is essentially a gift to the girl, afterwards they can discuss the budget for a bed or a setee or an oven or pot or a kettle.

NEVER discuss the budget for the ring, and certainly NOT beforehand, it kills ALL, all repeat ALL the romance.

Picking and giving her a ring she hates will kill the romance a lot quicker.

Red Nissan

bee06 wrote: »

Picking and giving her a ring she hates will kill the romance a lot quicker.

I see.

OK, you can give her a hand picked ring of flowers and she'll love them.

She can't hate the ring, this is just silly talk, you can give her a lump of coal and she will love it.

For feck sake even make her a cup of tea and she will love it.

If YOU make it for her, it'll always be the best ever.

One has to just do it, don't ask her if she'd like a cup of tea, just get her one, so she'd prefer a coffee, worry about that then.

Come back please, preferably with some life experience. :pac:

d1234

OP, whatever you do, don't tell the jeweler your budget. They will always pump up the prices if you do it that way. Instead, ask them the prices of the rings you think are nice and prompt for a bit of discount. Good luck!

bee06

Red Nissan wrote: »

I see.

OK, you can give her a hand picked ring of flowers and she'll love them.

She can't hate the ring, this is just silly talk, you can give her a lump of coal and she will love it.

For feck sake even make her a cup of tea and she will love it.

If YOU make it for her, it'll always be the best ever.

One has to just do it, don't ask her if she'd like a cup of tea, just get her one, so she'd prefer a coffee, worry about that then.

Come back please, preferably with some life experience. :pac:

You seem to be under the impression that I'm a man which I'm not. I'm giving the female perspective that if the OP doesn't have a clue what kind of ring his girlfriend would like then it would be safer to let her pick it out herself which is what you did if I'm not mistaken? And I do think your idea to go to the jewellery first to fill him/her in on the budget was a good idea. This discussion is kinda going off topic now so I'll bow out of it.

Red Nissan

bee06 wrote: »

You seem to be under the impression that I'm a man which I'm not. I'm giving the female perspective that if the OP doesn't have a clue what kind of ring his girlfriend would like then it would be safer to let her pick it out herself which is what you did if I'm not mistaken? And I do think your idea to go to the jewellery first to fill him/her in on the budget was a good idea. This discussion is kinda going off topic now so I'll bow out of it.

She picked the ring, yes, we had several trays to choose from, all within what I was going to pay. She does not know to this day, we sort of fell into the shop and we were taken to the back room and treated like royalty.

Shown tray after tray and I did not have to worry about the price.

who_me

Red Nissan wrote: »

NO. NO. NO.

The ring is essentially a gift to the girl, afterwards they can discuss the budget for a bed or a setee or an oven or pot or a kettle.

NEVER discuss the budget for the ring, and certainly NOT beforehand, it kills ALL, all repeat ALL the romance.

Yeah, I know it's the done thing for the girl to pick (or 'heavily hint') the engagement ring.. but for me the guy picking it is an excellent test for both. It's a test for him to see how well he knows her style/taste, and it's a test for her to see how important the choice of ring is relative to.. you know.. spending the rest of their lives together.

If I bought an engagement ring and the girl in question didn't like it and complained about it, I'd be very worried her priorities.

(sorry if this is a little OT)

kub

pwurple wrote: »

I would strongly recommend against some of the small jewellers in Cork unfortunetly for diamonds, and usually I am a big fan of supporting local. I know someone who had to take one of them to court over a diamond with a fraudulent certificate. I know another who went to have a ring valued and the base metal was not what it should have been.

If I was a small jeweller in Cork city I would be very upset with the libel in that post.

ABajaninCork

kub wrote: »

If I was a small jeweller in Cork city I would be very upset with the libel in that post.

Truth is an absolute defence. It's only libel if the statement can be proven to be so.

Esho

I got my wife,s engagement ring in Keanes.
I'm sorry I did cos of the supercilious attitude of the salesman, the overprice and I also watched blood diamond a few years later, as I didn't know anything about ethical diamonds when I bought it.

I surprised her, which was wonderful, amazing, such a happy happy day!
I was ready to exchange if she didn't like it. I also learned a few years later, from a radio chat show, that the old school was was to spend 3 months wages on it, probably so that all her friends could see she was marrying a man with money ( or without in my case, cos it wasn't an expensive ring)

pwurple

kub wrote: »

If I was a small jeweller in Cork city I would be very upset with the libel in that post.

Point out the libel there for me.

Gamb!t

Go to Keanes.

ABajaninCork

Gamb!t wrote: »

Go to Keanes.

Nah. Go anywhere but Keanes!

tonydude

Thanks for the info guys, taking it all onboard, I was aware of Keanes alright and probably wont be getting it there

horgan_p

We had a good experience in aksoy jewellers. You can buy one "pre made" or you can get one made specifically for you. The guy in there was very knowledgeable and definitely listened to what we were saying and gave advice based on what we wanted as opposed to what he wanted to sell us.

Deer

I second askoy. Best of luck OP hope your gf accepts and she loves her sparkler. You could also ask her best friend is she aware of any styles your gf likes. :-)

byronbay2

For top-quality hand-made jewellery, I would heartily recommend this guy:

http://www.stephenoshaughnessyjewellers.ie/

Not cheap and cheerful but expensive and exquisite. Don't skimp if it's going to be on your wife's finger for the rest of her life. Women judge each other on the quality of their engagement rings.

Disclaimer: I have no connection whatsoever with the jewellery business and do not know S O'S personally.

rob316

OP, I knew what herself wanted and I had a budget of max 1k. I looked around here and for your money you were getting an incredibly basic ring nothing eye catching . I read online about this etsy store then

https://www.etsy.com/ie/shop/DesignMasters?ref=s2-header-shopname

The stuff is brilliant and Gnel the designer is incredibly professional, I was back and forth with questions and design changes for about month before I picked it. Item was delivered in the time frame I wanted it and no excess customs charges.

I settled on a blue topaz stone white gold ring for about 1k, she absolutely loved it and regularly gets compliments, its a real eye catcher. similar to this I got https://www.etsy.com/listing/161980056/french-vintage-14k-white-gold-38-carat?ref=listing-9

ABajaninCork

Rob316 - What a lovely ring! Such good value too...

mordeith

byronbay2 wrote: »

. Women judge each other on the quality of their engagement rings.

Fuc*ing hell. What a statement