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The opinions expressed herein are secretdiamond.com's opinions and do not represent anyone else's or any other company's views in any way.
© Copyright 2009
Diamonds & Engagement Rings Require Maintenance
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Although I am sure you have heard that a diamond can last forever and that they are the hardest known substance on earth, you might be surprised to learn that they are not indestructible. Diamonds & engagement rings require maintenance in order to preserve their beauty and prevent damage from occurring. Surprisingly the person you may trust the most to handle your diamonds properly, may also be the person that is most likely to chip or crack your diamond.
An interesting fact: A diamond can be the most vulnerable to chipping or cracking while it is being set by the jeweler. This happens to be particularly true with Princess Cut Diamonds. The thinnest and most vulnerable part of a Princess Cut Diamond is at the girdle & corners of the diamond.
If the jeweler presses too hard on the prongs while setting the diamond, he or she can chip off a corner of the diamond. You may also be surprised to learn that there is probably more diamonds damaged this way, than by their owners wearing them. If you bring your engagement ring to a jeweler to be worked on, you should always insist on inspecting the diamond and engagement ring under magnification before you accept the repair. Be sure to inspect the diamond at it’s corners and edges, and look at the prongs for possible stress fractures. You may also want to examine micropave diamonds to see if they are loose or crooked.
HELPFUL DIAMOND ENGAGEMENT RING TIP: This method can be used to see if you have a loose diamond. Place your diamond engagement ring up to your ear. Keep your fingers on the metal portion of your engagement ring and off the diamond/diamonds that you are checking. Then tap the engagement ring with your index finger and listen closely for any rattling. It may help to use a fingernail if you can. If you hear any rattling, then you may have a loose diamond.
As unfortunate as it may be, some jewelers have been known to hide minor chips under the prongs, only to be noticed by the diamond’s owner weeks or months later.
If you own a laser inscribed GIA or EGL certified diamond, also make sure to look under magnification for the inscription on the diamond before you accept your diamond to make sure it’s yours. Many people can tell you a horror story or two about how a dishonest jeweler switched their high quality diamond with a diamond of lower quality and less value. Of course there is also the possibility that a jeweler makes an honest mistake and places the wrong diamond back in your engagement ring.
Proper Diamond Jewelry & Engagement Rings Storage
Although I am sure your engagement ring is beautiful and very special to you, there may come a time when you need to take it off. As much as you probably don’t want to take it off, if you are about to do something that could be harmful to your engagement ring, you will need to take it off your finger and place it somewhere for safekeeping. If you just place it on a counter, you probably won’t need to do much except place it on a soft material and make sure you can’t knock it off the counter very easily. (watch out for toilets and sink drains. I am sure you have heard a story or two about someone knocking their ring in to one of them) However if you have a jewelry box that you like to store your ring in along with other jewelry, you will need to wrap it in a soft cloth to prevent damage to your ring and other jewelry. The diamond in your engagement ring can scratch your other jewelry, and if you are also storing other diamond jewelry in the same place, the diamonds can actually damage each other. Just the metal in the jewelry can scratch each other too.
A couple of things to consider: You may want to consider keeping valuable jewelry or jewelry that has sentimental value (especially if you seldom wear it) in a secure place such as a safe deposit box. Burglars or thieves will often look in obvious places like jewelry boxes or drawers first in search of valuable items like jewelry. Jewelry is a very desirable target for theft because it is easy to grab or stuff in a pocket and can be extremely valuable.
Did you know that you should have your diamond engagement ring inspected twice a year? A diamond engagement ring should be examined by a professional jeweler every 6 months, or sooner if necessary. If you purchased your engagement ring online and have to send it back to where you purchased it from, you may not want to do it every 6 months. Just make sure you keep a close eye on it and send it back at least every 9 months, or sooner if needed. Diamond engagement rings should never go longer than 12 months without being examined by a professional jeweler.
Unfortunately like I tell my customers. Your engagement ring will look it’s very best the day you buy it. Engagement rings are worn on the hand and can take a lot of abuse. All of the activities of every day life can have an impact on your engagement rings beauty. Just think about how much stuff you put your hands. Lotion, soap, sweat and dirt are just a few of the mild things your engagement ring will encounter. Then there are the every day activities like carrying in the groceries, handling your car keys, digging through your purse, and a million of other things that can affect your engagement rings appearance and performance. YOUR DIAMOND ENGAGEMENT RING WILL NEED MAINTENANCE, that is a fact and it is absolutely normal. With that said, it doesn’t mean that you should keep your engagement ring on your finger while doing things like gardening, rock climbing, bull riding or ultimate prize fighting. Just using common sense will help protect your diamond engagement ring.
Even though your diamond engagement ring will go through everyday wear and tear, you can keep it looking good for decades to come with proper maintenance. Whenever the customers at Engagement Rings By Secret Diamond send their engagement rings back for any reason, we always put it through a rigorous inspection. We perform all necessary maintenance issues. We also thoroughly clean, polish, tighten prongs, replace micropave diamonds if needed and re-rhodium white gold engagement rings.
Did you know that you can insure your engagement ring even if you don’t own a home? And you don’t have to buy your engagement ring from a jewelry store to get an engagement ring insurance policy either. The traditional method of insuring an engagement ring against accidental loss or theft was to put it on a homeowners insurance policy. However many new couples just starting out may not own a home yet, or they are not aware of any other methods of insuring their engagement ring. Or they may think it’s just too expensive to insure an engagement ring.
The fact is: Engagement Ring Insurance Is Easy & Engagement Ring Insurance Is Affordable. There is a company online that insures engagement rings for a very reasonable fee. Last time we checked, the cost to insure an engagement ring was approximately 1% of the purchase price. So if you purchase an engagement ring for $3,500 from us, you can insure it for just $35 dollars a year! That’s affordable. The company is called Jewelers Mutual and you can find them at www.jewelersmutual.com. Just call them and ask them how much it is to insure your engagement ring. Their prices may vary a little bit, but whatever the cost is, your engagement ring is worth it.
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How do I know it’s safe buying engagement rings online and how do I know which online jewelers are the most reputable?
This is probably one of the most common questions we are asked by our prospective customers. Considering the average customer that wants to buy an engagement ring is budgeting anywhere from $3,000 to as much as $10,000 (or even more sometimes), it’s no wonder they are a little bit concerned. Often times this is by far the most money they have ever considered spending online. It may even be the single largest purchase they have ever made anywhere. I mean let’s face it, some cars may not even cost that much.
Most customers start out shopping for engagement rings in their local jewelry stores. I hear quite often our customers saying "I have shopped everywhere!" They like the idea of buying an engagement ring from their local jewelry store, but when they see how expensive it can be and how little they are getting for their money, they start looking on the internet.
This is where it starts to get fun and scary at the same time. The number of companies (and so-called companies) selling jewelry online can almost be a little overwhelming. Depending upon which phrases you use when searching for your engagement ring, you start to see more and more companies selling engagement rings. For instance "affordable engagement rings" will bring back different results than "engagement rings sale". And the search phrase "engagement rings" will bring back different results than "diamond engagement rings". This holds true for almost every different search phrase.
Tip:
When searching for engagement rings online, go to your favorite search engine and type in many different search phrases. This will allow you to see many more vendors returned in the search results. Search engines "Rank" websites for different phrases. By using various phrases in your search, you will see many more options available than if you use the same phrase over and over. You may also consider browsing past the first page of search results. Many of the most legitimate engagement ring companies are not always located on the first page for every search result. It does not necessarily mean that they are not good jewelers. It may just mean they are too busy running their jewelry business to "Optimize" their website, to be found everywhere in the search engines. Search engines do not rank websites by the quality of the jeweler. Websites are "ranked" by search engines using entirely different methods that have nothing to do with the quality of their work.
Back to our tips. The fun starts when you begin seeing how much money you can save on your engagement ring. Then it gets even more fun when you start to see the larger selection of engagement rings available online. (We also hear from our customers that we have the most unique and beautiful engagement ring selection available anywhere) It’s quite common for customers to search everywhere else first, and still not find their "perfect engagement ring".
UNTIL THEY COME TO OUR ONLINE ENGAGEMENT RING STORE. I hear from many of our customers that they came back to our website as many as 15-20 times trying to decide which "perfect engagement ring" to choose from. The trouble was not being able to find one that they liked. The trouble was just choosing which one they liked the best.
Tip:
When you search online for engagement rings and you start to see many different websites selling the same engagement ring, using the same photo, that typically means that they are not making their own engagement rings. They are probably buying the engagement ring from an engagement ring casting company, and then just setting the diamonds. Quite frankly, they may not even set the diamonds. In the large diamond districts such as New York or Los Angeles, there are many companies that perform various services. Some companies may just make "raw castings" and some companies may just "set diamonds". This makes it very easy for the so-called "jewelers" to put together an engagement ring and sell it to you. Often times these various specialized companies will even be located in the same building, making it even easier for these individuals to present themselves as "jewelers".
This is where the scary part begins. How are you supposed to know which engagement ring sellers are the "real deal?" After all, there are so many of them to choose from. How are you supposed to know if they will deliver the engagement ring that they are promising you? Or even at all? Also, will they actually honor their return policy? What is their return policy, and do they even have one? And how likely is that they will be there 5 or 10 years from now to stand behind their work and help you properly maintain your engagement ring? (Engagement Rings do require proper maintenance) THESE ARE ALL VALID QUESTIONS TO ASK ANYONE YOU ARE CONSIDERING PURCHASING AN ENGAGEMENT RING FROM. And any other question you are concerned about.
Although it can be scary trying to figure all of this out, especially considering the large sum of money you are about to spend with a complete stranger, there are some simple steps you can take to protect yourself. Listed below are basic ideas you should consider before making your engagement ring purchase online.
* CHECK FOR THE BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU LOGO ON THE WEBSITE AND CLICK IT TO MAKE SURE IT IS VALID
Engagement Rings By Secret Diamond is a proud member of our local Better Business Chapter and we are in excellent standing. Every reputable online seller of engagement rings that we are aware of, is also a proud member of their local BBB. You can easily click on the BBB logo on their website and check to see if it is valid. If it is valid, you should be taken to their individual report page listed in the BBB. This page will tell you if there are a large number of complaints against the company. It will also tell you how they handled complaints and if they resolved them, or just ignored them. The trick here is to not just look for the BBB logo and assume it is valid. There are online companies that may have belonged to the BBB at one time and decided not to renew their membership because they did not like being held accountable. There are also companies that place the BBB logo on their website that don’t even belong the the BBB. They are hoping that you won’t click on it, or that you don’t even know it should take you to the BBB report on their company. And then there are the companies that just don’t even bother belonging to the BBB because they already have too many complaints against them that are unresolved, or resolved in a questionable manner. The last trick that unscrupulous sellers will use, is to place the BBB logo on their website and even make it clickable to the BBB online. However rather than bringing you to their report page, they will just bring you to the homepage of the BBB, again hoping you don’t know any better. Well now you do.
Remember, reputable online diamond sellers realize that you want to be protected in your purchase, and they will PROUDLY belong to their local BBB chapter.
* DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK QUESTIONS
You can learn a lot about a business when you ask them questions. Listen to their answers carefully and judge for yourself if you feel they are answering your questions honestly and in a well informed fashion.
* Reputable jewelers will gladly spend as much time as needed to make you feel comfortable with your purchase. They should not rush you through the process of buying a diamond. If you feel you are being rushed, you should carefully consider your decision if they are the right company to buy from.
* A reputable jeweler will not be offended by relevant questions. If you are asking a jeweler valid questions about the diamond you are considering buying (such as it’s quality) and he or she seems to get offended, they could be trying to hide something. The same thing holds true for relevant questions about their business. Don’t forget that you are considering spending a lot of money with this jeweler. You have every right to make sure you are protected with your purchase.
* Check For Online Reviews About The Company
Although this can be an excellent way to find out more about the reputation of an online company, you have to be a little bit careful with this method. This process can be easily abused, and abused both ways. Some online diamond sellers are well aware of these review sites and will place fake reviews on them. It can even be difficult to distinguish between the real reviews and the fakes ones. However if you see an overwhelming amount of positive reviews, chances are pretty good that this is an established and well run business. The other way this process can be abused is by the businesses competitors. I have even seen where an online competitor left a fake review portraying the business in a negative light. Considering how large the internet is, sometimes these fake bad reviews can take a long time for the legitimate business to be made aware of, especially if they are not interested in abusing the process. They may not be regularly visiting these review websites because they are actually letting their customers leave the real reviews
If you are the “End User”; of that engagement ring or piece of diamond jewelry and if you are not in the business of buying from manufacturers with the intent of reselling to consumers, you can not buy your engagement ring wholesale. You may feel that you received a price similar to “Wholesale“, but you can not actually purchase your engagement ring wholesale. (In the truest and legal sense of the word) Unless you are a wholesaler with a Federal Tax ID number and possibly a state resale tax ID #. In many cases when engagement rings and diamonds are being advertised for sale to the public as wholesale, it is at least misleading, and possibly even illegal in some states. This actually applies to most types of products for resale, not just diamonds, and engagement ring sets. It is true that purchasing your engagement ring online can save you quite a bit of money, but you are still technically buying at retail. That means you are purchasing affordable engagement rings, not a wholesale engagement rings. The savings typically are because when you buy online, you are enjoying a lower profit margin on that loose diamond or diamond engagement ring. This is possible because many online jewelers do not have the large overhead that a traditional brick and mortar jewelry store will have.
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