When looking for an IDEAL cut, customers should look at DEPTH and TABLE, not polish and symmetry! When I attended GIA classes no one cared about polish and symmetry. Today, I have customers willing to pay 15% more money to get excellnet polish and symmetry which I believe has very little effect on diamond appearance.

I have seen diamonds with 63% tables and 65% depths get excellent polish and symmetry. Bad cut diamonds can still get excellent excellent! Even hearts and arrows does not guarantee an IDEAL cut. We own a hearts and arrows diamond with a 64% depth and a 61% table! A cut like this does not provide the best light reflection which is why people buy ideal cut diamonds.

We rrovide our customer VALUE by teaching them that ideal cuts are a reflection of the actual CUT of the diamond; depth, table, angles and not the polish and symmetry.

The Knot did a study of 19,000 real couples. They found that only 9% of couples buy on-line. Every young man learns about diamonds online before they come in, but they are not comfortable buying without seeing it first.

Where Do People Buy???

• 39% Of couples buy their engagement Ring at an independent Jeweler
• 35% Buy at a chain store
• 9% Buy on line
• 4% buy at a Luxury Jeweler

#5 People want to have their money in something safe, tangible. They don’t know what their house is worth, they don’t trust stocks, but they believe gold and diamonds have REAL solid value. We don’t just sell the sizzle of diamonds, we sell the steak. The price of diamonds are up because people believe they have value.

#4 Investments. People buying diamonds as investment have driven up prices. At least two huge American investment companies have bought BILLIONS of dollars of diamonds as investments. Along with that, many individual investors are buying millions of dollars of diamonds to sit on as an investment. Every week I hear from a jeweler or dealer that they have an investor wanting to buy investment diamonds.

#3 The dollar is weak. Martin Rapaport said in his Vegas speech. America is living in an illusion. 0% interest rate. Free money? America is on financial Prosaic. We are devaluing our own dollar. A dollar that is worth LESS can buy less gas and less diamonds.

There are so many diamond qualities that are NOT Even listed on the report! Brightness, scintillation, position and relief of inclusions that determine beauty. These are not listed on a GIA cert or on a Web site! you need to know WHERE the inclusion is. How bright the stone is? What is the quality of rough? Is it hazy? All these things translate to value.

1. When you buy for price that is all you get. This is a life-long position. This is maybe the most precious item you will ever own. It means something. Make it special. Internet sites come and go but a diamond is forever.
2. A diamond is forever. Who are you going to go to if there is a chip, or a problem? The internet site will not provide maintenance, experience, or service. When you buy from a jeweler you are purchasing their time and expertise. They give you an appraisal and guarantee. They give you a mounting and keep your jewelry clean and in good condition for as long as you own the piece.
3. DeBeers sorts their rough diamonds into over a thousand different categories. If all that differentiated diamonds was D-Z color and FL to I3 clarity there would only a few categories. There is a LARGE range of colors and clarities WITHIN each category that the internet site will not disclose to you.
4. Unfortunately, sellers of diamonds are not always looked upon as beacons of honesty. There have been stories of fake certificates and real certificates sold with diamonds that did not match them. Find a jeweler you trust and you will avoid the entire headache.

These are just idea’s.
I would love to hear your thoughts and comments.

Thanks for reading.

]]> http://versaillesjewelers.com/buying-tips/%e2%80%9cbut-i-can-get-it-on-the-internet-for-cheaper%e2%80%9d-part-3/feed 1 http://versaillesjewelers.com/diamonds-2/why-are-diamond-prices-going-up-part-2 http://versaillesjewelers.com/diamonds-2/why-are-diamond-prices-going-up-part-2#comments Fri, 12 Aug 2011 12:32:27 +0000 Fred Nevarez http://versaillesjewelers.com/?p=106 People keep asking me – Fred, why are diamond prices going up so much? I hope this helps us all understand a little better.

#2 The supply of diamonds is limited. There has not been a new major diamond mine found in 20 years. Also a a number of diamond mines have closed in the last few years. Banks are less interested in loaning the money that mines need to keep operations going. So with more people in China and India with more money, an increase in demand, and a stronger currency, the price of diamonds goes up.

A retail jeweler in America needs to sell a 1ct G SI1 for the same price as a jeweler in China is selling a 1ct G SI1. It does not matter how weak the US economy is. The US economy does not determine diamond prices. We in American need to sell diamonds at Chinese prices. MONEY decides who gets the diamonds. The diamonds are not coming to the US. They are going to China.

China and India’s economies are growing. In Sunday’s New York Times business section. Mr. Graff talks about the number of billionaires in China climbs annually. China will soon have more millionaires than America. 48% of the Indian population is under the age of 25. They are hungry to work. Their GDP increased 8.3% this year. They want to make money and buy nice things. We in America are going to have to share.

]]> http://versaillesjewelers.com/diamonds-2/why-are-diamond-prices-going-up-part-2/feed 0 http://versaillesjewelers.com/diamonds-2/why-are-diamond-prices-going-up-part-1 http://versaillesjewelers.com/diamonds-2/why-are-diamond-prices-going-up-part-1#comments Fri, 05 Aug 2011 12:30:28 +0000 Fred Nevarez http://versaillesjewelers.com/?p=103 People keep asking me – Fred, why are diamond prices going up so much? I hope this helps us all understand a little better.

#1 America has 310 million people. China and India have 2.5 BILLION people. China’s economy is projected to grow 10% this year. What that means is more people around the world have more money. These people want iPods, they want dishwashers, they want diamonds. So number one, more people want diamonds.

]]> http://versaillesjewelers.com/diamonds-2/why-are-diamond-prices-going-up-part-1/feed 0 http://versaillesjewelers.com/buying-tips/%e2%80%9cbut-i-can-get-it-on-the-internet-for-cheaper%e2%80%9d-part-2 http://versaillesjewelers.com/buying-tips/%e2%80%9cbut-i-can-get-it-on-the-internet-for-cheaper%e2%80%9d-part-2#comments Thu, 21 Jul 2011 14:06:16 +0000 Fred Nevarez http://versaillesjewelers.com/?p=83 I like to tell Blue Nile shoppers Even with GIA reports there are degrees with in GIA reports. Many times a good SI1 could be better than a bad VS2!

There are so many diamond qualities that are NOT Even listed on the report! Brightness, scintillation, position and relief of inclusions that determine beauty. These are not listed on a GIA cert or on a Web site! You need to know WHERE the inclusion is. How bright the stone is? What is the quality of rough? Is it hazy? All these things translate to value.

1. Ask the internet site WHERE the inclusion is. How bright the stone is? What is the quality of rough? Is it hazy? All these things translate to value and are not easily discernable to the untrained eye. If you do not know them when you buy a diamond on-line then you do not know if you are getting value.
2. Retail prices on a 1ct round F SI1 can range from a few thousand to almost $10,000. If every F SI1 was the same then people would always buy the cheapest! Obviously there are MANY differences such as brightness, scintillation, position and relief of inclusions that determine beauty.
3. If it seems too good to be true, it usually is. No one is giving anything away. There is usually a reason something is below market value. I encourage the customer to try to get the stone on the internet and bring it in. Many stones are just listed and do not even really exist.

These are just idea’s.
I would love to hear your thoughts and comments.

And – still more to come…

]]> http://versaillesjewelers.com/buying-tips/%e2%80%9cbut-i-can-get-it-on-the-internet-for-cheaper%e2%80%9d-part-2/feed 0 http://versaillesjewelers.com/buying-tips/%e2%80%9cbut-i-can-get-it-on-the-internet-for-cheaper%e2%80%9d-part-1 http://versaillesjewelers.com/buying-tips/%e2%80%9cbut-i-can-get-it-on-the-internet-for-cheaper%e2%80%9d-part-1#comments Tue, 21 Jun 2011 14:06:04 +0000 Fred Nevarez http://versaillesjewelers.com/?p=80 I like to tell Blue Nile shoppers even with GIA reports there are degrees with in GIA reports. Many times a good SI1 could be better than a bad VS2!!!!

There are so many diamond qualities that are NOT Even listed on the report! Brightness, scintillation, position and relief of inclusions that determine beauty. These are not listed on a GIA cert or on a Web site! you need to know WHERE the inclusion is. How bright the stone is? What is the quality of rough? Is it hazy? All these things translate to value.

1. Let’s back to basics! When are you getting married? How did you meet? Talk to me & let me get to know you so I can serve you better. And try doing that on the Internet…
2. A diamond is more than letters and numbers. It is a work of nature. If I gave you all the dimensions of a woman could you tell me if she is beautiful? NO ! You need to see her. Same as with a diamond.
3. A store lets you examine the diamond BEFORE you buy it, and you can compare to other diamonds. A store provides a selection to choose from. No diamond dealer in the world buys a stone without seeing it! Why should you?

These are just idea’s.
I would love to hear your thoughts and comments

And – more to come…

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