Last year, my fiance (then-boyfriend) took his sister out shopping for the day after Thanksgiving sale. As they were shopping, he passed a jewelry store window saw a beautiful diamond engagement ring. He said the moment he saw it, he just knew that it was the ring that he wanted to propose with. He said that he didn't go out to buy a ring, he just saw it, and in that moment, just knew.
Now... I'd like to take a minute to acknowledge that he should have done his research, should have learned about this important purchase, but did not. He knew a little bit about the 4 C's (basically just what they were), but was in no way a diamond expert.
The store that he went into was Ultra Diamonds. A salesperson there showed him the ring and he repeating the qualifications that he wanted in a stone - because he knew that they were the qualifications that I wanted. At least a half carat, VS quality or better (basically no visible flaws in the stone), H color or better (near colorless). The salesperson assured him that the stone was just over a half carat and met his qualifications.
Thankfully, she wrote this down on a piece of paper for him.
My fiancee proposed to over a romantic candlelit dinner. I said yes, we made the excited phone calls, and I went to sleep that night completely excited.
The next day, in the bright lights of the shower, I was admiring my ring. I saw a little black speck and thought I had gotten it dirty. I tried to clean it off, but it became clear that it was a large inclusion in the ring. VS2 diamonds should have no inclusions visible to the naked eye. I found two more carbon spots and a feather inclusion upon closer inspection.
My fiance had bragged about the quality of the stone, so I went in and told him that I didn't think that he had purchased the quality of stone that he thought he had. He pulled out all of the paperwork and showed me the handwritten details signed by the salesperson.
I had the ring appraised and found out that the. 56 carat, G color, VS2 ring that had been sold to my fiancee was actually a. 39 carat, I color, SI2 ring. He had been sold the ring at the "bargain" price of $1200.00, down from the original value of $1750.00. They had made him feel like he had really made a steal. The ring was appraised at $850.00.
We went back to the store, furious. They insisted that there must have been a mistake on my fiance's part, and were completely rude, until I pulled out the handwritten note signed by their employee. That finally got them to stop arguing with us. I demanded that they exchange the ring for the quality of stone written on that paper for the exact same price. They came back with a ring that met our qualifications and we left.
But after that, my engagement ring was basically the thing I looked at and only recalled the nightmare at Ultra Diamonds. We wound up taking it to Kay's and exchanging it for a beautiful stone that we picked out together. (Twice as beautiful for only slightly more money, btw.)
Now, any guy thinking to propose really SHOULD do more homework, research diamonds, find a reputable jeweler, etc... I finally have a beautiful ring and am not looking for sympathy. I just hope that this report gives a heads up to any wide-eyed, diamond-clueless boys ready to start engagement ring shopping. Stay far far far FAR away from Ultra Diamonds.
Renee
DeKalb, Illinois
U.S.A.
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