Ahhhh the age old question, “how much did he spend?” It was only until recently that I realised wedding bling was a thing. I’ve always been obsessed by wedding dresses, but trying on rings was never something I was interested in. Growing up my mum was always covered in jewellery and fell in love with gold, like I fell for dresses. So when poor Billy had to choose the ring he had absolutely zero idea what he was getting, because frankly I had never shown any interest. Now I won’t go into the detail of the initial proposal because I know my last post covered it off in finite detail.
How much should you spend on a wedding ring? Well it’s the age old question, how long is a piece of string? Fellas, you know your girl, if she’s dropping hints left right and centre about ring designs, sadly it’s time to start saving. BUT, I am here to help you save a dime or $1000.
Thankfully for Bill and I, my work bestie is what I would deem as a serial researcher, and he saves $thousands$ on airfares, tradespeople and the like, while still flying first class and building enviable homes. He’s an impressive businessman in his own right and I’ve learnt a ridiculous amount from him in the time I’ve known him. When it came to buying his lovely lady an engagement ring, I was blown away by the month(s)(!!) of research he invested. In comparison to Bills hungover Chadstone experience, he was the engagement ring guru. So after numerous conversations (locally and internationally), several visits to various places, he uncovered what I would describe as ‘the savvy diamond ring’ specialist. It was a diamond dealer – Gem Trove, but don’t picture knock off, el cheapo diamonds. I’m talking the most beautiful diamonds you will ever lay eyes on. And all within your budget.
So when it came to Bill and I getting the ‘real ring’ made, I knew no investigation was required, we went to Gem Trove and we were honestly both blown away.
Now, if you’re looking for the ‘Tiffany experience’, get this out of the way first before visiting this place. It’s far from what you picture in your diamond ring fantasies, and you’ll be sorely disappointed if you’re expecting champagne and plates filled with beautiful rings.
For me, I like a bit of character and an adventure, so Bill and I actually skipped all that stuff, it was also because I’m a little bit lazy and was happy with the first ring I tried on, and I didn’t want to over complicate the decision.
So as I’ve said, our place is called ‘Gem Trove’. It’s in the heart of Melbourne, up this dodgy little elevator and at the end of a hallway with all these random gift shops that are so obscure I’m certain they’re a frontage for some undercover businesses. (I told you it’s not the Tiffany’s experience)
You have to be let in this glass sliding security door, and you’ll find the most jolly man waiting for you and my oh my is he passionate about diamonds. If you’ve got no idea about the 4 C’s, you’ll soon find out, because he’ll explain every detail to you – the first sign you’re buying from the right place.
We sat and he took a look at my fakey diamond, and brought out ‘real’ diamonds of the same size. Now for some background, Bill and I had discussed prior to going, that we were no way prepared to spend the amount of money to match my el fakeo 1 carat diamond. I was more so keen to find a diamond of excellent cut, colour and clarity, because I genuinely love the way they shimmer in the sunlight – weird I know, but for me it was about quality, not size. So when he brought out the 1 carat diamonds of ‘Excellent’ Cut, Colour and Clarity, I was prepared to hear figures way beyond our budget.
Let’s just say we were pleasantly surprised. We literally honestly saved ‘thousands’. And, he was even happy to pop the diamond we chose on my existing rose gold band that I was super keen to keep, for as little as $250 and 2 complimentary cleans are included in the cost and he’s even happy to organise you with the best diamond ring insurance on the market before you leave with your ring (yes it’s not a sales pitch, I actually checked (after cocky me tried to challenge him) and he was right). Also, I had told him how I was hoping to have it back before next dress fitting. He had said that normally it would take 2 weeks so I wouldn’t have it back in time, but then to my surprise, he called me a few days later to tell me how he had wanted me to have it for my dress fitting so had worked overnight to get it done – talk about first class experience.
Yes, it wasn’t the jeweller ‘experience’, but in my eyes, it was even better. It was simple, far cheaper, and as I’ve said, these diamonds are amazing, and I couldn’t recommend it any more. He even took me through the origin of my diamond and forced me to peer into the microscope so I could read the serial number so I knew it was legit.
I think this was key for me. You walk into a jeweller, and might be taken away by some tizzy sales assistant who genuinely has no idea what she’s rattling on about. For those that know me well, you’ll know I like to be challenged, and love it when I’m totally awed by someone’s knowledge and passion for what they do. If nothing else, you’ll visit and find out some tips for what you need to be careful of when visiting a jeweller. But I’m fairly certain once you go to him you’ll be running back once you see the price tags of others for inferior diamonds.
Anyway. Fellas, give him a call and lock in a meeting. But if you’re worried, keep your girl happy and take her to a big beautiful ring store so she can at least try on options so she can design her own. You can always buy the diamond from Gem Trove and have it made into a ring by another jeweller.
Website: https://www.gemtrove.com/
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My beautiful ring…
The Blase´Bride 