Part of my job at Brilliance is to help customers find a loose diamond and engagement ring that meets their budget without sacrificing quality and style. I recently worked with a bride who shared with me her story of how she ended up shopping for her bridal jewelry with Brilliance and how satisfied she was with the care and service she received. If you are reading this post, you have surely turned to the internet for answers, perhaps because you find yourself in the same frustrating situation as she did. Here I retell her story to show you how Brilliance can make your loose diamond purchase as easy and stress-free as hers:
It was finally my time to say “I do”, and everything had to be perfect. Growing up in New York, I was always told that the absolute best place to buy a diamond was from “the big guys” in the New York Diamond District. So off I headed to 47th street to begin my quest for my dream diamond.
Walking into the showroom, I immediately felt intimidated by the pushy salesman. It was clear to me that he was solely interested in making money on me and not at all interested in answering my questions. After an hour of listening to his sales pitch, he had only shown me a small selection of diamonds, all of which seemed a little pricey for their quality. I knew that I would never be happy with my loose diamond purchase with the level of care I was receiving from these “big guys” and decided to look for a different avenue to get the diamond quality that I wanted.
After the horrible experience with the salesman at the Diamond District, I decided to then go online and look up some pricing. I tried the first site that came to mind: Ebay. There I found great prices, but no customer service representative to talk to about my concerns and no assurance that the quality of the diamonds were as stated. As I continued searching and visited sites like Amazon and Craigslist, I kept thinking to myself, I am buying a diamond. Is there anywhere I can get a good price without sacrificing the quality, selection, or customer care?
As a last resort for my online quest, I googled a random search for “loose diamond, good price.” The first link I found was a website called Brilliance.com. I was impressed with the elegance and the beauty of the site. I found the box that read “certified loose diamond search” and began my search for the “perfect diamond.”
The left side of the page had everything I was looking for. I selected the shape, carat size, color, clarity, cut, price, and the certification that I wanted. Expecting to be disappointed again, I thought there would only be maybe 10 diamonds that had the qualities that he wanted. Shocked, I got a search result of 77,089 diamonds that fit exactly what I wanted. How could it be that the Diamond District office that I thought I could trust had only 3 options when I received 77,089 results in the comfort of my home? The prices were almost half of what I saw at the Diamond District and I didn’t have to sacrifice on the diamond quality or care. I spoke with a Brilliance representative, who answered all my questions with patience and concern. Within minutes of completing my purchase, I received an email confirming my purchase and a lifetime guarantee for the diamond. A week later, my diamond arrived at my home, carefully packaged and insured for my peach of mind.
With the help of a Brilliance.com representative, I got the care and patience I needed to make this wedding the dream it is supposed to be!
With Wedding Season approaching, more and more couples are looking for ways to have the wedding of their dreams while still keeping costs low. The price tag on the average American wedding has dropped by nearly a third from 2007, down from $29,000 to $20,000. The good news is, you don’t have to resort to a cash bar or homemade food to stay within your budget.
Collected from wedding experts and party planners, here are some tips to help you make your budget wedding:
Don’t say “Wedding”
When you call vendors for quotes, let them know you are planning an event or party, but don’t specify that it is a wedding. Florists, bakeries, reception venues, photographers, and other vendors often add a 25-30% mark-up to their prices when they know you’re inquiring for a wedding.
Reporters at a Boston television station called 11 venues to get quotes for a wedding reception. When those same venues were called for quotes for a retirement party on the same day, 8 of 11 had a wedding mark-up; one venue raised their quote from $65 to $90 per person.
Vendors will also offer only their most expensive options to those they know are planning a wedding. Ask the reception venue for all of their menu options, and explore cakes that aren’t specifically marketed for wedding events. If a florist notices your diamond engagement ring and starts suggesting that exotic flowers be imported, ask what local, lower cost options they offer.
Choose a restaurant for the reception
When you eat at a restaurant, there is no rental fee or surcharge for your table, chairs, napkins, glasses, silverware, and table décor. The price of the meal includes everything necessary for the dinner, and the same applies when purchasing a meal for 200 people. Plus, there are no transportation and setup fees, and parking is usually free, making your favorite restaurant the perfect place for your budget wedding. In fact, restaurants have focused lately on catering towards special events and making it affordable for the hosts.
Schedule it right
If you are flexible with your dates, avoid the traditional “Wedding Season” when scheduling the event. Vendors sometimes add a surcharge to provide services at weddings held during the months of May, June, and July. Additionally, venues will always charge more for an event held on a Saturday than an event held on a Sunday or a weekday.
Avoid stores that cater to bridal couples
It may not seem romantic to purchase your cake, wedding favors, or flowers at wholesale stores like Costco, but they provide the same services offered for a premium at specialty bridal stores. You can also avoid those premiums by choosing micro-vendors, like artisans and craftspeople, who sell things like bridal accessories and invitations directly to couples. To save on the wedding dress, brides have turned towards less traditional white garments and dresses that can be found at regular retailers and cost in the hundreds, instead of going to boutique bridal dress shops and paying in the thousands.
Shop online
Shopping online gives brides planning a budget wedding access to many more purchasing options than shopping locally. Almost anything needed for a wedding can be found online, from wedding invitations to wedding favors to a bridal dress, often at lower prices than at brick-and-mortar stores. Couples looking to save on the bride’s engagement ring and the couple’s wedding rings can turn to an online diamond retailer like Brilliance, which offer the same quality jewelry as traditional retailers at 30-50% lower prices.
Are you interested in reading Brilliance.com reviews about the service we have provided in the past? Do you have anything great to say about our skilled team of Expert Jewelers and Certified Gemologists? Would you like to share your fantastic experience shopping for custom jewelry and certified loose diamonds on Brilliance.com with your family and friends?
The Brilliance Team is pleased to announce the launch of our newest addition: iVouch Brilliance Reviews!
So what is iVouch?
iVouch is a website that allows you to share recommendations with your real-life friends, the people you know and trust the most. It doesn’t matter if you’re looking for a babysitter, restaurant, diamond jewelry retailer, or favorite park, iVouch features reviews within every industry and makes it easier for you and your friends to find and share your local favorites.
Okay, but what exactly is a “vouch”?
A Vouch is the utmost endorsement you can make for a business. It is a direct reflection on you, therefore only companies that are valued and trusted are vouched for, such as Brilliance.com.
Brilliance reviews listed on iVouch are easily accessible to our loyal fans and those that are interested in learning more about the unparalleled service and products Brilliance.com has provided in the past.
I want to share a review! How do I get started?
Registering for an iVouch account is simple, completely free, private, and safe – iVouch never sells or shares any contact information that you provide. You have the ability to invite your friends to link to your account to start reviewing and vouching for your favorite businesses across the World Wide Web.
We understand the process of buying a Certified Loose Diamond online can be speculative; therefore, Brilliance.com strives to provide you with as many resources as possible to answer your questions and ease your mind leading up to and during the certified loose diamond and custom engagement ring buying process. Get started today by leaving a review of your own or by reading what our fans have to say in their Brilliance reviews!
The loose diamond certification process is an easy way to boost buyers’ confidence during the shopping process. When diamond certification is conducted by a reputable organization, such as the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), buyers can rest assured that the diamond is a genuine, natural diamond, rather than grown in the lab as a synthetic diamond. It also reveals whether or not a loose diamond has been treated.
Since no two diamonds are alike, the certification process assigns value to each individual stone. For example, the GIA uses an internationally recognized grading system to compare common attributes. This system, known as the “four C’s”, determines each certified diamond’s value by grading its color, clarity, cut, and carat weight.
Diamond Color
To determine the color of a diamond, a gemologist compares the stone to a color classification chart ranging from D (colorless) to Z (light yellow or brown). The loose diamond is compared to a set of master stones representing the colors on the chart.
Certified diamonds classified as “D” are colorless, while those graded “Z” are light yellow or brown. Since truly colorless diamonds are extremely rare, the majority of diamonds used in jewelry are designated as “H” or “I” and have a slightly yellow tint—described by gemologists as “nearly colorless”.
Diamond Clarity
Natural diamonds are formed under considerable heat and pressure, giving most of them internal or external inclusions that can impact diamond clarity. There are eleven grades of diamond clarity, ranging from flawless (no inclusions visible under a magnifying glass) to I3 (inclusions visible to the naked eye).
Much like the human fingerprint, inclusions are markings that distinguish one loose diamond from the next. During certification, gemologists plot a diamond’s inclusions on a diagram to indicate its distinctive features—those that no other diamond has—which then get added to the certification paper. This diagram helps match each diamond to the proper certification, so buyers can be sure the diamond they’re evaluating is the same one on the report.
Clarity tests also reveal authenticity, helping gemologists determine whether a diamond has been treated. Inclusions verify that a diamond is natural, rather than a synthetic look-alike. If it is determined that a diamond has been treated, that will be noted on the certification report.
Diamond Cut
While people often think of cut as indicating the shape of a diamond (i.e. square or round), the term is used during certification to describe the stone’s sparkle and brilliance on a range from “Excellent” to “Poor”. To assist with cut grading, gemologists place each loose diamond in a machine, rotating the stone 360 degrees and capturing every one of its facets to generate a sophisticated 3D model. Many factors are considered to determine the stone’s grade, including proportions, girdle thickness, culet size, polish, and symmetry.
Diamond Carat Weight
As counter-intuitive as it might seem, bigger isn’t always better when it comes to diamonds. Value is determined by all four of the “C’s”, not just its weight.
To determine carat size, certified diamonds are placed in high-tech, sealed-chamber electronic scales. The weights, which measure how close a diamond is to one carat (200 milligrams), round each stone to a second decimal place to arrive at a standard carat size measurement.
Upon completion of the rigorous certification process, a certified diamond is given a report indicating its grading for each of the four C’s, along with other pertinent information. Buyers can ask to see this report before purchasing a certified diamond; some grading agencies also allow them to check the information online.
Want to learn more about how to certify diamonds? Watch the video below, which chronicles one diamond’s certification journey at the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).
Black diamonds, or carbonados, are one of the many diamond varieties found in the earth’s surface. Unlike conventional diamonds, which are mined in a variety of locations throughout the world, carbonados have only turned up in parts of Brazil and the Central African Republic. They are also believed to be a couple billion years older than their more commonly known white and colored counterparts.
These unusual grey and black stones get their opaque coloring from high concentrations of impurities and inclusions, such as graphite. In their rough form, carbonados resemble small rock pieces of cast iron or porous charcoal.
Tougher than a Diamond
While loose diamonds are legendary for being impossible to crack, carbonado has gained a reputation for being even stronger. While other diamonds are composed of a single crystal that breaks naturally along a line, a carbonado is made up of many crystals that are fused together. Its stronger structure made it popular in heavy industry since its discovery in the late 1800s.
Black diamonds from Brazil were instrumental in early rock-boring efforts, providing key drill tip components for carving out the Panama and Suez canals, as well as tunnels all over Europe. Carbonado is still used in drill bits for tough jobs today, cutting through rocks that even traditional diamonds would have trouble cracking.
Polished to Perfection
Polished and cleaned up from their original carbonado state, black diamonds can enhance jewelry designs by making a dramatic, yet elegant, statement in both women’s and men’s fine diamond jewelry. Whether framed in sterling silver, brilliant white gold, or yellow gold, a black diamond makes any foundation’s surface come to life with a brilliant shine.
A black diamond creates a dramatic centerpiece for an eye-catching pendant, ring, or for earrings, while smaller baguette-style black diamonds serve as elegant backdrops for sophisticated and delicate settings. When set in white gold and paired with lighter stones or pearls, dark accents of black diamonds add an air of sophistication and timeless quality to even the simplest jewelry piece.
Surprisingly Affordable
Their elegant appearance often leads people to believe that black diamonds are expensive. Thanks to industrial use and heavy demand for clearer stones, however, black diamonds haven’t taken center stage in the global marketplace. Less notoriety and demand actually makes this type of jewelry far more affordable than people think.
Equally misleading is the black diamond’s perceived rarity. Though unearthed in few places, uncertified and certified black diamonds are readily available to customers. Loose black wholesale diamonds can be purchased and turned into custom jewelry pieces at an attractive price, making the black diamond a unique and affordable option for high-end jewelry.
Diamonds, fine jewelry, and engagement rings are prized possessions and it important to protect your purchase with jewelry insurance. Although every order from Brilliance is fully insured during shipment, the responsibility for your purchase is transferred to the customer upon arrival at your address. Jewelry insurance can be purchased through your homeowner’s or renter’s insurance, or can be bought separately through a specialized jewelry insurance company.
Most homeowner’s and renter’s insurances automatically include coverage from between $500 to $2,500 for all jewelry items within the home. One option is to add your jewelry or diamond purchase to your homeowner’s and renter’s insurance as an additional item to protect you in the event of theft. However, these policies do not always protect against other events such as loss or damage. Additionally, they may only cover a portion of the value of your jewelry or have certain policies that you need to be aware of such as deductibles, source for replacement, coverage amount, and others. If you select this method of insurance, it is important you ask questions regarding these policies and be knowledgeable of your coverage.
The option that offers the most protection is to add a rider to your homeowner’s or renter’s policy. Before insuring your purchase, the insurance company will request a gemological appraisal, which is a document that provides a detailed description of the item to be insured as well as the replacement value of the item. Gemological appraisals are usually conducted by an expert jeweler or gemologist and can cost between $50-$250. As a unique service to you, Brilliance provides a free gemological appraisal certified by our Master Gemologist with every purchase. This option guarantees enough coverage for your jewelry or diamond. Keep in mind that the coverage rates are often negotiable.
If you do not want to add a rider to your homeowner’s or renter’s policy, or do not currently have insurance, you can also purchase insurance through companies like Jeweler’s Mutual or The Chubb Group that specialize in protecting prized assets like fine jewelry or engagement rings. These companies will also require a gemological appraisal prior to insuring your purchase. Jeweler’s Mutual policies generally cover loss, theft, mysterious disappearance, and damage. Additionally, with Jeweler’s Mutual, you get to work with the jeweler of your choice and not through a dictated replacement company, as other companies require. However, a policy through Jeweler’s Mutual does not usually cover unset stones or loose diamonds. The Chubb Group offers a policy that covers personal valuables such as jewelry. This company has an insurance option that provides full coverage for the itemized amount shown on the policy without deductibles. Additionally, this insurance covers loss and theft world-wide. In addition to the option of replacing your jewelry item, Chubb also allows you to receive a cash settlement instead of replacement. An appraisal is recommended for jewelry insurance and required for items valued above $50,000.
Any insurance company will recommend that you have your jewelry inspected and appraised often to prevent potential losses and to update the replacement value of your items. Brilliance offers this service free of charge to our clients twice a year with our care and maintenance program. You can send your Brilliance jewelry to us for free inspection, cleaning, polishing, and refinishing. This way you will keep your jewelry looking like new and your diamonds set securely to help prevent a loss. Additionally, an updated appraisal can be issued to our clients upon request.
A Brilliance representative can explain your insurance options and can assist you in the process of insuring your purchase. Upon request, we can also fax your jewelry appraisal to your insurance company prior to shipment so that your purchase is insured upon arrival to you. Contact a Brilliance representative at 866-737-0754 to get started.
Canada is set to open its first official diamond trading marketplace in downtown Toronto, a move spurred by the rush in recent years to mine and market the homegrown stones both nationally and worldwide.
The Diamond Bourse of Canada opens Monday and will be the first forum of its kind in the country where both polished and rough stones will be bought and sold.
There are 28 diamond bourses in places such as Belgium, Israel and South Africa. The Canadian bourse will become the 29th on the international circuit, which is overseen by the World Federation of Diamond Bourses. Canada produces about 15 per cent of the world’s annual rough diamonds.
“It’s only logical for Canada to establish a full-fledged bourse,” federation president Avi Paz stated yesterday. “While Canada’s population is small compared to its huge southern neighbour, the country’s jewelry industry and trade, as well as its consumer market, have been growing steadily.”
One of the best ways to enhance the style of the New Year is by incorporating complimentary accessories into your everyday wardrobe. Influenced by the elegance and royalty of Britain, oversized diamond brooches are a perfect touch and strive to create a harmonizing balance between the otherwise feminine and masculine appearance. Another unique, main accessory of the 19th Century that is making a comeback is the Fob Chain – also recognized as a vintage chain used to hold a watch - worn on the front waistline of trousers, or in the front pocket of a jacket/vest. Diamond Cravat Pins and Square Brilliant Cut Diamond Cufflinks prove to be excellent additions to a revamp a formal dress shirt.
The paramount accessory choice for this New Year proves to be Victorian-inspired cocktail rings and engagement rings. Due to the scarcity of diamonds during this time period, Victorian rings were typically set in a cluster, using old cut or rose cut diamonds. Antique diamonds normally possess smaller tables, higher crowns, deeper pavilions and thicker girdles than their modern equivalents. Antique diamonds were also cut to maximize carat weight instead of fire, which is the main reason why the proportions of old diamonds vastly differ from diamonds of the present. Rose cut diamonds were introduced in the late 1500’s and remained very popular throughout the 19th Century. The typical characteristics of a Rose cut diamond includes the shape, which resembles the petals of a rose bud, with a flat bottom and rounded crown, and facets that meet as a point in the center. The modern equivalents for these particular diamonds are Round and Oval Brilliant Cut Diamonds.
Brilliance offers a collection of diamonds, rings, earrings, bracelets, pendants, and necklaces to match your taste and meet your budget. If you are looking for a unique jewelry item, our jewelry designers can make a custom jewelry piece to meet your exact description. This unique service allows you to achieve the designer look of your dreams at a price you can afford.
Carlos Defex is the newest member of the Brilliance team, bringing with him a lifetime of knowledge and passion for jewelry. As the head of our custom jewelry department, Carlos will be working tirelesly to bring his own style and experience to Brilliance jewelry. The Brilliance Blog took some time to sit down with Carlos so that you could get to know him better.
Brilliance Blog: How long have you been in the jewelry business?
Carlos Defex: I started in the jewelry business nearly 15 years ago when I received a bachelor’s degree in Metals and Fine Jewelry with specialization in Jewelry Design. The passion that I have for jewelry has taken me to different cities around the world, where I‘ve been exposed to different life styles and customs. I believe that my experiences shows in the caliber of jewelry that I design.
BB: What made you decide to go into jewelry?
CD: What I love about jewelry is the transformation of rare materials that are found deep beneath the earth through millions of years of evolution. To be able to transform those materials and give them an expression related to love and passion. I believe that jewelry is the perfect blend between science, art and nature.
BB: People obviously enjoy jewelry for the beauty and style, and you can tell a lot about a person by the kind of jewelry they are wearing. What can you say about different cultures and their jewelry?
CD: Jewelry has played an important role throughout the history of human kind, and has been a channel to communicate emotions, status, power, and beliefs. We can see it from the first Homo sapiens in Africa, barbarian tribes like the Celts, Mayans in Central America, or the Andean cultures in South America that created beautiful pieces of jewelry. India has probably the longest tradition of jewelry making and trading, dating back as far as the people of the Indus Valley Civilization more than 1,500 BC; also they were the first country that mined diamonds. As we can see, jewelry has been linked with the development of different cultures throughout the history and will be part of more generations to come.
BB: What do you find special about Brilliance, and what do you hope to add?
CD: Our jewelry is versatile, stylish, and at the same time shows a sense of tradition. It is made for the versatile woman that goes to work, takes care of the family, drives her kids to soccer games, and goes to a dinner party or cocktail at night; our jewelry is made to wear at any occasion. I believe that jewelry needs to be fun, enjoyable, accessible, and at the same time rare or unique.
BB: So we’ve heard about your passion for jewelry. Do you have anything to say about diamonds and other precious gems.
CD: I frequently hear from people, “it is only a rock”. And they might be right. But it is not just any rock…it is “The Rock”, whether we are referring to a loose diamond, emerald, ruby, sapphire… these precious gems contain thousands of years of history, culture, and chemical and physical changes occurring deep within the earth. These are rare materials that symbolize a tradition, a special moment for the individual and the collective. Matched with the right jewelry, a precious stone can say who you are without words, a sensual piece of distinctiveness and self expression.
Are you considering buying EGL diamonds? If so, is the diamond grading report issued from EGL International or EGL USA? When purchasing an EGL certified diamond, it’s important to understand the fundamental differences between these organizations.
In 1973, Guy Margel opened the first European Gemological Laboratory (EGL) in Antwerp, Belgium. Today, EGL International has a presence in all major diamond sourcing cities in the world, including Antwerp, Johannesburg, Paris, London, Tel Aviv, Seoul, Istanbul, Mumbai, Delhi, and Cape Town. Each of the EGL facilities is an independent franchise operating under the EGL International brand.
Originally, EGL USA was a franchisee of EGL International. In 1986, it became independent of the European organization, and today operates as a completely separate company. Headquartered in New York City, EGL USA has laboratories in Los Angeles, Vancouver, and Toronto.
Grading Differences
Diamond grading is a subjective skill. When these skills are put to the test at laboratories maintaining independent diamond grading standards, it’s no surprise that there are sometimes discrepancies. EGL International maintains 10 independently owned and operated testing facilities around the world, while EGL USA’s three laboratories are owned and operated collectively as one entity. This means that EGL USA is able to maintain much more uniform and rigorous standards than EGL International.
Generally speaking, EGL International diamond grades are more lenient than those issued by EGL USA. As a rule of thumb, EGL USA certified diamonds are comparable to EGL International certified diamonds that are graded one color grade and one clarity grade higher. For example, an EGL USA diamond that’s graded H in color and SI1 in clarity would be graded as G and VS2 by EGL International.
Choosing an EGL Certified Diamond
Approximately 23% of certified diamonds sold on the Internet are EGL-graded. When purchasing one of these diamonds, be sure to look for a diamond report with an EGL USA logo. This report will state, “Member of the EGL USA Group”, with certificate numbers preceded by either US (United States) or CA (Canada).
Currently, EGL USA is attempting to stop the import of loose diamonds with EGL International reports. Diamond reports issued by European labs have a universal report with the country of origin printed on the cover card. Each European lab has its own numbering or lettering convention, as outlined in the examples below:
EGL Belgium: Alphanumeric characters; certificate code begins with A
EGL South Africa: Begins with SA
EGL Turkey: Begins with T
EGL India: Begins with letters D – J; maximum of 9 digits
EGL Israel: Usually begins with a number 2
If you’re purchasing an EGL-graded stone, keep in mind that EGL USA has tighter grading standards – especially with regard to diamond color and clarity. However, there’s no guarantee that all EGL USA certified diamonds are better than those certified by EGL International. Although the EGL International’s looser grading standards have made their certification slightly less credible, they have also caused the prices of EGL International certified diamonds to be lower in the diamond market. Therefore, you can sometimes get a great bargain for an EGL International certified diamond that has been under-priced.
When in doubt, it’s a good idea to consult with an experienced jewelry and diamond professional before making your purchase. Contact a Brilliance diamond expert at 866-737-0754 for guidance on which diamond certification is right for you.
Thirty nine round cut diamonds are pave set in this white gold diamond engagement ring setting, accenting your choice of center diamond. 3/8 carat total diamond weight.
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