newtojewels
Brilliant_Rock
- Joined
- Jul 16, 2020
- Messages
- 1,095
I keep torturing myself over this ring so I’m going to post it here in case someone else wants to get it and put me out of my indecision misery lol
Is something like this rare to come across? Should I be trying to be talked into to?
This item is unavailable - Etsy
Find the perfect handmade gift, vintage & on-trend clothes, unique jewelry, and more… lots more.www.etsy.com
Thank you! I’ve been watching this video over and over again. I’m so tempted but I feel like I want more of an open culet vs a long culet. It’s soooo close and great price but I just don’t think it’s my stone. I’m really trying to save for my marquise/moval anyways.
This is so sweet
Antique 6 prong Old European Diamond Engagement Ring | eBay
I estimate the diamond to be 0.60 carats.www.ebay.com
It’s beautiful! The cut is perfection.
The pricing on eBay is all over the place. My benchmark for a deal on a diamond this size is about $400-500, and I’ve seen similar sized diamond in rings for $800. But this price seems like retail.
I feel like comps are so hard for me to understand in the antique world because I don't know how to factor in things like rarity or uniqueness, not like MRBs that are relatively available (assuming you aren't looking for something with very specific specs).
Like when I went to the antique show I had no idea what to think when the vendor quoted me the price for my enamel pin (it was 750$). I've never bought a pin before, and it basically didn't have any gemstones to speak of. It was basically a piece of gold that was painted 120 years ago haha. But I didn't expect it to be priced at the cost of the 5g of 14k gold. I literally took her card and a picture the brooch so I knew where to find it, and then went off to a corner to do some hasty googling about Krementz to figure out if it was a fair price or not. The prices were all over! $250 for smaller and more worn down ones to 4k for bigger ones. I found its less well preserved twin online for 1800$! I decided in the end it was simply worth at least 750$ to me to own this object that I found beautiful and precious that had traveled through time to me.
I still have no idea of what to think about prices and antique pieces. I have no yard stick cause I just don't have a good enough gestalt of what's out there for how much. I imagine if I spend enough time at shows and shopping online I'll build up a better instinct though! Until then I depend on you guys to help me!
Antique jewelery prices have gone up and up in the past few years, and truly exceptional pieces are getting harder and more expensive to come by.
Classicalgemhunter, rowanandrowan, and peterszuhay are IG dealers who generally have some of the more rare and collectible pieces, and their prices reflect that.
It’s a little easier to pull comps for archetypal pieces like Victorian diamond 5 or 7-stone rings, Georgian 3-stones, etc.
But you’re right - the longer you collect, the better your sense of fair pricing will be.
And this is why we should all go to some antique shows together! Mwahahahaha. I need absorb some wisdom stat so I can acquire some of these beauties!
Oh yes, I’ve been looking at hotels for NYC in October…
I heard there's also a show in November?
I saw an unicorn cartier, 1935. The cut!
I got to try this ring on in December!
I feel like comps are so hard for me to understand in the antique world because I don't know how to factor in things like rarity or uniqueness, not like MRBs that are relatively available (assuming you aren't looking for something with very specific specs).
Like when I went to the antique show I had no idea what to think when the vendor quoted me the price for my enamel pin (it was 750$). I've never bought a pin before, and it basically didn't have any gemstones to speak of. It was basically a piece of gold that was painted 120 years ago haha. But I didn't expect it to be priced at the cost of the 5g of 14k gold. I literally took her card and a picture the brooch so I knew where to find it, and then went off to a corner to do some hasty googling about Krementz to figure out if it was a fair price or not. The prices were all over! $250 for smaller and more worn down ones to 4k for bigger ones. I found its less well preserved twin online for 1800$! I decided in the end it was simply worth at least 750$ to me to own this object that I found beautiful and precious that had traveled through time to me.
I still have no idea of what to think about prices and antique pieces. I have no yard stick cause I just don't have a good enough gestalt of what's out there for how much. I imagine if I spend enough time at shows and shopping online I'll build up a better instinct though! Until then I depend on you guys to help me!
I almost had a heart attack recently buying my white whale, truly a holy grail piece. But I'm so glad I did, 3 months later. I would've never seen it again.
I got to try this ring on in December!
I got to try this ring on in December!
I think it's hard because jewelry inherently has 5 prices where most products don't.
Let's use that 1950s gold ring:
1) Scrap - price of the components taken apart, the lowest price (i.e. gram weight of gold and the diamond) - (let's say 3.5 grams 18k gold at full spot and $200 for the diamond) = $495
2) Resale/secondhand price - usually the second lowest price of a piece, this can be 50-80% off retail = let's say seller accepts $1250
3) Replacement cost - the cost of recreating that piece (without 1950s providence) - picking this .61 J OEC and similar settings (adding $150 to add 2 prongs and change the head) = $1470
4) Full retail - I'm not searching forever for a 6 prong, picking this 1950s mens .59 transitional at $3000
5) Appraised value, typically 1.5-2x retail or similarly bananas - $5000
Personally, I don't think it's in the spirit of this thread to zone in on the scrap value of pieces. Obviously that's the dream, but it's discounting the providence, artistry and specialness of each piece. Plus, it's discounting the skill of many sellers we've talked about before that do excellent work of finding, selecting and reselling vintage pieces with an eye for the exceptional.
Jewelry buying is very personal and I fully support springing for the right pieces in one's collection. I'm always inspired by @mrs-b and her collection of beautiful, exceptional quality pieces.
I almost had a heart attack recently buying my white whale, truly a holy grail piece. But I'm so glad I did, 3 months later. I would've never seen it again.