I just wanted to share my wonderful recent experience with Good Old Gold in purchasing the perfect engagement ring. I was lucky early and asked one of my married friends how he went about buying his ring. He pointed me towards Pricescope and my diamond education began on a good foot. Browsing through the various websites and vendors mentioned here on PS I was very impressed with the thoughtful and comprehensive information found on GOG. If someone’s just starting out in their diamond shopping I can’t think of a better diamond education site. Seriously, if you read through most of the “4C’s and Beyond” you’ll know a lot more than the vast majority of B&M sales people. Here at Jewler’s Row in Philly, I was getting perplexed looks when I asked about Firescope/Idealscope images to assess for light leakage.
I eventually ended up selecting (with the help of Tim at GOG.) this diamond:
http://www.goodoldgold.com/0_938ct_h_vs1_h%26a.htm
0.94, H, VS1, H&A. HCA 1.5, Brilliancescope VH/VH/H
When the ring arrived I was surprised to find a bunch of paperwork stating that I had bought an Isee2 branded stone. (Being an Isee2 branded stone I guess that it scored >9 on the Isee2 machine.) I called GOG to ask why it wasn’t really advertised as such (thinking that it probably could command a higher price) and was told that GOG regularly buys Isee2 branded stones but just advertises them online as regular H&A’s. I don’t know the details, but I assume it has something to do with Isee2’s sales agreement and their focus on B&M sales rather than online. Here’s something Johathan posted on his website regarding the sales of Isee2 stones:
“The Isee2 company has at it''s heart an interest in the success of marketing through local bricks and mortar jewelry stores which is why you will not see Isee2 diamonds featured on the Internet. Even with the amount of stones we sell on the net you will not find Isee2 stones on the net or featured publicly on our website. This may change down the road and we would be honored to be the Internet supplier and representative of the Isee2 stones but that''s another time and place in history.”
In comparing the price I paid (which GOG has asked that I not reveal in this public forum) with other similar stones offered online I know I paid a good price and that the Isee2 brand premium was very small. I had the diamond set in Vatche’s Royal Crown with 10 round channel set stones, ring size 5.
When I received the ring 3 weeks later (time to set it at Vatche) the diamond and setting were even more beautiful than I was expecting. I knew I was getting a nice stone, but this thing is awesome. It’s much better than most of the rings I saw in the B&M stores. All the tests that GOG performs on their stones confirmed exactly what my eyes tell me. It’s very brilliant, firey, and faces up extremely white. It looks fantastic in both direct and diffuse lighting (reflecting the good BS and Isee2 scores). I’m very happy with this stone.
GOG did an awesome job with the shipping and packing as well. The ring was in its wooden box placed inside another box, inside a padded envelope that was protected by two nested UPS boxes (a small box inside a medium sized box.) Needless to say, it was well protected and arrived exactly on time.
I attached a couple of photos that Christen took as well as some of my own. I don’t know when I’m going to propose, but I’ll post hand shots then.
I have nothing but positive things to say about GOG and the staff who works there. I unfortunately didn’t get to interact with Jonathan, but Tim, Christen, and Maria have been very friendly, helpful, and professional throughout the whole process. In fact, when I received the ring the ring box had a small lacquer chip on it (evident in the photos). I called them up and Christen OVERNIGHTED me another one that very day for free. Now that’s good service!
The only improvement I can think of in my experience would be if GOG worked a bit more on the presentation of their website. To me, it looks dated and it’s hosted on a slow server. Those lengthy educational pages with lots of pictures tend to take a long time to load (even on my home DSL or office T1). But don’t let those small things bother you too much because the content of the site as well as the service and products GOG provides are top notch!
I eventually ended up selecting (with the help of Tim at GOG.) this diamond:
http://www.goodoldgold.com/0_938ct_h_vs1_h%26a.htm
0.94, H, VS1, H&A. HCA 1.5, Brilliancescope VH/VH/H
When the ring arrived I was surprised to find a bunch of paperwork stating that I had bought an Isee2 branded stone. (Being an Isee2 branded stone I guess that it scored >9 on the Isee2 machine.) I called GOG to ask why it wasn’t really advertised as such (thinking that it probably could command a higher price) and was told that GOG regularly buys Isee2 branded stones but just advertises them online as regular H&A’s. I don’t know the details, but I assume it has something to do with Isee2’s sales agreement and their focus on B&M sales rather than online. Here’s something Johathan posted on his website regarding the sales of Isee2 stones:
“The Isee2 company has at it''s heart an interest in the success of marketing through local bricks and mortar jewelry stores which is why you will not see Isee2 diamonds featured on the Internet. Even with the amount of stones we sell on the net you will not find Isee2 stones on the net or featured publicly on our website. This may change down the road and we would be honored to be the Internet supplier and representative of the Isee2 stones but that''s another time and place in history.”
In comparing the price I paid (which GOG has asked that I not reveal in this public forum) with other similar stones offered online I know I paid a good price and that the Isee2 brand premium was very small. I had the diamond set in Vatche’s Royal Crown with 10 round channel set stones, ring size 5.
When I received the ring 3 weeks later (time to set it at Vatche) the diamond and setting were even more beautiful than I was expecting. I knew I was getting a nice stone, but this thing is awesome. It’s much better than most of the rings I saw in the B&M stores. All the tests that GOG performs on their stones confirmed exactly what my eyes tell me. It’s very brilliant, firey, and faces up extremely white. It looks fantastic in both direct and diffuse lighting (reflecting the good BS and Isee2 scores). I’m very happy with this stone.
GOG did an awesome job with the shipping and packing as well. The ring was in its wooden box placed inside another box, inside a padded envelope that was protected by two nested UPS boxes (a small box inside a medium sized box.) Needless to say, it was well protected and arrived exactly on time.
I attached a couple of photos that Christen took as well as some of my own. I don’t know when I’m going to propose, but I’ll post hand shots then.
I have nothing but positive things to say about GOG and the staff who works there. I unfortunately didn’t get to interact with Jonathan, but Tim, Christen, and Maria have been very friendly, helpful, and professional throughout the whole process. In fact, when I received the ring the ring box had a small lacquer chip on it (evident in the photos). I called them up and Christen OVERNIGHTED me another one that very day for free. Now that’s good service!
The only improvement I can think of in my experience would be if GOG worked a bit more on the presentation of their website. To me, it looks dated and it’s hosted on a slow server. Those lengthy educational pages with lots of pictures tend to take a long time to load (even on my home DSL or office T1). But don’t let those small things bother you too much because the content of the site as well as the service and products GOG provides are top notch!
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