Advice on Moissanite engagement rings

foxy_j

Hi,

I’m looking at getting a Moissanite ring as my engagement ring. I’m just looking for some advice on them please. I enquired in a jewellers in Dublin about going in to see their selection and they said their prices start at €1750.

That seemed a bit expensive to me as Northern Ireland jewellers/ moissanite uk have them cheaper. Even just the loose stones on their own are about £250 ish and upwards. I know the stone is the most expensive part.

If I bought the loose stone myself up north would a jeweller in Dublin put in a setting for me or would they be reluctant as I didn’t buy the stone aswell through them?

thanks

GingerLily

I think it's a very pretty stone but I think your right to not accept those extortionate prices. They're very popular on Instagram so I think jewelers are taking advantage of that.

An independent jeweller would definitely make you a ring, but to be sure you could get a few quotes before you go to be sure.

The setting of smaller stones can add a hefty price tag FYI, even though the smaller stones themselves will have a much lower value, I think mine worked out near 40e for each tiny diamond, but O needed 20ish, so it adds up!

shortie_chik

I'm a Dublin-based goldsmith, maybe I can help.


Jewellers in NI/UK pay NI/UK rates, taxes & wages. Jewellers in Dublin have to pay Irish rates, taxes & Dublin wages! Some places stock lots of jewellery imported from China, India, Thailand etc. The labour cost on these is far less than if it was made in Ireland.


When you buy a diamond ring (with a diamond say large enough to be a solitaire, rather than one tiny pave stone), the diamond is usually the most expensive part. Without large diamonds, metal and labour are the expensive parts. You don't get much 18ct gold or platinum for £250 / €280.

I bought a small piece of sterling silver to make my husband a Christmas tree ornament a few weeks ago and nearly fainted at the price!

Consider how much you earn in a day. Depending on the design, an engagement ring could take a couple of days to make up, and possibly have several people involved in the manufacture.


There are plenty of great independent goldsmiths and jewellers in Dublin who could make you up a mount for your moissanite. However, if your stone gets broken during setting (doesn't happen often, but it's possible), they wouldn't be held liable for the damage to the stone. At least if the goldsmith has provided the stone, they can try to source another hopefully identical stone. And they would have to absorb the cost of replacing that stone. Be sure to clarify the terms and conditions of any order before you proceed!


One final thing you might keep in mind buying a moissanite, is that synthetic moissanite always has a hint of yellow in it. It's never properly white (like a high-colour diamond would be.) So if you're adding other diamonds to the ring, for example a diamond halo or a three-stone etc, the diamonds could appear whiter than your main stone. In halos, we generally use bright white diamonds (something like F/G colour). You may need to go for a lower colour in pave stones to be sure they don't emphasise the tint in the moissanite.

Also I say synthetic moissanite as naturally occurring moissanite is never found in gem-quality. All the moissanite jewellery is made from synthetic material.

Musefan

Hi,

I had a beautiful moissanite ring handmade made by a reputable jeweller on Etsy. It's set in 18ct white gold and the price included a 0.32ct half eternity diamond wedding band, for less than you were quoted.

Consider having a look at Etsy.

shortie_chik

Musefan wrote: »

I had a beautiful moissanite ring handmade made by a reputable jeweller on Etsy. It's set in 18ct white gold and the price included a 0.32ct half eternity diamond wedding band, for less than you were quoted.

Is your ring actually set with moissanite or diamond? If it's set with moissanite, it's not a "diamond wedding band."


A half eternity band (I'd guess 9 or 11 stones?) with a total diamond weight of 0.32ct is about 0.2-0.35 points per stone. Lots of little stones are far cheaper than one large stone (ignoring setting cost; a goldsmith who makes the entire ring and supplies all materials isn't going to be charging €40 labour per small stone).


For example, the cost of a single 1ct diamond is far higher than the cost of 2 x 0.5ct diamonds. You have to find a much larger piece of rough diamond to cut a 1ct diamond, the rarity of the larger rough diamonds lead to a higher cost per carat. It is much more common to find smaller pieces of rough, so it's easier to produce a larger quantity of smaller stones, with an overall lower price per carat.

It's very difficult to compare these things! Even 2 diamonds with the same 4Cs can be different prices. There are loads of other factors involved.

Musefan

shortie_chik wrote: »

Is your ring actually set with moissanite or diamond? If it's set with moissanite, it's not a "diamond wedding band."


A half eternity band (I'd guess 9 or 11 stones?) with a total diamond weight of 0.32ct is about 0.2-0.35 points per stone. Lots of little stones are far cheaper than one large stone (ignoring setting cost; a goldsmith who makes the entire ring and supplies all materials isn't going to be charging €40 labour per small stone).


For example, the cost of a single 1ct diamond is far higher than the cost of 2 x 0.5ct diamonds. You have to find a much larger piece of rough diamond to cut a 1ct diamond, the rarity of the larger rough diamonds lead to a higher cost per carat. It is much more common to find smaller pieces of rough, so it's easier to produce a larger quantity of smaller stones, with an overall lower price per carat.

It's very difficult to compare these things! Even 2 diamonds with the same 4Cs can be different prices. There are loads of other factors involved.

Engagement ring is 18ct white gold with a 5mm moissanite, and a separate wedding band with 14 diamonds, totalling 0.32 carat.

foxy_j

Hi thanks for the replies,

I got two quotes for supplying my own stone and getting the jewellers to set it on one of their settings.

Quotes was circa €1000 +

So I guess I have to have a think about it as the cost is total is double what I thought it would be.

The best deals are from moissanite.co.uk and a UK jeweller Lily Arkwright.

Anyone purchase directly from either of these or another retailer online?

I'd ideally like to see the stones and settings before purchase but if not possible maybe they could send me photos.

Thanks

foxy_j

Musefan wrote: »

Hi,

I had a beautiful moissanite ring handmade made by a reputable jeweller on Etsy. It's set in 18ct white gold and the price included a 0.32ct half eternity diamond wedding band, for less than you were quoted.

Consider having a look at Etsy.

Could you send me a link to the seller on etsy please? Thanks

bradyle

Hi, Im based in the UK at the minute but got engaged on Saturday (!!) and my fella got the ring online from Lily Arkwrights. I jsut asked and he said they were gret, he had no issues with them and the ring shipped 2 weeks after he ordered it like they said. 
I love love love love it, sparkles were my priority and getting moissanite meant i could get much more stone for the money than if we went diamond!

Let me know if you have any questions!
Ring

foxy_j

hiya,

That's great thanks for info. What type of ring did you get and can you post a pic of it?

The link you gave is unfortunately broken. I had looked on the lily arkwright site but I wasn't sure as I hadn't seen that many reviews.

last week I ended up ordering from a US site https://www.moissaniteco.com/

I had found loads of reviews on this site https://boards.weddingbee.com/ so took the plunge.

Ordered a six prong solitaire. Can't wait fr it to arrive