This is an interesting thread . First I think we all wish Sean well and I suppose the cardinal rule is 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder '.
I think we should be able to have an exchange of information and opinion without getting personal.
Sean did ask for help in determining ' quality and price' which ,of course opened up the debate.
I have never been one who attached any priority to the purchase of "serious " jewellery . As an earlier post suggested other demands seemed to me to be more pressing in raising a family buying a house etc.
Before reading the articles about the diamond trade I had independantly come to the opinion that diamonds are a "one way trade '. The assesments are not really of any value ( other than maybe for insurance ).
To give an example ,my partner had a diamond studded watch left to her in her mothers estate . A reputable jeweller assessed its value as $17,000.00.
Another jeweller ,again very reputable has the watch for sale at their suggested resale price of $8000.00 of which my partner will receive $4500.00 if sold . So far no takers . Ignoring the actual watch it says lot about
' quality and price' of diamonds. !
So ,for my penn'orth if you girl friend wants it and you wish to show her your feelings for her, have a great time picking the nicest one you can find and dont worry about value or quality as these are ethereal ,not quantifiable and will in all probability never be put to the test.
Wow ,that feels better
Best wishes .................Dave