Jewellery And Budgets
Introduction
Most people associate jewellery withing something that has to be expensive and flamboyant in order for it to be special. For this reason, buying jewellery for yourself or for a loved one can become a little stressful. If you are on a budget (as most of us are) you may come across thoughts like, ‘Is it good enough?’, ‘Does it need to be bigger?’, ‘Does this make me look cheap?’. This behaviour is perfectly normal, it is a natural part of the jewellery buying experience.
Does it need to be expensive?
Jewellery is meant to be special because it demands thought to be put in before any purchase decision is made. But, it is important to recognise and understand that in order for something to be special, it does not need to have an insane price tag, the biggest diamonds or the rarest stones. Jewellery is something that is extremely personal and unique to each individual. The only thing that should matter is the emotion or story behind the piece that you are about to purchase. If the piece has profound meaning for you or your loved one, it will not matter if the piece is made with sticks or stones, it will still be special.
Budgets
It is important to set a budget before you buy jewellery. Setting a budget ensures that you do not get swayed away by the higher priced products and end up spending a lot more than you orginally planned to. If purchasing jewellery in a physical store, it is also important to convey that budget to the saleswoman/man so that you are shown an appropriate variety of pieces. Once done, you can clearly focus on pieces that come under your budget.
If you are going to the right jeweller, budget will not affect the quality and finish of the product. If you are going for a simpler design, you may have some extra room to go for a higher quality diamond or a bigger stone. But if design is paramount, you may need to sacrifice quality or size of the stone. One way to tackle this dilemma is go for a more affordable alternative like Lab Grown Diamonds or at the very least Moissanites (Cubic Zirconia is not recommended). Through these alternatives, you may be able to get a high quality stone with a good design which will surely be impressive.
General Tips
Here are some tips to help you manage your budget:
Simple is always classic: Simple designs are a great way to maximise your budget. They require minimal metal, are great for durability and and have an ‘evergreen’ design.
Diamond Colour: Round Brilliant and Princess cut diamonds are great to maximise your budget. If cut well, these diamonds can appear to be 2 - 3 colour shades better than what they are when looking at them face up.
Diamond Clarity: People may think that you need to get a VS or VVS stone but that is certainly not the case. You can easily purchase a stone with an SI1 or even an SI2 clarity grade as the inclusions will be barely visible (almost invisible) to the naked eye. All you need to make sure is that the inclusions are not black and are not in the centre of the stone.
Diamond Carat: It is important to understand that increasing the weight of the diamond, exponentially increases the price. Some shapes like the Oval and Marquise appear much bigger for their carat weight when compared to other shapes. Other ways to improve carat weight is to ask your jeweller to implement different settings like the classic halo setting or invisible setting to give an appearance of a bigger diamond.
Buy Lab Grown Diamonds: Lab Grown Diamonds are a fantastic option to maximise your budget. You can easily get the best quality stone with almost double the carat weight with a lab grown diamond for a similarly priced mined diamond.
Conclusion
To conclude, it is important to remember that the quality, design, and size of the jewellery is secondary to the emotion/story behind the purchase. But you can use the tips given above to help maximise your budget when purchasing jewellery. For any further information, feel free to contact our team at info@anjain.in. Best of luck with your jewellery purchase and we hope that you have a great and a memorable experience!