“No rush for royal engagement ring at area jewelry stores” |
| No rush for royal engagement ring at area jewelry stores Posted: 06 Jan 2011 02:14 AM PST January 6, 2011 Despite the fact that England's Prince William recently proposed to longtime girlfriend Kate Middleton with the iconic sapphire and diamond ring that belonged to his late mother, Princess Diana, engaged couples aren't rushing to replicate the royals' style, said area jewelers. "Most couples want something unique to them. The Princess Diana ring is not unique," said Rich Bennett, owner of PK Bennett Jewelers in Mundelein. Village Jewelers in Libertyville used to sell a version of the Princess Diana ring when she was alive, said owner George Fanuda, and they sold well. These days, he said, there is more focus on individual style. Of course, cost plays a part too. "A lot of people come in for platinum, until they find out the price. Then they go for white gold, which looks the same but is less expensive." Fanuda said 25 percent of his business is the sale of engagement rings. The busiest season is spring and before holidays like Christmas or Valentine's Day. "Some people are very sentimental and want to propose on a holiday," said Bennett. "We sold a couple rings before Christmas and had a couple people looking for New Year's." Rock-solid advice Designing your own engagement ring is a popular choice for many couples, said local jewelers, but customers need to spend some time evaluating what they want versus what they can afford. For the carat conscious, said Fanuda, bigger doesn't necessarily mean better. "Don't go for size, go for quality," he said. Bennett's approach is for men to look to their ladies' childhood dreams for inspiration. "I always ask the guys when they first thought about the engagement ring because from the time their girlfriends were little girls, they've thought about what it would look like. Find out what she really likes and build it to those specifications." PK Bennett Jewelers uses a CAD computer program to help would-be hubbies and couples create a custom design. The work is done in-house, with the finished product completed in about two weeks. When purchasing a diamond, said Dan Lustig, owner of Lustig Jewelers in Vernon Hills, go in person to an independent jeweler and don't base your selection on online diamond reports. "Each diamond, even though the clarity, cut and color is the same, has its own personality," he said. "One diamond will always stand out in the crowd and will create an emotional response. This is the diamond you should purchase after considering your diamond size and budget." Jewelers said the most popular diamond cuts for engagement rings are round brilliants and the Princess diamond, which is cut in a square shape. White gold remains the band color of choice for young brides, said Lustig, while yellow gold is making a comeback in women's fashion jewelry. Holiday sales Lustig said his store sold several engagement rings during December, but it's not the meat and potatoes of their holiday jewelry sales. "The driving source has always been diamond pendants, earrings and bracelets. Our strongest category was ladies black and white diamond jewelry. Colored stone jewelry was surprisingly strong this holiday." Other big holiday sellers were sterling silver, including Chamilia sterling silver beads, and stainless steel and crystal fashion jewelry. Overall, said Lustig, holiday sales were similar to last year, though the store's biggest annual VIP event experienced a customer shortfall when the invitations arrived later than expected due to mailing issues. Some customers, he said, didn't receive notice until after the event, which resulted in a financial loss. "If this mishap had not occurred, our Christmas sales would have been up for the month." Bennett reported brisk holiday sales that were up from the past two years. However, he noted, the average sale was not as high as it was prior to the economic recession. "We saw more customers, but they were spending less." "The price of gold," said Fanuda, "does not do us any favors." The price of gold in the United States recently reached $1,400 per ounce. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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