Zales?

nroden · October 2012

I'm comparing jewelers right now, in preparation for buying my girlfriend an engagement ring. Is Zales the best place to go? Looking at their locations, they're the only jeweler who has a location near every town that we might live. Is this beneficial for cleanings, etc.?

cnf2013 · October 2012

Zales is okay, but the people who work there aren't jewelers, so keep that in mind. Should the ring need to be resized, or have a stone replaced, they have to send it off and it'll be 2-3 weeks before you get it back. And if the works isn't correct (they'll write the work to be done down and send that with the ring to their jewelers), then back out it goes. I'd suggest looking at independent jewelers. Sure, there won't be the same one in every town, but you'll find most will do the work on site, in a matter of days. I work in a different town than I live in and each town only has one small independent jeweler. I've befriended both. The one in the town I live in gave me a deal on my appraisal and the one in the town I work in gave me a discount on my resize and got the work done in six hours. I dropped it off on my way to work and has it back on my finger by 3pm that same day. My ring is a family heirloom and my FI is terribly uncomfortable with it being "sent off" to be worked on for weeks at a time, so that is something that turned me off from using a chain jewelry store.

As for cleaning, I just windex and soft bristle brush. Works just fine!

All that said, you'll find nice stuff at Zales and have good customer service. The choice is really yours, but I'd suggest shopping around too.

AdeleDazeem · October 2012

Keep in mind that cleanings, sizing, etc... can be done by any jeweler. My own ring is from the 1940s so it doesn't even have a home store. I take it to a reputable jeweler in the area that I live for anything that needs to be done. When we move, I'll find another.

The only thing that I'd wonder about is any warranties that might be voided should you take it to another jeweler. But, those choices are all your call.

I do think it's a bit overkill to think about where the jewelery locations might be over the course of your lives Zales might go out of business. You might move out of the country. I wouldn't limit yourself like this since you really don't know what might happen.

cwaggoner07 · October 2012

We used Robbins Brothers, and it worked well for us, because we were in the middle of a cross country move, and used the stores in Los Angeles, and Dallas. My brother used Zales, and while I don't know the details, I don't think they had any problems.

milfette · October 2012

I agree with the earlier post about going to stores without jewelers. My ring was sent off twice before I got it and again right after he proposed. Its unfortunate that we can't talk directly to the person doing the work because that would have saved a lot of time away from my ring!

achiduck · October 2012

Like Joy, my ring is vintage from the 1960s so it doesn't have "home store" either. I used and independent jeweller with a goldsmith onsite when I had my wedding band made and I was never without my ring for more than half a day.

Some girls on my month board were without theirs for up to 6 weeks, which as a bride sucks big time. I also find that independents stand behind their work more so than a large chain store.

Jessie42613 · October 2012

Use a small, reputable hometown jeweler, definitely. For them, reputation is everything so they have a vested interest in providing excellent customer service to you. Plus you'll be supporting small business which is always great.

soontobehasrouni · October 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_just-engaged-proposals_zales?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:683Discussion:0569f856-208b-4638-babd-e66f84f466d8Post:23f799e0-da18-4656-9b47-f54259b32d5a">Re: Zales?</a>:
[QUOTE]<strong>Use a small, reputable hometown jeweler, definitely</strong>. For them, reputation is everything so they have a vested interest in providing excellent customer service to you. Plus you'll be supporting small business which is always great.
Posted by Jessie42613[/QUOTE]

this. our jeweler is amazing and customer service is A1. prices are much cheaper than a mall jewerly store also. the same wedding band at the mall was like 5x more than a independent jeweler.

Annas2013 · October 2012

My ring set is from Zales. We haven't had any problems with them so far, the only negative is that it does have to be sent out to be resized, or redipped. I have to get my ring redipped, but I'm waiting until as close to the wedding as possible so it'll still be shiny for pictures.

I say try a local jeweler first, but Zales isn't a bad option.

QueerFemme · October 2012

You will likely get a better quality stone for a better price from a jeweler than you will at Zales.

firsttimersluck · October 2012

Ultimately it's not necessarily about the place you go, but knowing what you're looking at. Know what all the "c"s stand for and figure out what fits best in your budget (and for the record, "cut" does not mean the TYPE of cut like round, princess, etc. It means the quality of the cut. The only two places that I know of that require all their diamonds to be "excellent" cut is CostCo and Tiffany & Co. ).

I wouldn't worry about wanting to find a place that is everywhere you go... Cleanings/polishings can be done anywhere.

Zales?

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