The "m" Word And Engagement Ring Advice

[Americano]

You are welcome Mike.

 

I can add one more thing. By letting her choose the rings she likes then you won't feel bad if the rings are real cheap. I couldn't buy a cheap engagement ring for the woman I wanted to marry without feeling bad about it but her buying one didn't bother me because it was what she wanted.

[Tukaram (Tim)]

We were at a jewelry store the other day and I was surprised at the cheap stuff (prices) my girlfriend was looking at.  Of course she is not used to having money and does not seem as money motivated as a lot of the girls I have met here.  But that is a good thing.

[Bruce]

We were at a jewelry store the other day and I was surprised at the cheap stuff (prices) my girlfriend was looking at.  Of course she is not used to having money and does not seem as money motivated as a lot of the girls I have met here.  But that is a good thing.

 

Cheap? What is cheap? I think you guys are confused or mesmerized by sparkling schmatta! :bash: So here is some jewelry information for you.

 

Gold today is about $1315. Which is down about 1/3 from the high of Jan 2011 or so ($1900+). Gold in the year 2,000 was under $400. The price mark up for gold jewelry was about 800 to 1200 % of the true cost of the gold. Jewelry stores made a killing! But since gold climbed and climbed in price, the retail buyers started to buy less and less. Gold was just out the price realm for the working guy.  

 

Thousands of jewelry stores either went out of business or they switched to gold BUYING from the general public. This was great for about 5 years. Huge profits were made in buying gold from the walk in customer. But at that same time, less and less actual jewelry was being sold at retail. Stores with existing stock of jewelry, bought when gold was much cheaper found they could still make a big profit by scrapping the jewelry since they could not sell it retail.

 

The largest gold buyer / consumer is India. India would buy many tons of gold each year for their jewelry making factories. But then even India realized it was cheaper to buy gold at low prices from the man on the street. So for at least 1 year, India imported NO GOLD as they got all the gold they needed from buying back gold from people who needed money in India.  

 

So, here we are today and you guys think that there is 'cheap' jewelry out there? If that is true... it is not GOLD. The actual price of gold is the same in London and the US and China and yes, in the Philippines. All with in a few $ of each other. It is FOOLISH to think that some jewelry store in the Philippines is unaware of the price of gold and therefore 'you' stumble on a cheap deal.

 

About 4 years ago I wrote an article for Today's Pawnbroker about the pawnshops and gold buyers in Cebu and on Samar. The prices I was offered for 14 kt and 18 kt gold were 98% of the daily scrap price. Same as I could get in the US, once the buyer realized I knew what gold was worth. Sure they may offer a lower price at first, but that changes one they realize I knew what they knew.  

 

The jewelry you see today is not your parents jewelry. Many hybrid metals with as little as 6kt gold content and much more gold plated silver and lots of hollow jewelry now to save weight of the gold as to lessen the price. And there are other shiny alternatives are available. All because gold is too expensive to buy, make into jewelry and then mark it up 800% + like 10 years ago and before.

 

The gold jewelry that you grew up seeing is far less in availability due to prices. Kids today by the time they get old enough to buy jewelry will have a wider selection to buy from than did your parents, but then that same wide selection is far cheaper in value.   

 

10 + years ago, you the retail buyer simply over paid for gold jewelry when compared to the actual value of the jewelry. Today, you are much more likely to be scammed as you buy gold that is stamped with a higher kt than it is, or is hollow but the price is based on solid gold. Or plated silver, but paying for solid gold.

 

The jewelry store still has rent and utilities and other expenses to cover. The retail buyers are fewer today due to the economy and the price of gold. Something has to 'give' to keep the jeweler in business. Sell alternative jewelry, more silver or plated or hybrid metal jewelry. But to sell REAL gold CHEAP is not going to happen.     

 

Buyer beware. :cheersty:

Edited August 4, 2013 by Bruce

[gapotwo]

 

We were at a jewelry store the other day and I was surprised at the cheap stuff (prices) my girlfriend was looking at.  Of course she is not used to having money and does not seem as money motivated as a lot of the girls I have met here.  But that is a good thing.

 

Cheap? What is cheap? I think you guys are confused or mesmerized by sparkling schmatta! :bash: So here is some jewelry information for you.

 

Gold today is about $1315. Which is down about 1/3 from the high of Jan 2011 or so ($1900+). Gold in the year 2,000 was under $400. The price mark up for gold jewelry was about 800 to 1200 % of the true cost of the gold. Jewelry stores made a killing! But since gold climbed and climbed in price, the retail buyers started to buy less and less. Gold was just out the price realm for the working guy.  

 

Thousands of jewelry stores either went out of business or they switched to gold BUYING from the general public. This was great for about 5 years. Huge profits were made in buying gold from the walk in customer. But at that same time, less and less actual jewelry was being sold at retail. Stores with existing stock of jewelry, bought when gold was much cheaper found they could still make a big profit by scrapping the jewelry since they could not sell it retail.

 

The largest gold buyer / consumer is India. India would buy many tons of gold each year for their jewelry making factories. But then even India realized it was cheaper to buy gold at low prices from the man on the street. So for at least 1 year, India imported NO GOLD as they got all the gold they needed from buying back gold from people who needed money in India.  

 

So, here we are today and you guys think that there is 'cheap' jewelry out there? If that is true... it is not GOLD. The actual price of gold is the same in London and the US and China and yes, in the Philippines. All with in a few $ of each other. It is FOOLISH to think that some jewelry store in the Philippines is unaware of the price of gold and therefore 'you' stumble on a cheap deal.

 

About 4 years ago I wrote an article for Today's Pawnbroker about the pawnshops and gold buyers in Cebu and on Samar. The prices I was offered for 14 kt and 18 kt gold were 98% of the daily scrap price. Same as I could get in the US, once the buyer realized I knew what gold was worth. Sure they may offer a lower price at first, but that changes one they realize I knew what they knew.  

 

The jewelry you see today is not your parents jewelry. Many hybrid metals with as little as 6kt gold content and much more gold plated silver and lots of hollow jewelry now to save weight of the gold as to lessen the price. And there are other shiny alternatives are available. All because gold is too expensive to buy, make into jewelry and then mark it up 800% + like 10 years ago and before.

 

The gold jewelry that you grew up seeing is far less in availability due to prices. Kids today by the time they get old enough to buy jewelry will have a wider selection to buy from that did your parents, but then that same wide selection is far cheaper in value.   

 

10 + years ago, you the retail buyer simply over paid for gold jewelry when compared to the actual value of the jewelry. Today, you are much more likely to be scammed as you buy gold that is stamped with a higher kt than it is, or is hollow but the price is based on solid gold. Or plated silver, but paying for solid gold.

 

The jewelry store still has rent and utilities and other expenses to cover. The retail buyers are fewer today due to the economy and the price of gold. Something has to 'give' to keep the jeweler in business. Sell alternative jewelry, more silver or plated or hybrid metal jewelry. But to sell REAL gold CHEAP is not going to happen.     

 

Buyer beware. :cheersty:

 

After being gone from the Philippines for umpteen years, when i got back i bit the big one, .... as in no more Boom Boom girls.  I married my childhood sweatheart.  being that we knew each other since we were kids,  she knew what a cheap bas%$#d i am. she picked the ring , and to my amazement ,it was very reasonably priced.i got off easy that time, but then that was my final gamble.and  life has been great since.  :cheersty:             good boy ako ngayon....ej. :) 

[Old55]

From what I know marriage is a big deal for Filipinas second only to having children. This may have changed with younger ladies in Philippines now. A ring showing she is married also important.

I bought a simple engagement ring with an average quality about half carat diamond from a local jeweler here in the States. I had them size it on the small end of the scale. The good thing about Filipinas is that they are so darn small a modest ring looks HUGE. :dance: 

She loved the ring and had it correctly sized at a trusted jeweler near Cebu City.

We got the wedding rings from that Cebu jeweler I thought the cost was very fair. Six or seven years later I had a larger wedding ring made for me in the States, they said the gold content in my Cebu ring was spot on. I asked my wife if she wanted her wedding ring redone but she was very attached to it.

As far as I know an engagement ring is a big thing for a Filipina but my wife and I are older so this may have changed. In our case I know my wife truly appreciated having an engagement ring along with her wedding ring.

[sjp52]

dont spend to much. i bought my wife a 1 carrot ring and matching earrings and she has never worn them. she says some one would steal them. i said why not sell them and she said no way. I think I only paid 10,000 pesos for our wedding bands in the Philippines

[Americano]

dont spend to much. i bought my wife a 1 carrot ring and matching earrings and she has never worn them. she says some one would steal them. i said why not sell them and she said no way. I think I only paid 10,000 pesos for our wedding bands in the Philippines

 

You just proved my point. Why buy something expensive that your girl will never wear? Let her choose what she is happy with and will wear.

 

The price of gold now and years ago has very little to do with the price of rings that Filipinas will buy and be very happy with. My wife's silver engagement ring with a stone cost P300 ( US$7.00)and her wedding band which is gold and has three stones in it cost P4,000 which is less than US$100.  Those are very cheap rings compared to what an American woman will expect you to buy for her.

[i am bob]

I did pretty well the same with my ex... We went to the mall and found a ring she liked. Only difference was that I didn't buy the ring for a couple of weeks... ;)

[Americano]

Bob,

 

That's a good idea too but so many times in the Philippines my wife and I have seen things that we really liked but didn't buy them that day because we were planning to come back in a few days to buy them. When we returned the items were already gone. The stores very often only have one of many items. I guess they only stock one in case it doesn't sell.

 

One thing we really wanted to buy last year was a rubber inflatable boat with handles and oars. There was one on display in the Carcar Gaisano. We came back the next week to buy it and it was already gone and they didn't have any in stock. One boat was all they had received for sale. Since then we have looked for a rubber boat in every mall we have visited in Cebu City, Tagbilarian Bohol, and in Mindanao and haven't been able to find one yet, so don't think you can come back later to buy something you like, it may not be there and there may not be another like it in stock. This can even happen with rings or being able to find the right size ring again.

[Thomas]

I have though about the same, but I'm not in that mood yet  :)

but it don't seem to be any expensive wedding, because when I talked about I can't afford to all direct as e g building a house in a size I want, she said 20 000p is enough for the wedding including the party !   I suppose she find a house more important than an expensive wedding  :mocking:

If she is not pushing you, what are the benefits to getting married? What changes for you and her? 18 months... fine. How about 5 years and then we revisit the subject. :cheersty:

If not else - I don't know if Mike get a better VISA anyway, but I aim at geting such after a year or so  :)