Last year I made the decision to invest more in fine jewellery that would last a lifetime and choose pieces that could stand the test of time. The idea is to balance this additional spend by buying less seasonal trends from designer shoes and handbags. After all, I’ve always preferred more classic and timeless pieces.
With lockdown, it became obvious that if I wanted to continue growing my collection I had to do it shopping online, which can be a very frightening thing to do when there’s so much money in play. After going through this process several times in the last year, I decided to create a small guide with the things you should consider before you buy…
1. Do Your Research
Before you place any order make sure you are confident you are buying from a reputable business. Make sure to read online reviews, they can provide you with information and expert knowledge, making it easier to buy any jewellery.
2. Read the Shipping & Return Policies
Make sure you’ve researched and fully understand the shipping and return policies. A seller may offer returns for most items, but certain items may be excluded from the policy.
3. Pictures. The More the Merrier.
When buying jewellery online, you are not able to handle the actual item the same way as you would in a conventional shop. Therefore, you are relying on the seller to provide as many pictures as possible, clearly showing the item from all angles and highlighting any notable details. You could also ask the seller to send you additional pictures if the website doesn’t contain enough.
4. Appraisal or Certificate
An appraisal or valuation should be provided by the seller and detail the value of your item. If you are buying an item with precious gemstones, it should list diamond attributes like colour, cut, clarity and carat weight.
When it comes down to choosing the actual jewellery pieces, here’s what you should consider:
5. Your Jewellery Style
Your jewellery should be an extension of your wardrobe, so if your wardrobe is simple, consider letting your jewellery do the talking by choosing statement pieces. If you love colour, invest in enamel or gem-set pieces. Make sure to choose a metal that suits both your taste and skin colour; for instance, I like yellow gold for everyday jewellery, like this diamond ring, but tend to go for white gold when it comes to pieces I’d wear in the evening or for a special occasion, like this sapphire and diamond ring.
6.Choose Timeless Pieces
Like fashion and interior design, jewellery trends come and go. So before jumping on the trend wagon, remember that chosen well fine jewellery will last for a lifetime, so purchase pieces you are going to fall in love with again and again.
7. Know Your Size
There’s three things you should consider when determining the right fit; Is it comfortable? Does it feel like it will it fall off? Does it suit you? Rings should always have some resistance when pulled over the knuckle — it’s worth visiting a jeweller to measure your finger size or order a ring sizer online.
8. Invest in Staples
In the same way every wardrobe has a basic white t-shirt and a perfect pair of jeans, there are a few essentials that your jewellery box needs. Choose jewellery that will never go out of style and that you can easily wear. Some go-to pieces to consider are a pair of stud or hoop earrings, a solitaire diamond pendant or a classic gold bangle. Once you have the basics, you can add as you wish.
So far, I’ve only had good experiences shopping fine jewellery online, my go-to site is Angara as they are great at providing very detailed product specifications and the quality of their products (which by the way are 100% conflict free) never ceases to amaze me. I also love that you can have custom made pieces with lifetime warranty and an incredible refund policy which is rare to find in this type of products.
I hope you’ve found this article useful and would love to hear about your experience (or concerns) shopping fine jewellery online.
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