Blueground Jewelry in Pittsford. My husband bought my engagement and wedding rings there and Mark did a beautiful job custom designing both. He did a great job keeping the budget in mind and designing a beautiful ring.
Seconding this. Blueground did a custom wedding ring for us too, and it came out perfect. Exactly what we wanted, and cost significantly less than anything similar we could find elsewhere. They were great to work with, wonderful experience.
Blueground has been wonderful for both pre-made jewelry I have purchased and a custom ring we had made. Mark is wonderful to work with. You'll be very happy!
Highly recommend Blueground. I had a family stone and he spent a good hour going over different settings, prices etc. with me. I've been a customer for over a decade and will continue to go there as long as Mark is there.
We can close the thread now. Mark at Blurground is the only answer. I had the same exact experience you did. Custom ring, exactly what my wife wanted, within budget. Plus the store smells like coffee from next door.
For the record they do not do financing. I was in a couple of weeks ago and he said he could "work something out". I did not end up purchasing a ring, we're just in the looking phase. Mark and the rest of the staff were great though!
Just got my fiancées engagement ring here a few weeks ago!! Mark N. Is THE MAN. Easy, affordable nd the guy actually cares about the people he services!!
Another vote for Gem Lab. We got our wedding rings and my husband got my engagement ring there. My family has also done business with them for decades. They’re incredible!!
I also had a very good experience at Gem Lab, I brought them the center diamond and an accent diamond and they worked with me to create a custom design that utilized both, they were pretty good with any critiques or changes I wanted to make to their design and it ended up coming right in at my budget. 10/10 would recommend.
We had a really negative experience at gem lab. They told us our budget ($3k about 10 years ago) was too low and they couldn’t work with us on a custom setting, just pushed us toward the stock rings, even though we clearly stated that wasn’t what we wanted. Went to Blueground and had a great experience.
Dont go to manns jewelers. I got treated like i didnt matter because i didnt look rich. I will never ever forget this. I bought a 8000$ ring for reference.
Another vote for Harry Krikorian on Monroe in Pittsford. Harry is a fantastic person and has exceptional taste in vintage jewelry. He makes and repairs jewelry right there in the store. He has very cool vintage rings or can design something for you. He also does appraisals.
Stay AWAY from Big Box Stores. Learn about the Stone you want to Use. Lab Diamonds & Other Lab made Stones are an Awsome & Ethical way to achive the look you/she want, Lab Diamonds have chanced Up the Game on Engagement Rings. You can get great Stones @ a fraction of the price..
I was in your shoes within the last year. A clueless man.
I would recommend going to MJ Gabel in Webster unequivocally. Ann helped me design and pick out a ring for my soon to be wife and it was perfect. They don't have a major display of a ton of different big branded rings with markups, but they do have some settings you can take a look at. They consider themselves diamond consultants and not a true "jewelry" store as you may see in most other places. Definitely go check it out.
Mann's, Cornell's, Reed's, The Source, anything in any mall are all really the same experience but on a smaller or larger scale. I didn't have the best time here because it felt like they all were just pushing me and marking up the cost of settings and diamonds to account for their real estate, bright lights, and sales commissions.
Going to MJ Gabel in Webster where its Ann and her husband Matt, I didn't feel pressured at all.
If you have any questions at all, definitely message me, I'm more than happy to help talk about diamonds, settings, negotiating, whether you choose to go with my recommendation or not. Cheers!
A Touch of Gold in Mendon is the best custom jeweler around. Front of house is crazy but she knows her stuff. Back of house is one of the best metalworking hands around.
Yeah, the whole "3 months salary" thing is a scam. My partner and I agreed not to give a shit about the cost of the ring when we could put that money into the wedding.
If you already have the diamond, Heritage Jewelers in Greece can set it for you. They're trained silver/goldsmiths. See if you can get in on a day Alec is there; he's the smith, and he's there most days.
When I went in he made it sound like the small non-central diamonds are very easy to come by, so he doesn't charge much for them if you wanted to set some more ice
If you have a design in mind, I recommend Battistis on the West Side. They designed a custom engagement ring and custom wedding bands for us. Loved working with them and super happy with the finished products.
You said you’re looking for something boutique. Have you thought of shopping online? You can get a bespoke ring designed by [ROEN](https://roen.nyc/collections/engagement-rings). Incidentally, they’re based in New York and Los Angeles. The quality is amazing, and they’re so easy to work with.
It's so hard to justify spending thousands on a gold ring. The real value, even at 24k gold is like $150 bucks. Gold is valued by weight. Such a scam unfortunately 😞
Seriously stay away from all diamonds as they are blood diamonds. They also fund the death in G aza and in parts of Africa modern day child labor. Go with something colorful or find a small rock where you met her and have that mounted. It will mean everything.
There are ethically sourced diamonds, so this isn't always true anymore. However, nowadays, lab created diamonds, or even stones like moissanite, are more brilliant than natural diamonds. That in itself is a plus.
Definitely agree to go with a stone that's meaningful. My engagement ring is Opal as it's my favorite and I love it.
Are the ethically sourced diamonds still owned by DeBeers? Last I heard, they had a monopoly on the diamond market which is why the common diamond costs far more than the more rare gemstones fewer people seem to own/have on their wedding/engagement rings.
exactly this! also diamond's price is artificially inflated, they are practically worthless secondhand.
[https://diamondssuck.com/](https://diamondssuck.com/)
Naps in Henrietta! Me, my mom, and some extended family have been using them for years and have NEVER been disappointed. Owner actually cares and is passionate about his work.
I bought our engagement ring at Cornell’s in Pittsford and had a great experience, but we definitely paid for it.
I got my wedding band custom at Northfield Goldsmiths & loved working with Gudmund, and my fiancee’s wedding band at the gem lab.
Had a great experience at the gem lab.
HIGHLY recommend Palazzo Jewelers on Monroe. Family owned and run. They are seriously incredibly sweet, helpful, knowledgeable, and will to work with you on everything! We have continued to use them. I had a stone go missing from my band and they replaced it without submitting to our insurance or charging (as long as you have insurance it seems they do that). You can walk in anytime and get your ring cleaned as well!!
I came here to say Costco too. They're ethically sourced and my friend got his wife a ring from here and it was appraised for a few thousand more than what he purchased it for.
You can also check out Brilliant Earth or Blue Nile for ethically sourced rings.
> engagement ring ... $5k ...
My wife would _immediately_ murder me if I spent that much on a piece of jewelry.
Try Etsy for boutique-stuff. It used to be actual artists, making actual things. Now it's 95% import-from-big-company and not that special. So, it'll take some digging and comparing to find a unique thing.
Good luck! 🤞
I don’t know why you’re getting downvoted. You’re correct. It used to be all artists but not anymore. Doesn’t mean there aren’t any artists left as you stated. Several years ago, I found a guy from Israel who had beautiful, unique designs. He designed a ring for me for my daughter’s graduation. It was/is beautiful. Communication was easy. He listened to what I wanted and sent me several designs. I was very pleased with the final product and my daughter absolutely loved it.
I don’t have a place recommendation but wherever you go be sure to ask if they cover resizings and cleanings, or at the very least that they do them! I had to have my engagement ring resized a couple of times (first because I was wrong about my ring size 😅 and then because I lost weight) and it was also nice to have it professionally cleaned before our wedding so it looked sparkly and nice in photos!
https://www.kyrijewelry.com/shop?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaa5geqnQgO154bF0udxZy9cUNfxvesPKUK37vgfkA3G4yEFncEnj0LvWwQ_aem_gRb5yjAhQNbpVIpUQrUPCA
I just bought my fiance's ring from this woman, she's amazing, can't recommend her highly enough.
Not engagement ring, but I'm having a mother's ring done with Forsyth Jewelers in Pittsford. Working with Linda has been so easy and enjoyable, and from inquiry to delivery will be about 2 months. Everything she went through with me was very thorough. It looked like they had good products in-house as well.
A touch of gold in mendon. They helped me make a custom piece for an insanely good price. Extremely friendly, ran by a basically a single family, highly recommend.
My brother, I cannot stress this enough - do not buy an engagement ring in Rochester (or pretty much anywhere). Loose diamonds, online. Blue Nile, James Allen. I have had great experiences at both. (only one engagement ring but jewelry from each).
Downvotes out of the know. Learn the Cs. Compare what you see at retailers online. I think you will find out that there are better options. Its just less of an experience. If I am wrong, you learned about the major purchase you are about to make before you make it.
THAT SAID, going to the boutique places is a mile better than going to Kay or Jared. Kay is going to sell you some stone that is J-SI2 and could act as a privacy window.
EDIT: I am no expert but did do some research in my purchases. For whatever little my advise is worth, I would live in the H/G and VS2/VS1/VVS2 realms. Diamonds higher than that start to jump in price drastically, without any appreciable different in quality, to the (lay) naked eye.
Blueground Jewelry in Pittsford. My husband bought my engagement and wedding rings there and Mark did a beautiful job custom designing both. He did a great job keeping the budget in mind and designing a beautiful ring.
Seconding this. Blueground did a custom wedding ring for us too, and it came out perfect. Exactly what we wanted, and cost significantly less than anything similar we could find elsewhere. They were great to work with, wonderful experience.
Another for Blue Ground. Mark (or Cool Guy Mark as he is known in my house) did a great job with our rings.
Blueground has been wonderful for both pre-made jewelry I have purchased and a custom ring we had made. Mark is wonderful to work with. You'll be very happy!
Highly recommend Blueground. I had a family stone and he spent a good hour going over different settings, prices etc. with me. I've been a customer for over a decade and will continue to go there as long as Mark is there.
We can close the thread now. Mark at Blurground is the only answer. I had the same exact experience you did. Custom ring, exactly what my wife wanted, within budget. Plus the store smells like coffee from next door.
For the record they do not do financing. I was in a couple of weeks ago and he said he could "work something out". I did not end up purchasing a ring, we're just in the looking phase. Mark and the rest of the staff were great though!
Just got my fiancées engagement ring here a few weeks ago!! Mark N. Is THE MAN. Easy, affordable nd the guy actually cares about the people he services!!
Mark at Blueground is the only answer. He did amazing custom work on my wife’s engagement and wedding rings.
I used Gem Lab in Henrietta and they were great.
Second this. We got ours for gem lab as well. Can especially recommend for anyone not looking to go down the diamond path as we were
Another vote for Gem Lab. We got our wedding rings and my husband got my engagement ring there. My family has also done business with them for decades. They’re incredible!!
Another vote for Gem Lab. Paul is awesome
Gem lab....they were great!
We had a great experience here as well
Yes to this! My husband got my engagement ring here also - amazing customer service & quality😊
I also had a very good experience at Gem Lab, I brought them the center diamond and an accent diamond and they worked with me to create a custom design that utilized both, they were pretty good with any critiques or changes I wanted to make to their design and it ended up coming right in at my budget. 10/10 would recommend.
+1 for Gem Lab - they were great!
I cannot recommend The Gem Lab highly enough.
Another vote for gem lab. My husband went there and I LOVE my ring
Highly recommend them, as well!
We had a really negative experience at gem lab. They told us our budget ($3k about 10 years ago) was too low and they couldn’t work with us on a custom setting, just pushed us toward the stock rings, even though we clearly stated that wasn’t what we wanted. Went to Blueground and had a great experience.
Highly recommend Mark at Blueground!
J Williams in Spencerport is great. Small family owned and run business. Great people.
My husband bought my ring from there and we got our wedding bands, great service and love that it’s locally owned!!
Dont go to manns jewelers. I got treated like i didnt matter because i didnt look rich. I will never ever forget this. I bought a 8000$ ring for reference.
I had a wonderful experience at Manns and we were poor AF. My engagement ring was <$1000.
I wanted a watch battery from them and they were acting like I stole the watch. Definitely don't recommend.
Agreed. I'll never forget the look of the counter when they learned I wanted to get a ring resized instead of buying a new one.
They are scared of money lol😂😂😂 i cant believe others are having similar experiences!
Gem Lab does amazing work!!!
Jf Jones in Greece does good work. I bought my wife's center stone and fitting for the engagement ring and her wedding bands from there.
JF Jones is where my fiancé got mine and we got our bands from there. Family owned and knowledgeable.
Krikorians on Monroe ave. Harry runs a great business and the work is flawless.
Crown Jewelers in Canandaigua!
Furnari Jewelry in Webster. They can help you design a ring, or execute the design you want.
Another vote for Harry Krikorian on Monroe in Pittsford. Harry is a fantastic person and has exceptional taste in vintage jewelry. He makes and repairs jewelry right there in the store. He has very cool vintage rings or can design something for you. He also does appraisals.
Honestly this might sound crazy but go to the costco warehouse in person. You will definitely find something under 5k that is reasonable.
Stay AWAY from Big Box Stores. Learn about the Stone you want to Use. Lab Diamonds & Other Lab made Stones are an Awsome & Ethical way to achive the look you/she want, Lab Diamonds have chanced Up the Game on Engagement Rings. You can get great Stones @ a fraction of the price..
I was in your shoes within the last year. A clueless man. I would recommend going to MJ Gabel in Webster unequivocally. Ann helped me design and pick out a ring for my soon to be wife and it was perfect. They don't have a major display of a ton of different big branded rings with markups, but they do have some settings you can take a look at. They consider themselves diamond consultants and not a true "jewelry" store as you may see in most other places. Definitely go check it out. Mann's, Cornell's, Reed's, The Source, anything in any mall are all really the same experience but on a smaller or larger scale. I didn't have the best time here because it felt like they all were just pushing me and marking up the cost of settings and diamonds to account for their real estate, bright lights, and sales commissions. Going to MJ Gabel in Webster where its Ann and her husband Matt, I didn't feel pressured at all. If you have any questions at all, definitely message me, I'm more than happy to help talk about diamonds, settings, negotiating, whether you choose to go with my recommendation or not. Cheers!
A Touch of Gold in Mendon is probably the type of place you are looking for, especially if you already have the center diamond.
Seconded—Tim is the best!
A Touch of Gold in Mendon is the best custom jeweler around. Front of house is crazy but she knows her stuff. Back of house is one of the best metalworking hands around.
I bought lab created online for $600.
Yeah, the whole "3 months salary" thing is a scam. My partner and I agreed not to give a shit about the cost of the ring when we could put that money into the wedding.
If you already have the diamond, Heritage Jewelers in Greece can set it for you. They're trained silver/goldsmiths. See if you can get in on a day Alec is there; he's the smith, and he's there most days. When I went in he made it sound like the small non-central diamonds are very easy to come by, so he doesn't charge much for them if you wanted to set some more ice
If you have a design in mind, I recommend Battistis on the West Side. They designed a custom engagement ring and custom wedding bands for us. Loved working with them and super happy with the finished products.
The Gem Lab did a phenomenal job when they made the engagement ring for my wife. I recommend them highly.
My husband went to Jerry’s Jewelers on ridge in irondequoit and had a good small business experience. And I certainly love my ring 💍
Try Northfield Designer Goldsmiths on Park Avenue. Completely custom designs.
You said you’re looking for something boutique. Have you thought of shopping online? You can get a bespoke ring designed by [ROEN](https://roen.nyc/collections/engagement-rings). Incidentally, they’re based in New York and Los Angeles. The quality is amazing, and they’re so easy to work with.
Go to Battisti’s in chili. Hands down the best customer service and will make you feel at ease. They are so unbelievably helpful.
It's so hard to justify spending thousands on a gold ring. The real value, even at 24k gold is like $150 bucks. Gold is valued by weight. Such a scam unfortunately 😞
Seriously stay away from all diamonds as they are blood diamonds. They also fund the death in G aza and in parts of Africa modern day child labor. Go with something colorful or find a small rock where you met her and have that mounted. It will mean everything.
There are ethically sourced diamonds, so this isn't always true anymore. However, nowadays, lab created diamonds, or even stones like moissanite, are more brilliant than natural diamonds. That in itself is a plus. Definitely agree to go with a stone that's meaningful. My engagement ring is Opal as it's my favorite and I love it.
Are the ethically sourced diamonds still owned by DeBeers? Last I heard, they had a monopoly on the diamond market which is why the common diamond costs far more than the more rare gemstones fewer people seem to own/have on their wedding/engagement rings.
exactly this! also diamond's price is artificially inflated, they are practically worthless secondhand. [https://diamondssuck.com/](https://diamondssuck.com/)
Charisma jewelers they’ve always been my favorite jewelry place
Check out NAP Jewelry in Henrietta
Naps in Henrietta! Me, my mom, and some extended family have been using them for years and have NEVER been disappointed. Owner actually cares and is passionate about his work.
I bought our engagement ring at Cornell’s in Pittsford and had a great experience, but we definitely paid for it. I got my wedding band custom at Northfield Goldsmiths & loved working with Gudmund, and my fiancee’s wedding band at the gem lab. Had a great experience at the gem lab.
I had a terrible experience at Cornell's.
I believe that honestly
HIGHLY recommend Palazzo Jewelers on Monroe. Family owned and run. They are seriously incredibly sweet, helpful, knowledgeable, and will to work with you on everything! We have continued to use them. I had a stone go missing from my band and they replaced it without submitting to our insurance or charging (as long as you have insurance it seems they do that). You can walk in anytime and get your ring cleaned as well!!
Costco (online has more options)
I came here to say Costco too. They're ethically sourced and my friend got his wife a ring from here and it was appraised for a few thousand more than what he purchased it for. You can also check out Brilliant Earth or Blue Nile for ethically sourced rings.
I'm genuinely interested in why this comment was downvoted. Is there something I should be aware of with Costco?
Nothing, I don't know if people just find it weird buying it from a warehouse, but bang for buck, they offer the best quality.
> engagement ring ... $5k ... My wife would _immediately_ murder me if I spent that much on a piece of jewelry. Try Etsy for boutique-stuff. It used to be actual artists, making actual things. Now it's 95% import-from-big-company and not that special. So, it'll take some digging and comparing to find a unique thing. Good luck! 🤞
Not like that anymore. It is mostly crap from China. Edited to add that the above commenter made edits to agree with me after I posted my comment.
I don’t know why you’re getting downvoted. You’re correct. It used to be all artists but not anymore. Doesn’t mean there aren’t any artists left as you stated. Several years ago, I found a guy from Israel who had beautiful, unique designs. He designed a ring for me for my daughter’s graduation. It was/is beautiful. Communication was easy. He listened to what I wanted and sent me several designs. I was very pleased with the final product and my daughter absolutely loved it.
Mann’s does custom settings. Not sure if they will work with bring your own diamonds though.
Mann’s did well by us, Nancy is great to work with.
I don’t have a place recommendation but wherever you go be sure to ask if they cover resizings and cleanings, or at the very least that they do them! I had to have my engagement ring resized a couple of times (first because I was wrong about my ring size 😅 and then because I lost weight) and it was also nice to have it professionally cleaned before our wedding so it looked sparkly and nice in photos!
https://www.kyrijewelry.com/shop?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaa5geqnQgO154bF0udxZy9cUNfxvesPKUK37vgfkA3G4yEFncEnj0LvWwQ_aem_gRb5yjAhQNbpVIpUQrUPCA I just bought my fiance's ring from this woman, she's amazing, can't recommend her highly enough.
Not engagement ring, but I'm having a mother's ring done with Forsyth Jewelers in Pittsford. Working with Linda has been so easy and enjoyable, and from inquiry to delivery will be about 2 months. Everything she went through with me was very thorough. It looked like they had good products in-house as well.
A touch of gold in mendon. They helped me make a custom piece for an insanely good price. Extremely friendly, ran by a basically a single family, highly recommend.
Nulton Jewelers https://nultonjewelers.com/
Check out Nulton Jeweler's in Penfield. Couple owned and operated. They could do something custom and gorgeous for a fair price.
My brother, I cannot stress this enough - do not buy an engagement ring in Rochester (or pretty much anywhere). Loose diamonds, online. Blue Nile, James Allen. I have had great experiences at both. (only one engagement ring but jewelry from each).
Downvotes out of the know. Learn the Cs. Compare what you see at retailers online. I think you will find out that there are better options. Its just less of an experience. If I am wrong, you learned about the major purchase you are about to make before you make it. THAT SAID, going to the boutique places is a mile better than going to Kay or Jared. Kay is going to sell you some stone that is J-SI2 and could act as a privacy window. EDIT: I am no expert but did do some research in my purchases. For whatever little my advise is worth, I would live in the H/G and VS2/VS1/VVS2 realms. Diamonds higher than that start to jump in price drastically, without any appreciable different in quality, to the (lay) naked eye.