Out of curiosity: do you prefer branded/high end jewellery or unbranded - and why?

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As much as I hate to admit it, I love branded jewellery. When I spend a lot of money, I need to get THE FEELING - butterflies, can't get it out of my head etc. Jewellery from Cartier, T&co, Vca & more recently Boucheron give me that feeling. I feel special when I wear them. My small Love gives me joy every time I wear it. I do wear non branded custom made rings which give me the same buzz, but for more sentimental reasons

I totally get this. The heart wants what the heart wants ;)
 
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As much as I hate to admit it, I love branded jewellery. When I spend a lot of money, I need to get THE FEELING - butterflies, can't get it out of my head etc. Jewellery from Cartier, T&co, Vca & more recently Boucheron give me that feeling. I feel special when I wear them. My small Love gives me joy every time I wear it. I do wear non branded custom made rings which give me the same buzz, but for more sentimental reasons

I get it! The few pieces of designer jewellery I have, had a whole luxury experience attached to them. It totally makes sense that you prioritise that!
 
I love my unbranded pieces (diamond stud earrings, engagement/wedding ring) that were purchased through a local jeweler. I also love my select branded pieces (Tiffany Atlas bracelet, Tiffany gold knot earrings). I think it completely depends on each piece. I shopped for a LONG time for gold knot earrings, and I could not find any that were as high of quality and intricate as the ones I bought at Tiffany. For that reason, I could justify the up-charge (and I wear them all the time). When traveling, I like buying jewelry as my "souvenir." I bought a pair of blue sapphire earrings in Jaipur, India, and turquoise earrings in Santa Fe, New Mexico - they are stunning and have sentimental value. I rarely spend money on costume jewelry. I am currently saving for my first major watch purchase. I am leaning toward a Rolex.
 
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I love my unbranded pieces (diamond stud earrings, engagement/wedding ring) that were purchased through a local jeweler. I also love my select branded pieces (Tiffany Atlas bracelet, Tiffany gold knot earrings). I think it completely depends on each piece. I shopped for a LONG time for gold knot earrings, and I could not find any that were as high of quality and intricate as the ones I bought at Tiffany. For that reason, I could justify the up-charge (and I wear them all the time). When traveling, I like buying jewelry as my "souvenir." I bought a pair of blue sapphire earrings in Jaipur, India, and turquoise earrings in Santa Fe, New Mexico - they are stunning and have sentimental value. I rarely spend money on costume jewelry. I am currently saving for my first major watch purchase. I am leaning toward a Rolex.

I love the idea of buying jewellery as a souvenir! Are your earrings from Jaipur in the traditional rajasthani style with meenakari work? That is basically my favourite indian jewellery style :)
 
I buy what I love, but prefer named jewelry houses because I feel like they get more of the details right, like the weight of the clasps and jump ring and the size of the jump ring so they aren’t as fidgety. Unbranded pieces can be beautiful, but I don’t feel like functionality is always taken into account. The other day I spent five minutes trying to put on a piece from a smaller designer before giving up and switching to a Dior piece.
 
I buy what I love, but prefer named jewelry houses because I feel like they get more of the details right, like the weight of the clasps and jump ring and the size of the jump ring so they aren’t as fidgety. Unbranded pieces can be beautiful, but I don’t feel like functionality is always taken into account. The other day I spent five minutes trying to put on a piece from a smaller designer before giving up and switching to a Dior piece.
Totally agree with you about workmanship of metal work. One exception is diamond. For example, I adore the metal work and design of VCA jewelry, but would not buy anything with diamonds. Reason is that VCA diamonds are way overpriced and not necessary top cut. Their emphasis is on high color and high clarity only.
 
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Yes, they are! My only regret is that I didn't get a meenakari bangle too!

I love meenakari jewellery! I have a few pieces that my mum has given me - her collection is amazing - and I just love wearing meena and kundan jewellery especially with western outfits to kind of dress them up. If you want more meena jewellery you might be able to buy online! I know there's some instagram sellers etc.
 
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I buy what I love, but prefer named jewelry houses because I feel like they get more of the details right, like the weight of the clasps and jump ring and the size of the jump ring so they aren’t as fidgety. Unbranded pieces can be beautiful, but I don’t feel like functionality is always taken into account. The other day I spent five minutes trying to put on a piece from a smaller designer before giving up and switching to a Dior piece.

Totally agree with this. It's all about the little details. There is something workmanlike about my unbranded/custom pieces; but then, I didn't go to prestigious designers, for which I'd likely have paid as much as for an iconic designer pieces anyway...
 
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I'm very particular about the design of the jewelry piece I like and the quality of the craftsmanship. I am more inclined towards high-end jewelry because of their after-sales service. I have a beautiful collection from Tiffany, Cartier, and Buccellati with fabulous price tags (and I don't regret).
 
How did I miss this topic?!
I have some designer pieces, ie. (Tiffany’s and Chanel,) however, living South Los Angeles, located in Downtown LA we have the privilege of having a jewelry center that covers at least a mile.
You have soooo many choices, so you have the ability shop around and compare prices, able to bargain prices due to low over head, can create stunning high end custom jewelry privately, all pieces come with spec’s / warranties and, the vendors will take old jewelry applying the value towards the new purchase which is awesome!
 
It really depends what I am looking for. If it is a unique design that I enjoy from a certain brand (Love bracelet, JUC, etc. from Cartier) then I have no problem buying that piece. If we are talking general gold/diamond pieces that don't have much to them, then I have no problem at all, and actually prefer going the unbranded route due to the savings you can make. I think Tiffany diamond rings are beautiful, but the markup is crazy and the same can be found elsewhere for 1/3 of the price :panic:
 
I have both branded and unbranded. I usually go for signature or classic pieces for branded/high end jewellery. I have a few Cartier trinity because it symbolises my little family. I have a few Tiffany and Bvlgari and VCA, each because it symbolises something to me. I also buy many gold and diamond jewelry from unbranded local shops. Because they are unbranded I can get more items or bigger diamonds or fancier designs for less money than branded ones. And some of them are just as nice as high end ones.
I usually wear branded and unbranded together. Occasionally i will buy silver jewellery, mostly unbranded. But I very very rarely buy costume jewelry, even branded ones. I’d rather spend the money to buy unbranded gold/diamond jewelry than high end costume jewelry.
 
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