Van Cleef in action!

[Opaldreamz888]

I love the wisdom from this forum.
I was wondering if I could get some advice from those who have bought preloved.

I was planning on buying a discontinued piece of VCA jewelry from a jeweler based in Paris. She is bringing the piece with her and we were going to meet at the VCA store in NYC. She has the authentication card and had it recently polished in Paris at Place Vendome and has that paperwork. I gave her a deposit and was going to give her the remaining money via a wire transfer and some cash. DH thinks I'm being scammed and wants me to have the piece verified at the NYC store before giving her the rest of the money (which could take a minimum of a few weeks via prong check). She is giving some push back, saying that she had planned to use some of the cash I was going to give her to buy things while she is in the states before returning home 2 weeks later. Does this sound like it is on the up and up, or am I being blinded by my emotions on getting this piece? Should she be ok with waiting for the piece to authenticate here in NYC? She also mentioned that she has 2 other buyers that were willing to pay more for it and that if I didn't want it anymore she could refund the deposit and sell it to someone else? Please advise

I think you are getting scammed possibly. Those lines are con artist lines, rushing to get you to make a decision. I would authenticate it before buying. If she doesn't like it too bad.

 

[pearlgrass]

Wore this beautiful combo today!

Love this pairing! PERFECT

 

[kelsenia]

Love this pairing! PERFECT

Thank you I love them so much! Makes me want to SO a 10 motif GMOP/pave pg necklace to match….ugh

 

[Prada Prince]

Out to dinner…

 

[littleunicorn]

Actually this was 37.5% premium based on the current price of the YG and carnelian 5 motif. I don’t remember what the carnelian was when I placed the order last May I think? If there has been no price increase that percentage would still be correct. I will say I’ve never paid 30% premium on my SOs. Maybe I’ve been unlucky. They’ve always been more. But oh well. I would not wear the piece if it wasn’t exactly what I wanted.

Thanks for sharing this.
It make sense to get exactly what you wanted, from experience, if it's not, it end up not being wore.

 

[chiaoapple]

Impromptu snap of vintage cosmos pendant, clover and perlee diamond 3 row

 

[mommafahionista]

I think you are getting scammed possibly. Those lines are con artist lines, rushing to get you to make a decision. I would authenticate it before buying. If she doesn't like it too bad.

I appreciate your response. I thought the same thing when I was less emotional about it. I did end up meeting with the jeweler at VCA and we agreed to leave the piece to be authenticated by their Heritage department. Once that is completed and verified authentic, I willl take possession. If it ends up being non-authentic in any way, I have some recourse. VCA was wonderful in handling all of this. I think when you’re spending a premium $$ for a discontinued piece, I worry that there are unscrupulous people who will try and pressure you into buying something that could potentially be altered or even fake. If the seller has an authentic piece, they should have nothing to worry about. Better to wait the 3-6 months for verification. That way you know you have a true gem Thank you ladies for your advice

This also got me wondering how easy it may be for non-authentic pieces to be sold to unsuspecting buyers. Youtube has videos of people with fake pieces and even fake authentication cards. Without having it authenticated by the Maison itself, you are taking a leap of faith and will never know for sure.

 

[DeryaHm]

Thank you I love them so much! Makes me want to SO a 10 motif GMOP/pave pg necklace to match….ugh

I’m dying dying dying to SO a few RG GMOP pieces. Even more so after seeing the stunning 20. I should get my orders in the queue, but I can’t shake the feeling that by the time they’re ready VCA may have introduced a few more pieces into the regular lineup

 

[Deleted member 626500]

I appreciate your response. I thought the same thing when I was less emotional about it. I did end up meeting with the jeweler at VCA and we agreed to leave the piece to be authenticated by their Heritage department. Once that is completed and verified authentic, I willl take possession. If it ends up being non-authentic in any way, I have some recourse. VCA was wonderful in handling all of this. I think when you’re spending a premium $$ for a discontinued piece, I worry that there are unscrupulous people who will try and pressure you into buying something that could potentially be altered or even fake. If the seller has an authentic piece, they should have nothing to worry about. Better to wait the 3-6 months for verification. That way you know you have a true gem Thank you ladies for your advice

This also got me wondering how easy it may be for non-authentic pieces to be sold to unsuspecting buyers. Youtube has videos of people with fake pieces and even fake authentication cards. Without having it authenticated by the Maison itself, you are taking a leap of faith and will never know for sure.

I'm so glad this worked out for you. Sounds like this is a very honorable seller.
P.S. This is why it's so important to keep all of your documentation, especially the sales receipt. It eliminates any question of authenticity should you ever want to sell a piece.

 

[Lien]

Impromptu snap of vintage cosmos pendant, clover and perlee diamond 3 rowView attachment 5387676

I am loving all your pieces but am especially enamoured by the Cosmos pendant.

 

[kelsenia]

I’m dying dying dying to SO a few RG GMOP pieces. Even more so after seeing the stunning 20. I should get my orders in the queue, but I can’t shake the feeling that by the time they’re ready VCA may have introduced a few more pieces into the regular lineup

I’m not sure they will ever have rg gmop non pavé in lineup since you have so many people who will pay the SO premium, but I could very well be wrong (hopefully).
I actually don’t get why they haven’t offered the 10 motif pave alternating gmop necklace as they have all other pieces in collection (earrings, bracelet, 20).

 

[mommafahionista]

I'm so glad this worked out for you. Sounds like this is a very honorable seller.
P.S. This is why it's so important to keep all of your documentation, especially the sales receipt. It eliminates any question of authenticity should you ever want to sell a piece.

Thank you. I think so too Agreed-keep the sales receipt. The jeweler wasn’t the original buyer, but bought it from the original owner. Only had the authenticity card and recent cleaning receipt from Place Vendome but also mentioned that people don’t like to give the original sales receipt since it has their personal information on it (home address). I can kinda understand that.

 

[EpiFanatic]

I appreciate your response. I thought the same thing when I was less emotional about it. I did end up meeting with the jeweler at VCA and we agreed to leave the piece to be authenticated by their Heritage department. Once that is completed and verified authentic, I willl take possession. If it ends up being non-authentic in any way, I have some recourse. VCA was wonderful in handling all of this. I think when you’re spending a premium $$ for a discontinued piece, I worry that there are unscrupulous people who will try and pressure you into buying something that could potentially be altered or even fake. If the seller has an authentic piece, they should have nothing to worry about. Better to wait the 3-6 months for verification. That way you know you have a true gem Thank you ladies for your advice

This also got me wondering how easy it may be for non-authentic pieces to be sold to unsuspecting buyers. Youtube has videos of people with fake pieces and even fake authentication cards. Without having it authenticated by the Maison itself, you are taking a leap of faith and will never know for sure.

Do you mind me asking about the process? How much will VCA charge you and how long is the wait? They said 3-6 months, even during this pandemic? I assume it is being sent to Paris for the proceeds?

 

[mommafahionista]

Do you mind me asking about the process? How much will VCA charge you and how long is the wait? They said 3-6 months, even during this pandemic? I assume it is being sent to Paris for the proceeds?

Not at all. VCA has 2 heritage departments, I learned. One in Paris and one in NYC. Jewelry from North and South America tend to go to the NYC Heritage Department. European ones go to the original location in Paris. They charge $1800/€1500 to authenticate. They will give you a certificate which will also include a picture of the piece (kinda like when you have your diamond certified). Your piece gets put in line as it is received by the department. That is the reason for the long delay. Apparently, they have a long queue.

 

[EpiFanatic]

Not at all. VCA has 2 heritage departments, I learned. One in Paris and one in NYC. Jewelry from North and South America tend to go to the NYC Heritage Department. European ones go to the original location in Paris. They charge $1800/€1500 to authenticate. They will give you a certificate which will also include a picture of the piece (kinda like when you have your diamond certified). Your piece gets put in line as it is received by the department. That is the reason for the long delay. Apparently, they have a long queue.

Thank you. That is great that they have a heritage dept in NYC. I was told that all pieces had to be sent to Paris to be authenticated by their heritage dept. the $1800 is also what they told me. Best of luck. I have a good feeling about your piece!