Why do you buy diamonds?

shopoholica

Member
Aug 5, 2014
174
4
Hi Ladies,

So now that I am in my mid-twenties, I thought that it would be appropriate to buy bigger diamond studs (the studs I have now are 0.34 tcw), and I was bouncing this idea to my best friend, who is an investment banker on Wall Street (econ major undergrad), and he said to me "Why do you buy diamonds? They are a horrible investment!" This got me thinking about the whole diamond industry (which I always knew about but chose to ignore when making jewelry purchases), and I started to do some research about how much a diamond investment is really worth when I stumbled upon this: http://profit.ndtv.com/news/your-money/article-why-gold-is-a-better-investment-than-diamonds-369277

Even knowing this, however, I might still go ahead and purchase diamond studs, and then I started to think about my thought process from a psychological standpoint. Do I really NEED diamond earrings, knowing that they are practically worthless and useless (other than in technology), and that there are huge ethical issues behind them? And then I realized that I have fallen into the De Beer's advertising trap. I know that for most of the jewelry I buy, I usually tend to think about the investment qualities of the piece. So now, I think I am going to pull back from buying diamonds for a little while...

I guess I am writing this because I want to ask you ladies: Why do you buy diamonds? Would you still buy diamonds knowing that they are not a great investment? I am starting to feel great guilt for spending so much money on things that aren't going to hold its value...
 
Bottom line: Diamonds (and jewelry in general) aren't a great investment when viewed from a retirement/ future planning perspective at this point in time. However, it doesn't matter. I buy what I love and wear it frequently as a reminder of how lucky I am to be able to afford my own.

However, over time I've had many a conversation with others who trot out the old arguments that jewelry is a poor investment, comes from a sketchy production chain, and is all a DeBeers conspiracy/ hype. These are my own thoughts on the three topics.

Just because jewelry isn't in the same investment grade as most treasury bonds in the current market doesn't mean it's something to avoid buying completely. I think we should all have our own mini portfolios and rainy-day/ retirement funds. But those that use this argument often seem to imply its a character flaw to spend on jewelry. Classic case of pot calling kettle black - fact is, most of the criticizers I've met aren't monks/ priests. They spend on other non-value-holding goods that are easily arguably not necessary for a comfortable life. The list is long: designer goods - of any sort, luxury vehicles (esp bought new), having more vehicles than drivers, going out to movies/ theater/ entertainment in general, to eat out at anything considered "upscale" and above, going on vacations beyond the local park/ beach/ museum, collecting anything, buying a home when it makes more sense to rent (eg bubble pricing), having a pet of any sort (excluding working animals), etc. There is no particularly good reason any single one of those is more meaningful/ better than jewelry.

Then there is the supply chain ethics argument - I am of the mind that when someone has the resources to do so, they should try to check in on the supply/ process chain of a product. However, if you live in a developed country without overly strict trade restrictions, you probably own something made from underpaid quasi-forced sweat labor from a third world. You can only investigate as much as reasonably possible that the sourcing is ethical, the artisans are paid well (including health insurance), and be ready to pay the markup.

The marketing ploy of DeBeers as a reason not to buy something I enjoy - frankly, this is the weakest argument of them all, imho. My response? So? Everything is marketed these days, even prescription medications. And it doesn't mean branded is better than generic. Marketing isn't just for branding either. Marketing applies to concepts of what we need versus what we want. We've experienced excellent marketing that implies we "need/ should/ ought to" own a home as adults. Well, it's not always more advantageous to own vs rent. But ignoring common sense, we all plunged into the world of escalating real estate/ housing prices, and boom. Here we all are.

Just my really long 0.02 :P
 
I never buy jewelry for investment purposes I love the way diamonds make me feel, the way they sparkle and just everything about them, so I buy them. If I looked at everything as an investment when will I have fun? I would advise anyone to have a savings account, save for older age, and have for rainy days, but I would also advise anyone to not make money their priority in life, ( a little morbid ) but, either way you can't take the money or the things with you. Put your money where it makes you happy..savings account fine, saks fine. I have seen many examples where people did not buy/spend their money on anything "branded, fun, etc..they saved it all and then their children, family members spent it in a few short years..even months. In short save some, spend some. enjoy life!
*I digress :smile:
 
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I never buy jewelry for investment purposes I love the way diamonds make me feel, the way they sparkle and just everything about them, so I buy them. If I looked at everything as an investment when will I have fun? I would advise anyone to have a savings account, save for older age, and have for rainy days, but I would also advise anyone to not make money their priority in life, ( a little morbid ) but, either way you can't take the money or the things with you. Put your money where it makes you happy..savings account fine, saks fine. I have seen many examples where people did not buy/spend their money on anything "branded, fun, etc..they saved it all and then their children, family members spent it in a few short years..even months. In short save some, spend some enjoy life!
*I digress :smile:

This, which is summed up in the bolded portion.

I used to buy diamonds because they are sparkly and I like them. I love the flashes of color and light. Diamonds are easy to wear with nearly everything. They don't scratch easily, so you don't have to be overly careful with them.

I have stopped purchasing jewelry and have actually sold some pieces just to thin out my collection. I will probably sell more. I knew when I purchased my jewelry that if I sold it I would only get about 1/3 what I paid for it. That is fine. I did not purchase it to make a profit. I purchased it to enjoy it.

Get your upgraded diamond studs and enjoy them! :smile:
 
I have upgraded till I got the carat weight, grading specs and over-all look I want. Are they an investment...no. Do I wear my expensive stuff like I should...no. But I could never afford these pieces in today's market, so I'm glad I bought when I did.
Diamonds never seem to get cheaper..............
 
I just love well cut diamonds. That's why I buy them. I don't have a vast collection, but I love what I have. I don't buy based on resale, I buy what I love, that is high quality.
 
I don't buy diamonds because I am not fond of them. I bought some in my twenties and I rarely wear them. I bought them because I thought I "should" have some diamonds.

Now I buy chunkier gold pieces (and fashion silver) because I love wearing chunky metal. Modern is more my style.

If I buy any stone now, I think carefully about how much I would wear it. If these are earrings you love and would wear all the time, they may be worth it.
 
Because I love them.

I don't buy anything except stocks, bonds and real estate as an "investment". If any other purchases end up being smart and profitable then that's gravy :smile:
 
If you wanted to think in term of investment think about buying gold ( i dont mean plated gold) i mean real 21 carat gold they look nice and when you sell them they worth more than what dimond worth .
Regarding myself i like dimond i think they feel more expensive and make me feel good
and in the mean time i am obsessed with buying designer yellow gold with dimond ( vdc,cartier) which is way more expensive and dont worth a lot in term of selling in the future

i think a person should do both save a little , enjoy a little
buy what you like , enjoy it , you worked hard for the money and deserve it
 
I have bought diamonds because I love their sparkle! So many other things we need to buy now and prices going up, I am no longer buying, but resetting what I have. This is working fairly well for me. I am getting what seem like "new" pieces with beloved older stones.
 
I just bought myself my first pair of earrings, 2.3 ctw diamond studs. One was actually my old e-ring. The other a matching stone from Whiteflash. I have worn them everyday since I received them in late May. No regrets. Best purchase I made since my e-ring upgrade. I love diamonds. They're pretty and sparkly and make me feel good. I'm not reselling them. I'm passing them on to my children. :smile: