6 replies to this topic

[WRWEAKLEY]

Depending on your view point this is either a horror story or one of amazing redemption.
IN December 1977 I bought at the Flagship Store in NYC an IF F 1.01 Tiffany Diamond set in Platinum. Was not cheap $8000. I thought I had lost the GIA Certificate, so sent the ring into Tiffany to get a new certificate. (LATER on I found the original certificate, was helpful to have) Upon unmounting the Stone Tiffany Gem Lab (They for many years now use their own inhouse Lab) it came back as a G VS1, surely not what I bought and it is my suspect that GIA over graded the stone in 1977--go figure?!

The BOTTOM Line, yesterday Tiffany gave me the following stone in return/exchange 1.19 CTW IF, F, excellent cut set in platinum with a Tiffany Value of $25,400.

LIFE Lesson, keep your paperwork and in this case glad I bought from a store that even after 34 years stood behind the product, The Tiffany Warranty they have now, was not in effect in 1977, but they did the correct thing. Kudos to Tiffany. Other specs on the new ring are as follows:

Round Brilliant
Measurements: 6.83-6.87 x4.20mm
Carat Weight 1.19 Color Grade F Clarity IF
Fluorescence Medium Blue
Precision of Cut, Symmetry and Polish Excellent for all three
Enhancements NONE
Cut Proportions
Total depth Percentage 61.3%
Table size Percentage 58%
Crown Height Percentage 14.7%
Crown Angle 34.6
Star Length Percentage 50%
Pavilion Depth Percentage 43.4%
Crown Inscription. T&CO with Number
Girdle Inscription NONE
Pavilion Angle 41.0
Lower Half Length Percentage 80%
Girdle Thickness Thin to Medium
Gridle Finish Faceted
Cutlet NONE

In Size six and will be sized at no charge and as with Tiffany Rings, the Carat Weight, Cert Ref %, Tiffany and Co and Plat 950 are in the inside of the band.

So Now I have a NEW ring unworn thanks to the ethics of Tiffany & Co. Hopefully if this happened to you, your store would do the same. My only dilemma is my wife has plenty of jewerly and as the original ring was from a prior marriage not sure I will be keeping it.

[davidelevi]

I think it's absolutely amazing.

Particularly because I think the stone that came back regraded was your original stone: you need the minutest chip on an IF stone to "downgrade" it to VS1, and in 34 years the chances of a stone being worn and remaining completely blemish free are practically zero. F vs. G may be a judgement call - bear in mind that F goes from almost E to almost G, and your stone may be right on the edge.

And they gave you a stone that's 20% bigger to boot.

Well done, Tiffany!

Thank you WRWEAKLEY for sharing your story. Why don't you set the new stone in a pendent or a ring for yourself?

[WRWEAKLEY]

Since I was divorced decades ago so the ring sat in a safe, There were no chips and when worn was done carefully, AND it was the original stone. Going from IF to VS1 was the shocker. So Go figure, but in any case I thought it was a story that needed telling as where you buy CAN made a difference

Being a NEW ring mated to the setting with Cert Number, I might sell it to give it a whole new fresh life. Should sell for $18K to $20K is my guess. I am waiting on the paperwork to be shipped to me from NYC. Since it is likely to come with a new warranty certificate, I will be asking Tiffany if Since the warranty is to the original owner or the first person you give it to, Does that mean if I sell it, then that being the first new person, Does the warranty transfer? Not sure but will be asking.

davidelevi, on 08 April 2011 - 10:58 AM, said:

I think it's absolutely amazing.

Particularly because I think the stone that came back regraded was your original stone: you need the minutest chip on an IF stone to "downgrade" it to VS1, and in 34 years the chances of a stone being worn and remaining completely blemish free are practically zero. F vs. G may be a judgement call - bear in mind that F goes from almost E to almost G, and your stone may be right on the edge.

And they gave you a stone that's 20% bigger to boot.

Well done, Tiffany!

Thank you WRWEAKLEY for sharing your story. Why don't you set the new stone in a pendent or a ring for yourself?

[davidelevi]

You would not see a VS1 blemish with the naked eye at all, and you'd have a VERY tough time finding it with a loupe, which is why I still think it was your stone. Anyway - all's well that ends well, and you definitely came out on top. Best of luck with whatever it is you decide to do in the end.

[LaurieH]

Wow...that is INCREDIBLE! And way to hold on to paperwork! Holy schmoly! So what had made you decide to do something about the ring now after all this time? And amazing that they not only made good on the stone, but gave you such an upgrade...i mean, seriously--a couple points ain't cheap when you're talking about a Colorless IF, let alone almost 20 points! That blows my mind. Congratulations.

It's funny...my parents have had a business (not jewelry related at all) since I was in HS, and my mom has always said "If you make a customer happy, they might tell a friend or two. But if you upset a customer, they'll tell EVERYBODY" I agree with this sentiment about 99% of the time. Most of the time, you figure someone doing their job and you getting what you should is to be expected and maybe someone being a little bit nicer about it is just a good thing and par for the course. But, man, those 1% situations that make you wanna shout it from the mountains how great an experience you had in the long-run...I tell ya... this one totally makes the grade (no puns intended)!

And hey...it's Tiffany's-- I know we won't be able to tell IF from a picture or anything, but come back and show off that bad boy, k?

[WRWEAKLEY]

I was going to sell the ring years ago and the deal fell thru because the GIA Certicate had some white out corrections, REMEMBER this was 1977 before computers and laser printers and the word Internally Flawless --- the I in the word Internally was misaligned --hey it was hand typed back then. So when I came home I put away and forgot where I put it. (Later found as mentioned) So earlier this year I thought OKAY let me get a new certificate as I had all the other documents of purchase which has detailed description --back then they called F color Extra Extra River. So that is what started the process of re evaluation 34 years after purchase.

I still thing the downgrade from IF to VS1 was a grading issue originally, but be that as it may, I now have a New Fresh Ring/Stone etc. This is not the only Purchase I made at Tiffany's so maybe that was a factor as I have been shopping there since 1970 when I bought my Sterling Flatware.

[davidelevi]

A good demonstration of how the quality (in the widest possible sense) of a business makes for longevity. They would not have kept you coming back for 40 years if they hadn't treated you well through the period. Still, I'm really astounded at their generosity and willingness to stand behind their goods.