Anyone ever try Park Avenue Jewelry? Yuck!

[Linda Lou]

A Kanchanaburi ring I ordered this past Sunday, during their Gem weekend, just arrived, and it went immediately back in the package!

I'm so disappointed! Tony Malvagna kept going on and on about the quality of the sapphire in this ring, and how velvety blue the color was. OMG! It's so dark that I held it against my black slacks and you can't differentiate the colors at all.

You know, I always thought that his stuff was waaay over priced for what he was offering, compared to say, Generations 1912, or Gems Galore and I should have went with my intuition.

[Hellfire]

What is up with black sapphires? I don't know a lot about sapphires, but I have noticed in recent years some being sold so dark they look black.

[kittyinthecity]

What channel is that on?

I don't have any Park Ave. pieces, but i do have a Kanchanaberi sapphire ring and it is pretty dark, too.

[pebbles]

The best sapphires are cornflower blue. I have a dark sapphire and diamond coctail ring. I wish I could afford to replace those navy sapphires with good bright blue ones.

[mystylady]

I've never heard of Park Avenue Jewelry.. Is it a Show on QVC? No wait that's what it is... it's a show within a show, right?
So Sorry LindaLou! What a disappointment when you find out that the best thing about an order was anticipating it's arrival. Kanchanaberi IMHO only looks blue in direct sunlight around 11:00am, held in tweezers against a white background. If you even move it slightly out of the sun, it fades to black :( It's sad, really. It's such a great shade of blue... like Bic ballpoint pen blue is the only way I can describe it.
Now if you want a truly stunning Blue Sapphire there's only one choice (cma again) IMHO...
Ceylon
Ceylon
or Ceylon!!!!

Their beauty will leave you speechless!

[Linda Lou]

Oh, believe me Mysty, I know all about the Ceylons! I used to sell 'em.

I really shoulda known better, but the one they were showing really looked so blue!

You are right how there's only a glimmer of blue in direct sunlight. Too much work to detect it, however. I either want a Ceylon blue or pink sapphire this year, and am working towards that end.

kitty, I get Shop at Home on satellite, not cable. Sorry guys, I forgot to mention what shopping channel carried it! Good grief.

[jewelfreak]

I don't get shop at home, and I couldn't get into their web site when I tried. Are they any good? Or should I not bother?

[mystylady]

I used to get Shop at Home...when I had Dish Network...*sobs* I MISSSSSS MY DISSSSSHH!!!

Like all the rest, it's a crap shoot I would say...

Cheryl is showing Tanzanites right now... it seems the prices are going down but so is the color... or do I need to adjust my TV? ;-)

[francesca]

Very poor color! I wish they would give it a rest on tanzanite!!!!

[Linda Lou]

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jewelfreak:
I don't get shop at home, and I couldn't get into their web site when I tried. Are they any good? Or should I not bother?
www.tvtalkshows.com/board/showpost.php?p=1495613
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I LOVE Shop at Home for some of their products. The Elizabeth Grant line is terrific, IMHO, and for jewelry, I have some terrific pieces from Gems Galore, but probably the nicest gems you'll find there are from Generations 1912.

They are beautiful color and settings, from what I've seen.

[mystylady]

Fran, lol you're too funny! I have a feeling that something BIG is going to happen with Tanzanite in the very near future. TanzaniteOne has something up it's sleeve... I can FEEEL IT!

[jewelfreak]

I have read that there is NO danger of tanzanite runnng out anytime soon. But that is not to say that anything good will be coming out of the mines. As far as the supposed "breakthrough" news that JTV has been reporting about Tanzania not going to be allowing any rough over one carat out of the country unless they cut it, I don't know for sure, but this sounds plausible. It's about time that Tanzania takes control of their valuable natural resource and realy starts making some money for themselves instead of handing it over to the big corporations who reap the benefits. Infortunately, if Tanzania is doing the cutting, all the good material is going to have to be recut, thus REALLY limiting the availability of decent sized stones. But who knows.
Yeah, I really feel that something big is gonna happen really soon. For my birthday, my hubby told me to go ahead and order the tanzie ring I had been wanting. But then I had to go and look through all the others to make sure it was the one I wanted, and then I couldn't decide. So I ended up with nothing - well, I instead ordered the iolite ring, but you all know how that ended up.
It's so hard, because I have a vison of the right one in my mind, but I never actually seem to find it!! I feel this is an investment piece for me, and I just don't want to settle. But I think I had better make a decision soon...

[mystylady]

You're so lucky to have a hubby who tells you "yeah go ahead and order that there ring, wifey"!!! How did the Iolite Ring Fiasco end? Did they finally get it right? Don't tell me you gave up trying to get them to make it right! You can't!!!! You HAVE to make them be accountable for what they sell, dammit! It's just not right! I'll stand behind you all the way.
Don't just sit on that ring, especially if it's inferior and less than what you thought (and what they ADVERTISED) it to be!

[jewelfreak]

No, I sent the iolite back. I got the second one, and it was a little better - no black spots, but full of these clear/white needlike inclusions - so I was gonna send it back for a third. But it was Saturaday when I got it, so I wore it on Sunday just around the house cuz I couldn't mail it back til Monday anyway, and about halfway through the day, I look down, and one of the marquis tanzanite accent stones were gone. So I decided no more. Even if I had gotten one with a clean center stone, it probably would have lost a little stone within a few days - as has happened to me MANY times with JTV's jewelry. The funny part is, I ordered a citrine and chrome diopside ring, I got it for about thirty dollars on crazy sale plus it was the last one left - and that has been awesome. The only thing wrong with it was that the actual band part was a little crooked, as in not aligned with the top part - but I wasn't worried cuz it's not like you can tell and it was so cheap. It makes me so mad, because everything I have bought under 40 bones has been awesome, and all the things I pay a decent buck for have been duds!!!!
Yeah, Mysty, you are right that JTV needs a kick in the ass, but unfortunately, doing that just creates more and more hassle for me. I have decided on a two strike rule from now on - if its no good after the first replacement, than no more. Besides, JTV is punishing themselves on their own by being to cheap to employ a few quality control people, and therefore losing sales. Right now they are just losing sales, but pretty soon, they may lose a customer alltogether.

[mystylady]

Seriously Jewel, you should at least call them and tell them what happened... and see what they suggest. I don't think that they should not at least be accountable for that ring, IMHO. If you don't call, it's like saying in some way that it's OK and it's NOT!!!

[jewelfreak]

Well, I returned it, so it's not like I just stood there and took it, or kept it regardless of the problems. I have had many conversations with JTV, and all they can really do is try to rectify it with sending a replacement and giving 20% coupons. I mean, what else can they do for me? Short of giving me free stuff, which we all know isn't going to happen.

[Fezmydoodle]

I have bought some beautiful Gems Galore jewelry from Shop at Home TV, but never Park Avenue. I have my eye on a three stone Ceylon sapphire ring from Generations 1912, but I was hoping to get it on easypay. This would be my first Generations piece but their gallery work looks super on TV. They usually have great sales.

[Fezmydoodle]

Ok, so I just read about SAH closing up shop. Better get it now or it's gone.

[Linda Lou]

Oh! I DID order that 3 stone Ceylon from Generations 1912, but sadly sent it back!! You know, the stones were actually dark!!! This was the first Generations piece I can say I was disappointed with.

And it was expensive too! Nearly $1,000 beans! It shoulda been more blue, IMHO!!!

[Fezmydoodle]

Thanks for the tip Linda Lou! Now I won't pine away for it wondering how nice it was (or wasn't).

[francesca]

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For my birthday, my hubby told me to go ahead and order the tanzie ring I had been wanting.
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E-mail customer service at Gem Shopping,

SPAMSPAMSPAMSPAMSPAMSPAMSPAMSPAMgemshopping.com/contact.htm

with your price range, and ask them to suggest a couple of pieces. You will be amazed at the quality!



At JTV look at Frank's pieces. Every one of his item numbers starts with Q. He often has some smaller stones, but still rich color, at DEAL prices.

Whatever route you go, Miss Jewel, don't let hubby off the hook! LOL

[jewelfreak]

Whatever route you go, Miss Jewel, don't let hubby off the hook! LOL
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LOL! I won't let him off the hook, but it'll be awhile before I get another chance to buy my tanzie - the bank account is empty since my job switch.

I have never seen anything I can afford of Frank's pieces - only big honkers. So you say he has smaller ones? I only have about 500 bones to work with when I do buy. Does he have stuff in my price range? I am looking for about a .50 - .75 ct with good color - not light but not one that is so dark it looks like a sapphire, in a trillion cut, with a contemporary, unusual setting. The two I really loved on JTV both had the whole setting triangular shaped, but my mom looked at the one and said it looked too much like a shield or a class ring, so I changed my mind, and the other was good - all channel and bezel set, good for tanzie, and exspecially good from JTV since I seem to have a problem with their rings losing stones, but it was a little too high at 549. The search continues.....

[francesca]

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Does he have stuff in my price range?
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I've seen what you describe! But, you know JTV.
What's there one day may never be back.
It's definitely worth checking on-line every so often!