When an extremely analytical person such as myself sets out to buy an engagement diamond, there is little doubt that the process can be a daunting task. This was one of the most important purchases of my life and I treated it that way. I wanted to become not only a well educated consumer but also to find the "perfect" stone for my future fiancée. For me, buying a diamond involves much more than learning about the five "C's" (cut, color,clarity, carat and cost). I purchased three books, searched the web incessantly, and visited several different jewelers over the three months I was shopping for my ring. During this time, I received both misinformation and contradictions from various sellers. To put it simply, I was suffering from "paralysis by analysis" and was at my wits end trying to find a diamond dealer I was comfortable with. However, I can unquestionably say that I found "The Man" when I spoke with and met Jonathan Weingarten of Good Old Gold.

I do not intend this to be a long testimonial. If you are like me, you will scan the various testimonials for each dealer and pretty much accept them at face value. It seemed that everyone I talked to had a "friend of a friend" who could get me a great deal on a diamond. I visited ten dealers during this process. These sellers included a high end retailer in New York City (1), an internet seller (1) and many local jewelers (8). Although I did encounter some helpful jewelers (with a disparate price range for seemingly similar stones) during my search, Jonathan was different than all the rest. He not only provided more information on his website than any of the other dealers on the internet, he also allowed me to view various (branded and non-branded, Hearts and Arrows and non-Hearts and Arrows) stones in the categories I was looking for. Although I can go into detail about our diamond (a super ideal cut 1.36 ct F VS1), I will simply state that it is absolutely gorgeous. Most importantly, my fiancée and I are thrilled with it!

I live approximately one and half hours away from Jonathan's store. The drive was well worth it. While there is much to my particular story that is omitted for the sake of brevity, I can attest that Jonathan will answer any and all of your questions and concerns. The level of detail that Jonathan provided on my particular stone, the diamond industry and the diamond buying process was helpful and consistent with the books that I had read. Although I realize that Jonathan is a businessman, he has differentiated his services from his peers. By using various tools such as the megascope, microscopic pictures, FireScope and hearts and arrows pictures, he provided a unique buying environment that allowed me to get see my future engagement diamond in greater detail than any of his competitors could. Indeed, when I had the ring independently appraised, the appraisal came back with a value several hundred dollars above what I had paid for it. As a result, based on my personal experience I strongly suggest to anyone looking to buy a diamond to contact Jonathan at Good Old Gold. Realizing that I took the time to write this testimony should speak volumes as to how confident I am that you will be happy that you did.

esorensen@monmouth.com