The Lure of Gold. Review on Caratlane

Carat Lane serves carats and gold. It's a very easy to use, convenient format. the specs and rates are transparent and upfront- mentioned boldly, so you can compare if you want.

you can see how the jewelry will look on you - you can try it on on the screen itself. each item shows a model wearing the piece, so you can judge the dimensions and span. I turned to this site because in Vijayanagar there are no diamond shops, and plain gold went out of fashion a long ago.

the sizes and individual components can be customized.

now the problems:

you have no idea if the model is thin or small - so the real size can be pretty surprising - or disappointing. it's better that you refer to the sizes mentioned in centimeters rather than go by the look on the model's finger, neck or ear - she could be a midget, then even a pebble would look like a rock on her tiny finger - get the idea?

as far as solitaires go - which I go for - there are so many aspects to the appearance of a diamond - such as the depth, table, etc. when we say very good cut - it might be actually better than an excellent cut. similarly, f color may not be as good as a g color in some cases. though the diamond may be .6 carat, it may have a very small height. similarly, you don't know how the VS2 intrusions actually look when held in hand. imperfections multiply manifold in a small piece and yet, in a small diamond they may not be visible at all.

lastly, photos are taken in studios with perfect lighting - the real piece can never quite match up.

their courier partner blue dart is a criminal - and is the worst letdown of the experience - they will even try to steal the complimentary chocolates because it's not billed!

so, in the end it's a matter of luck that you will like the piece and it will be as per your expectations. there is no question of your expectation being exceeded.

and now that their customer base is growing, their customer service is becoming less responsive, and not a delight as it was earlier.

if they promise to deliver a thing by such date - be sure they will have a rider attached.

nothing to beat physical shopping of a diamond with bis marking, and the confidence of looking at a diamond through an eyepiece, and comparing with several designs before settling on one.

carat lane gives you what it says it will, but with the usual tricks of the trade. definitely, I don't recommend diamond pieces that are not solitaires - you will get only trash. I recommend them with a caveat to be extremely careful with what you choose. their try at home option is best.