Buying an Antique / vintage ring

[Pearjam]

I've name changed because we haven't yet told all our family and friends: but my lovely lovely DP and I have decided to get married next summer.
We've got a small budget to spend on an engagement ring (around £500 which still feels like a lot to me as jewellery isn't really my thing, but I'm actually really excited about this which surprised me!), and I'd love to get something from the Art Deco or Edwardian eras.
I just wondered whether anyone had done similar, and if so are there any shops / places you can recommend for me to have a look? Or anything to watch out for / avoid!

I had an Edwardian ring for an engagement ring, not to DP....we got it from an anttuque shop, and although I am not with this partner anymore, it's a very pretty ring, and I am keeping it for my DD.

Anywhere near Birmingham? If so come to the jewellery quarter for a mooch. Lots of antique rings on offer.

My engagement ring is antique and I love it.

Have fun choosing!

Hatton Garden shops if in/near London. You should get more for your money by buying vintage as well. Congratulations! :)

Thank you all, I'm really excited, and its lovely to hear from other people who have done the same! I was half expecting replies telling me it was a really bad idea....
Birmingham is closer than London for us, so it sounds like the jewellery quarter might be worth a day trip?
Wondering if anyone who has been recently can offer any pointers about which shops to start with: I've had a look at the website and there seem to be loads!

I too wanted an Art Deco ring. We went to Birmingham but actually there were very few vintage rings. Not helped by me wanting an emerald admittedly. I ended up with a new one that is very Art Deco in style from Victoria James. If I were doing it again is probably trawl the vintage shops in Brighton tbh. I've seen far more there than we did in Birmingham, which were very much new diamonds in the main.

You don't have to go to Birmingham or London, though a trip sounds like a nice - and romantic- day out .... Many towns have independent jewellers, often old-established family firms. Go to the best one(s) in your local area, see what they have and talk to them. Most will have a few pieces of secondhand jewellery. You may not find exactly what you want straight away, but it should help you find out what style or ring/colour of stone suits your hand, what's the best option for your price range etc. A jeweller should also be able to tell you which stones and settings are best for everyday wear - some can be quite fragile.
Agree with earlier poster that towns (such as Brighton) with lots of antique shops would be good places to look.

Re online, here are just two examples from a couple of reputable online antique jewellers. There are others; perhaps Mumsnetters who know more than I do can recommend. The prices for some of their rings are absolutely amazing - faints! - but they have a wide range, and, as with all antique shops, stocks get updated regularly.
This seems to have been sold but is very pretty:www.jamesness.co.uk/store/product/2_rings/71_ruby-rings/704_antique-edwardian-ruby--diamond-ring/
This is a bit more than you want to pay, but is a lovely blue:
www.carolefranks.com/Antique-Rings/Antique-Sapphire-And-Diamond-Engagement-Ring/3481
This has also been sold, but, from its position on the website, would have been well within budget. Rather elegant, I think.
www.carolefranks.com/Antique-Rings/Edwardian-Sapphire-And-Diamond-Engagement-Ring/3346

Mylovelylovelyhorse I'm glad you got something you liked in the end, I've asked a couple of friends who live in Birmingham and they say the same: there is apparently less antique jewellery for sale that there used to be. And they think perhaps one or two shops that did sell it have closed in the last year or so?

florascotia thank you so much for those links. I've very much enjoyed looking at some of the amazing £6k rings, but you are right there are also some lovely ones around our price range. I've bookmarked both of those sites and I'm going to keep a look out.... The last one you linked to is just beautiful and very much.

Hmmm. I lost words at the end of that post. Last sentence should read ..and very much my style.

Could you give us a hint of where you are? I'm in Gloucester and we have a huge antiques centre and (I think) three independent jewellers with decent collections of vintage jewellery.

There are probably lots of towns that are similar.

York has some lovely jewellers and antique shops that sell antique rings
for example:

www.cavendishjewellers.co.uk/

Also a really romantic weekend break.

Congratulations.

Oooh you got me looking!!!

I want this one

www.cavendishjewellers.co.uk/products/0201054/Individual-9ct-White-Gold,-Sapphire-&-Diamond-Ring

I got mine here

WaitingForMe we are in the Midlands so Gloucester is another day trip option I think: and that's a good suggestion about looking for independent jewellers and antique centres in other towns: I'll have to do a bit of research...

Admiraltea York is lovely, that's a also a great suggestion. And I love the ring you linked to: shame it can't be resized or I'd be very tempted myself!

I've got an Art Deco diamond daisy ring, platinum with 9 diamonds. Amazing quality, it's perfect and different to anyone else's. And we made an offer so got it a little cheaper

If you're in the midlands you should really take a trip to Hemswell in Lincolnshire. The website is shite, but the range and prices for antique and vintage jewellery are fantastic.

And congratulations

Try an auction house.

Independant jewellers are your friend - they nearly always sell good quality vintage rings, they may also be able to point you in the direction of a local dealer too.
Antique shops often have a jewellry case.
Personally I'd avoid the large jewellry centres as you may not get a bargain.

Have alook on e-bay also - you may not want to bid but you will get some ideas of what you like - search 'antique fine jewellry'

I loved the idea of an Art Deco ring but when I went looking they were a little bit scarce for that budget - and I wanted an emerald too.

I got my emerald engagement ring for a bit over your budget (about 700 pounds) in a gorgeous antique shop in the town I live in. I'm delighted with it. I was briefly a bit crestfallen to learn that it dates from 1980 instead of anything a bit older - but I so so don't care now :)

I'd be a bit hesitant about buying from eBay - I think a friend was a bit disappointed re. the quality of her ring.

Thank you for all your replies; sorry for not updating sooner!

IceRocket your ring sounds lovely, and I've added that shop to my list of favourites on ebay; they have some lovely things, so I will keep checking what they add. I also did what you suggest, WildBillfemale I've managed to spend a lovely afternoon looking through some beautiful rings whilst I should have been writing a report (oops!) and its given me some good ideas, thank you!

tethersend thank you; I'll be adding a trip to Hemswell to our list of possible day trip places.

iK8 Another friend has just recommended a local auction house to us, and apparently they are due to release a new sales catalogue next week, so we are just waiting to see what that has.

Greenstone I think i might be having the same issue you did; I've seen some beautiful rings but way over budget. Others were lovely but too 'worn' looking (I appreciate there will be some wear on an antique or vintage ring but some more than others).
To complicate matters further, I've had my fingers sized and I apparently have very skinny fingers. Between a size I and J. Which is a surprise because the rest of me is not particularly skinny I mean, of all the parts of your body to be naturally skinny, fingers are probably the least useful...ah well! So one or two I've looked at and enquired about can't be sized down without compromising the design and shape.

I've also had a look on Etsy and there seem to be some possibilities there; anyone bought from an Etsy seller?

Remember you can always have a new shank out on, claws repaired whatnot so if you're getting a good price and the stones are lovely then don't pass it up.

Online vintage jewellery shopping is pants. It needs to be a tangible thing that you can see and touch and watch it sparkle.

Most indie jewellers will 'take orders'. In that we have avenue/connections to find certain styles etc. so even if there's nothing in their window- they might have something in the safe/have one a phonecall away.

Definitely worth a conversation!

Sorry it's taken so long to come back and update. I had a look online, and then spent a few lovely afternoons looking at antique jewellers shops in Birmingham and a few smaller towns near me.
I eventually found one that I loved in a shop in Birmingham: its edwardian, a diamond solitaire with beautifully engraved platinum sides (they look like little leaves and vines) , and a gold band. I'd post a picture but because its so unusual, I think it would out me...
I'm going to look out for a platinum wedding band to match, something with some engraving to tie in with the detail on the engagement ring I think.
Thank you so much everyone who posted with wise advice and suggestions.