Viva Jewelry Limited

My husband and I went to get new rings for our 10^th Anniversary a few years ago (we married young and had pretty cheapo rings from our wedding)… I decided we should check out places in the jewelery district in L.A. We went into Viva Jewelery Ltd. as our first stop (just by chance) and met Fred and I believe his wife. Fred sat us down and educated us on diamonds, diamond pricing in the district, etc. After telling him what we were looking for he gave us a price. We didn’t want to buy at the first place we went since we weren’t really sure what we were doing — so we spent the next few hours shopping around. We went to some of the big multi-​booth marts and to a couple diamond importers — after poor service, shady people, pushy people, and prices that were pretty much the same if not more — we returned to Fred at Viva. We KNEW we had found our jeweler.
We picked out our stone and I really wanted a fancy old fashioned looking filigree setting going into the day. Fred didn’t have exactly what I had in mind, but did tell me that if I brought in a photo he could likely have it replicated. But THEN, he showed me the stone in an ornate setting (different than what I wanted, but the same concept) — THEN he showed it to me in a simple setting, more classic, but still very pretty with diamonds set in the band. He told me that the stone should be showcased, not hidden and distracted from by an ornate setting. He said something to the effect of, «If you want that kind of a setting (meaning very ornate), let me sell you a cheaper diamond — you’ll never notice any flaws in that kind of setting. If you’re going to buy a beautiful, high quality diamond — you want to SEE it!» He was ABSOLUTELY RIGHT! The setting he recommended shows off my stone BEAUTIFULLY — plus it has classic styling that I can’t see myself ever getting tired of.
Less than a year later my cousin was going to propose to his girlfriend and needed to buy the ring. He had been to a few of the bigger name «engagement ring stores» in the mall and around town — so he knew their prices and service. I told him if he wanted to try the jewelry district before buying to let me know and we’d go see Fred. We went, and my cousin was SOOOOO impressed with the service AND the prices. He got a MUCH better stone than he could afford at any of the other places, and he felt informed and educated without being talked down to at all.
I recommend Viva and Fred to all of my friends, and wouldn’t think of buying fine diamonds or jewelry anywhere else.

So while I didn’t make a purchase, I’d have to say that were I going to, I would do it here. Prior to today I knew absolutely nothing about diamonds, and I went to support a friend only, but I felt confident that I could trust Fred and he was extremely knowledgeable and comfortable. His pricing was fair and he was very honest and forthcoming, which especially when you’re buying something so expensive and important, you have to have. I totally think it’s smart to work with an individual dealer instead of a mass market kind of place where you have more negotiating room and get really focused attention and they give that to you here. The diamonds are all GIA certified and the selection is really good. I didn’t ask, but I also think he could get you something you wanted if he didn’t have it there. Parking is difficult, but you can park and walk a few blocks as the exercise is always helpful anyway and while you don’t have to make an appointment, better do to be safe not sorry (we had to wait 30 minutes without an appointment). Keep up the good work.