Helen

I'll be visiting Limerick, Killarney,Waterford, and the Dublin areas this summer. Would love to purchase some gold/platinum engraved rings and some beautiful celtic necklaces and earrings for my daughters. Would appreciate any guidance on the art of jewelry bargaining and excellent jewelers in these areas.

Maxie

You will find some stunning pieces in Ireland. Some will be handmade and some manufactured, depending on the jeweller. But I'm not sure in either case you will be "bargaining", especially with the nicer metals. Another poster can correct me, but I would not expect great discounts. Do some research on the Internet so you will know what to expect in terms of pricing.

Siobhan

Helen,

You cannot barter with jewellery shops in Ireland. I know there are places in New York where they have different jewellers in a large store/warehouse that you can bargain with but I have never seen this anywhere else other than in Morocco where bartering is everything. A shopowner would be insulted by this as the prices are set.

Newbridge is a cutlery design that also does unusual silver jewelry necklaces and chunky bracelets. The Kilkenny Design shop in Dublin on Nassau street has beautiful Irish crafted jewellery and they also sell Newbridge. This brand is sold throughout Ireland. In Temple bar across from the meeting house square is a jewellery design showroom that features different jewellery designers (not all are irish designers but unusual pieces are sold here). Good luck

jill

Hi,
There used to be a very good jewellers called Patrick Flood's in the Powerscourt Town House, I am not 100% sure they're still there, but they did nice Celtic designs. If you're out in the suburbs there's an interesting gallery called the Guinness Gallery that stocks unusual jewellery from up and coming designers. The Gallery is in Foxrock, which is about 30-45 mins from the city centre on public transport.

I agree with the other poster- a reputable jeweller would be insulted if you tried to bargain with him/her

ttt

ttt

Barb_in_Ga

Bargaining can be offensive if it is done with a rude attitude, but there is never anything wrong with politely asking "Is that the best price for this?" I manage a branch of a very nice jewelry store, and while I don't like playing "let's make a deal", I don't mind if people ask if that is the best price. Sometimes we have a little flexibility, so my answer is --"Be polite, but ask if discounts are granted!"

karan

Helen -
Too bad you're not going to Kinsale, Marquise of Kinsale is a great jeweler. (the kind that you need to be buzzed in for) I've bought many things from them over the years and had them appraised in the US @ almost twice the price I paid. I make sure that every time I go to Ireland that we spend time in Kinsale for that reason, but don't tell my husband that, he likes Kinsale for the pubs!
-karan

xxx

I have to agree with Barb. There is nothing wrong or offensive by politely asking if you are being given the best price, especially if you are buying a number of expensive pieces from one jeweller. If the sales staff is working on commission, the business and the sales staff usually have some flexibility.