{"id":58133,"date":"2022-02-23T00:25:47","date_gmt":"2022-02-23T00:25:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ringspo.com\/ca\/?page_id=58133"},"modified":"2025-01-07T07:09:17","modified_gmt":"2025-01-07T07:09:17","slug":"micheal-hill-review","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.ringspo.com\/ca\/micheal-hill-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Micheal Hill Canada Review"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Michael Hill review<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Should you buy your engagement ring or wedding ring from Michael Hill? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Michael Hill was founded in 1979 by Michael Hill and his wife Christine, and after 40 years there are now more than 300 stores across Canada, Australia and New Zealand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As one of the largest jewellery store chains in Canada, Michael Hill has built a solid reputation for offering jewellery at a range of pricepoints, to cater to all Canadians. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this Michael Hill review<\/strong>, we will primarily examine them from the point of view of buying a diamond engagement ring. However, the findings are equally relevant for any other type of jewellery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019d like to jump straight to the \u2018value for money\u2019 section and see how choosing one of my recommended retailers could save over $1,100 and still get a higher quality ring compared to<\/strong> Michael Hill Canada, click here<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Michael Hill ring selection<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Michael Hill offers a total of 259 ring styles of diamond engagement ring to choose from:<\/p>\n\n\n

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Michael Hill\u2019s engagement rings are a mixture of cluster set diamond rings (where several smaller diamonds are placed close together to give the impression of a larger stone), while other rings have larger centre stones. A cluster of smaller stones generally costs less than one larger diamond, so cluster settings can be a good option for those with a tighter budget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The majority of the engagement ring styles that Michael Hill sells are either solitaire or halo settings \u2013 two classic styles that have stood the test of time. Solitaire settings are generally a less expensive setting than other styles and are great for keeping the focus on the centre stone, while a halo setting can make your ring stone look larger and impressive. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Looking at the precious metals use by Michael Hill in their settings, we can see that the most frequently used is metal 14kt white gold. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

14kt white gold is a commonly used metal in engagement rings, it is fairly durable, relatively high pure gold content, and widely available in the world of engagement rings. It is also affordable so it’s a great option for customers who are looking for a quality metal on a tighter budget.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Overall, there\u2019s an impressive range of engagement ring setting styles and diamond shapes on offer from Michael Hill, which means you should be able to find something that fits your taste.<\/p>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Michael Hill diamond quality<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Engagement rings are all about the diamond, and being able to choose a diamond that will sparkle brilliantly will make the difference between a truly stunning engagement ring and one that looks dull and unimpressive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this section, we\u2019ll examine the quality of diamonds Michael Hill offers, as well as how transparent they are about the quality of the diamonds themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The biggest determinant of the cost of a diamond ring is usually the diamond itself and Michael Hill allows you to choose your desired carat weight depending on your budget. In their product filter they have the following categories from under 0.25 carat to over 2.5 carats, although most fall into the 0.51 carat \u2013 1 carat range:<\/p>\n\n\n

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Michael Hills also offers a large number of cluster rings, which use \u2018TW\u2019 when detailing the carat weight e.g. \u20181 carat TW\u2019 ie. \u2018Total Weight\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The difference between 1 carat and \u20181 carat TW\u2019 is that \u20181 carat\u2019 refers to a single stone, rather than a collection of stones that add up to a total of 1 carat. A single large stone is much more valuable than many small stones that add up to 1 carat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, while this ring is listed with 1.78 TW:<\/p>\n\n\n

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The actual centre stone is only 1.2 carats – you can see this tucked away down at the bottom of the product detail listing:<\/p>\n\n\n

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I must stress that listing diamond rings like this is fairly common practice, but it’s also something that most people are not aware of when looking at diamond rings unless someone has pointed it out to them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While carat weight may be the biggest determinant of diamond price, the factor that tells us how inclusions, or flaws, a diamond has is the diamond \u2018clarity\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michael Hill don\u2019t show clarity information in their product filter but show it on the individual product page for each ring. Many of their natural diamonds have been graded as \u2018I1 clarity\u2019 (Included 1), which is a low grade on the clarity scale and means that inclusions will be very easy to spot e.g. the large slash across the middle of the diamond below:<\/p>\n\n\n

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We normally recommend clarity grades of VS2 and above to ensure that a diamond looks \u2018eye clean\u2019 ie. has no obvious flaws visible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The factor that determines how much a diamond sparkles is diamond \u2018cut\u2019. Diamond cut is a measure of how well the diamond has been formed and it is essential that a diamond has good proportions to reflect light; otherwise it will be dull, lifeless and unimpressive. If a diamond is too tall or too shallow, it won\u2019t reflect much light:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Understanding the cut quality of a diamond is absolutely essential to be able to understand whether it will sparkle. If you don\u2019t know the cut quality then you may very well be wasting your money.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Diamond is too shallow:<\/h4>\n\n\n
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Light passes through the diamond and is lost, meaning the diamond looks dull and sparkles less than it should.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Diamond is too deep:<\/h4>\n\n\n
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Light is bounced off the bottom facets at the wrong angle and is lost out of the side of the diamond, reducing sparkle.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Excellent \/ Ideal cut:<\/h4>\n\n\n
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Light is reflected off the bottom facets and back through the table to your eye, meaning the diamond sparkles beautifully. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Michael Hill doesn’t show diamond cut grade for their diamonds on their website. Instead, they show the diamond shape, rather than the cut:<\/p>\n\n\n

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When I asked Michael Hill about this on their live chat, they said: \u201cCut grading are only available on independently certified diamonds, this info is recorded on the certificate that comes with certified diamonds\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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The lack of information on cut quality is a huge red flag for Michael Hill. Many other jewellers do include diamond cut quality on their websites \u2013 some have it as one of the filters on their search tool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michael Hill diamond grading labs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Diamonds are graded on four key factors \u2013 carat, colour, clarity and cut \u2013 and a host of smaller factors too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diamonds which score higher are generally more expensive \u2013 an F colour diamond will be pricier than an H colour, if everything is the same. It\u2019s important therefore that diamond grading levels can be trusted \u2013 you don\u2019t want to pay more for an F colour diamond if it is actually an H.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is why independent diamond testing labs are important. An independent testing lab doesn\u2019t have any incentive to say that a diamond is higher quality than it is, as they don\u2019t make any more money if they do. In fact, if they bump up diamond quality grades, it may mean people trust them less, which might mean they make less money. Michael Hill doesn’t show any information about grading laboratories on their website, instead they only show if the diamond has certification or not in their product details.<\/p>\n\n\n

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When I asked Michael Hill about this through livechat, they said; \u201cno unfortunately we can\u2019t list that information online\u201d and when I asked why they added; \u201cbecause we have more than one of each ring design we can\u2019t guarantee which diamond certification company will have been used for the ring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This is another huge red flag for Michael Hill because they have different grading labs, they are not sure who will grade for every ring they have. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Retailers do have an incentive to increase diamond quality scores, as it will mean that they can sell a diamond for a higher price. For this reason, I recommend that you always look for a diamond which has been graded by an independent authority \u2013 my usual recommendation is the GIA because they have the strictest standards, so you will be sure that you are getting the quality that you are paying for.<\/p>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Michael Hill service<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Buying an engagement ring is a special purchase, and you want to have confidence that the retailer will not only treat you well while buying your ring, but also that they will stand behind their product after the purchase too.<\/p>\n\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Michael Hill has over 300 stores in Canada, Australia and New Zealand; which means you have the option to visit the store to see a design you like in person and try it on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They offer a three-year or lifetime Michael Hill Professional Care Plan to cover repairs and services at no charge. This covers things like ring sizing, re-tipping of prongs, stone tightening, refreshing and polishing, cleaning and inspecting, rhodium plating white gold, resetting diamonds & gemstones, earring repair and clasp replacement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michael Hill also has 30-day return policy and lifetime diamond warranty. Looking at reviews on Google, the reviews are split out by individual store. The Michael Hill Londonderry Mall store in Edmonton has a very impressive score of 4.5 from 26 reviews, indicating that people are very pleased with the service they have received from Michael Hill.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Michael Hill value for money<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Buying a diamond ring is a big commitment \u2013 both financially and emotionally. So it\u2019s important that you ensure sure that you are getting good value for money and aren\u2019t spending more than you need to. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After all, if you\u2019re buying an engagement ring, it\u2019s likely that you will have a wedding to pay for soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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To see how Michael Hill’s value for money compares, we\u2019ll compare it to one of my recommendations for the best place to buy an engagement ring<\/a> \u2013 Ecksand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ecksand<\/a> is a boutique Canadian jeweller with a strong focus on customer service, curation and craftsmanship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When comparing, we\u2019ll keep the ring style, diamond clarity, colour, carat as similar as possible. A good way to compare is looking at solitaire diamond rings as they are simple and timeless, without an ornate setting to make the comparison more complicated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking at Michael Hill, a good ring to compare is the \u201cCertified Solitaire Engagement Ring with a 1 Carat TW Diamond in 18kt White Gold’, which is priced at $8,999 plus tax \u2013 the total will depend on your province:<\/p>\n\n\n

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The diamond\u2019s specs for this ring are;<\/p>\n\n\n\n