Any discernable difference in close cwt??

[paulc8125]

Just curious from those of you much more in the know than me. Is there much of a noticeable difference when looking at a princess cut of say .90 and one of 1.0 or 1.05? Especially when on a setting with side stones? Also wondering what you are looking for in the depth and table and how important that really is. What''s more important as well, the color, cut or clarity? Which would you want the most quality to go into out of those three? Sorry for cramming so much in there!

 

[Lorelei]

Welcome

I am not an expert on Princess cuts but I will try to help as best I can.

Firstly carat weight is a measure of weight and doesn't necessarily mean size. The dimensions or diameter measurements of the diamond will mean more with face up size. This means that a well cut .90 diamond could look as big as a not so great cut 1 carat. This can also be referred to as spread - for example if a .92 ct diamond has the spread of a 1 ct - they just hide or show their weight differently, especially if a diamond is too deep or has a very thick girdle which can hide carat weight.

Depth and table have to be considered with cut - which is the most important factor in choosing a diamond. A well cut diamond will outshine many others so never skimp on cut quality, it is what makes a diamond beautiful. There is info under knowledge which will help you to see the suggested proportions for Princesses, there is a lot of reading to do.

So we have cut as the top priority, next I think comes colour. For a white looking diamond in a Princess it seems that F G or H can be a good choice, lower cost than a D or E and looks good, plenty white enough for most, but it is best if you look at colours in this shape yourself to see what you like and compare GIA graded diamonds to be sure you are comparing apples to apples. Princesses can show more colour than a round, so it would be good to have a look yourself.

Clarity - well most here, myself included will go as low as possible on clarity as long as the diamond is eyeclean, many of us have an S12 which is clean to the eye and are delighted with them. A Princess may show inclusions more than a round due to the different faceting and larger table, but take a look at SI1 to S12 and see if you can find a good eyeclean one. Ask the vendor too if the diamond is eyeclean and determine your own comfort level, eyeclean in the industry can mean no visible inclusions in normal light from a distance of 10 - 12 inches, not peering close up. Define what is eyeclean to you and go from there. Remember too clarity grading is done face up, so a diamond which is clean on the top, you may be able to see an inclusion from the side of the diamond.

I hope this helps get you started.

 

[paulc8125]

Loralei, thanks for the welcome and the advice, that really was excellent. I can already see that there is a lot of knowledge and great diamond people on this site. I am actually becoming more interested in diamonds alone just from skimming around and reading. So you say go for the better cut and if you do have to skimp a little do it elsewhere! Got ya. Also, this might sound funny, but I saw a couple bands (settings) that I really liked at the James Allen site but wasn''t sure about the comfort for her. Is that really a big issue or am I thinking into it waaay too much just by the looks of the band alone??

 

[Lorelei]

Absolutely make cut your top priority and lower the colour and clarity - best decision you can make! An SI clarity is a great choice as many are eyeclean, why pay for what you can''t see as the saying goes with a VS clarity????? Can you post the bands from JA? Would she prefer a thicker band? What is her other jewellery like?

 

[paulc8125]

Loralei, I understand this might be asking a bit much but I am not sure how to post the pics here. If you are in the mood you could go to jamesallen.com, click on engagement rings. Then click on "settings with sidestones". You can then click on platinum, which is what I want to get. There are 3 pages of these settings. On the second page of them I was looking at the 2nd and 3rd ones in the top row and the one in the middle of the second row (Platinum princess cut Euro). Just not sure whether or not those bands look comfortable. You can click on them to view and see different angles and even see the ring on a hand, 3D view. If you are not up to it, I will understand! lol. What do you think as far as the old platinum-white gold debate too? I will stop, I swear! lol.

 

[Lorelei]

I will go and have a look! Platinum versus WG...... well it seems that platinum is the way to go for durability. It is said that platinum prongs are more durable than white gold and less likely to break, having said that many many folk ( of which I am one ) have worn gold rings for years without too many problems. The drawback is that platinum is far more expensive, depends on your budget. You could always put most of your money into the diamond now and have a WG setting then get platinum later if your GF would prefer, but if you think she would prefer platinum now then maybe have a look. Also platinum may need repolishing occasionally and white gold redipping.

 

[blodthecat]

I can't add anything to what Lorelei has said...it's absolutely spot on.

I had a quick look at the settings you are considering and my favourite is the second one on the top row. Having said that, I like the third one too. I am a platinum fan...and wouldn't consider gold...but that's just my preference.



Blod

 

[Lorelei]

Thanks Blods!

Paul I love both the settings, maybe the first one looks a little thinner than the second one in the band, but they look very nice! I like yellow gold, but if I am looking at the right one, I am not so keen on the middle of second row setting - the first one would be my choice!

ETA - i don't consider those to be an overly thick band - nice choice.

ETA - I was thinking of the wrong one

( not enough coffee!) I still like either the first or second best, just depends on whether you think she would prefer the one with more diamonds in with the thinner band or the thicker with just the odd diamond - both are nice but 2 gets my vote!

 

[paulc8125]

Thank you both for looking! This is actually getting fun around here! lol.

 

[paulc8125]

After reading your posts again, there shouldn''t have been any gold settings you were looking at! I clicked on platinum so that it would show only the settings in platinum.