first REAL diamond purchase help

[Ian0219]

I am a new poster who has been on here for over a month lurking. Pricescope is great and I could use some help!! So I have done some research on square shapes. I like the look of Princess of Hearts and CC Square Brilliants on GOG. I have been B&M shopping in the Syracuse, NY area and found one (yeah, only one out of the many independent stores I went to) to be helpful, knowledgeable, and they also seem quite honest. M. Lemp Jewelers is the place and they have 3 GIA Gemologists on staff. I have been working with one of them, the owner, who has brought in a couple different sets of diamonds for me. We were looking at radiants and the first set he got didn’t make the cut at all. Yesterday he showed me these two.

First was a “Mixed Cut” radiant
GIA Certified
Cut-Corned Square Modified Brilliant Mixed cut
5.2 x 5.2 x 3.67mm
.75 carat
Color: H
Clarity: SI 1
Depth: 70.6 %
Table: 55 %
Polish: very good
Symmetry: very good
Flour: None
Girdle: Med to slightly Thick
Price: 2550

The second, a cut cornered square brilliant which I didn’t write all the numbers down

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AGS Certified
Cut-Corned Square Modified Brilliant
5.22 x 5.32 x 4.21mm
.81 carat
Color: F
Clarity: SI 2
Depth: 70.1%
Table: 67.1%
Polish: Excellent
Symmetry: Very Good
Flour: None
Girdle: didn’t write down
Price 3130

Both eye clean, both looked good under the case. The mixed cut radiant looked different than other radiants I have looked at. It had larger flashes and some nice fire. Lemp’s service is excellent (inspections, cleanings, rhodium plating all free). They carry Vatche and I think the X Prong is perfect for my girlfriend. She has a size 5 and I think .75 to .9 carat would fit her nicely. I plan to call GOG on there selection but I don’t think they have any POH in similar price/size category. Any thoughts, comments, or suggestions are appreciated.

 

[chrono]

Firstly, let me start off by saying I''m not well versed in radiant cuts but wanted to point out/ask a few questions in the mean time:

Stone #1:
GIA 0.75 carat H/SI1
Depth: 55 % (too shallow? Is there such a thing?)
Table: 70.6 % (that''s a mighty large table, especially compared to the depth)

Stone #2:
AGS 0.81 carat F/SI2 (is it eye clean to you?)
Depth: 67.1%
Table: 70.1% (the table is still large but not out of whack with the depth)

Do you have crown heights of both stones?

 

[Ian0219]

OOPS!.. The table and depth percentages were flip flopped. I changed them to the correct order (55 and 67 tables respectively)

 

[Ian0219]

Both are eye clean to my novice-yet-learning eye and they looked okay under a 4x loupe as well. We ran out of time but he offered the microscope as well. I do not have the crown heights, so should I ask? I did look at both grading reports while i was in the store.

 

[chrono]

The AGS certed stone will probably have the crown height listed on the cert. The GIA probably doesn''t have the crown height. It would be very helpful if the store owner allowed you to take macro pictures of both diamonds. Radiants are fancy cuts and they need to be seen to decide if its a good stone or not. I really can''t advise anything more without pictures. Also, (with permission from the store), take both stones away from the store lights and view them under natural sunlight (outdoors or close to the window) as well as fluorescent lighting.

 

[Lorelei]

Welcome Ian

You can''t judge Radiants by the numbers so much, your own eyes are your best way to judge their beauty. As you can see these diamonds I would keep looking at more so you can get an idea of which type appeal to you. Also if you do contact Good old Gold, Jon and his crew are experts and can help you every step of the way. Personally I would see what GOG can come up with so you know what else is out there, as he may be able to source some great diamonds for you.

 

[Ian0219]

I will be getting the numbers on crown height this morning and probably take another look at them this evening. I have never taken the macro ictures before and I don''t know if they will do it for me. Will my average digital camera yield decent pictures?

 

[Ian0219]

So I have the reports in hand. I have decided against the AGS CC Square Brilliant. It was too much of a pin flash look. The mixed cut has a cut similar to a Lucere or Lucida. In fact if you subtract one step cut from the crown and the step cut from the pavilion of a Lucere that is what it looks like. It has Excellent polish and Very Good symmetry. My jeweler is going to try to pull in a couple more mixed cuts for me to look at. He has a great upgrade policy, 100% of the original purchase price towards the upgrade with no minimum difference. He has been great to work with and seems very honest. I still need to make a call to GOG and I want to order an idealscope from David Atlas.

 

[chrono]

You have seen first hand that even though the numbers are close, the 2 stones exhibited very different looks. You are doing all the right things by asking to look at more diamonds, getting an Idealscope and don't forget to call GOG.