Please Help!!! SHOULD I BUY THIS STONE????

[vipstyle]

Hello,

This is my first post so thanks for everyone's time and I hope that I provided enough info. I am about to buy an engagement ring and am faced with this question.I am in need of expert advice. Please help me with this decision!!! I am being offered a stone which is GIA certified. It is 3.00 carats, round brilliant cut. It is a E color and has a clarity of SI2(no black inclusions). The rap list say it is $11,500 a carat which makes the rap price $34,500. I am being offered to buy this stone for 27.5 % off of the rap price ($25,000). I have done some reading on this site and see that the table might be too big which makes this stone a fish eye. Also the medium blue fruoresence concerns me. other then that I don't see any problems. Is the price so good because this is a fish eye or am I just getting a good deal. The person selling this stone to me is a childhood friend which I fully trust. Please look at the information from the GIA report and any feedback will be appreciated!!!!!! The report reads as follows:

Measurements: 9.25-9.31 x 5.48 mm
Cut - Good
Total depth- 59 %
Table size- 66%
Crown angle - 35.5 degrees
Crown height - 12%
Pavillian angle- 40.4 degrees
pavillian depth- 42.5 %
star length - 50%
lower half- 85%
girdle- medium to thick
Facected- (4.2%)
cutlet- none
polish- excellent
symmetry- good
fluorosence- medium blue
Comments- pinpoints, a laser groove and surface graining are not shown.
Key to symbols- feather, crystal, indented natural needle


Thank you for your help!!!

Michael

 

[Gonzodogg]

It looks like the stone is so cheap because it is not a very good cut. (Also maybe because of the medium blue flouro, but mostly because of the cut)
The cutter was probably shooting for that 3 carat mark when cutting so the 3 carat premium could be charged. In order to do that he/she sacraficed a decent cut.
If the 3 carat mark is very important to you - go ahead and get this stone at this price.
In my opinion - NO WAY - do not sacrifice the cut just to have a 3 carat ring. I really believe that in the long run, you will be happier with an ideal cut 2.5 than this not so great cut 3 carat.

(Let me clarify - the cut is not bad - it''s just not very good and I personally think that you should never settle on cut)

just my .02

Mike

 

[belle]

why would you spend 25k on a borderline fish-eye of only good cut?
or just to answer your question... no, i don''t think you should buy that stone.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I am new here so am about the least qualified to reply. But as I have been diamond shopping, I have learned a little about those numbers. People here will tell you that cut is the most important thing. Most will say you have to have Ideal cut, but I will say that I personally think I can go with a Premium (excellent) cut that is almost ideal cut and be happy. Your table size of 66% likely means that this diamond would not fall into either Ideal or Premium, and your own report says "Good" for cut. I wouldn't consider going below premium cut. I'd rather have a well cut, nice color and clarity 2 ct. stone any day than a mediocre 3 ct. I would be a little afraid of an SI2 in a stone that large. The florescence probably brings down the price a little, although medium or less florescence probably won't matter (I have a diamond that has a little flor. and you cannot tell it).

 

[vipstyle]

Wow, What a quick response!!!!

So far, so Bad. Can someone be more specific on what are the con''s of this stone. Also My budget is $25,000...Any better Idea''s?....I am also being offered a 4.6 carat round with no cert. and the info i was given is that it is a k/l color and was told by a friend is a clean SI2. What do you guys think? Thanks again for all the help! !!!!!

 

[Kaleigh]

Date: 1/23/2006 9:53:42 PM
Author: belle
why would you spend 25k on a borderline fish-eye of only good cut?
or just to answer your question... no, i don''t think you should buy that stone.

Ditto. First do yourself a favor and read the tutorials her on cut. CUT is key to a beautiful diamond.

 

[jaz464]

It sounds to me like you value size over anything else. If what you want is as big a diamond as possible and don't care about alot of brillance and sparkle, you may want to consider diamonds like these.

$25,000 is a fabulous budget and could get you an absolutely gorgous diamond (i.e. ideal cut) at the 2-2.25 carat mark or so (depending on color and clarity). If 2 carats isn't big enough for you you will more than likely be sacrificing cut.

 

[belle]

if you just want to get the biggest stone you can regardless of how the diamond looks, then by all means, go for the 4.6ct! if you want a diamond that will get noticed for it''s beauty and sparkle from across the room, then you need to focus on getting a well cut stone. color and clarity do not have an impact on how well a diamond performs, but the cut will. for 25k you can get a great cut without sacrificing much size if you bring down color/clarity.

 

[Gonzodogg]

Date: 1/23/2006 10:07:42 PM
Author: jazmine
It sounds to me like you value size over anything else. If what you want is as big a diamond as possible and don''t care about alot of brillance and sparkle, you may want to consider diamonds like these.

$25,000 is a fabulous budget and could get you an absolutely gorgous diamond (i.e. ideal cut) at the 2 carat mark or so (depending on color and clarity). If 2 carats isn''t big enough for you you will more than likely be sacrificing cut.

I was just about to say the same thing.
As I said above - if size is what you want, then these stones sound great. Here in these forums MOST people are going for maximun sparkle, and to do that, you need a great cut.
I think you need to go to a high end jewelry store that has BIG and QUALITY cut and decide what your eye feels is most important.

As for suggestions for you 25K budget - I would go with eye clean, near colorless, ideal cut stone around 2 carats.
maybe this one...
http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-785566.htm

good luck

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 1/23/2006 10:00:31 PM
Author: vipstyle
Wow, What a quick response!!!!

So far, so Bad. Can someone be more specific on what are the con''s of this stone. Also My budget is $25,000...Any better Idea''s?....I am also being offered a 4.6 carat round with no cert. and the info i was given is that it is a k/l color and was told by a friend is a clean SI2. What do you guys think? Thanks again for all the help! !!!!!

vipstyle
that is a BIG NO,NO

$25k will buy a beautiful ideal cut 2+ ct with AGS or GIA report.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I was shopping for you, too, and one of the two I picked was the same one Gonzodog picked!

Here''s another:

http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-1137379.htm

I guess if you want specifics, your 3 ct. doesn''t have a good enough cut or clarity to make me even consider it. I would SO much rather have a high quality 2 ct.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

This is also a good illustration of why it is often not good to deal with friends on something like this. The friend wants to sell that diamond, but you can get a much better stone elsewhere. Very awkward to say the least.

 

[MissAva]

2.273 I SI1 $ 20,279
Or call GOG and ask about this one: 4.157 I I1 1.9 H&A 61.8% 56% 35.2° 40.8° 1.0-1.4 id id 10.33-10.36*6. AGS $26662BS GoodOldGold, it could be eye clean Patty has an eye clean I1.

 

[vipstyle]

Just to clear up some of the questions you have, size is a factor but I don''t want to buy a bad quality stone either!!!! I am also being offered an I color VS2 2.77 carat with a 59 depth and a 57 table with vg vg cut/ polish and no fluoresence. How does that sound? it is being offered at 10% off the rap price. Thank you guys so much for all of your input!!!!

 

[Patty]

You have a wonderful budget. Don''t blow it on a poorly cut diamond!

You can get something bigger and more beautiful that almost everything you see out there. If you want to go as big as possible, scrimp on the color and the clarity, but never the cut!

 

[Gonzodogg]

Date: 1/23/2006 10:32:40 PM
Author: vipstyle
Just to clear up some of the questions you have, size is a factor but I don''t want to buy a bad quality stone either!!!! I am also being offered an I color VS2 2.77 carat with a 59 depth and a 57 table with vg vg cut/ polish and no fluoresence. How does that sound? it is being offered at 10% off the rap price. Thank you guys so much for all of your input!!!!

Be careful with this one because it does not sound like you have any real cut information. The VG/VG refers to the polish/symetry of the stone and does not address the cut at all.

 

[belle]

you can use the ''pricescope your diamond'' search tool above to get an idea on pricing. if you are at all concerned about choosing a nice diamond for your 25k, you need to take some time and learn about what makes a good cut. you can start your knowledge quest here

 

[vipstyle]

You are right my mistake...I will be going to 47th st. on wed make sure sure to look at the report to see the cut grade.... since GIA grades on cut go from excellent to poor, should very good be the lowest I should go on that scale?

 

[diamondseeker2006]

That "I" sounds better (the depth and table fall into the ideal specs, VS2 is nice, and VG on polish and symmetry are fine), but honestly, if you want to get the best diamond for the money, you probably want to look at some of the online vendors. I couldn''t come close to these prices shopping through local jewelers. But if you are determined to buy from your friend, out of the ones you''ve mentioned, this one might come closest to being ok. I personally am trying to stay at the upper end of "near colorless" and that means G or H. But there are plenty of people here who have I or even lower and it is ok in an excellent cut.

Have you been able to look at these stones side by side? And also, have you seen them under the microscope?

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 1/23/2006 10:46:12 PM
Author: vipstyle
You are right my mistake...I will be going to 47th st. on wed make sure sure to look at the report to see the cut grade.... since GIA grades on cut go from excellent to poor, should very good be the lowest I should go on that scale?

they will eat you alive.since you''re in N.Y., take a trip to Long Island and see Jonathan (GOG) he carries beautifully cut stones in many different style.

 

[Kaleigh]

If you are in the NY area check out www.engagementringsdirect.com Mark T is a great guy and as DF said go out to LI and check out www.goodoldgold.com. I bought my asscher from them, and am very pleased with it. Belle gave you the links to educating yourself on cut, please read them before you go shopping. Really.

Good luck.