Tough Call, Last Minute Engagement Ring Decisions

[crans223]

Whew...so after looking at over 35 vendors in a week, I have finally narrowed it down to 3 stones, two being seen and one yet to be seen on Wednesday of next week at ID Jewelery (Where I will finally ultimately make my decision and commit to the purchase)

First, before the diamond: I originally planned on going 14k white gold tiffany six prong setting for the ring, however, due to some new light I found out that my girlfriend loves this style of ring (I don't want to say the exact style in case she does a search and this post comes up lol)

This is one she liked: (Her favorite part was the setting design underneathe the stone

Looking up that "style" I found one here at catherine angiel that I think looks nice, but wanted to see what you guys think (if I could find something like this somewhere else (I'm worried I won't have enough time to have it custom made) http://catherineangiel.com/collections/bridal/products/vintage-engagement-ring-platinum

Okay, now that that's out of the way, onto the diamonds (I will make two posts for each) below. (Still have one left to see)

The diamond in the city that I am looking at is:

GIA: 2187401961 http://www.gia.edu/cs/Satellite?rep...ename=GIA/Dispatcher&c=Page&cid=1355954554547

ROUND BRILLIANT

Measurements 6.63 - 6.65 x 4.09 mm
Carat Weight 1.11 carat
Color Grade H
Clarity Grade VS2
Cut Grade Excellent

PROPORTIONS

Depth 61.6 %
Table 56 %
Crown Angle 33.0°
Crown Height 14.5%
Pavilion Angle 41.0°
Pavilion Depth 43.0%
Star Length 55%
Lower Half 75%
Girdle Medium to Slightly Thick, Faceted, 4.0%
Culet Very Small
Polish Excellent
Symmetry Excellent
Fluorescence None

HCA: 0.7
Light Return Excellent
Fire Excellent
Scintillation Excellent
Spread Very Good

Price: ~ $6,600 for diamond, pending negotiations on ring and movement on price

 

[crans223]

Diamond 2: (When looking at it under the triplet magnifier loupe I could distinctly see the arrows in it well, but with the poor lighting it was hard to determine the sparkle, and it was a cloudy day out)

This jeweler was really nice and seemed to really want to keep me as a customer, they are family owned and his niece was also really nice as well. They even fixed my mom's bent prong and polished it up for free while I was looking at the diamonds, which was really nice of them.

ROUND BRILLIANT
GIA: 2165940050 (http://www.gia.edu/cs/Satellite?reportno=2165940050&childpagename=GIA%2FPage%2FReportCheck&pagename=GIA%2FDispatcher&c=Page&cid=1355954554547)

Measurements 6.88 - 6.90 x 4.04 mm
Carat Weight 1.16 carat
Color Grade H
Clarity Grade SI1
Cut Grade Excellent
Depth 58.6 %
Table 62 %
Crown Angle 33.0°
Crown Height 12.5%
Pavilion Angle 41.0°
Pavilion Depth 43.5%
Star Length 50%
Lower Half 80%
Girdle Thin to Medium, Faceted, 3.0%
Culet None
Polish Excellent
Symmetry Excellent
Fluorescence None

HCA Score: 1.9
Light Return Very Good
Fire Very Good
Scintillation Very Good
Spread Excellent

Price: Quoted me at $6,500 for diamond + mounting and setting (Cash+Credit)

Pictures: Due to low lighting and it being late I took one with flash and without:

 

[crans223]

Diamond 2:

ROUND BRILLIANT
GIA: 1156645560 (http://www.gia.edu/cs/Satellite?rep...ename=GIA/Dispatcher&c=Page&cid=1355954554547)
Measurements 6.79 - 6.80 x 4.02 mm
Carat Weight 1.13 carat
Color Grade H
Clarity Grade VS2
Cut Grade Excellent

Depth 59.2 %
Table 61 %
Crown Angle 33.0°
Crown Height 12.5%
Pavilion Angle 41.0°
Pavilion Depth 43.0%
Star Length 55%
Lower Half 80%
Girdle Medium, Faceted, 3.5%
Culet None
Polish Very Good
Symmetry Excellent
Fluorescence None

HCA Score: 1.6
Light Return Very Good
Fire Excellent
Scintillation Very Good
Spread Excellent

And here are two pictures of it (no flash) and a youtube video where I'm trying show what it looks like (music made me laugh so I apologize in advance haha)



And the video!:
https://youtu.be/XdRQw3qptW0

Price: $6,750 diamond + setting and sizing all together ($6,550 for the diamond)

 

[danielxlin]

The specs of the first diamond are more aligned with the traditional Pricescope forum recommendation.

The latter two diamonds have lower depth percentage and bigger tables. A spreadier look?

Personally I want to squeeze out as much spread as possible within top light performance guidelines. You've really got to trust your dealer on the last two diamonds.

 

[danielxlin]

https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/diamond-table-size

Ask the dealers for closeup high definition video, ASET, Idealscope, etc. Whatever they have to help you make a decision.

 

[arkieb1]

Ask them if they have any well performing Old cuts and also consider stones like these with the above setting she likes because it's an Antique/Vintage setting calling out for an Antique (not a modern round brilliant) diamond;

http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/loose-diamonds/1-ct-to-2-00/1-09ct-old-european-cut-diamond-gia-i-vs2#.VTuwDCgVq5Q

Or these;

http://www.goodoldgold.com/ecommerce/diamonds/round/august-vintage-round.html

 

[baby monster]

Stones with large tables have less scintillation. They do look larger and have more white light return. When you viewed stones at the family jewelers, were they sparkly across the entire stone?

My personal preference is for PS recommended cut guidelines, which IDJ stone fits. They can help you find a similar setting to the one you posted.

 

[crans223]

Ask them if they have any well performing Old cuts and also consider stones like these with the above setting she likes because it's an Antique/Vintage setting calling out for an Antique (not a modern round brilliant) diamond;

http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/loose-diamonds/1-ct-to-2-00/1-09ct-old-european-cut-diamond-gia-i-vs2#.VTuwDCgVq5Q

Or these;

http://www.goodoldgold.com/ecommerce/diamonds/round/august-vintage-round.html

I'll have to take a look, I don't think she liked the antique cut diamond as much as she liked the look of the band. I called the store I liked the stone in and they're ridiculously overpriced ($3,300 just for the band) so I'll have to talk to Yekutiel or my other options before Wednesday to find something comparable and wayyyyy less money.

 

[crans223]

Stones with large tables have less scintillation. They do look larger and have more white light return. When you viewed stones at the family jewelers, were they sparkly across the entire stone?

My personal preference is for PS recommended cut guidelines, which IDJ stone fits. They can help you find a similar setting to the one you posted.

The best way to describe them were they would radiate around the stone as I turned it and I would get sparkles as I rotated it in regular lighting, as well as under the lamps. I have to admit that although the diamond without the video is nice, it didn't sparkle as nicely as the one in the video did.

 

[crans223]

Update, so after visiting NYC and Yekutiel at ID Jewelry I finally have the ring! It's going to be set, sized, and inscribed and sent to me by Tuesday! I can't wait to see it finished and take pictures for everyone to see.

Honestly, Yekutiel is THE person to see when shopping for diamonds. He is extremely kind, accommodating, honest, and truly aims to satisfy his customer's wants and needs. After visiting him I see why there is no comparison with the other vendors I saw, and once I get the ring in and take pictures, I want to post it up and recommend him to anyone else that is looking. So absolutely happy and excited about this!

Thanks again Daniel for referring me to him, it changed my purchasing option from a good one to a fantastic one.

 

[emmebee]

Update, so after visiting NYC and Yekutiel at ID Jewelry I finally have the ring! It's going to be set, sized, and inscribed and sent to me by Tuesday! I can't wait to see it finished and take pictures for everyone to see.

Honestly, Yekutiel is THE person to see when shopping for diamonds. He is extremely kind, accommodating, honest, and truly aims to satisfy his customer's wants and needs. After visiting him I see why there is no comparison with the other vendors I saw, and once I get the ring in and take pictures, I want to post it up and recommend him to anyone else that is looking. So absolutely happy and excited about this!

Thanks again Daniel for referring me to him, it changed my purchasing option from a good one to a fantastic one.

So glad IDJ pulled it off again! Can't wait to see pictures!!

 

[danielxlin]

Congratulations! Have a wonderful engagement and wedding!

Looking forward to pics of the ring.