Buying Emerald Cut Diamond would like some advice

[MO]

Looking to spend $22K-$24K for stone. Girlfriend wants big, I want quality (a common conflict I''m sure!!). Assuming very good symmetry/polish and shape, what are your thoughts about G versus F color? and VS2 versus VS1 clarity? Should I consider a clean SI for a large Emerald cut or will that be too noticeable? Would appreciate suggestions regarding optimal size / quality tradeoffs.

Mark

 

[sluke]

I'm not an expert on Emerald cuts, but a good balance would be a G color VS2 stone. I'd tried on a G color VS2 5 carat emerald cut diamond at Cartier for fun...didn't see any yellow tint, even when compared to my E color RB. I'd also look for inclusions, but could not see any...and 5 carat is a big stone!

 

[reena]

hi! with that kind of budget youll be able to get a killer EC. what size stone are you looking for?

i am also not an EC expert but i do know that you will be able see inclusions more easily than in a brilliant cut stone so you may want to be careful on the clarity.

 

[valeria101]

It would likely be hard to tell F from G grades. And I would definitely look for VS2 or SI1 - there is plenty of room for very clean emerald cuts of such grades. While it is very true that inclusions might show more in ECs, is is obviously taken into account when the stones are cut. Clarity will have to be judged for each stone... it would be a waste to go for a higher clarity grade on paper just to hedge all bets in advance. You will still need to see the stone anyway.

There is another thing I wanted to mention: a 2 carat emerald cut and a 3 carat one can have exactly the same size due only to the way they are cut. So I woud definitely pay lots of attention to the stone's actual size (surface) and brilliance (that also depends on cut) and symmetry (another cut detail that shows better in Ec than anywhere else).

And proportions may actually matter allot - there is a serious visual difference between a wide Ec (about 1.3:1 length/width) and a 2:1 long piece.

There is one set of benchmarks that take into account most of these concerns about the size and cut details. Did you see the AGA tables? Those and a few more details appear on THIS page.

Your project seems to favor a 2.7- 3 cts, G-VS2 (or a lucky Si1) emerald cut. And such a diamond should be 8-8.5 mm if square or of equivalent surface, IMO.

I doubt there is any conflict between quality and quantity here - top diamonds should be spectacular. There is always the cut quality to consider between the qulity of the rough and the jewel made to impress. Color and clarity alone only describe the quality of the rough, I a affraid and do not tell allot about what that diamond looks like.

 

[MO]

Ana

Thanks for the info. I really like the "classic" emerald cut (1.3-1.4 L*W ratio). You made some very good points.

MO

 

[mostlywatching]

Wow! That's going to be some stone. I have a G VVS1 emerald cut, .79 carats (small compared toy your shopping standards).

I can't tell any color in it, even set in between two F sidestones. As far as the clarity goes, it was so hard to find a well cut stone with the proportions I wanted that when we found one that happened to have VVS1 clarity, it was a bonus. We would have gone lower for an eyeclean stone, but we never found any with the right cut.

The biggest challenge that I came across was finding the length to width ratio that I wanted. I wanted a longer look, 1:5or 1:4. It seemed that most every EC we looked at was cut at 1:# or lower. If 1:3 is fine with you, then yoiu shouldn't have as hard of a search.

ECs aren't necessarily as sparkly as a brilliant cut, but it is still important to get a good cut. A really well cut emerald will sparkle like crazy. Get one that's too deep and you'll just be looking straight through to the bottom. Also, watch the girdle measurements, unlike a round, an EC can't be rotated to set anywhere on the girdle. If it's too thin near the corners, you run the risk of chipping.

I hope you stick around to let us know how you fare. I'd love to see what you end up with.

 

[ame]

Holy Moly! I wish I had that kind of budget. Id buy a house to go with my honker.

Id say with that budget you can go with a VS1, maybe VVS!