Need opinion on an engagement ring

[ichigo]

Hi guys,

I am looking very hard a ring for my gf. her ring finger size is 4.25-4.5. I would like to buy RB. I need opinion from you folks here about criteria below.

http://www.bluenile.com/diamond-search?pt=setform&track=NavDiaSeaPR#diamonds_pid=LD04257552

.8
vvs2
G
$5,800


vs

http://www.bluenile.com/diamond-search?pt=setform&track=NavDiaSeaPR#diamonds_pid=LD04167808

.75
vs1
D
$5,506

All the rest are the same. Sig. Ideal cut, No Fl., No culet. I put on the table/depth percentage that I got from Diamond Cutter international. Following are my questions:

1. with finger size like hers, would the stone big enough (not overkill but also not too small). She is a piano teacher by the way.
2. With stone that size, which one more important? The color or clarity?
3. What do you think of the pricing of those two stones, is that overpriced? normal? which one you prefer? imo, for smaller stone, color > clarity. please correct me if I am wrong?
4. should I buy the setting from them (BN) as well and have them set the stone? could jeweller/appraiser cross check the laser inscription on a stone that had been set into the setting?
5. what do you think of Blue Nile?
6. Color G vs D, are they way different (people can easily tell the difference)?
7. clarity VS1 vs vvs2, can people easily tell the difference?

for settings:
4 prong
http://www.bluenile.com/classic-four-prong-solitaire-ring-platinum_1

6 prong
http://www.bluenile.com/classic-six-prong-ring-platinum_2

tapered cathedral
http://www.bluenile.com/tapered-cathedral-ring-platinum_4504

I personally like the cathedral. is there any downside of that setting?

all in all, please share your thought and opinion. I really appreciate your time.

 

[Niel]

Those stats are overkill.

You do not need clarity over vs2 for a diamond And a g will be plenty white. D will just be more of a "blue white" and g will just be white. I suppose vs1 would be OK sense you're buying blind with blue Nile but I'd pick vs2 over vs1.

Clarity is based on what's is seen with a loupe. Just because its at a vs clarity doesn't mean its not completely eye clean.

 

[MarionC]

Just a couple of stones I found that you might want to look at.
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3063724.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2972978.htm

 

[ichigo]

Could you please tell me the ideal spec you would use to buy a stone between 4k-6k range? I am sure she doesnt mind the stone to be bigger. Thanks for your response.

 

[ichigo]

Thanks for the link. where could I bring to set the stone? Can I buy it from the as well?

 

[Niel]

Could you please tell me the ideal spec you would use to buy a stone between 4k-6k range? I am sure she doesnt mind the stone to be bigger. Thanks for your response.

If you're not too concerned about how large the stone is I'd say g-h vs1-2. If you wanted to get as large as possible I'd go to and I.

If she is a piano teacher, for some reason I imagine this ring working well. Just an idea

 

[MarionC]

Could you please tell me the ideal spec you would use to buy a stone between 4k-6k range? I am sure she doesnt mind the stone to be bigger. Thanks for your response.

I'm sure others can respond with more detail on specs, but I looked at a lot of diamonds since last fall and tried to figure out how to get the most beautiful in my price range. I have notebooks full of notes & numbers.
I ended up with a super-ideal cut AGS certified stone hand-picked by one of the PS vendors.
To my eye, that's the best modern round cut [just my personal opinion]. There are several vendors who select these for you. You can't go wrong. They like to get it just right.
But of course, by working with Pricescopers who will talk to you about specs and help you go though the selection process yourself you can have fun learning a lot and end up with something beautiful!

 

[MarionC]

Thanks for the link. where could I bring to set the stone? Can I buy it from the as well?

yes.
I wear size 5.25 and am a musician & artist and have a .89 ring. I think between .075 and 0.90 plus or minus is a very good size for people who work with their hands.

 

[ichigo]

you guys are awesome! thanks a lot for the info. What do you mean by "work with PS" or "let PS vendor hand pick the diamond"? means? I am new here.

The semi bezel/bezel ring tends to hide the stone. would that decrease the light that is going thru?

I bought one from costco. it came visibly yellow to my eye and not pleasing. here is the link from costco, the ring that I bought and returned:
http://www.costco.com/Princess-Cut-%2526-Round-Brilliant-Diamond-Ring-(1.18-ctw)-Platinum.product.11650633.html#BVRRWidgetID

They guaranteed that the color is at least I and the cut is VS2. I am not sure it was because of the halo setting that cause center stone smaller/yellowish and look unappealing. or it is just generally not a good stone?

 

[Roqsteady]

Is your budget 6000 for the stone?

Here's what I'd get if you were comfortable with an eye-clean SI1:

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3019439.htm

This is a good option too:
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3063761.htm#

 

[MarionC]

I'm sure someone else can explain this better, but this is my understanding. There's more to it, but this is a good place to start.

Some of the diamonds you see in your search on Pricescope have been hand selected by the vendor from stones they have had cut to very precise specifications. They cost a bit more and you are guaranteed of a particularly outstanding performance.

Getting feedback & suggestions from people on Pricescope about diamonds that are not hand selected by a vendor will lead to a happy outcome as well
Most often these diamonds are not actually at the vendor's place, but come from a distributer that is available to all the vendors.
They will not be as closely vetted and you will probably need the input of experts here to make a great choice.

I'm not saying you could not pick one out your self, but the chances for great are better with the expert help here

 

[Niel]

A semi bezel will let in light because there are large areas of the stone that are left completely open.

Bezels obviously reduce some but its a tiny amount, hardly noticeable on a well cut stone. But even a little bit is "some" right, so I'd mention it.

But if I worked with my hands I would want a semi bezel.

 

[Niel]

ok so now I'm home so i can elaborate a bit.

as for the setting, if she's a piano teacher that wants a solitaire i would go with this blue nile setting as it seems very low to the finger, to prevent spinning if she's wearing it while she's playing. Plus the bonus of not having it sit too high if she does a lot with her hands...and if you look though the rings that that have tones in it, it seems to be most flattering for stones under 1 ct.

heres the stone i would pick. Clarity should be eye clean. 6 mm will look huge on her finger yet be wearable for her profession and look nice in that sett, and F is going to be impressively white, which usually i would say isn't a necessity but i mean, her fingers are so small id sacrifice a little size to get color in this instance. Yes it has fluor but medium shouldn't be an issue, and it'll make that stone just seem extra blue white.

http://www.bluenile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-or-less-ideal-cut-f-color-vs2-clarity_LD04331750

 

[Gypsy]

I wouldn't get a semi bezel style for someone unless I knew they liked it.

I think a regular solitaire should be just fine.

Why are there semi-bezels being recommended?

Also Sholdt, by far has the nicest semi bezels. I would shop at Brian Gavin for a diamond and a setting if you want a semi bezel style.

But FIRST, take that picture of the semi bezel and have her mother, sister, cousin, best friend--- SOMEONE to show her to make sure she likes it before you buy it!!! Don't buy risky settings without input from the person who is to wear the ring.

 

[ichigo]

I found these:

.81 F VS2
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/11403/

.76 F VS2 - OEC style, which is a different flavor of round, but ideal light return
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/11876/

.76 F VS2
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3063723.htm

.80 F VS1
http://www.highperformancediamonds.com/index.php?page=view-id-diamond-default&id=17

.733 F VS2 - this is what I'd get if you were on a tight tight budget and needed to save some money.
http://www.briangavindiamonds.com/diamonds/diamond-details/0.733-f-vs2-round-diamond-ags-bl-104069795034

are those sites legit and have a good reputation?

also, if I want to buy a setting, can I set it myself? or how people typically do it? buy the stone and the setting at the same website and have them set the stone for them? is that safe?

 

[Gypsy]

I found these:

.81 F VS2
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/11403/

.76 F VS2 - OEC style, which is a different flavor of round, but ideal light return
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/11876/

.76 F VS2
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3063723.htm

.80 F VS1
http://www.highperformancediamonds.com/index.php?page=view-id-diamond-default&id=17

.733 F VS2 - this is what I'd get if you were on a tight tight budget and needed to save some money.
http://www.briangavindiamonds.com/diamonds/diamond-details/0.733-f-vs2-round-diamond-ags-bl-104069795034

are those sites legit and have a good reputation?

also, if I want to buy a setting, can I set it myself? or how people typically do it? buy the stone and the setting at the same website and have them set the stone for them? is that safe?

those are some of our vendors. I've bought from HPD and BGD myself. And I would buy from GOG without any issue at all. You are very safe.

And yes, to the extent possible I would buy the stone and setting from the same vendor as that is the easiest thing to do. And again, perfectly safe.

 

[Gypsy]

You can safely go down to G color by the way. You don't have to stay at F. Unless there are cultural reasons.

 

[ichigo]

Thanks for replying. I noticed these two:

http://www.highperformancediamonds.com/index.php?page=view-id-diamond-default&id=17

vs

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/11403/

they are "Heart and Arrow cuts". one of them has "super" in it. The size is .9 carat different. Are all RB rock cut to heart and arrow? or these are just exceptional?

 

[Gypsy]

Thanks for replying. I noticed these two:

http://www.highperformancediamonds.com/index.php?page=view-id-diamond-default&id=17

vs

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/11403/

they are "Heart and Arrow cuts". one of them has "super" in it. The size is .9 carat different. Are all RB rock cut to heart and arrow? or these are just exceptional?

[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/likelihood-of-finding-a-signature-super-ideal-diamond.174235/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/likelihood-of-finding-a-signature-super-ideal-diamond.174235/[/URL] read this to answer your question.

the HPD stone is not Hearts and Arrows. But the idealscope is good (though tilted, I think). It's a stone with excellent/ideal light return.

The GOG stone is a super ideal. It combines the hearts and arrows precision with ideal light return.

You don't need both perfect hearts and arrows and ideal light return. And not hearts and arrows have ideal light return. And not all ideal light return stones have perfect hearts and arrows. They are two different things: performance versus patterning/faceting. And they are mutually exclusive.

I personally like the HPD stone. It's bigger.

 

[patricias]

I second Niel's suggestion of the Blue Nile semi-bezel. The problem with BN's cathedral mounting is that the cathedral sides of the band that rise up to the stone aren't soldered to the stone setting. They can catch on clothing and other things, and this can actually cause hand injuries. I've designed and fabricated hundreds of rings, and I always make sure that they have no protrusions than can snag on something and break the ring, or the finger. Bezels are smooth and don't have this problem. Since your girlfriend plays the piano, a smooth streamlined setting would be more comfortable. I've had my eye on this setting for a while and if I were in the market for myself I'd seriously consider it. And going to a G or H color should be fine. Remember, cut is king.

 

[ichigo]

How important is "Polish"? I noticed on the GIA report for the HPD diamond the polish is very good instead of excellent.

cut is king? would is exactly mean? Round cut vs others?

Sorry for the stupid questions.

 

[Gypsy]

The entire purpose of faceting a diamond is to reflect light.
How well or how poorly a diamond does this determines how beautiful it is.
How well a diamond performs is determined by the angles and cutting. This is why we say cut is king. (Cut is not the same as SHAPE)
No other factor: not color, not clarity has as much of an impact on the appearance of a diamond as its cut. An ideal H will out white a poorly cut F. And GIA Ex is not enough.
So how to we ensure that we have the right angles and cutting to get the light performance we want?
https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/diamond-cut
Well one method is to start with a GIA Ex, and then apply the HCA to it. YOU DO NOT USE HCA for AGS0 stones.
https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/holloway-cut-advisor
The HCA is a rejection tool. Not a selection tool. It uses 4 data points to make a rudimentary call on how the diamond may perform. It's only goal is to weed out stones that have angles that do not normally result in ideal light performance.
If the diamond passes then you know that you are in the right zone in terms of angles for light performance. Under 2 is a pass. Under 2.5-2.1 is a maybe. 2.6 and over is a no. No score 2 and under is better than any other.
Is that enough? Not really.
So what you need is a way to check actual light performance of your actual stone.
That's what an idealscope image does. https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/firescope-idealscope
It shows you how and wear your diamond is reflecting light, how well it is going at it, and where you are losing light return. That is why you won't see us recommending Blue Nile, as they do not provide idealscope images for their diamonds. James Allen, BGD, GOG, ERD, HPD and WF do.

The Idealscope is the 'selection tool'. Not the HCA. The HCA is just used narrow and predict which stones will have a good idealscope image.
So yes, with a GIA stone you need the idealscope images. Or you can buy an idealscope yourself and take it in to the jeweler you are working with to check the stones yourself. Or if you have a good return policy (full refund minimum 7 days) then you can buy the idealscope, buy the stone, and do it at home.


Now if you want to skip all that... stick to AGS0 stones and then all you have to do is pick color and clarity and you know you have a great performing diamond. Because AGS has already done the checking for you. That's why they trade at a premium.

 

[ichigo]

man.. you guys educate me like no others. I feel like so far my life was a lie. lol.. Thanks a lot for the help. I will report back what I ended up buying. The Blue Nile seems more expensive than GOG/HPD/WF. WF is still slightly more expensive than HPD/GOG. so, with 6k, I could probably get an ideal cut .80 minimum with G color VS1. Those are eye clean and white enough, right?

 

[Gypsy]

man.. you guys educate me like no others. I feel like so far my life was a lie. lol.. Thanks a lot for the help. I will report back what I ended up buying. The Blue Nile seems more expensive than GOG/HPD/WF. WF is still slightly more expensive than HPD/GOG. so, with 6k, I could probably get an ideal cut .80 minimum with G color VS1. Those are eye clean and white enough, right?

Yes. G is perfectly safe. But you are wasting money on VS1. Eyeclean SI1 or VS2 is good enough. You can probably go to H too, unless there are cultural reasons (some women from far east cultures would be insulted by anything below F VS1).

You can read this: [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/g-vs-h.200794/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/g-vs-h.200794/[/URL]

 

[Gypsy]

What I'd buy:
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3034525.htm if eyeclean (I think it is from the Magnified picture, it's a very clean stone). This is the stone I'd buy.

 

[patricias]

The quality of the faceting is king. High quality faceting leads to lots of sparkle, regardless of the shape of the stone. I'd go on and on about this, but it is late and I'm going to bed now. Good luck.

 

[Niel]

I wouldn't get a semi bezel style for someone unless I knew they liked it.

I think a regular solitaire should be just fine.

Why are there semi-bezels being recommended?

Also Sholdt, by far has the nicest semi bezels. I would shop at Brian Gavin for a diamond and a setting if you want a semi bezel style.

But FIRST, take that picture of the semi bezel and have her mother, sister, cousin, best friend--- SOMEONE to show her to make sure she likes it before you buy it!!! Don't buy risky settings without input from the person who is to wear the ring.

Sholdt is the best, but is also over 2k in plat.

I don't think a semi bezel is that "strange", but as all settings, its recommended with the caveat of "if you think she would like this style."

If she would like it, thats my suggestion.

If you were to go with a sholdt, then the one from BG id pick is this I, I would pick an I any time, but OP seems reluctant to go down that low in color.


I will say the Costco one was probably not an I if you saw a yellow tint. at least not a GIA/AGS I, as they won't look "yellow", especial at .8 cts. I would at .8ct pick an I without hesitation, unless it was a cultural issue.

 

[ichigo]

Thank all for the reply. I am trying to stay G just to play safe. is VS2/VS1 guaranteed eye clean? it means that I could probably get a bigger stone than with lower color/clarity grade. I forgot to clarify that I would want to spend 6k max with setting included (deeply apologize for this). what do you think about tension setting? the part that bothers me about semi bezel is half of the ring is covered. but, by all means I am not a diamond expert, I am not sure about this. I guess I would have to see them physically.

 

[MarionC]

I can't speak for tension settings. I had considered one, but then a few things I read made me decide not to. That doesn't mean they are bad.
I do like the classic prong settings you first posted. Elegant, simple, & show off the diamond.