Getting engaged this Christmas! Please help this noob!

[Dempt]

Hi Guys,

I have been reading this forum for couple of months and learnt a lot but, not at level of you guys. I am looking to buy an diamond for an engagement ring for $5500-$7000 and can extend to $7500 if needed. This is my first ever diamond purchase and I would really appreciate some help here.
Please guide me what should I look for and what I can get for this price.

What I am looking for and the questions I have.
1. Cut: Best in my price range
2. Size: 1.0-1.5 Carat is what i am looking (I want a stone that will really stand out among others, I left a broad size since that is not the driving factor)
3. Cut/Color/Clarity etc.
4. Color H: Round is the cut where I will least notice the color and have bit of flexility, should I go G ?
5. Clarity: SI1 or VS2

Any advice or links to diamonds would be greatly appreciated. I've done a fair share of research and I'm still lost. I'll be proposing this Christmas .

Thanks everyone!

 

[Gypsy]

You aren't getting 1.5 carats for your budget.

Is the 7,500 for the stone only or does that include the setting. If it includes the setting, what type of setting does she want.

 

[Dempt]

Gypsy, I appreciate your reply, I was hoping you would! $7500 just for the diamond, I've found the setting, its similar to https://www.ritani.com/engagement-rings/solitaire-micropave-braided-diamond-band-engagement-ring-in-14kt-white-gold/10611

I understand I'm not going to get 1.50 carats. I followed your replies in another thread and I really liked some of the 1 carat rings you linked from b2c. Is there anything out there a little bit bigger than a carat? I don't want to sacrifice quality at all. You tell me my friend!

Thanks,
Danny

 

[Dempt]

Bump

 

[Gypsy]

I think we can get you to over a carat. Let me see what I can find.

http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-6239156-1.20-carat-Round-diamond-H-color-VVS1-Clarity.aspx?sku=6239156&utm_source=pricescope.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=pricescope.com This is lovely (ignore the high clarity it was priced the same as a bunch of VS2's so I thought I'd take a look at it and it ended up being lovely).

This is an I but it gets you to 1.38 and 7.1 mm: http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-6413228-1.38-carat-Round-diamond-I-color-VVS2-Clarity.aspx?sku=6413228&utm_source=pricescope.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=pricescope.com

On color:
It is important to remember is that color is graded FACE DOWN. Where there is NO light return. Not face up where there is light return and refraction. You wear diamonds set. FACE UP.

Within one color grade, even the labs can't agree on the color grades of stones and something could be a "high" H or a "low" E. So... no. Not really. Within 2 color grades it is hard. Not impossible. But very hard. And it gets harder once set. If you are talking ideal rounds, or any stone with ideal light return and no sharp corners it gets harder still because the ideal light return masks body color.

Generally we say to be conservative stay above H when you are buying for someone else, that is true, but many people are VERY happy with their J and even K diamonds.



If you are talking fancy shapes without ideal light return (because there is no 'ideal' for EC's Radiant, etc) it's a bit different.

This is how I think of it.

Ever gotten one of those HUGE paint fan decks? Where there are literally 100s of colors of whites? And when they are RIGHT next to each other you can TOTALLY tell that one is bluer/colder and one is a bit warmer and which one is one is TOTALLY warmer. One there's one that's slightly greener. One that's slightly pinker? But really. They are all white?

Then you pick one after agonizing over this white or that white and when it's on the walls and people are like: Oh. You painted again. And it's STILL white. Great.

And you're all... BUT it's BLUE white. Or it's a WARM white now. It used to be ____ white. It's TOTALLY different.

It's like that. You are talking about shades of white. D is colder... J is warmer. But it's all white.

YES. If you have an accurately graded F and an H THAT HAVE THE SAME PERFORMANCE you are going to be able to tell them apart when you compare them side by side. Just like you would be able to tell if you painted your walls a warm white, but painted the crown molding a cold/straight white. But both are STILL white, you only see the contrast because of the proximity. But it's very slight, you could set an F center with G sides and never tell the difference. And even H sides depending on the setting and the size of the sidestones... especially with round brilliants.


I want you notice all the qualifiers thought. I'm talking about stones with the SAME performance. An ideal H will out white an F that has compromised light performance from a poor cut.

NOTHING impacts the appearance of a diamond as much as cut. CUT is king.

You want the shinest whitest and brightest diamond out there: Cut is King. No other factor, not color or clarity or anything else impacts how white bright an shiny a stone is.

 

[WillyDiamond]

Hello Dempt,
Rather than piece meal, that is, buy the diamond from X jeweler and have Y set it, for simplicity, and I like simplicity, have you tried emailing some of the PS vendors with your specs and see what they come with?
Some are having Black Friday sales, so you never know.
I have had success with Leslie at BGD and Chris at ERD (now Brilliantly Engaged).
Good luck.