Q about OECs. Why do most PSers prefer...

[Dancing Fire]

a lower colored OEC ? what is wrong with owning a colorless/near colorless OEC? ..

 

[HopeDream]

I think lower colored OECs are more abundant and therefore less costly?

I heard a rumor that most of the higher colored OECs were recut to MRBs when the modern cut specs came out, so higher colored OECs are much more rare. (Not sure if this rumor is true though).

I like higher colored OECs but don't own any...yet...

 

[WinkHPD]

I think lower colored OECs are more abundant and therefore less costly?

I heard a rumor that most of the higher colored OECs were recut to MRBs when the modern cut specs came out, so higher colored OECs are much more rare. (Not sure if this rumor is true though).

I like higher colored OECs but don't own any...yet...

This rumor is partially true. I personally did several OEC and OMC recuts in my early years in the business. Many of them were higher colors, but there were some of the lower colors too. What I did more often than not though, at least with the OECs that I was presented, was to show people how well they were cut and recommend that they not recut. Most of the diamonds that I recut were execrably cut and deserved to let show their true potential. This was especially true of OMCs which tended to be the poorer cut diamonds of the ones that I saw.

I live in Boise, Idaho, your experience in other areas may vary.

I do think that a higher percentage of the recuts done nationally were probably higher colors, as the increase in value of the finished diamond was going to be higher than the increase in value for a lower colored diamond. Back then there was NO premium for the antique cuts, in fact they were sold at a very large discount.

Wink

P.S. I have no idea as to why, or even if, most PSERS prefer lower colored cut OECs. I know that many do, and it may just be because the rich buttery warmth of a well cut OEC is a joy to the eye, especially with the large sheets of white and colored light that emanate from the very large lower Pavilion facets.

 

[EvangelineG]

I like both. I own an H AVR as my e-ring, but would also like to own a very low coloured oec one day as a RHR set in rose or yellow gold. The large facets show off warmth in a really lovely way to my eye. I think of it more the way I think of any coloured stone, that the colour is an aset in that particular look.

However I didn't want a warm stone for my e-ring and also love OEC's in colourless/near colorless. H was my sweet spot for budget or I would have happily gone even higher. It's the facets that get me either way. And then the colour is secondary depending on which look I am hoping for, and of course budgetary restrictions come into play with the higher colours, as well as scarcity in the true OECs.

 

[the_mother_thing]

Personally, when I think "antique", I think warmth, romance, age. I like the tinge of color in an antique cut because it's character and I find it performs with more character in terms of the colors it flashes. That it happens to effect the price in my favor, bonus.

 

[elle_chris]

I don't prefer it, but I don't mind it as much as I do with modern cuts.
I don't know why, but I equate vintage with off white colors, like antique lace. And OECs in lower colors fits that image.

 

[Gypsy]

There's nothing wrong with it. I fell in love with an E transitional a while back.

I like colorless stones. Or G-H. But I also prefer real vintage OECs and transitionals, not newly cut ones. And the mine "back then" produced a lot of lower colored stones. And most of the higher colored ones were re-cut into MRBs by the trade.

So... there aren't a lot out there.

 

[maccers]

a lower colored OEC ? what is wrong with owning a colorless/near colorless OEC? ..

I don't. My OEC is an "I" and I wouldn't want any lower colour. It's just personal preference. There's plenty of OECs in lower colours on PS which I absolutely love but it's not what I want.

 

[ericad]

There are a number of factors at work. In my experience it ranks like this:

1. The faceting of the old cuts is really complimented by warmer body color. They just glow, like a flickering candle. People love this effect - lower colored old cuts look like pure candlelight. No other way to describe it, and you can't achieve the same effect with low colored modern cuts (RB's, step cuts, etc.)

2. The mines of the era were producing mostly cape colored rough, so the supply in lower colors has always been far higher than in colorless goods.

3. What colorless old cuts were in circulation were recut decades ago. We now see lower colors being recut into vintage reproductions, so even the low colors are dwindling, especially if you want a small table/high crown combo. They're getting harder and harder to find in any color. So this is further diminishing the supply, therefore even buyers who prefer higher colors are having to make compromises on color for the cut they want.

Most of my buyers LIKE some warmth and seek it out. So they choose lower colors because they prefer the look. J-M color makes up the bulk of my sales. Secondary to this are the buyers who are compromising on color due to supply/demand factors. With old cuts, I've found that it's less to do with budget and more to do with aesthetics, though colorless old cuts are so rare that they are a spendy proposition.

 

[AprilBaby]

I don't prefer it, but I don't mind it as much as I do with modern cuts.
I don't know why, but I equate vintage with off white colors, like antique lace. And OECs in lower colors fits that image.

The same with me.

 

[CharmyPoo]

I have an H and I love it.

 

[Travelgal]

I really think it depends on the setting and the cut of the diamond. Typically I am more drawn to "white" stones- my eye just gravitates to them. I own a 3 stone omc stone all graded F by EGL so let's assume they are closer to H's and my engagement ring is a GIA H. We were very close to buying a GIA E stone but it was 150%+ more than what a new stone would cost and I couldn't justify the cost (probably even worth even more than 150% due to rarity). That said, I've tried on several rings with warmer stones lately and I just love them when they are part of clusters, vintage halos or bezel set. Like others have said, there is just such a romantic and feminine quality about them especially when set in yellow or rose gold (or platinum topped gold). I typically do not gravitate to warmer solitaires- I like them "crisp" or white.

 

[heididdl]

Because I inherited my OEC .80 K color sk1 stone. it was my grandmothers and I know wear it as a pendant.

 

[pyramid]

Cheaper in larger sizes, so can afford a 4 carat O color but not a 4 carat F color. I don't mean cheap as they are expensive but mean less costly.

 

[arkieb1]

I think old cuts are more palatable than RBs in mid to lower colours. OECs and OMCs cut can hide or mask colour well in the I,J,K,K, M range. It is also primarily about balancing size and price, people want bigger diamonds and mid to lower colours afford people larger stones.

Having said that colour is a subjective choice, one person will live with and love a Q or an R other people an L or an M another a J or a K others must have an I or better.

 

[BlingObsession]

'Cos they're beeewdiful!

 

[SB621]

Cheaper in larger sizes, so can afford a 4 carat O color but not a 4 carat F color. I don't mean cheap as they are expensive but mean less costly.

Umm that doesn't answer the question. It is why are they preferred. Nothing about size preference.


Anyhow like EricaD already stated I think the color play is well, so old worldly (can I make my own word?) in an old cut. I have seen several icey white OEC's, trannys, AC's and they just look to me. But if you throw some color in there they feel so much more romantic. If I had a choice between a D OEC or a J/K/I then without a doubt I would go for the lowered colored one. I have several old cuts now that range from H to O/P on the color scale. My sweet spot is definitely in the J/L/I range. But this is all totally preference. I have friends that wouldn't dream of having anything but an MRB that is near colorless. So to each their own and more for me!

 

[pyramid]

Well it is why they are preferred by some people, who can buy one for $80,000 but not for $480,000. Unless you think that they are compromising then and not preferring.

Cheaper in larger sizes, so can afford a 4 carat O color but not a 4 carat F color. I don't mean cheap as they are expensive but mean less costly.

Umm that doesn't answer the question. It is why are they preferred. Nothing about size preference.


Anyhow like EricaD already stated I think the color play is well, so old worldly (can I make my own word?) in an old cut. I have seen several icey white OEC's, trannys, AC's and they just look to me. But if you throw some color in there they feel so much more romantic. If I had a choice between a D OEC or a J/K/I then without a doubt I would go for the lowered colored one. I have several old cuts now that range from H to O/P on the color scale. My sweet spot is definitely in the J/L/I range. But this is all totally preference. I have friends that wouldn't dream of having anything but an MRB that is near colorless. So to each their own and more for me!

 

[pyramid]

ArkieB mentioned the balancing thing too.

 

[pyramid]

Everyone sees and prefers different things, to me I have said before, the darker colors remind me of dirty slush when the snow has got dirty and also dirty dish washing water whereas the colorless ones DEF or near colorless G to J remind me of the new snow or bubbles.

 

[yennyfire]

My antique oval is a GIA "E" and I love it. However, my 3 stone ring has H/I's (according to Ari...they don't have certs) and I love them too....I also like the warmer tones for exactly the reasons Erica stated. I think that antique stones have a personality that modern stones don't and therefore, look good no matter what the color.

 

[pyramid]

I would love a pink diamond but a half carat best color is too expensive, too small for my taste for the money. So it happens there too. Id thought about a 20 point one and could not stomach the price there, and now have been thinking about a 40 point lighter color but think I would want the more pink look. I think I really am priced out there in the pink diamond arena as this would be a second diamond and I don't want to spend too much. Went to Leibish for a look and think for what I want to spend I would get about a 30 point in the color I would like and that is too small for what I want too. So no pink diamond. I don't want to save money and put more money into it, maybe this just means I don't like it enough. Just thinking with the Argyle mine supposed to close in 2020 I think last I read something, that is what got me interested.

 

[ForteKitty]

Mine fell into my lap. It was a complete surprise to me since I didn't expect it to be so perfect. The faceting is exactly what I wanted, but I wasn't looking for one this big!! I bid on an ebay auction thinking I could always return it, and when it arrived, I fell in love. Haven't found an oec I like as much as mine since then, so it was fate! Also, I'm too lazy to do the whole song and dance, and it helped that the local pawn shop offered me $6k more than my paid price when they saw it. I could probably get more because that was their initial offer.

To be honest, I don't know the exact color. It faces up a lot whiter than a lot of my GIA graded H-J diamonds, but I tell people it's L because I compared it side by side to a 4ct GIA K RB under a grading lamp and it looked almost identical, so I estimated one color lower. It could be higher than L. A lot of people seem to think it's higher than L... but I won't find out till it goes to GIA... which will happen when I eventually reset.

Eta: Although I am fine with my oec's color, I am extremely color sensitive when it comes to modern cuts. Fancy cuts below G look really tinted to me! I love RBs in the colorless range.

 

[cflutist]

Well it is why they are preferred by some people, who can buy one for $80,000 but not for $480,000. Unless you think that they are compromising then and not preferring.

Cheaper in larger sizes, so can afford a 4 carat O color but not a 4 carat F color. I don't mean cheap as they are expensive but mean less costly.

Umm that doesn't answer the question. It is why are they preferred. Nothing about size preference.


Anyhow like EricaD already stated I think the color play is well, so old worldly (can I make my own word?) in an old cut. I have seen several icey white OEC's, trannys, AC's and they just look to me. But if you throw some color in there they feel so much more romantic. If I had a choice between a D OEC or a J/K/I then without a doubt I would go for the lowered colored one. I have several old cuts now that range from H to O/P on the color scale. My sweet spot is definitely in the J/L/I range. But this is all totally preference. I have friends that wouldn't dream of having anything but an MRB that is near colorless. So to each their own and more for me!

Sometimes I wonder. If a multi-billionaire came up to you and said "I will buy you any 5 ct. diamond you want" what would you choose?
In this case it would be truly preference over compromise. Would it be a 5 ct. N-SI2 - OEC or would it be a 5 ct. E-VS1 OEC, or would it be a 5 ct. D - VVS1 CBI? I know what my answer would be. In real life, it is a compromise not a preference for me, and I will be the first to admit it.

 

[pyramid]

A 5ct is far too big for my fingers and people would talk about me if I wore that size where I live. I would definitely want a round brilliant though, the VVS or VS would be fine and DEF or even G. I would rather they bought me a house for the money. A good old gold, whiteflash, bgd or crafted by infinity would be equal to me and I think some of it we can't even see with the eye just cut gurus under a microscope know what to look for. Mind you a big difference in price between a 5 carat D VVS1 and a 5 carat G VS1 so if I was going to sell I would have to get the VVS1 and after all a multi billionaire so not conning anyone really

 

[ForteKitty]

Cflutist, maybe somewhere in the middle? N is a little too tinted for me, but D/E is too white for an oec. I think H would be perfect. I've seen colorless oecs and they look almost fake, like they lack depth or something. However, if it's an RB, I'd pick a D/E no question asked.

 

[Dancing Fire]

[quote="cflutist|


Sometimes I wonder. If a multi-billionaire came up to you and said "I will buy you any 5 ct. diamond you want" what would you choose?
In this case it would be truly preference over compromise. Would it be a 5 ct. N-SI2 - OEC or would it be a 5 ct. E-VS1 OEC, or would it be a 5 ct. D - VVS1 CBI? I know what my answer would be. In real life, it is a compromise not a preference for me, and I will be the first to admit it.[/quote]



a few years ago I started a thread asking the same Q ..If it was FREE!..
My Mama didn't raise a fool I'll take the 5ct D VVS! ..

 

[kenny]

My Mama didn't raise a fool I'll take the 5ct D VVS! ..

YO Homie! Joe Mama did raise a fool.
I'd take a 5 ct D FL.

 

[pyramid]

Dancing fire

 

[pyramid]

Might wait a long long time to be offered a 5 ct D FL from the multi millionaire though, maybe 70 years marriage. It was a gift in the scenario.


Ooops read wrong the question says 'any'. Clever Kenny.