Bluenile diamonds versus Tiffany round brilliant diamonds

[diamondchickie]

Has anyone compared the Bluenile ideal or very good cut round diamonds with the Tiffany classic round brilliant? An acquaintance of mine just got hers (about a 1.8 rb ideal cut) from BN and it looked great but when I stopped at Tiffany''s I remember seeing a 2 carat ...the fire and the sparkle outshined the one that I saw on that gal''s hand (BN). Is it the way that Tiffany set their diamond a certain way. I know they carry all GIA certified diamonds. It seemed to me that Tiffany''s diamonds looked a lot more spectacular to me than that of the BN diamond. Please advise.

Thanks.

 

[chrono]

I believe the answer lies partially in the type of lighting used. The strong halogen lighting in jewelry stores are laid out in such a way that even bad stones will sparkle. That said, I think Tiffany diamonds are no better nor worse than BN diamonds. They both carry well cut stones for the most part.

 

[ame]

I have seen a variety of both and breifly owned a tiffany (never again). I definitely agree that it's lighting that makes a tiffany shine. I found that the tiffany stones really aren't that ideal and you really aren't buying the quality you are buying the name. It seems that the cut is just barely above mediocre. Of the two I think you will get a better deal on a Blue Nile. I know you can always return both. Maybe if you can afford it buy one of each and see in your own home what they look like and return what you dislike.

 

[Lynn B]

I suspect that the difference you saw in the two stones was due to the lighting conditions. The lights in Tiffany's would make a river rock sparkle!!!

Lynn

 

[pennylane]

Make sure you look at all the details of the diamond before buying on Blue Nile - especially fluorescence as that can affect the way a diamond's color appears. A couple of people I know have found really beautiful diamonds on Blue Nile.

I don't really think Tiffany & Co's lighting has much to do with how much sparkle their diamonds have. They reflect a lot of light in any situation (ideal cut).

Good luck!

 

[Jennifer5973]

Lighting DOES have an affect on a diamond's appearance...A diamond is all about light return, so how can it not?

When I chose my stone, I took it out of the store under sunny skies and then 10 min later when a cloud came. I took it into a closet and under a desk lamp, and into the car (I left my husband as "collateral" in the store

) ...I looked at it every which way I could. Of course, the cert info, color/clarity inspection, and cut data, plus HCA, rounded out the analysis.

Whether it's BN or T&C, you have to know what you are looking at/for.

 

[quaeritur]

If you're actually looking for fluorescence in a stone (as I was), Blue Nile seems to have more Fluorescent stones listed. I am one of those people that found a beautiful diamond at Blue Nile. I happen to love the fluorescence about it. fluorescence rarely detracts from the appearance of a stone, and can occasionally save a little money.

Having said that, fluorescence won't save you money at Blue Nile from what I've seen. Identical pricing on two stones of similar cut, same carat weight, same color and clarity. One had negligible fluorescence, the other very strong.

That said, lighting can make the worst stone look good, and sometimes even the best stone not so great. So lighting does matter. Tiffany's has some of the most blinding lights around. I think they have nice stuff, but I've seen nicer elsewhere, including on my finger... yeah, the one wearing the stone from Blue Nile

!

 

[StevL]

The bottom line is you need to have your friends diamond cleaned and compare the two diamonds under the same lighting conditions. Nothing else will prove, or disprove your thoughts and belief.

Diamonds need to be compared side by side if you want to see which appeals to your own eyes.

 

[Dancing Fire]

of course different type of light has a lot to do with the way that a diamond sparkle. the other reason could be (don't laugh at me on this one) the type of setting that is in. i think a setting with an open pavil will have more sparkle than a setting with a covered pavil- in other words, if the pavil.is cover up by prongs it will have less sparkles,i know it sounds strange..just my 2 cents.

 

[yowahking]

Comparing Blue Nile to Tiffany's is like comparing the best dining in your city to have the chef make you your dinner for take out. The food may be the same but the experience may be different. Most who go to Tiffany's are not there for value. Most who go to BLue Nile are not there for the experience. There are many other jewelers to buy a great diamond from, and many other internet sites other than Blue Nile for quality. If you are after the stone, than it really does not matter. If you want to see it along with several other stones, find a good local jeweler who will work on internet prices. If you don't want the jeweler experience, sometimes is more pressure, take your stone to the best appraiser in your area and ask lots of questions.

 

[kevinng]

I think it is not appropriate to compare diamonds using only brands or vendors as information. We all know that there are so many factors contributing to the beauty of a diamond. Most people on this forum will agree that we would prefer to see more information than just a brand.

That's why, most of us here will not pay the Tiffany premium. If we take out a sample of Tiffany diamonds and a sample of Blue Nile diamonds, I bet we can find some Tiffany's better than Blue Nile's and vice versa. Perhaps Tiffany's sample has a higher number of performing stones? But so what? Maybe the one you end up picking out is the worst of the lot?

That's why it is important to get all the information you can... look at the diamonds... use whatever light return tools you have (like the idealscope, for instance), and choose carefully. That's what I think.

 

[jesrush]

diamondchickie,

All the advice is good. Ignore brands and evaluate stone by stone, preferably under the same light. BN probably has some stunners, Tiffany probably has some stunners. Insist on a sarin or megascope report so can verify what you're seeing with some objective numerical data.

-J

 

[quaeritur]

----------------
On 8/20/2004 10:05:25 PM vtigger86 wrote:

of course different type of light has a lot to do with the way that a diamond sparkle. the other reason could be (don't laugh at me on this one) the type of setting that is used. i think the setting with an open pavil will sparkle more than a setting with a covered pavil- in other words, if the pavil.is cover up by prongs ,i know it sounds strange..----------------

I agree. I think it makes more of a difference on a less than ideal cut stone, but even with the ideals, I think the more open settings can contribute to sparkle.

 

[diamondchickie]

Hi Q:

What did you buy from Bluenile?

 

[lmurden]

Hi All,

I know someone who brags all the time about her Tiffany .50 carat solitaire ring all the time and she goes on and on how perfect the cut, color, and clarity is and when she saw my new engagement ring and she could not stop commenting on how much fire the diamond had ( Hopefully I'll have pictures by the end of the week. My camera shots are blurry).

I didn't tell her that I got it from Blue Nile

, no mention of the price, or the specs because she believes that a quality diamond can ONLY come from Tiffany.

 

[diamondchickie]

Hi Lmurden:

What are the specs of your BN diamond?

 

[lmurden]

The specs are
.71 Round
I color
VS-1 clarity
61.9% Depth
57% Table
Good Polish
Good Symmetry

Getting get good pictures has been tough. Tomorrow I will go to a local appraiser to have him take pictures for me. Blue Nile gives you a free appraisal for insurance purposes with your purchase with one picture on it but I want more indepth pictures.

 

[diamondchickie]

Hi LMurden:

Thanks for the info. I actually wanted my bf to get me a diamond engagement ring from BN but was a bit hesitant because I didn't know anyone who had any experience with them.

 

[Hest88]

There are so many factors that could have affected the visual difference you saw. All Tiffany diamonds are cut well, though you can't always be guaranteed that any one diamond is cut better than the super-ideals out there. We also have no idea if the BN diamond was actually ideal or just ideal by your friend's standards.

Also Tiffany lighting is very sophisticated. There was a discussion somewhere else where someone explained the lighting technique used for Tiffany store. The lighting is pinpointed to really make rings in the case sparkle like nobody's business, so in order to really judge your ring against a Tiffany you have to have them side-by-side. It's also best to try to view Tiffany rings with the same techniques you'd use to view any other stones--under the table, cupped in your hand, etc., to cut the effect of the lighting.

 

[lmurden]

There are a lot of post on Blue Nile. My diamond is considered by Blue Nile an Ideal Cut even though the polish/symmetry wasn't ideal. Some people love Blue Nile other find them pricey. My ring was appraised for 50% more than what my boyfriend/fiancee' paid for and we got a free appraisal along with the GIA dossier and a Chubb Insurance pamphlet.

The only thing is that you don't get in-depth digital pictures of the diamond. I was debating between Blue Nile and White flash because I like the solitaires at White Flash but my fiancee' felt more secure with Blue Nile because we have made five purchases from them over the last year, the 30 day return policy, the Bizrate and Forbes Magazine rating of Blue Nile, and we have been extremely happy with our purchases.

I hope this helps. No matter, what take your time and find a online vender that you feel comfortable with. After finding Price scope I can't even image buying diamond at the mall because my engagement ring is absolutely beautiful and the mall diamonds just can't compare!

 

[lmurden]

I have a correction my ring was appaised for 2X what my fiancee' paid for. Sorry about that.

 

[emeraldt]

The best advice I have is that you look at the Blue Nile ring under the Tiffany lights. Those stores pay a lot of money for that lighting, and a tiffany diamond in the same lighting that you saw the Blue Nile diamond under will probably have very similar fire.