Diamond Help - Blue Nile or Retail?

[One Diamond]

Ok, I''ve got the bands and setting from a private jeweler but now am confused about what to do about the center stone. What would you guys suggest between doing Blue Nile compared to buying from this private jeweler where I''ve bought the bands? And what''s up with the pricing and quality difference? It seems the quality should be the same since I''ve seen the actual cert on both. Anyway, here are the stats:

Private Jeweler (AGS cert):
Cut - Ideal
Color - G
Clarity - VS1
Carat - 1.07
Fluorescence - Inert
Depth - 60.3%
Table - 56%
$8,740

Blue Nile (AGS cert):
Cut - Ideal
Color - G
Clarity - VS1
Carat - 1.075
Fluorescence - Negligible
Depth - 61.9
Table - 55%
$7,570

Ok...What should I do? That''s a huge difference especially considering the $720 I would save in tax! This is my first "big" diamond purchase and any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Arlington]

Since both are AGS-certified, you should be able to get the crown and pavilion numbers off the certificate and use those to figure out the HCA score of each of the stones:

https://www.pricescope.com/cutadviser.asp

This may help in your decision, if one is poorly proportioned and one is exceptional.

I also would suggest reading the enture tutorial, if you haven't already!

 

[hoorray]

I would also run a search on the pricescope search engine, and maybe a few other internet vendor sites. You can really save money if you shop around on the internet, and you can often beat the quality. (although assuming these are ags0 stones, these look like good quality.) There are many highly recommended internet vendors who specialize in ideal stones and have exceptional pricing. Plus you typically save the sales tax!

THe tutorial here is a good way to get educated on what to look for. Bottom line is that cut and size make the biggest visible difference in the stone.

Good luck, and post more questions if you need help sorting it all out. The experts here can be really helpful! (And some of the non-experts

).

 

[One Diamond]

Thanks so much for the help already! If I was going to buy the center stone over the internet...Where is the most reliable place? Dirtcheapdiamonds, Blue Nile, etc.? So, you guys think that I should buy one of the internet and that you can find a good quality stone by looking at gradings? I'm afraid the jeweler is going to be really upset as I've just started looking at stones on the internet while he has been researching some stones for me. But I calculated up to a 25% difference in prices for similar stones. (that includes tax as well)

Any other suggestions? I'm wanting about a carat round in the $7-8K range. I also want an ideally cut diamond so whether that needs to be hearts and arrows I don't know. What ordering should I be looking at as far as the "C's" go? Cut then color then clarity?

Thanks so much for all the feedback. I just want to make the most logical and efficient decision. Thanks!

 

[One Diamond]

Also, what exactly should I be looking for in flourescence to minimize that "blue" color? What's the scale for this and where does inert rank compared to negligible compared to medium blue? Thanks so much!

 

[hoorray]

Hi One Diamond,

There are a lot of good vendors online. My take (which is just from reading this and my own experience) is that some vendors hold their own inventory, and offer more info and help in the selection process. Then there are diamonds from the wholesalers that are available to everyone, so the issue for you on those is price, service, policies, and who you like dealing with and trust. I happened to buy a stone off the "brokered lists" from USA Certed Diamonds, and am totally happy. Others rave about Good Old Gold, Whiteflash, Diamond Brokers of Florida, DirtCheap Diamonds, etc. Whatever you do, plan to have it appraised by an independent broker for your own insurance and peace of mind.

A quick search of Jonathons www.goodoldgold.com site showed lots of diamonds along the lines of what you are looking for. His site give TONS of info in the stones, so you would probably like searching through there, as well as some of the others listed.

I also found that making contact with the various vendors and telling them what you are looking for helps. You'll find who you like dealing with and figure out who has what pretty fast. email or phone tends to work for them, and they respond quickly.

Have fun and keep posting questions. (Start a new thread if you have new topics.)

Hoorray

 

[Boulder]

I second and third what everyone else has already mentioned. Blue Nile is often the first site that people stumble across since it has such a large presence and user-friendly interface. However, keep doing some research and you'll come across other sites (mentioned above) that provide a whole lot more information. Also, you can really get some personal attention at these smaller stores.