GIA color may be wrong? Maybe not?

[jline123]

Hello, I recently purchased an 1.01c i VVS2 from Ritani and it was delivered today. I immediately took it to Shane Co. where my setting was being held to have it set. When I got there the woman asked me if I was sure about my diamond purchase and asked me to look at some of their i colored diamonds. They were all better. Not one had a tint of yellow to them, and side-by-side with mine, mine looks really yellow. Mine is GIA certified, and the inscription matched the cert. Shane Co. however does not use a lab except their own, therefore not certified. What could the problem be here? I left it there to be set, but I'm kind of getting worried. Should I have it reappraised locally? Thank you in advance to anyone that can shed some light on this situation. Have a good day.

 

[tyty333]

Do their labs put the angles on the certificate? Theirs may be cut for white light return and not TIC. Just a guess I thought
I'd throw out there.

Plus some "I"s are low "I"s ...closer to "J"s vs being a higher "I" closer to an "H".

Can you go to a Jareds and compare against their Peerless line which have AGS papers?

 

[jline123]

Do their labs put the angles on the certificate? Theirs may be cut for white light return and not TIC.

I'm sorry, could you please explain this? lol Angles? White light return? TIC?

 

[pfunk]

How did you compare stones? Face down in a white tray? Were the stones the same size?

 

[denverappraiser]

I is a range that goes from just barely out of H to just barely out of J. That crosses the area that a lot of people start to see a hint of color but you should not be seeing an I as distinctly yellow. GIA is quite consistent but there's always a possibility of error, say a stone that otherwise would be just into J but got 'lucky' and the same applies to the other end for the same reason. Was yours one of these? No clue.

The way to grade color is pretty much exactly as you've done. Compare the color of the subject stone to a known color master in a controlled lighting environment. Your test has a problem both in terms of not knowing the details of the master and not controlling the lighting. That doesn't mean it's wrong, of course, it just means it wasn't a controlled inspection. There are plenty of appraisers around who do this on a regular basis and I'm confident you could hire one if you wanted. If it bugs you, send it back. Tell them your problem and pick another one. Ritani has more where that one came from. Alternatively, finish the sales pitch at Shane. There are other things to talk about but they definitely got your attention.

 

[jline123]

How did you compare stones? Face down in a white tray? Were the stones the same size?

Face up on a black tray. Exact same size, 1.01c. Mine is VVS2 and the one she showed me was an I2.

 

[jline123]

I is a range that goes from just barely out of H to just barely out of J. That crosses the area that a lot of people start to see a hint of color but you should not be seeing an I as distinctly yellow. GIA is quite consistent but there's always a possibility of error, say a stone that otherwise would be just into J but got 'lucky' and the same applies to the other end for the same reason. Was yours one of these? No clue.

The way to grade color is pretty much exactly as you've done. Compare the color of the subject stone to a known color master in a controlled lighting environment. Your test has a problem both in terms of not knowing the details of the master and not controlling the lighting. That doesn't mean it's wrong, of course, it just means it wasn't a controlled inspection. There are plenty of appraisers around who do this on a regular basis and I'm confident you could hire one if you wanted. If it bugs you, send it back. Tell them your problem and pick another one. Ritani has more where that one came from. Alternatively, finish the sales pitch at Shane. There are other things to talk about but they definitely got your attention.

Thank you. I just scheduled an appointment with an appraiser. Everything you said makes sense, except with the sales pitch at Shane. I forgot to mention it is an oval and they just don't have one I want. Thank you for taking time to reply and help.

 

[denverappraiser]

FWIW, in color grading you look at them face down, from an angle, on a white background.

 

[tyty333]

FWIW, in color grading you look at them face down, from an angle, on a white background.

And depending on how well the stone is cut, ovals can tend to show more color just outside of where the bow-tie would be.

Everything I said in my previous posted has to do with round brilliants...not ovals.

Do you have a link to your stone or an upclose picture so we can see the faceting pattern. It wont tell me anything about
the color but might be able to tell us something about the cut. Did you buy it with Pricescope help?

Edit - nice ovals are hard to find.

 

[Rockdiamond]

Aside from the other excellent advice already given- if the comparison stone has no GIA report, we can only guess what color it would be graded by GIA.

No offense to the company showing you the stones, but it would be quite easy to use an F to made an I look quite tinted....

I'm not saying that's what happened t you, but my first point stands.
You need to use GIA graded stones to make any valid comparison.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I totally agree...they may have been showing you D colored diamonds with low clarity to make you question your purchase. And in-house graded stones is about as dangerous as it gets, unless maybe it is Tiffany.