Information Overload - A little help please!

[iceman72]

First of all - I''d like to complement you all on a great forum. What a wonderful wealth of information - but i''ve gotten myself a little overloaded on it!

My situation is this: I''m planning to get married and I have $2000 to spend on the ring. The idea of an online purchase appeals to me because I find that I don''t respond well to sales pressure. Additionally, I know how the jewelry business works a bit because my first wife was a jewelers daughter and i''ve learned from the inside that it''s easy to be taken advantage of and/or not get the best deal. Needless to say my exwife got a gorgeous ring (I paid cost!). Many of the details were left to the experts and I''m not quite sure of what the specifics were (cut, color etc.).

Fast forward to now - My budget is about $2000 and I would really like to get something beautiful for the woman I love at a good value. I have gleaned the following information: She likes a simple solitaire setting in white gold. She mentioned she liked a "square" cut (not round). Does this mean "cushion" or "princess"? Should I be more concerned with carat size or quality? Can I get something nice in my price range? Would an online merchant like blue nile be the way to go?

Any advice would be much appreciated!!
Thanks for your help!

 

[Regular Guy]

One suggestion...putting you $12 over budget (that's $1762 based on wire pricing), with their $250 ring...

 

[oobiecoo]

Definitely get a better quality diamond.... a well cut, clean diamond will sparkle and possibly look larger than if you just bought the largest diamond you could afford. If she likes square cuts then you should probably look at princess, asschers and radiants. Radiants also come in rectangular dimensions so make sure you like the "look" before you buy one. Asschers are very different, are cut deeper so they look a bit smaller than other shapes in the same size, and probably not a great idea unless you know she likes the look of them. I have one and LOVE it but many people don''t prefer them.

An online purchase sounds like the way to go for you... blue nile is good, definitely check out the above link to Whiteflash also. I think you can easily get a beautiful ring for $2000 if you pay close attention to cut, clarity, and all that jazz

 

[iceman72]

Thanks for your help. Looking at this one:

http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?track=diamond_comparison&elem=img&pid=LD01151053&filter_id=0#grading_report

What''s more important color or Clarity?

 

[oobiecoo]

I can''t really comment about the cut and dimensions but I do know that clarity is definitely more important. SI1s are a a great value (thats what my diamond is)... just ask to make sure it is eye-clean because sometimes they arent''t. Probably wouldn''t want to go below SI1 unless you saw it in person and liked it. Color is a matter of preference really... alot of people like the warmer colored stones while some people are very color sensitive and prefer nothing less than an E. I would suggest buying the stone first and seeing how you like it before having it set. You can always return it if its not exactly what you had hoped for. I think Blue Nile has a pretty good return policy, not sure though.

 

[iceman72]

Ira,

I have to admit I''m a little scared off by the J color. Do you think this is a good trade-off when combined with the "A cut above" cut quality?

thanks,

 

[Regular Guy]

Date: 10/29/2007 4:22:08 PM
Author: iceman72

What's more important color or Clarity?

Cut.

Smarter people will do fine with GIA......maybe people like JulieN...

If you'll get a princess, to take advantage of current research on cut, you'd best buy one certified by AGS. Blue Nile has them, but doesn't know what to do with them, since their research is older, and categorizes their cut as inferior...when they should not.

Get an eye clean option. Another problem with BN is that few of their are in house, so they can't comment directly whether it's eye clean. Also, they don't use any of the same technology vendors like WF & G0G use to document the goodness of cut, like ASET presentations, or reflector technologies. But...their pricing is attractive...possibly saving you a small amount over these other two. People here also like to talk about trade up options...and BN again doesn't offer that, either.

 

[Regular Guy]

Date: 10/29/2007 5:42:54 PM
Author: iceman72
Ira,

I have to admit I'm a little scared off by the J color. Do you think this is a good trade-off when combined with the 'A cut above' cut quality?

thanks,

We posted at near the same time.

I think in this size it's fine, probably. It's a personal choice, if shopping at WF (easy to do given resources here) whether to get a J at .7 +, or .5 + and a G...(edited to add...make that an F).

You can also look to see if BN has any AGS0 options...mis-rated as inferior cut. Or, you can shop for these at Exceldiamonds.com.

Just another couple of ideas...