Let's talk about deep antique stones

[pricklypear]

Hi Everyone!

Lurker finally surfacing. You’ve all been so helpful in my journey to find an engagement ring—I’ve vacillated from deep blue sapphires to Montana Sapphires to pre-loved diamonds, and now I think I’ve narrowed it down to OMC/antique cushions. Could you help me learn more about cushion depth?

If stats matter, I'll post them, but I'm more curious what opinions you have and advice you'd give about super deep stones. I've seen opinions ranging from "you'll pay more because of weight and the stone will face up smaller" to "You can’t judge a cushion by the numbers/it doesn't matter if you love it."

So! The questions:

1. What would you say if I was interested in an antique cushion with 78% depth? (It makes me anxious just typing that.)

2. Then what would you say if that stone was from a well-loved and highly regarded PS vendor?

3. What if that diamond looked like the pictures below?





Thank you so much in advance! I'm going to be offline for a few, but I'll be back to clarify if you need me.

 

[Gypsy]

The only issue for me is spread. The spread will be impacted. But antiques are fancies. Performance is not impacted by depth if the other facets are working together just fine with antique cuts. I have a VERY deep OEC. It ASETs out perfectly, because all the angles work together. It's just very small for it's carat weight. But I bought it based on dimensions not weight so it worked out fine for me.

 

[pricklypear]

Thanks Gypsy, I appreciate your insight! I really respect your opinion--I've quoted you to my fiance a few times now. You have so many beautiful pieces--have you posted a photo of your super deep one?

Sadly, I don't have a lot of angle information about this stone, but I'm very fond of it. It doesn't hurt that Erica takes the most stunning photos!
http://jewelsbygrace.smugmug.com/Loose-Diamonds/1ct-and-Under-loose-diamonds/95-ct-Antique-Cushion-Cut/

Dimensions for reference
.95 GIA I VS1
5.73 x 5.47 x 4.29mm
Depth: 78.5%
Table: 52%

I know I'm hijacking my own thread, but do you see anything else I should be concerned about besides spread?

Thank you again!!!

 

[Gypsy]

I think the Erica is generally very honest. I would ask her what she observes. And if you want, you can ask he to send the stone to an appraiser for an ASET (you would pay for it), or to send it to you, and you could evaluate it in person.

Fancies are very hard. I just have a good friend of mine get two OECs from Adam at OWDs and she and I got together to evaluate them. One was technically and on paper much nicer than the other. It had great polish, a round outline, and under the ASET scope it was near perfect. The other had a slighty wonky outline, the facets had a few abrasions, and under the ASET it showed leakage.

But you know what? No matter what we did, and where we looked at it ... we BOTH preferred the less perfect one. I had a better personality, the facets flashed and danced more, and it was more eye catching. So... she kept that one, and returned the 'more perfect one'.

I'm a big believer that fancies have personalities and they have to work for you. And unfortunately, what that means is you have to see a few of them to see what works for you.

I wish I had a better answer for you.

 

[RandG]

This is a really lovely stone, with the perfect shape! My preference is for old cuts, particularly antique cushions and mine cuts, so this little firecracker appeals to me a lot. Every diamond is a balance. Unless you have unlimited resources, you gain and give up something with every buy. Here, you gain atypical color and clarity for the cut, but you give up scale you're paying for. I wouldn't be deterred by this depth, but it would prompt me to look for a deeper discount and I wouldn't buy without it. Remember, should you ever go to upgrade or sell, a savvy buyer will also look for a discount because of the depth of this stone. Just something to take into consideration. Now, if you emotionally connected to this stunner, then paying a little more is well worth it and you should go for it!

If it were me, I would ask Grace to show the stone in video, alongside a couple others, in and around the 1ct range, so you can see how they perform, as well as the size differences. See how the J color compares to the I and whether you really need to pay a premium for the color.

http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/loose-diamonds/under-1-ct/95ct-antique-cushion-cut-diamond-gia-j-si-1.html#.U_CUuU10zIU
http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/loose-diamonds/1-ct-to-2-00/1-31ct-antique-cushion-cut-egl-j-vs2.html#.U_CV6E10zIU

If Grace can't discount the stone, I might ask for a credit towards a mounting, or one of her vintage mountings, gratis. Never hurts to try!

Finding the right antique stone isn't easy. It can take time and the hunt can be both fun and frustrating. I've been there! But I would encourage you to play with as many stones as you can, in advance of buying.

Whatever you do, good luck and congratulations!!!

 

[pricklypear]

Aw thank you Gypsy and RandG! Your advice was the encouragement I needed. I bought the stone from Grace and it makes me so happy! I wear it around the house a lot to play in the different lights. I can get a pretty neat disco ball effect if it's bright enough!

Thanks to you, I'm finally moving on to the setting, much to my fiance's relief!

 

[JulieN]

In this case, the girdle is Extremely Thin to Very Thin, you really need the high angles or else it'd be Chips Ahoy! I'd take that into consideration when deciding on your setting.

 

[bgray]

that stone is stunning from the pics. i have cushions with a depth of 78 and 80. They face up very small for their carat weight but have super high crowns so they are little fireballs. i dont think they look right if they are not a little deep as long as you get a high crown out of it.

 

[pricklypear]

JulieN: Thank you, this point definitely helped determine what kind of setting I wanted.

bgray: Thank you for the reassurance! I love my little guy, and your comment helped to fight any sneaky feelings of buyer's remorse.