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OK I''m Ready to Tell My Story

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diamondclown

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 13, 2004
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Be kind, but honest. This has been a very stressful week long
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diamond experience. About 6 months ago I set out to buy my first nice diamond wedding ring. I had several bad experiences in mall jewelry stores and was very frustrated with the process of buying a diamond from these places. I really was about to give up. Then we went to Las Vegas. I ended up in one of The Jewelers of Las Vegas stores. I purchased a 1.53 ct Marquise that I really didn''t know anything about. No paperwork went home with me that day although I was promised it via mail. Let me say it STUPID.
A day later back home, I noticed I could see what seemed to be a crack. Obviously I freaked out. THEN I decided to start doing research and found this GREAT forum! I purchased a loop and was not at all happy with all I could see. The stress fracture/feather was close to the girdle and all the other inclusions were not in the stone I was shown at the store, period! I was shown a group of white bubbly looking inclusions in the diamond in the store and came back to pick it up after it was set but did not recheck it. So I called the corp office and laid it out for them and said I really wanted my money back which is not their policy. I Fed Exed it back and today I received my replacement with paperwork. EGL-USA Cert. (LA) and an appraisal from them. I find this a small bright spot, that it is USA cert. but am confused since I was told the man I spoke to was flying to Isreal over the weekend to get the stone I received in my ring today. I was sure it would be a EGL- Isreal cert. I will get my own appraisal also and already have on picked from your list in my area. Yes I have been reading all the bad stuff about EGL so yes I am still freaked out but trying to make the best of this mess. I was told my original stone was a G, SI 1. The stone I received back today with paperwork is as follows:

1.51 CT
Measurements:10.75 x 6.00 x 4.07 (Pretty short & fat but ok looking.)

Depth: 67.80%
Table: 51.00%
Crown: 16.80%
Pavillion: 44.30%
Girdle thin to thick faceted

Cutlet: none
Polish: good to very good
Clarity: VS1
Color: G
Fluor: none

I have $8,700 into the stone itself. $1,300 into the setting. I want to know what you all think of the size, shape, price. I''ve really been beating myself of for the last week so I don''t need to here anything but facts. This seems like a good place to get that. I don''t mind the shape although the first on was longer and skinner and that was a little nicer. They insist I can exchange or upgrade diamonds whenever the mood hits me or I get smarter I guess. lol
 

Patty

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Dec 7, 2003
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4,332
I know nothing about marquise shaped diamonds but I do want to say that an EGL certificate is not a BAD thing. They have a reputation of being a bit more lenient on their grading but as you've read, the USA certs are usually more on-target, and many of the European ones are too. Your best bet is to do what you are going to do...take the stone to an independent appraiser to make sure it matches up to the certificate. A G color, VS1 clarity sounds like a beautiful stone! Let us know what the appraiser says and of course, we want to see pictures!
 

hoorray

Ideal_Rock
Joined
May 16, 2003
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2,798
I don't know anything about marquise shapes either, but it sounds as if you are handling this the right way. Stick with you plan and get some expert advice. Also, make sure you love the stone, and aren't just settling because it happens to be what they have right now....
 

valeria101

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
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Aug 29, 2003
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15,809
To me, the numbers look stupendous!

You can also check the AGA chart for marquises and get a look at it through an Iscope
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The stats are not terribly informative about brilliance, but there is no 'red flag' either - as far as I can tell. Btw - how about symmetry ?

Do you like it - all other concern aside? And, more importantly
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can we see the ring ?
 

diamondclown

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 13, 2004
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OK Here is the second stone. I honestly am so stressed out about what the diamond is or isn't that I'm not really enjoying it at all. I'm having a had time seperating what I see from what I feel I've all done wrong buying the darn thing. Next post will be of the first stone.

ring2nd.JPG
 

Richard Sherwood

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Sep 25, 2002
Messages
4,924
D.C., stop stressing, it looks like you did okay on your second stone.

G/VS1 is a great color/clarity combination, and EGL-USA is a pretty good lab, so the grading should be reasonably accurate.

The measurements you listed indicate a lively marquise. They're never as lively as the rounds, but as far as marquise's go, this one probably is livelier than the majority. The numbers run through the DiamCalc program indicate fair to good (non) light return, with good (non) light leakage, very good contrast and very good (non) fisheye effect. In addition, the high crown (16.8%) is mostly likely accompanied by decent crown angles (34.5 neighborhood) which should create nice "fire" (colored light return).

The technical cut grade on the marquise scores an AGA 3A make, which is a good commercial make. Not "very good", but then again not "fair" or "poor".

If the G/VS1 grading is accurate, the price you paid is actually very good, in line with very competitive internet pricing. If the grading is one color grade optimistic (probably worst case scenario), the price you paid is still good.

It's tough to tell from the photo, but nothing it shows raises any red flags.

An indepedent appraiser (or objective non-idependent) should be able to give you peace of mind regarding the stone, or tell you if anything looks out of whack.

My gut instinct is that they really tried to make you happy with a better stone the second time around.
 

diamondclown

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 13, 2004
Messages
10
Thanks for all the encouragement. The photo is not very good. I'm trying to take some better ones. I am also having problems uploading to this forum. It took me several trys to get the first one up and I gave up trying to load the photo of the first stone. The size should be ok so I don't know what the problem is.
 

diamondclown

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 13, 2004
Messages
10
Second stone again. Hopefully the sun will come out today so I can get a brighter clear photo.

ring2pic2.JPG
 

diamondclown

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 13, 2004
Messages
10
Still trying to capture a better photo. It really is very white and shimmery in person. I just can't get it to photograph like some of you can. Round stones obviously photgragh better. Made an appointment with an appraiser for Friday. I was told it will be $125.00. I called an agent that writes Chubb Ins. policies and am waiting for a call back. I kind of felt they didn't want to deal with it since she said I could just go through my home owners policy.

ring2pic4.JPG
 

yowahking

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Aug 15, 2004
Messages
317
Looks like you got a nice stone, that chain in Vegas is known for using some far out, whacky appraisals, to go along with the jewelry. I suggest a real appraisal just to make sure you did ok. Only insure for real appraised value, not 5 times selling price.
 

diamondclown

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 13, 2004
Messages
10
I did get my appraisel yeasterday. Although it is being mailed I can tell you some stuff off the top of my head.
It went from a VS1 down to VS2. From G in color to H-I. I was also told it had an extra facet. How bad is that? Also under 30X she saw either a feather or a chip that had been polished out maybe accounting for the extra facet. Fair to good for polish down from good to very good. How does that affect the stone? We paid 10K and she valued it at 9K plus. She said I would have paid about the same in the Houston area. Oh it also does have some fluorescence and very thin to thick girdle. I guess I'm glad it is a real stone at all at this point but based on all I have read here I know that according to the standards of people who know their stuff about diamonds it doesn't seem like a very good stone at all. The apprasier said it was on OK stone. I'm pretty disappointed with the entire diamond ring experience. I should have just got a gold band. Considering you have to know more then the person trying to sell it to you so you don't get riped off it seems like alot of trouble. I hate games like that.
 

valeria101

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Aug 29, 2003
Messages
15,809
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On 10/16/2004 12:40:58 PM diamondclown wrote:



I should have just got a gold band.

Considering you have to know more then the person trying to sell it to you so you don't get riped off it seems like alot of trouble. I hate games like that.----------------



Gee...
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Sounds like a very rainy day.

Gold bands are great - so traditional and the ultimate marriage sign as far as I am concerned. But your diamond is no reason for dissapointment
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After the first experience you describe I would have changed the seller too, not just the stone. A game of cat and mouse between you and the seler is just wrong.

This is just me, but I really am willing to pay for the experience and knowingly take a not-so-great price for something right out of my dreams. Do you really want to give up on this one ?
 

Richard Sherwood

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Sep 25, 2002
Messages
4,924
D.C., the main thing that is "devaluing" your diamond is the appraiser's opinion of the color versus EGL-USA's opinion. There's about a 23% drop in value from a "G" to an "H-I split grade", along with an additional 3.5% drop in value from a "VS1" to a "VS2".

My thoughts are this. It's well known that it is more difficult to color grade a mounted diamond versus a loose diamond. The grading by EGL-USA was most likely done while the diamond was loose. Your appraiser graded it while mounted.

Another pattern to consider is that of EGL-USA usually being close to dead-on with GIA in their clarity grading, while usually being no lower than one color grade less than GIA.

With this in mind, and considering your appraiser's opinion, there's a pretty good chance that your diamond is at least an H/VS2, possibly an H/VS1.

Either of these would probably be more valuable than the original stone you purchased, the G/SI1. An H/VS2 would be about 2.5% more valuable, while an H/VS1 would be about 6.5% more valuable.

So in one case you've got a lab color grading the diamond loose, in the other case you've got an appraiser grading it mounted. Whose grade is more accurate? The truth probably lies somewhere in between (H?).

$8700 for a 1.51 H/VS2 marquise with a 3A (commercial make) is a good price. The mounting you pictured looks like it was probably fairly priced at the $1300 figure.

The appraiser's comment that you would have paid about the same in the Houston area would hold true, as the prices in Vegas are about the same as any major metropolitan area.

The appraiser's $9000 figure is probably influenced by her opinion that the color strays into the "I" neighborhood. For example, there's about a 19% drop in value between an H/VS2 and an I/VS2. Big price drop between an H and an I.

My gut instinct is that with an EGL-USA lab grade of "G", your diamond does not stray below an "H". In that case, the $10,000 you paid would be a very reasonable, indeed even a "good" price.

If you think the ring is pretty, then I wouldn't worry about it. I don't think you got ripped off. If you DON'T like the look of the diamond, then I would ask the jeweler to find you another stone.
 
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