If you had a badly cut diamond to spare (and its too shallow for a good recut), what would you do? What have you done with your pre-PS diamonds?
Trade/Sell or give to a friend or family member who would enjoy it.
Is it too shallow to convert into a rose-cut or the like?
How bad? If it is absolutely horrible then I would not do anything with it other than sell it or use it for a trade in. I would not spend another dime on it by setting it into something else...the old adage "Lipstick on a Pig" or "Good Money After Bad". But if it is something that is pretty albeit not ideal, you can always set it into a simple setting and wear it on vacation or venue where you do not want to wear it and still have some bling.
Sold as estate.
How bad is a great question. I have several non-ideal cut round brilliants that were bought during the 60/60 days. But they are all great color, and clarity while the cut was what the high end jewelry stores were then selling. I have a stone that is, I believe, a 2.20 carat E color VS clarity. I originally wore it as a solitaire but felt it was too big (!!!). So I had it set in a bezel on a gold wire pendant. The necklace actually has many gold wire strands, I forget how many, maybe 5 or 7. I have no desire to part with this stone.
AGBF
I recently got some pave work in yellow gold (a halo). I never see yg pave and wondered if I was making the right choice (over plat) but my true love of yg won out.
You have piqued my interest, Indylady! Will you post a photo of your new piece?
Deb
Haha, thought about this. Mil has a d (or e) vvs 1.7 ct family stone that's a flat, spready pancake. She complained at least 10 x during the last month about the lack of sparkle. Thinks it's because her setting is too low (it's not). When I explained the concept of CUT to her, she just kind of zoomed out of the discussion. I'd love to have it recerted with all the angles (they have several indepent appraisals stating ctw clarity and colour, but no cert) for curiosity's sake. I guess recutting won't be an option, given the shallow dimensions... I'm pretty sure I ll not have to worry about it, though, since all jewelry will go to her only daughter, who hates jewelry and will just sell everything off.
My original diamond pendant is in this category. It’s nice and white but I can see an inclusion under the table, I can also tell that the cut isn’t the best, although it is pretty sparkly under certain types of lighting.
I have made my peace with it now (I raged internally for ages about the money I spent on it, with the knowledge I have now I can see I would get a superideal for the same, and it’s 15 years later ) and have decided to wear it when I go on holiday and don’t want to wear my upgraded stone. If that doesn’t work out I will likely give it to my sister or niece. I know I would not get even half what I paid for it back if I tried to sell and the effort of that is too much!
Thanks for your input! I suggested to send it off, but she's afraid GIA will switch her diamond :roll, so she won't be open to sending it anywhere else.You could instead send it to a diamond cutter that will likely provide an ASET for free to assess a cut; it would be deceptive if you/MIL were not open to a cut, but it wouldn't hurt to see. Its a shame it'll go to someone who doesn't care and will sell it, but I guess c'est la vie. A halo could add a bit of sparkle if nothing else is to be done and she won't sell it or recut it, and still wants to wear it.
Beautiful, @Indylady
Old school! I get it.Thanks for your input! I suggested to send it off, but she's afraid GIA will switch her diamond :roll, so she won't be open to sending it anywhere else.
I never took any and Old World Diamonds took the listing/photo down as soon as I bought it (one of the two). It is being set now and then sent to my mom (actually likely to arrive Monday or Tuesday), but i'll take a photo next time I see my folks. The marquise is also with my folks, sitting in a jewelry box.any pictures?
Yes, of course! I'm horrible with photos which is why I never post any, but here are a few below. The gallery is really the best part about the ring--it has multicolor sapphire and diamond flowers (I think the light blue stones may actually be aquamarines, but I think the rest are sapphires. When I was a child my mom and aunts would tell me the fairy tale "12 Dancing Princesses", a German Brothers Grimm fairy tale about 12 princesses that would wear their shoes out each night by sneaking out to go dancing. In my family's version, the princesses travelled through rooms with sapphire and emerald and diamond ruby forests on their way to the princes. They never got caught and evaded all the knights and noblemen that the king sent to follow the princesses and figure out why their shoes were so worn; it sounds like an unsatisfactory end, but I really didn't question that as a child, and just enjoyed each pretty description of forests of gems and beautiful gowns and dancing with princes. Or perhaps in my family's version they eventually married the princes, I really can't quite remember, but it was a happy ending. Turns out that was my family's feminist twist, to include lots of gemstones and no capture, and that in the traditional story (and versions of the story) the princesses only walk through silver, gold, and diamond rooms, and they are caught somehow and then either marry the knight that caught them or are cursed with a magic spell for the number of days they went out dancing, depending on the version. Anyways, I always loved the story and love flowers and florals generally, and thought this would be a sweet gallery. Steven Kirsch made the ring. The centerstone is a 1.4ct fancy light gray.
I really worried that I need platinum for both the pave (for the sake of a long lasting ring, to avoid loosing pave, etc.) and the fancy gray, but, I love YG and I actually think it makes a nice contrast with the gray and encourages it to pop a bit. There is such little visible metal on the halo that you can really barely tell its in yellow gold at any normal viewing distance, or so I think by my eyes. I lose some pave over time or the ring bends out of shape, and if that happens sooner because its yellow gold and not platinum, I have made peace with that possibility or inevitability. I just like what I like, and I'll work on the upkeep by babying it a bit and paying for the maintenance.
That's a fabulous ring, IndyLady. I absolutely love the colorful underside with the sprinkling of diamonds over the colored gems. It looks like all my childhood fantasies! (And "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" was probably my favorite book, only the version I had was written for children in the 1950's United States, so it wouldn't have had any of the Brothers Grimm surprises in it.)
I am so glad you reminded me of the story as well as showing me your beautiful ring. Both the ring and the story are inspiring!
Hugs,
Deb