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10 year anniversary diamond studs

T

turismo

Rough_Rock
Joined
Feb 18, 2005
Messages
23
Hard to believe, but I am just a couple of weeks away from my tenth anniversary. A little over ten years ago I received a ton of help here in these forums in buying my wife her engagement ring, which I got from Whiteflash (1.512 F VVS2).

Now I am looking at buying her RB diamond stud earrings. My initial thought was to go back to Whiteflash. I was very happy with the stone I bought there. However, in doing a little research, I came across James Allen, which also has a hearts and arrows type diamond called True Hearts, which looks to be similar to WF's A Cut Above.

I am looking at buying a 1.4 TCW pair, and was surprised at the price difference between what I saw on Whiteflash and James Allen for similar pairs. I see about a $1000 difference for approx 1.4 carat, H, VS2 pairs. Am I missing something? I was wondering if there is anyone that could compare the following James Allen stone with a similar White Flash stone and give me a sense as to why JA is so much less?

Thanks in advance for the help. I feel a bit nostalgic posting here... really can't believe it's been ten years. Links below...

http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/0.71-carat-h-color-vs2-clarity-ideal-cut-pair-584732,597150

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/diamond-pairs-details.aspx?Diamond1=3408354&Diamond2=3408364

PS - would a 4 prong or 6 prong setting make sense for a diamond this size?

Thanks, -turismo-
 
giving this thread a bump up . . . what a great anniversary gift

I would put the two earrings you found on JA on hold and see if you can get ASET images (they look very nice for the price point)
I like the four prong setting for earrings
Hopefully diamondseaker2006 will come by, she is great at finding stud earrings
 
Thanks 16ocean! I do love choosing studs!

turismo...welcome back! I will tell you upfront that my diamond studs are WhiteFlash ACA's and H VS2/SI1, so I love your WF pair. I have upgraded a couple of times, and that would be the primary reason I would encourage you to go with WF in the event you'd like to upgrade the studs to maybe .9 or 1 ct. in the future. I had .80's and just upgraded to 1.15 and I love the size difference! The JA stones look fine if you are 100% sure of not upgrading in the future. But with a 1.5 ct e-ring, I do think you have a little room to increase the size for a future anniversary, and WF has a better upgrade policy. I have always done classic 4 prong settings. I don't think there is any reason to consider 6 prongs until the stones are 1.5 cts are higher.

Good luck and let us know what you decide!
 
What a lovely anniversary gift, and thoughtful husband! I'll offer some different perspectives... I've never cared much for how a 4-prong setting "squares off" stones to my eye. So before I had my studs set in delicate, millegrained bezels, they were in 6-prong mountings; there are PSers who have even set diamonds smaller than what you are contemplating in 8-prong mountings (I'll try to find some pics for you, if you'd like).

1.50 tcw is my "sweet spot" for studs; in fact, I declined my then-husband's offer to upgrade mine (his wedding gift to me) to a larger size for our 10th anniversary. Also, I myself would not pay (and would not have wanted my husband to pay) the premium that's attached to super-ideal cut diamonds, like Whiteflash's A Cut Above® , for studs. So my suggestion would be to use the money you'd save, by not purchasing the very best cut, stud diamonds, towards the purchase of diamond earring jackets -- the most versatile piece of jewelry I have ever owned.

I especially like ID Jewelry's scalloped jackets that are a favorite with many PSers. This is a link to the helpful "ear shots" that cellantani posted of her .53 tcw, Old European cut studs in (1) the more usual kind of jacket, and (2) IDJ's scalloped jacket:
https://www.pricescope.com/communit...eye-candy.172216/page-3#post-3134518#p3134518
Other comparison shots of, e.g., the jackets' profiles, from the same thread:
https://www.pricescope.com/communit...eye-candy.172216/page-2#post-3133474#p3133474
https://www.pricescope.com/communit...-plus-eye-candy.172216/#post-3132505#p3132505

If the idea of also gifting your wife with earring jackets appeals to you, you could call IDJ (in NYC) and ask Yekutiel Davidov (the owner-manager) for a price quote on both the studs themselves and the jackets, using "Pricescope quality" diamonds; I think you will be pleasantly surprised at the reasonableness of the prices. IDJ will also assist you in deciding what size of diamonds to use in the jackets; you're not limited to what you see here:
http://idjewelry.com/jewelry/earrings/earring-jackets.html

aljdewey's sapphires in IDJ jackets:

aljdewey_s_sapphires_in_idj_jackets.jpg
 
upgrade policy :naughty: . . . . yup a very good reason for going with one vendor over another
 
I will just add that delicate 4 prongs are almost invisible when viewed on the ear. Bulky prongs of any number detract from the stone.
 
ds, my comment about number of prongs was prompted by your I don't think there is any reason to consider 6 prongs until the stones are 1.5 cts or higher; there is a reason, for some of us, to choose 6 or even more prongs for round diamonds -- personal preference ;))
 
I have very nice but not ideal-cut ~.78 studs. My SIL's studs from Whiteflash - same size, lower color - definitely out-perform mine, which is why I decided on ideal-cut diamonds for my smaller every day pair. My every days are ~.42 ctw BGD signature select cuts. I love that they're bright and lively in spite of their small size. So personally, I'd go for the ideal cuts. I wouldn't bother with VS clarity for earrings, however... I'd get SI1 and ensure that they're eye-clean.

As for the basket - I love both my 8-prongs and 3-prong martini, so I'm no help. :tongue: I don't think a 4-prong setting is going to look "squared off" in the size you're considering - that's only concern with much smaller size stones. BTW my 8-prong baskets are from Whiteflash (long story) and the prongs are not very noticeable even against those very diminutive diamonds. The prongs on their settings are nicely delicate.
 
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