How to decide

[dbug]

I have been looking for a ring for my wife. This site is too good and has given me a lot of insight into diamonds. Thanks a lot guys

I have identified few websites where I am currently searching.
1) ID Jewelery
2) Whiteflash
3) briangavindiamonds
4) Costco

If there are any other pls help me to add on to my list.

My question is that I saw diamonds from ID Jewelry to be cheaper than the other and I noticed that they have EGL I certification. All GIA ones in all websites are more expensive. Is it okay to go for the diamonds from ID jewelry ?

Am looking for a solitaire ring. Plan to spend more on the diamond than on the setting.

 

[phoenixente]

GIA is a reputed laboratory. The certificate by GIA is accepted worldwide. EGL is localized lab mainly in USA and Israel. the grading is not at par with GIA hence the price difference. My suggestion is if you are going for a VVS , VS or SI diamond go for GIA else EGL is fine.

 

[dbug]

My budget it around $3500 for the diamond. I am bit confused on what options(which one of the C's) I can slide. Any recommendations would be awesome

I would love
1) .75 ct and above. Ideally .9 to 1
2) Color between D & H
3) Clarity Vs1 and above
4) Cut to be very good and above

I noticed that Brian Gavin has different signature cuts. What can I get by going for those cuts.

The biggest requirement is that the diamond should sparkle.

Thanks

 

[phoenixente]

An H color VS1 0.80 VG plus GIA should be sparkling and fit within your budget.

 

[Gypsy]

My budget it around $3500 for the diamond. I am bit confused on what options(which one of the C's) I can slide. Any recommendations would be awesome

I would love
1) .75 ct and above. Ideally .9 to 1
2) Color between D & H
3) Clarity Vs1 and above
4) Cut to be very good and above

I noticed that Brian Gavin has different signature cuts. What can I get by going for those cuts.

The biggest requirement is that the diamond should sparkle.

Thanks

I think an eyeclean GIA H SI from a vendor that carries the diamonds in stock (like BGD as you mentioned) would be the safest choice. If you get an diamond with ideal light return it will look larger and brighter than a diamond of inferior light return and similar carat weight.

WF and BGD offer full upgrade policies with their signature lines. That means you can trade up your diamond and get back what you paid toward a different stone during the lifetime of your purchase. They also offer Idealscope images and other information that make diamond buying online painless and safe. The quality control on the signature lines is top knotch generally and these are some of the best cut diamonds in the industry.

Costco has none of those advantages. BUT Costco does have a LIFETIME return policy as long as there is no work done (including sizing) on the ring. So... if there is ANY doubt the lady might not say yes... either go with Costco or make sure you propose during the return window of any other vendor.

ID Jewelry has the lowest prices around on standard diamonds (they don't have a signature line or anything like that but they can call in stones for you) they do have an idealscope and can get you an image with one. I don't believe they have an upgrade policy though. But you do get lower pricing on stones as a trade off. If you aren't planning on upgrading, they are a great vendor.

Stay away from EGL. They are not a good deal. Please do a search on here about EGL and you should see what a losing proposition they are. Even the EGL USA labs are very unreliable. ONLY buy an EGL stone if you can get and Idealscope, SARIN (ID doesn't offer Sarin) and if you plan on going to the hassle of getting the diamond independently appraised (can cost up to 200 bucks for this) to see how far off the report is. Considering how tight your budget is... I wouldn't even bother because by the time you are done with the appraisal you are looking at near GIA pricing anyway. I don't know of any vendor that offers a trade up or buy back policy on anything with an EGL report.

 

[Christina...]

My budget it around $3500 for the diamond. I am bit confused on what options(which one of the C's) I can slide. Any recommendations would be awesome

I would love
1) .75 ct and above. Ideally .9 to 1
2) Color between D & H
3) Clarity Vs1 and above
4) Cut to be very good and above

I noticed that Brian Gavin has different signature cuts. What can I get by going for those cuts.

The biggest requirement is that the diamond should sparkle.

Thanks

I think an eyeclean GIA H SI from a vendor that carries the diamonds in stock (like BGD as you mentioned) would be the safest choice. If you get an diamond with ideal light return it will look larger and brighter than a diamond of inferior light return and similar carat weight.

WF and BGD offer full upgrade policies with their signature lines. That means you can trade up your diamond and get back what you paid toward a different stone during the lifetime of your purchase. They also offer Idealscope images and other information that make diamond buying online painless and safe. The quality control on the signature lines is top knotch generally and these are some of the best cut diamonds in the industry.

Costco has none of those advantages. BUT Costco does have a LIFETIME return policy as long as there is no work done (including sizing) on the ring. So... if there is ANY doubt the lady might not say yes... either go with Costco or make sure you propose during the return window of any other vendor.

ID Jewelry has the lowest prices around on standard diamonds (they don't have a signature line or anything like that but they can call in stones for you) they do have an idealscope and can get you an image with one. I don't believe they have an upgrade policy though. But you do get lower pricing on stones as a trade off. If you aren't planning on upgrading, they are a great vendor.

Stay away from EGL. They are not a good deal. Please do a search on here about EGL and you should see what a losing proposition they are. Even the EGL USA labs are very unreliable. ONLY buy an EGL stone if you can get and Idealscope, SARIN (ID doesn't offer Sarin) and if you plan on going to the hassle of getting the diamond independently appraised (can cost up to 200 bucks for this) to see how far off the report is. Considering how tight your budget is... I wouldn't even bother because by the time you are done with the appraisal you are looking at near GIA pricing anyway. I don't know of any vendor that offers a trade up or buy back policy on anything with an EGL report.

100% agree with this! EGL only looks like a value because you're not apples to apples. An EGL H VS1 is NOT the same as a GIA H VS1. EGL reports are consistently of by two or more color grades and one or more clarity grades. So to get a true comparison you would need to compare the EGL stone to a GIA J VS2 or SI1, when you do that you will see that the prices between the two become much more similar, often times with the GIA stones less expensive. If you want an honest evaluation of your stone, go with AGS or GIA. And like Gypsy already mentioned, a well cut stone is going to looker whiter, brighter and larger than an inferior cut stone, so if one of the 4 C's has to give it shouldn't be cut. Personally I'm not super color sensitive so I would give up some color and go with an eye clean stone, SI1 or a really good SI2, you will have to look harder for a really great eye clean SI2 stone but they are out there. I would call IDJ and tell them your budget and what you hope to get with that, and let them make a few suggestions for you. They have really come through for some PSers that were really trying to stretch their budget.

 

[dbug]

Wow thanks a lot.

I loved BG and Whiteflash but I did notice that they have limited settings.
I loved a few settings on this website http://www.jrjewelers.com/ (I dont know their reputation)

Is it advisable to buy the setting from www.jrjewelers.com/ and send it over to BG to put the stone in.(If I buy the diamond from BG)
Or can I ask BG to find the setting for me (its by artcarved)

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Scratch Costco and add Good Old Gold. WhiteFlash, Brian Gavin, and Good Old Gold specialize in ideal cut diamonds and will have the best selection. Diamond prices are very high, so you will have to make some compromises. Good Old Gold carries throusands of settings from many designers, so it is no issue getting a setting there. WhiteFlash carries the Vatche line as well as their stock settings. I definitely recommend getting the setting from the diamond vendor. If you can show us the style setting you like, we can find similar ones from these vendors and then you can choose a diamond from the vendor who has the setting you want.

 

[dbug]

I loved these designs


http://www.jrjewelers.com/Amy_Engagement_Ring_prk/Jewelry_srk/
http://www.jrjewelers.com/Gabriella_Engagement_Ring_Mounting_prk/Jewelry_srk/

 

[Ravinmad]

I second DS's suggestion. Costco and Sams clubs I have been in have IGI certs, I have only been in 1 costco since getting into looking at diamonds but it has/had a IGI cert. bleh

 

[bagelboy]

I would look for diamonds that are "eyeclean", not necessarily VS-1 and higher clarities. Otherwise you are just spending money to ensure that you can't see the inclusions. Your choice however. The clarity range I would target is from VS-1 down to SI-2. As long as I could not see the inclusions, it really wouldn't matter to me. Going down in the clarity grade can help you move up in the diamond size department. Hope this helps.

 

[Gypsy]

I loved these designs


http://www.jrjewelers.com/Amy_Engagement_Ring_prk/Jewelry_srk/
http://www.jrjewelers.com/Gabriella_Engagement_Ring_Mounting_prk/Jewelry_srk/

The reason both WF and BGD only carry one designer line each is because they specialize in custom work. WF carries Vatche and BGD carries H Levi. Either vendor would happily make you something very close to either of those designs and no doubt with better quality.

Also you can buy the setting from that site and have it sent to the vendor you buy the diamond from and have them set the stone in it. Buy the setting after you buy the diamond though.

Is this ring for you or for your lady? If it's for you, fabulous. If it's for your lady, make sure she likes those designs as well. She will be the one wearing them for the rest of her life and her input on the setting is... well, it's more important than yours.

 

[webdiva]

Regarding Costco, also realize the diamonds in the case are CZ - they're not going to be that white in real life. The real ones are in a safe in the back! (Unless it's a smaller diamond in an inexpensive setting).