I didn't see this diamond coming. So this is a story about how a woman woke up on Friday with no intention to buy a diamond, and then owned it just over 24 hours later.
I'm new here, though I've been lurking for ages. I was seeking to replace my 1.24 carat round brilliant with a larger diamond after my husband offered this as an option to celebrate our 15th anniversary. I thought I'd get a cushion or round, and maybe go up to 1.7-2 carat. I planned to have a custom Art Deco halo made, and had obtained quotes from several reputable vendors. I knew I wanted a stone in the I-K color range. Cut and size were the most important to me. After owning a GIA H, VS2 round for 15+ years, I constantly wished I'd lowered my specs and increased the size. You live and learn.
Over the past year, I've fallen hard for Old Mine and other antique cuts. I follow CvB and Jewels by Grace on social media, and drool when they post those chunky diamonds. I couldn't seem to excited about upgrading to a larger MRB, and was experiencing a lot of indecision. I was about to bag the whole idea and just redo my closet instead. I also had to sell or trade my current stone, and that was feeling daunting.
Last Friday, my husband and I were both working from home. We decided to go over to a local jewelers with a good reputation (family owned business, 25+ years) so I could show him the lower colors. We walked in and worked with the owner for a solid hour. He brought out 2 carat rounds - I, J and K. They were nice, but I wasn't thrilled. I asked him if he could pull just a few cushions in the 2 carat range, for fun.
He came back with two diamonds. The first was a "crushed ice" cushion in an E color. The second he hesitated before opening. He said "I know you asked for 2 carat, but I just got this stone from an estate. You seem to like an antique look so I wanted you to see it." He opened the paper and I tried not to gasp. I was really working hard to maintain a poker face. It was a chunky, soft square shape, and was full of fire.
The specs are: 3.02 carat, GIA certified, K color, SI1 clarity. Dimensions are 8.68 x 8.43 x 5.86mm. I took her outside and she got even prettier. I didn't want to put her back. But it was such a large diamond, and I thought it was very out of reach. Reluctantly (on my part) we left; my husband couldn't get out of there soon enough!
I posted the diamond on Rocky Talky here with no luck (it was later Friday, so I didn't expect much response), but I did contact a vendor who deals with antique cuts that I've been corresponding with on my setting. I sent her pics and videos of the stone and she pulled the GIA and said it was a winner and she'd buy it if she was presented with the price I was given (it was rap sheet pricing).
We slept on it, and the next morning my lovely husband said "I want you have that diamond" - hand to God, I almost died. So, back we went, and now she's mine! She was even prettier than the day before, and has the neatest octagonal cutlet. I love this stone. And we got an incredible trade-in value for my old stone. I'm having her set in my old three sided pave setting as a temporary home (they are switching out my old prongs to a basket w/ claw prongs), but will eventually have a new setting made. I'll post more hand pics when I get the ring back from my jeweler on Tuesday/Wednesday. But here's the diamond:
I'm new here, though I've been lurking for ages. I was seeking to replace my 1.24 carat round brilliant with a larger diamond after my husband offered this as an option to celebrate our 15th anniversary. I thought I'd get a cushion or round, and maybe go up to 1.7-2 carat. I planned to have a custom Art Deco halo made, and had obtained quotes from several reputable vendors. I knew I wanted a stone in the I-K color range. Cut and size were the most important to me. After owning a GIA H, VS2 round for 15+ years, I constantly wished I'd lowered my specs and increased the size. You live and learn.
Over the past year, I've fallen hard for Old Mine and other antique cuts. I follow CvB and Jewels by Grace on social media, and drool when they post those chunky diamonds. I couldn't seem to excited about upgrading to a larger MRB, and was experiencing a lot of indecision. I was about to bag the whole idea and just redo my closet instead. I also had to sell or trade my current stone, and that was feeling daunting.
Last Friday, my husband and I were both working from home. We decided to go over to a local jewelers with a good reputation (family owned business, 25+ years) so I could show him the lower colors. We walked in and worked with the owner for a solid hour. He brought out 2 carat rounds - I, J and K. They were nice, but I wasn't thrilled. I asked him if he could pull just a few cushions in the 2 carat range, for fun.
He came back with two diamonds. The first was a "crushed ice" cushion in an E color. The second he hesitated before opening. He said "I know you asked for 2 carat, but I just got this stone from an estate. You seem to like an antique look so I wanted you to see it." He opened the paper and I tried not to gasp. I was really working hard to maintain a poker face. It was a chunky, soft square shape, and was full of fire.
The specs are: 3.02 carat, GIA certified, K color, SI1 clarity. Dimensions are 8.68 x 8.43 x 5.86mm. I took her outside and she got even prettier. I didn't want to put her back. But it was such a large diamond, and I thought it was very out of reach. Reluctantly (on my part) we left; my husband couldn't get out of there soon enough!
I posted the diamond on Rocky Talky here with no luck (it was later Friday, so I didn't expect much response), but I did contact a vendor who deals with antique cuts that I've been corresponding with on my setting. I sent her pics and videos of the stone and she pulled the GIA and said it was a winner and she'd buy it if she was presented with the price I was given (it was rap sheet pricing).
We slept on it, and the next morning my lovely husband said "I want you have that diamond" - hand to God, I almost died. So, back we went, and now she's mine! She was even prettier than the day before, and has the neatest octagonal cutlet. I love this stone. And we got an incredible trade-in value for my old stone. I'm having her set in my old three sided pave setting as a temporary home (they are switching out my old prongs to a basket w/ claw prongs), but will eventually have a new setting made. I'll post more hand pics when I get the ring back from my jeweler on Tuesday/Wednesday. But here's the diamond:
she's lovely and clearly meant to be for you. Congratulations on your fabulous upgrade and I would love to see many many more closeups.
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