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$3000 budget for a princess diamond ring!

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HollyGo-Lightly

HollyGo-Lightly

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 9, 2004
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76
Hello all...I have lurked a bit and am now looking to buy a ring soon with my fiance.

I have searched this site''s search engine for my budget and have gotten over 500 entries, just under the F-H color range and the VS2-SI1 range...Please let me know past that, what are some good criteria to weed them out. I am looking for the nicest size, without compromising color too much, and clarity can be a nice SI-1.

Have I got a good combination?

Also, the $3000 is for the WHOLE ring, and the setting could be a simple white gold (Lucida-like setting), but how much will that run? Anyone have some nice cheap but substantial and simple looks in white gold that will cut my costs down to concentrate on the stone?

How much should I spend for a good cut, and how big could I probably go within my price range?

Thanks in advance to all the experts and people out there helping!
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I really don't know what to tell you other than to choose a good PS vendor and work with them. I can tell you right now that you probably will want to stick with a simple Tiffany style setting rather than an x-prong--it's better to keep your money for the stone. The best advice I can give is to decide what factors are most important to you when choosing a stone. Do you prefer the whitest of white stones, a stone that faces up white, or a slightly warmer stone? Is clarity an issue to you or do you only care that it's eye-clean? The most important thing to remember is a great cut can hide many flaws. My B/F and I purchased a lovely "I" color "SI1" clarity stone that faces up extremely white and has no visible inclusions. We decided the most important factor was cut (we used www.gemappraisers.com as a reference), then carat, then color (although we did not consider stones lower than "I" or those that did not face up extremely white),and finally clarity (stones could not be lower than "SI" and had to be eye-clean).

I guess my point is that you really need to decide what is most important to you in a stone before people can really help. My biggest piece of advice is to look for stones with depth and table % in the high 60's to low 70's, with the table slightly smaller or--at most--equal to the depth. There are always exceptions, but this will help you to narrow your search. Also, keep in mind that non-USA EGL certificates tend to grade stones easier so you may want to go no lower than "H" in color or VS2-SI1 in clarity if a stone is accompanied by EGL certs from other locations.

Good luck with your search!
 
Researcher knows what she's talking about!!!!
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I would definitely pick out a nice tiffany or cathedral white gold band...it will cost you $150.00. I purchased one for $200.00 from good old gold and it is very substantial and I have a large finger size...

That said, you have about 2850 to work with!!! Like researcher said, you need to decide your color tolerance. If you want a white white stone, I think a G and ideal cut can do that for you....I don't think there's a need to go to an F. Some people can....some can't...see tint in an H or lower. It really depends on you. Go see some in all different lighting conditions...everything always look white in those jeweler's lights!

Let's say you want a G or H...then you can definitely find a .75-.85 G or H vs2 or si1 in an "ideal" cut...That's a very nice size! If you'd like an I you can go even bigger!

If you really are looking for a stone to show of its carat weight, try not to go for a depth over 72...otherwise, it will hold some weight on the bottom and face up smaller....depths over 72 can also result in some awesome stones...but ask yourself if you are looking to maximize the size!

I love si1s!!!!! You might be able to see some inclusions through the side of the stone....you might not...I'm totally ok with that. Some si2 are also lovely...but you'd need to see those in person of deal with a vendor who actually HAS the stone in front of them...

As researcher said, check out the gem appraisers chart for a guildeline...Just because a stone isn't a "1A" doesn't mean it can't be beautiful....that is a good start though!!!
 
Hello and welcome aboard!
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I had a quick look around and, as others have suggested, a nice and substantial white gold simple setting seems to be in the $150-220 range. That leaves about $2800 for the diamond.
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Here's a very nice 0.64ct: 0.64 G/VVS 1
...or this: 0.62 G/VVS 2
0.73ct G/VS 2
0.73 H/VS 1
This one is a little over your budget, but thought you'd like to see what you can get in the 1ct range
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1.10 J/VVS 2

To sum up, it looks like you can easily get a very nice FGH/VVS-VS 0.7x stone, or maybe something closer to 1ct is you condiser going with an SI clarity and/or an HIJ colored diamond.
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the only thing I would suggest is to lose the vvs clarity....especially when on a budget, I'd go up in color and/or size...which you can actually *see*....
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www.dirtcheapdiamonds.com has several Signature Series princess cuts available in your price range. Those are diamonds that they physically have on hand, that have been professionally evaluated, and selected for performance.

In general, as you use the Price Scope search engine, look for diamonds with a depth and table of 70%-72% or less. Don't go too shallow as you want to avoid the diamond taking on a washed out look.
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I had a $3000 budget for a princess cut diamond as well.

I purchased it from Whiteflash and got:

SETTING: White Gold Tiffany Style - $150

DIAMOND: princess cut, 0.75ct, D/VS1, 5.17x5.16, 64% table, 68.4% depth - $2788

$2938 - and the ring looks beautiful -- very very white. Definitely something she can show off.
 
by the way... although mine happened to be a VS1.. i would've taken a SI2 or above. as long as its eyeclean.. its fine with me. I just wanted that really white color that the D provided.
 
There's great advice on this thread already
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And obviously, there definitely is room to play with this amount... as you can see. One thing I would do, among all these choices - avoid deep cut stones since they do not exactly show their size. Just keep depth below 70% and take it from there. It is not unusual to see pieces cut 80% deep - so there is allot of variance of size (surface face up) among stones of same weight. It definitely pais to stay below 1 ct (prices per carat seem to jump afterwards) and with the right cut it would have precisely no effect on how the stone looks.

The setting you mention is a generic version - meaning any seller can source one off some catalog. Having such things well finished by the setter makes allot of difference.

Things should be simple henceforth
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Wow! Thanks guys! This has been really really helpful! I didn't know if I could go down to a H, but I am going to check out some stones this week, and see if I can.

This whole well cut thing is hard, as so many of the stones I have seen this weekend are well over 70% in depth and so I am really finding it tought to see a "well cut" stone in person. Are there on-line vendors who specialize in those cuts (and are they MUCh more expensive?)

Are on-line vendors the way to go, since we don't know too many jewelers (as this is our FIRST diamond purchase), so we have no real affiliation. Plus most people we have seen don't seem to carry "quality" stones, as most people define here...

Just a little confused and nervous about such a purchase. How do I pick a vendor? How do I know who I can trus, plus there are so many here?
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On 6/1/2004 7:25:53 AM HollyGo-Lightly wrote:



This whole well cut thing is hard, as so many of the stones I have seen this weekend are well over 70% in depth

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Of course I think WW outlets are great, otherwise I wouldn't be writing.

Anyway, it shouldn't be hard to judge those proportiosn - lots of depth and thick girdles just means "small diamond for it's weight". Prices are "per carat" so it makes sense to cut havy rather than "big" stones.

Cut quality seems to mean two things at once: proportiosn and brilliance. While there is some relation between them, you can definitely have a stone with undesirable proportions (such as the mentioned extra depth) and great brilliance.

There are standards in place to evaluate both by comaprison. You may wnat to read the "Fancy Shapes" tutorial here for a short explanation about what makes a certain range of cut proportions desirable beyond light return and use the AGA charts for ref. As for brilliance alone, there are tools designed to communicate it virtually relative to what the cut can best deliver (such as the IdealSCope and BrillianceSCope and others...). These are great for buying online, but even off, offer you a way to see where your stone ranks, without having dozens of diamonds at hand to compare.

When both proportiosn and brilliance come together in the desirable range (and you can get relatively independent reference on what that is, since the quality scales mentioned are not related to one seller only)... you get your "ideal" stone.

Hope this makes sense
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How to pick a seller... taugh
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There must be enough feed-back on half a dozen sellers on PS to fill half a dozen volumes. You can definitely e-mail buyers to ask for confidential feed-back. It may sound involved, but I am talking about say, 5 e-mails and 3 phone calls. One sugestion, of course. Or, you can just go for a big shop everyone knows about - probably less chat with them, but why not. It really comes down to comparing diamonds rather than shops - this is why you've got all that laudry-list inventory posted
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For better or worse, comparing diamonds online gets down to numbers, pictures, and lab certificates. Up to a limit, these are quite helpful - especialy for such a standardized cut as the princess.

Different shops deliver different "information packages" with their stones. Among sellers that get frequent mention here, the "versions" are not too many: the stats on the cert are always present, and then pictures, cut grades and light return analysis may or may not be there. Examples?

I would expect a 5mm stone, and here are some:

Signature Series at DCD: 0.7 G-VS2 ("signature series" gives the shop's highest mark for cut quality, picture and GIA stats give details)

One with all technical bells and whistles, at GOG No idea what happened with the price of this one - the store usually lists prices for non-branded cuts. This stone is deeper cut than the rest, but the price (I hope) and the 5mm should be there.

One F-Si1 at Blue Nile: GIA specs and in-store cut grade "Very Good"

Obviously, less depth means a bigger stone, but most of the times there is a premium on these - so it really depends on the seller wheter such a cut is a good buy. Looking for "size" (milimeters, not carats) and a cut grade class (AGA's or some refference on a light return test) for a price point takes care of this issue.

Example? This H-VS2 "Ideal Cut" at Blue Nile - the 63% depth contributed to placing this stone a notch higer on the cut quality scale of BN, but then, it stil is a 5mm stone and teh price per carat went up because of the cut grading (hence the H color grade, instead of the F-G I was looking for acording to your specs).

Hope this helps...
 
There's something I want to point out--princesses are cut to retain their weight, so many do have larger depths. However, this is not necessarily bad. Just as you avoid diamonds that are too shallow to prevent light leakage, if you stay under 75% for depth you won't have to worry about the center of the diamond appearing dark due to light refracting out the bottom. It really is a matter of proportions (including depth with L/W ratio). I have a beautiful stone with a depth of 74.1% and a table of 71% that my appraiser says is the most brilliant fancy stone he's seen. The only negative I can say about it is it appears a tad smaller than it's size on paper, but when it sparkles it's amazing and looks very big!

So, just keep an open mind and don't get too caught up in the numbers. I believe strongly that numbers can lead you in the right direction, but I wouldn't limit myself to stones that are still in the "ideal" ranges (such as stones with depths up to 75%).
 
I was gonna say...! I later saw your scope results researcher....awesome!!!!!!! And at THAT size....who cares if she's teensy itsy bitsy bottom heavy...
(aren't we all?) LOL
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Thanks, moremoremore (although I'm not sure I like being reminded about being a little bottom heavy--LOL
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)! I am constantly viewing your stone/ring because it's SO gorgeous and can't wait to have mine back! We were told it would take about 10 business days to finish, but with the holidays it's going to take longer. So, I still have a bare finger
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Oh you are SO sweet!!!! And you'll have the stone before you know it!!! Mine is actually in transit as we speak...(sorry!
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) I will have it by thursday night when hubby gets home from work...I'm excited but trying not to obsess over it....It's kind of like a wedding...you obsess over it...and when it comes, you're like...THAT was it? lol
 
I can't WAIT to see the pics of it on your hand!!! It's such an amazing stone!
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And as for it being similar to a wedding, I highly doubt that. With a wedding it all is sort of a blur and over before you know it, while you'll have that ring blinding you all the time to remind you of its beauty!
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Very true! I don't remember much of anything from my wedding....except for the fact that the florist did not use the cloth runner I demanded
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...he let the photographer put down the nasty thin one...of all the things to be burned into my brain...Still thinking about that f****** runner over two years later....let it gooooo. LOL
And Oh Boy!... My hubby is letting our little out of state elf come into work late tomorrow so she can wait for the ring...so I get it tomorrow...!!! I'll have to find a hand model to use...lol
 
You are so lucky! You must be on pins and needles waiting! Are you getting anything done today? As for a hand model, you can always fix up the pics in photoshop (you know, remove wrinkles, make your fingers thinner....
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BTW, that's so funny about the runner! I'm exactly the same way. I am trying as we speak to plan my wedding and am already overwhelmed. The troubles with being a control freak!!! LOL
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LOL....tell me about it....I recently saw a file on my computer ... I opened it and was horrified....It was a letter to the caterer...with DIAGRAMS about where to put the menus, the table frames, the favors...Seriously, as if he was slow or something...I'm sure he was thinking, Gee, thanks b*tch for the diagram...I couldn't figure out where "right of the plate" was...And I am having flashbacks of dragging my husband around nyc in the garment district in the rain trying to find gold ribbon that was the EXACT godiva box gold...Like anyone even remotely cared! OMG, I'm also laughing about the rabbi (we had a priest and a rabbi and got married at the place) putting his eye glasses on my beautiful table with the wine, the candles, etc. I just kept looking at the glasses not listening to them speak. Don't let that happen to you! LOL

And as for getting work done, it's no different from any other day since I discovered ps....I'm SO unproductive..
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Oops! Sorry for hijaking this post to make it the moremoremore hour!
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although I must say...that I really did have the most perfect wedding in the world....hehehehehe...People still talk to me about the flowers and the food and my dress which is now rolled in a ball, never been cleaned...hehehehe
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If you put half as much time researching your wedding as you have diamonds (which I'm sure you did) it must have been spectacular! Know what's funny though? I've been making my own diagrams!!! Great minds think alike, huh? I'm also less productive--who would have thought this forum would be so addictive? It's a great form of procrastination!

Well I guess we should get back on topic--what was this topic again? LOL
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Ok, I have been doing more research and have found out that surface area on some stones I am looking at are too small...

With $3000, G colored, SI-1 stones, I am looking at .7ct to .9cts, so for the following what are the appropriate surface areas for each on a princess cut stone?!

.70ct
.75ct
.80ct
.85ct
.90ct
.95ct
1.0ct

I was looking at .7ct stones with surface areas of 24mm or so, and the .9's where around 30mm... is that about right?

I want a the largest and whitest stone possible for a $3000 budget, INCLUDING the white gold simple setting...That's fair right?

Thanks in advance guys!!! You are the best!!
 
can't really answer that...each stone is different. Each stone has a different set of proportions that could result in a great stone...
 
I second that!
 
HGL- look at the depth and tables of the stones you are interested in...Sometimes, even if the depths and tables look ok, you can compare it to other stones of the same carat weight and proportions...which I THINK may help you predict shallow crowns...At least that's what I'm starting to get the hang of...
 
Let me ask you this question also...you want the largest stone possible...are you willing to sacrifice qut quality and brillinace and fire? If yes, well, then, just look for a depth less than say 72 and the largest table you can find...but you'll find that not a lot of people here will think that's a good way to buy...but that's you're business and you have a right to spend how you want!
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oops..."your business" PET SPELLING PEEVE
 
HGL,
Are you saying that carat and color are your top priorities over cut, or that, after cut, you want the best carat and color as possible? When looking for princess stones, you really need to be careful when size is your goal. Although size was really important to me, I refused to sacrifice cut because princess stones have a tendency to look glassy, not have much fire, and leak light like crazy. In fact, that's why there are so many people who are so against princess stones--they are usually cut to retain weight (which usually makes for bottom heavy stones, not larger appearing stones). One of my favorite sites on princess cut stones was put together by the people at WF:

http://www.princess-diamonds.com/guide_princess.asp

This site should give you some helpful tips in terms of choosing the best princess cut stones and balancing it with the other C's.
 
Research and Moremoremore, I think the two of you should flip a coin over who gets the butterfly avatar. I keep getting the two of you confused!
 
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