.5mm increase in size worth the extra money?

[LALove]

I'm currently in the first stages (gathering info) of upgrading my e-ring.

It took me months to decide on which cut I wanted - I've been going back and forth between upgrading to a cushion and a round. This will probably be my last upgrade, at least until after the kids are through college which is a very long time considering they haven't even started kindergarten - so I want to get it right.

I finally decided on round. I know what I want in terms of cut (Ideal), color (down to I is OK) and clarity (eye clean) thanks to all of you who post on PS so I'm set there. I have a setting picked out which I've loved for years. Now I just need to decide on carat weight (of course I want the biggest stone possible ).

I *thought* I knew what size I wanted to look for within the constraints of my budget-- 2.6+ carat or more accurately 8.8-9mm. However, if I get that size I'll have to hold off (for quite some time) on the setting I want because it'll blow my budget. I don't really want to have a temp setting. I'd prefer to get my upgraded stone with the setting I want at the same time. If I don't, I know whenever I look at the new ring, instead of enjoying it 100%, it will bug me that it's not in a setting I adore and will hang there like an unfinished project til it's in the setting I want. I'm weird like that.

If I go down to an 8.4/8.5mm stone I can afford to get the setting I want now as well.

So here's my question: is .4/.5mm a really noticeable difference in a round of this size? If it does look quite larger, I'll just keep saving until I can get both the diamond and setting together. On the other hand, if it doesn't look much larger, I'd rather not spend the extra money.

(And going lower in the other Cs to get a larger stone isn't an option.)

Sorry for the unnecessarily long post...

 

[Dreamer_D]

I don't think it is that noticable when the stone is that size. And if the setting has a halo or something, it will really not be noticable.

 

[yssie]

When I was looking for stones I personally found that the jump from 8.5-9mm was obvious, even in those sizes.

 

[LALove]

I don't think it is that noticable when the stone is that size. And if the setting has a halo or something, it will really not be noticable.

Thanks Dreamer- I will be setting it in a halo but a really delicate one.

 

[calibali]

Ditto Yssie. I could definitely notice the difference between 2.3ct and 2.6-2.7ct and that made me unwilling to go below 2.6. Even now, I kind of wish I'd gone bigger. If you won't be upgrading again for awhile, be sure to get exactly what you want!

 

[LALove]

When I was looking for stones I personally found that the jump from 8.5-9mm was obvious, even in those sizes.

Thanks for your viewpoint. I just didn't want to go for a 9mm stone if it wasn't even really noticeable. I'm not expecting it to look like a 3 carat next to a 1 carat- I just want it to be apparent enough that I could say "That's one is bigger" instantly.

 

[LALove]

Ditto Yssie. I could definitely notice the difference between 2.3ct and 2.6-2.7ct and that made me unwilling to go below 2.6. Even now, I kind of wish I'd gone bigger. If you won't be upgrading again for awhile, be sure to get exactly what you want!

Thanks calibali - this is good to know. When looking at pics online there doesn't seem to be much difference at all. I've "tried on" 9mm rounds and I was happy with the coverage so I think I'll stick with this. And at this size I think - or hope at least - that DSS won't set in too terribly soon! I'd love a 10mm round but I don't want to wait decades for this upgrade

 

[Dreamer_D]

I don't think it is that noticable when the stone is that size. And if the setting has a halo or something, it will really not be noticable.

Thanks Dreamer- I will be setting it in a halo but a really delicate one.

Well, the others have spoken re size in a loose diamond/solitaire style setting BUT I think a halo is a great equalizer for size. Adding 1mm to the entire diameter basicalle makes the .5mm difference in size that much smaller in terms of overall visial presence.

 

[blueiris]

I went from a 2.90 to a 2.50 (to upgrade in color & clarity). The 2.90 stone was 9.16mm and my 2.50 stone is 8.75mm, so it's a difference of .41mm. I could see the difference between the two stones; so could my husband. But it was not a huge difference and it didn't make any difference to me that it was slightly smaller anyway because it's still a very large diamond. Now that it's set, I don't think the size difference is at all apparent on my hand. Friends and family members who saw the 2.90 on my hand haven't asked me if I changed the diamond, so I don't think they can tell the difference now that it's set, either. So I wouldn't hesitate to get the smaller stone and the setting you want, and especially since you plan to halo your new stone which will compensate for the size difference.

 

[LALove]

I don't think it is that noticable when the stone is that size. And if the setting has a halo or something, it will really not be noticable.

Thanks Dreamer- I will be setting it in a halo but a really delicate one.

Well, the others have spoken re size in a loose diamond/solitaire style setting BUT I think a halo is a great equalizer for size. Adding 1mm to the entire diameter basicalle makes the .5mm difference in size that much smaller in terms of overall visial presence.

That's true.. I know I like the look of a 9mm round solitaire because that's what I tried on. I didn't try on an 8.5mm but maybe adding the halo would minimize the difference.. Unfortunately I've never found a halo for a larger diamond in any of the jewelry stores around here so I'll just have to search for pics.

 

[Dreamer_D]

I don't think it is that noticable when the stone is that size. And if the setting has a halo or something, it will really not be noticable.

Thanks Dreamer- I will be setting it in a halo but a really delicate one.

Well, the others have spoken re size in a loose diamond/solitaire style setting BUT I think a halo is a great equalizer for size. Adding 1mm to the entire diameter basicalle makes the .5mm difference in size that much smaller in terms of overall visial presence.

That's true.. I know I like the look of a 9mm round solitaire because that's what I tried on. I didn't try on an 8.5mm but maybe adding the halo would minimize the difference.. Unfortunately I've never found a halo for a larger diamond in any of the jewelry stores around here so I'll just have to search for pics.

When I have tried halo settings, the minimim seems to be about 1mm extra radius. That means that an 8.5mm diamond in a halo will look like a 10.5mm solitiare in terms of hand presence! And that is with the most delicate halos possible! Tiffany has some larger stones in delicate halos. Perhaps you can visit there?

 

[LALove]

I don't think it is that noticable when the stone is that size. And if the setting has a halo or something, it will really not be noticable.

Thanks Dreamer- I will be setting it in a halo but a really delicate one.

Well, the others have spoken re size in a loose diamond/solitaire style setting BUT I think a halo is a great equalizer for size. Adding 1mm to the entire diameter basicalle makes the .5mm difference in size that much smaller in terms of overall visial presence.

That's true.. I know I like the look of a 9mm round solitaire because that's what I tried on. I didn't try on an 8.5mm but maybe adding the halo would minimize the difference.. Unfortunately I've never found a halo for a larger diamond in any of the jewelry stores around here so I'll just have to search for pics.

When I have tried halo settings, the minimim seems to be about 1mm extra radius. That means that an 8.5mm diamond in a halo will look like a 10.5mm solitiare in terms of hand presence! And that is with the most delicate halos possible! Tiffany has some larger stones in delicate halos. Perhaps you can visit there?

That's true The halo I'm in love with is Leon's 3 sided pave and from all the pics I've seen, it seems really delicate. I didn't even think to look at Tiffany! Thanks for the good idea! I'll have to go there next weekend. Too bad they don't let you take pics.

 

[Dreamer_D]

I think the only rings with a style similar to Leon are their "statement" rings, so hunt around.

 

[MissGotRocks]

My last upgrade went from a 2 carat - approx. 8.2 mm to a 2.25 carat - approx. 8.4+. Visually, if you had taken the smaller stone and drawn a circle around it, the new stone was that much bigger. I could see the difference but no one else really noticed it. I did jump a bit in size and got the specs that I really wanted so to me it was worth it. I guess I wasn't trying to greatly increase size but trying instead to increase color and cut.

I think there would be a difference to you initially but not so sure if it would be worth it if it meant having to put off having the ring. Stones in that size are already big and DSS will set in no matter how large the rock - such an unfortunate condition to suffer! Too bad our eyes finally adjust to just about any size and then the stones get smaller and smaller - bleh!