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A "pointed" question.

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Hughey J

Rough_Rock
Joined
Dec 10, 2003
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Hello all you diamondites!
Bonjour from the Great White North.
(Actually, I''m only about an hour north of the border...)

What a strange combination of excitement and overwhelmed-ness it is to learn about buying a chunk of squished carbon!
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My girlfriend and I found a beautiful three-stone, bezel set ring style in a local B&M jewelery store where they make all their own jewelery (she doesn''t like the look of prongs, and this is the nicest other style we''ve come across). I found 3 great (I think) stones for the setting (all superbcerts). They all have great H&A and idealscope pics on the website, and excellent brilliance scope results. Here are the numbers:

1 - GIA 0.23c/VVS1/H/ex/ex HCA score 1.1 ~ $540
2 - GIA 0.26c/VVS2/I/ex/ex HCA score 1.2 ~ $475
3 - GIA 0.56c/ SI2/F/vg/ex HCA score 1.2 (center stone) ~ $1400

Here are the questions:
Will having H and I colored stones flanking an F be really noticeable? What about having a 23 pointer on one side, and a 26 point on the other?

Anyone in North-western New york want to put me up for a while so I can hose my government out of its hideous excises and taxes?
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The color question is a tough one. A lot depends on a person's color perception ability. Hummmm........

On the size Q for the 2 smaller diamonds. Check the diameter measurements. If they are very similar, then there shouldn't be a problem.
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Hi,

I have two diamonds that are only four points apart and there is a noticable difference in size (one's .38 and the other is .42).

They're also four color grades apart and outside, you can't see the warmer tone in the bigger stone, but indoors you can. They're GIA cert. D and G colors.
Maybe it's different with colors when the center stone is larger, though, so hmmm. . .

Michelle
 
Thanks Michelle and pqcollectibles.

Michelle, are your .38 and .42 diamonds side-by-side in a single setting?

Anyone have any comments on the prices of the stones I'm considering? (see initial posting)

Cheers,
Mike.
 
Nope, one stone is in my eng. ring and the other is currently being set into a pendant.

Michelle
 
Okay, so I may have a problem with the size difference of the smaller stones. I may have to adjust one of those stones.

I think the color difference might not be noticeable, especially after looking at the difference between D and I in the "FYI: Picture of a "D" and "I" color next to each other" thread, and due to the fact that the diamonds in the ring I'm looking at will be bezel set and their sides won't be visible.

Anyone agree?

P.S. The setting my girlfriend got "wiggly" over is the triple stone setting (stones of similar size) on the 3rd and 4th pages of the bridal:engagement selection at www.hutchingsandcremin.com, if anyone's curious. The band would be in platinum as opposed to the yellow-white combo there.
 
That is a pretty setting. The bezel set in platinum will help the diamonds appear whiter than the actual color grades. There is a general rule on color perception. People typically don't see a color difference between adjacent grades. E/F, F/G, G/H. In well cut diamonds, you might extend that 2 colors. E/G, F/H, G/I. You could consider dropping the color of the center diamond. Instead of F, maybe a G or H.

Sounds like you are having a problem with the diameters of the smaller stones?

Why not post complete info on each diamond for better opinions. While the diamonds have great HCA scores, no one can evaluate pricing or help with substitute suggestions without diameter measurements, table and depth %'s, and crown and pavillion angles. Throw in the overall depth, girdle thickness, and cutlet too, as cut class is a combination of factors.
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On 12/10/2003 2:35:24 PM Hughey J wrote:


three-stone, bezel set ring

1 - GIA 0.23c/VVS1/H/ex/ex HCA score 1.1 ~ $540
2 - GIA 0.26c/VVS2/I/ex/ex HCA score 1.2 ~ $475
3 - GIA 0.56c/ SI2/F/vg/ex HCA score 1.2 (center stone) ~ $1400

Here are the questions:
Will having H and I colored stones flanking an F be really noticeable? What about having a 23 pointer on one side, and a 26 point on the other?
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There are a couple of things about these choices...

I would try to match the grades better: it should be straightforward to find all Fs, and who needs that VVS grade? Conversely, are you sure there isn't a black splotch right in the middle of the SI2 (by definition of the grade, it could). Going for excellent light return in htese is definitely going to make a difference for the better, though. The size of the sides (meaning the diameter) is what counts for matching, not weight.

The easiest approach is to ask the seller to match the sides for you: a store like Whiteflash does just that for customers. ANother shop, GoodOldGold has a dimond brokering service, so, in theory, you could get all three stones matched for color and with the optical performance you want. This should make the whole task alot easier.

These being said, if you do not mind the differences in color, why bother. One thing to be concerned about is the match in size of the stones: the diference in cut may make the sides match badly, eve if the weight is so close. What are the diameters?
 
After worrying enough about the color difference, I'm leaning now toward these two side stones (still superbcerts):

0.26/E/VS2/ex/ex diameter 4.17mm (4.15-4.18)
0.27/E/VS2/ex/ex diameter 4.21mm (4.20-4.21)

Less than half a millimeter difference.
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The stone I'm liking for the center has great performance numbers (at least from what I can tell...). The inclusions are quite visible on the H&A and 10X magnification photos. Here are the stock numbers of all the diamonds I'm snooping out at superbcert.com:

12 (0.26 above)
13 (0.27 above)
2006 (0.56/F/SI2/vg/ex)

I'm not overly worried about the SI2 rating: I saw some Lazare diamonds at a local B&M store that were all SI's. Next to the VS, VVS, E-F color "good" and "very good" cut diamonds, the Lazare's blew me away. The thing I like the most about this particular 0.56 stone is the performance per $$$ factor!
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Or am I just on the receiving end of really good sales techniques?

I will likely have whichever stones I pick sent to an independant appraiser before purchase as well.

Thanks again all you friendly people.
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