About to buy a diamond from WhiteFlash - thoughts???

[jimday19822]

Hello-

To make a long story short, I'm very close to purchasing a diamond from WhiteFlash for an engagement ring and was curious if a few of you would be kind enough to give me your thoughts on the following:

1) Would you recommend buying a loose diamond from WhiteFlash? Why or why not?

2) Given the images below, would you consider the diamond I'm looking at to be a good one? Please understand that I know the word "good" is incredibly subjective, but in my case, "good" means that my girlfriend (and her friends) will be WOWED when they see it. How it appears under magnification isn't nearly as important to me.

http://www.jimmyday.com/diamond/1.jpg
http://www.jimmyday.com/diamond/2.jpg
http://www.jimmyday.com/diamond/3.jpg
http://www.jimmyday.com/diamond/4.jpg
http://www.jimmyday.com/diamond/5.jpg
http://www.jimmyday.com/diamond/6.jpg

3) What would you consider to be a fair price for this diamond? Again, please see the images above.

Thank you so much for your time and advice. I can't begin to tell you how much I appreciate it!

 

[marchesa6989]

whiteflash is a good and respected vendor on here - they have great service and provide a lot of information on their diamonds. that being said they are a little more on the pricey side.

a few things about the diamond you posted:
- the ASET and idealscope pictures show a bit of light leakage under the table, putting it close to very good light return (as compared to perfect/excellent). how noticeable this is in real life and whether or not is an issue depends on the buyer - it will still be sparkly but not optimally sparkly (if that makes sense)
- is this a surprise engagement and do you know what color stones she likes? some people are very color sensitive, and a J color will have a bit of warmth to it. of course diamonds at this color are still beautiful and as long as you're sure she won't mind that's fine. there are many pricescopers who have rings at J or K color who love that range (and some love even warmer stones!)

compared to something similar on James Allen which faces up larger, looks to be eye clean and also looks like it will perform excellently, i'd say somewhere around $6100 is fair, but considering it is whiteflash it wouldn't surprise me if it's more than that:
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/J-SI1-Premium-Cut-Round-Diamond-1444689.asp

here are 2 which are in the same price range - higher in color but lower in clarity. it might be worthwhile asking James Allen to confirm if they are eye clean:
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/I-SI2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1437534.asp
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/I-SI2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1389940.asp

 

[Dreamer_D]

I am not wild about the cut, personally. The IS image shows some leakage and the photo shows it too (white and black under the table, respectively). The cut is a 60/60 type, which will favour white light return somewhat, compared to a more balanced cut. BUT I presume the price on this is a little lower than a stone that is "perfect", and that matters. Also, it will still look better than like 98% of diamonds out there, and it is a very nice size! So I do think this is a diamond that will wow your friends and family, and your girlfriend.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I have bought from WhiteFlash and I certainly would in the future. They have their own diamonds cut and they cut to ideal proportions. My stones are ACA's, but Expert Selection and Premium Select are usually also outstanding stones. I personally would not buy a virtual stone from WhiteFlash because the value in buying from WhiteFlash is buying one of their superior stones. The stone you gave us links for does not appear to be up to the standards of WF's in-house stones. Are they offering you a lifetime trade-in policy on this stone?

I'll have to agree with Dreamer that at least it is a GIA Excellent, so it certainly will be a nice stone. It just isn't at the level of WF's in-house diamonds.

 

[jimday19822]

Thank you very much for your feedback - it was incredibly helpful.

Marchesa6989, to answer your question, yes, this is going to be a surprise engagement and although my girlfriend is pretty fashionable and incredibly intelligent, she is downright clueless when it comes to diamonds, as am I for the most part. In other words, I completely understand what you're saying about the color of the stone, but without another, less warm stone sitting beside it to compare it to, I can assure you that neither of us would notice the warmth. Also, you were spot on regarding the price - White Flash is asking a little over $6,200 for it.

Dreamer_D, thank you for your thoughts. I do understand that this diamond isn't exactly perfect, but as you mentioned, I feel the price is very fair when compared to similar stones at my local jeweler which were going for nearly $10,000! Granted, My local jeweler would buy the stone back for the original purchase price, but that's not a huge concern for me as I'm sure my girlfriend would prefer to keep her original diamond. The fact that you still think this diamond will "wow" her is the reassurance I needed to move forward with the purchase, so thank you.

diamondseeker2006, thank you for that information. While I wish I could afford a more ideal cut diamond, the simple truth is that price is a large concern and I have to strike a blance between each of the diamond's characteristics while ensuring it's ultimately something that my girlfriend will love. No easy task, but I think this particular diamond is right up our alley based on what I've read thus far.

Again, thanks to each of you for your insight. I will be getting in touch with White Flash later this week and more than likely, will move forward with the purchase.