Advice for newbie shopping

[mbaltzer]

Hello,
Let me first say that this website and forum have been quite a revelation in my diamond search. I''m looking to spend $3000-3500 on a stone, preferably round cut. From what I''ve read, finding a good cut seems to be the most important and difficult task.
I''m primarily looking a Pricescope vendors (Whiteflash, Abazias, ERings Direct, & BlueNile).
I''d to get something around 1 carat, VS2-SI1, G-I specs.
I noticed this one that caught my eye on Whiteflash, althought it''s a bit smaller than I''d like and a J, I was intrigued by the Expert Selection label hopefully ensuring a quality cut:
http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-695987.htm

Any advice on how to find a good cut from these online vendors or how to get the best diamond in that price range would be GREATLY appreciated!

 

[JC]

mbaltzer,

I would give several of the companies a call. Just within a few minutes of speaking to someone over the phone you could get many if not all of your questions answered. Any of us online vendors would be more than happy to help....

 

[Todd07]

A great tool is to use the Price Stats link under the PRICES drop down.
https://www.pricescope.com/RepScope.asp

I selected the 0.9 to 0.99 carat range to generate tables of ave prices per carat for different cut qualities, color and clarity specs.

H&A G VS2 - $5.3k/carat
H&A I VS2 - $3.3k/carat

You can click on the link and see the stones that make up the ave price.

Your WF pick is a good choice. It shows an HCA score of 1.3 so it should be beautiful. HCA is explained in the tutorial

When you compare it to other stones, focus more on comparing diameters and HCA scores instead of just carats.

 

[pqcollectibles]

Expert Selection diamonds are hand selected by Brian Gavin, the cutter of ACA''s, for performance and quality. This diamond scores well on the HCA. You might give WF a call and chat with them about the diamond. They can physically pull it out and discuss it with you over the phone. They will give you their honest impressions of the diamond.

 

[lostdog]

My two cents, There's a fair range in the variation of the pavilion and crown angles, spaning about 1 degree each, but maybe the pairs work out well since the idealscope looks to be rather balanced.

As noted elsewhere recently, ES stones seem to (from a consumer's point of view) be of a few varieties, some near-misses possibly intended to be ACA's, some just very very good regardless of their H&A aspirations. One thing I would't worry about, personally, is that they weren't good looking or weren't well cut.

Still, speaking from experience, go into it heads up about what you are and are not buying. Do you feel you need a certain cert to state the magic numbers? Are you comfortable with whatever ways this is not an actual ACA, AGS0, H&A, and so on?

And the one I think you are also on top of, how does this J look to you? Maybe consider the option of shipping to an independant appraiser for your preview? If the color works for you, it seems very promising.

Everybody has to solve the equation on their own, but if you want to give some slack on size, this is still in your price range, too:
http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-1133336.htm#

 

[mbaltzer]

Thank you all for your help!

What is the general feeling on a noticeable difference between say a .91 carat vs. a 1.01 carat? Can the slight difference be offset by a larger table or well chosen setting? I don''t think I could go below .90, even for the ACA.

I don''t feel the need to have a certain cert, but I guess that would provide some reassurance about getting a great cut.
Possible dumb question: Is H&A arrows a different type of cut, or just the elite round cut?

I''ve also been looking at this stone:
http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-1082145.htm
I can''t seem to figure out what''s wrong with it, as the price seems very good. As far as the carat, H, SI1, it''s very much what I''m looking for.

 

[Todd07]

I think the tutorial under the Knowledge link here does a better job of explaining H&A than anyone can put in a post.

Since you are snooping around the WF site, they also have a good Education section.

Don''t rush your purchase. If you some time reading posts and rereading the tutorial as new questions come up and your understanding deepens, you''ll be confident in your final decision.

As the tutorial indicates, some stones are cut deep (smaller diameter) to add weight. You can find a well cut 0.9 that''s as big as many deep cut 1.0 carat stones.

 

[Maxine]

Good old gold has a really good education section......answers just about everything about diamonds!!!