Am I being naive?

[davi_el_mejor]

Alright, here's the diamond

Weight: .40ct
Measurements: 4.79 x 4.80 x 2.91mm
Clarity: SI1/2 (eye clean)
Color: Fancy Amber (Orange/Brown/Pink/Yellow Mix)
Shape: Round Brilliant


I think it's a lovely color, much more dynamic than the brown diamonds I've seen. I can see the orange and yellow as the description says which adds much more warmth than I'd expect in a brown diamond.

Here's the write up from the vendor on the stone:

A genuine dazzling all natural diamond, cut here in the United States by a master cutter from the only US Diamond cutting school in America. This stone features a unique color, different from traditional champagne, as this specimen has much more pronounced orange flavor to it. This diamond is guaranteed to please, simply a gorgeous well cut and balanced stone (perfect hearts and arrows).

No certs, but I did start a conversation with the seller. I asked if it's natural, the response:

I can tell you as diamond experts that this stone is not enhanced it anyway. If it was, it would be very easy to tell by the inclusions as they are affected by a treatment. Also the color would never be like this in any treatment, as it turns to a more bright yellow-greenish color. Nobody treats diamonds to become brownish. A certificate is a waste of money to be honest, but if you want to pay for one, we can obtain one for about $35 dollars. This is why we don't have one, and not recommended for such inexpensive stones as it's just a waste of money.

That made sense to me. (PLEASE let me know if that doesn't make sense)

So I asked more questions:

Thanks for the quick response. One can never be too cautious in this day and age and in the fancy colored diamond market. There is a small chip in the girdle, is that an indented natural or is it a chip? Do you have an IdealScope image of the stone? I ran the angles and percentages that I came up with from the pictures through Holloway Cut advisor, but an IdealScope image would be much more helpful. I'm not expecting perfect H&A as advertised, but I'd like to see what kind of leakage or other cut issues it may have. I understand if you don't want to take the time on a small sale, but I would greatly appreciate it.

Vendor response:

Right there is a chip, and I was told by my friend a diamond cutter whom this was purchased from that it's a natural (hard to tell, but I would believe him as a chip usually causes more damage and/or has slight different cleavage.

We don't have the tool from Ideal Scope, but you can see from the pictures here that it's pretty nice. Also the dimensions are very good.

Upon looking at it again (haven't seen it in half year), it's actually nicer than I thought. Honestly if I can't get $200 for it flat, I will not sell it. If you're interested let me know. I can make a deal for you directly at $200, but for now I'm taking down the item. It's worth a lot more for me; we've gotten into jewelry and if I place it in a ring it will sell for $400+.

Sorry David! But if you're interested I can offer it, but otherwise yeah will be taking it down now either way.

Am I being naive and trusting too much of what the vendor is saying? $200 seems like a very good deal for a natural diamond of the color. The listing has been taken off like the vendor said. I'm curious if I should take them up on the offer to buy. It would cost $150 to send to GIA for grading, and I don't know if it would be worth it. Would it get any other color grade besides brown? Like orangish brown or yellowish orangish brown. And whether or not the chip in the girdle is a natural.

What would you all do? What do you all think of the diamond? Is it as special as it seems in my head or are these "dime a dozen" so to speak in the brown diamond world?

 

[T L]

It's a very pretty diamond, not a real rare color, as it is a brown. However, for $200, I wouldn't bother with a lab report, you can take it to a gemologist to see if it's natural. I think it is anyways since there are two pavillion refraction lines on the stone (see the attached photo). That is indicative of a natural diamonds. With CZ, you will only see one line. I'm talking round brilliants of course.

These diamonds are pretty common in the diamond world, but offer a good value. My only advice would be to really make sure the vendor has a good return policy and are trustworthy. If buying on ebay, check toolhaus.org.

BTW, it looks to be a straight brown, maybe yellowish brown, but not a valuable color. There really is no such thing as "fancy amber." I think that's just used to make the stone sound like it's a special color. $150 is a reasonable price and not out of the realm of possibility for a used brown diamond. Diamonds are like cars, it's cheaper to buy them used!! LOL!

I like fancy browns like that because they remind me of autumn leaves on a forest floor, they have so many shades of brown, and sometimes you can see a little yellow, orange and even pink in there, but don't mistake that for a true fancy pink. There are some brown diamonds that have a strong pink secondary, and those are much more valuable.

 

[davi_el_mejor]

Great info TL! Thanks.

But, was he right in his description that if the stone had been enhanced it would have been a bright yellow/green? And that no one would enhance to make a brown diamond?

 

[T L]

Great info TL! Thanks.

But, was he right in his description that if the stone had been enhanced it would have been a bright yellow/green? And that no one would enhance to make a brown diamond?

No, he is not right. Brown diamonds can be irradiated. It could still be an enhanced diamond, but the only way to know for sure is to send it to the GIA, and I'm not sure it's worth it for a $150 brown diamond. Any diamond color can be clarity enhanced too, or coated or heated.

 

[davi_el_mejor]

Thanks, I knew I was getting some smoke blown you know where. He was rather clever in showing me the goods and taking them away. I could have been a $200 sucker. I really hate trying to be taken advantage of. I don't doubt this stone could be natural and unenhanced, but I don't like the frosting coated pile of poo he wrote me.

The search continues...