anyone go back to an ideal cut from old

[LightBright]

I own or have owned mostly antique stones over the years: an Early Modern Brilliant, a (perfectly symmetrical) Transitional, an Antique Cushion and a very symmetrical OEC.

I also bought and returned several non-Hearts and Arrows MRBs. Those MRBs had splintery facets. They didn’t have Hearts and Arrows. I never liked the MRBs because unlike the antique stones, they “didn’t make sense”. They just didn’t make artistic and geometrical sense when you looked at them, the way my Transitional, for example, did.

Then I bought a Crafted By Infinity diamond and it was totally different from the lower cut quality MRBs I had owned. It is an extremely interesting lively stone. It has incredible personality. It makes beautiful sense: whoever designed it made each facet contribute to the perfection of the light show. It reminds me most of all of my perfect Transitional, which has a tightness and sensibility to its design, as seen in the way its facets function together to reflect light. My CBI is not boring and it’s even not overly perfect, because the light reflections (scintillation) are designed to be surprising not predictable. My CBI is my most dynamic effusive stone. So I think I love my super ideal maybe even more than my old cuts. I don’t even think of it as different from my antique cuts: likewise, I think of it as an astounding piece of art.

 

[icy_jade]

Then I bought a Crafted By Infinity diamond and it was totally different from the lower cut quality MRBs I had owned. It is an extremely interesting lively stone. It has incredible personality. It makes beautiful sense: whoever designed it made each facet contribute to the perfection of the light show. It reminds me most of all of my perfect Transitional, which has a tightness and sensibility to its design, as seen in the way its facets function together to reflect light. My CBI is not boring and it’s even not overly perfect, because the light reflections (scintillation) are designed to be surprising not predictable. My CBI is my most dynamic effusive stone. So I think I love my super ideal maybe even more than my old cuts. I don’t even think of it as different from my antique cuts: likewise, I think of it as an astounding piece of art.

Thanks for sharing this! Reading this makes me so excited to get my diamond in a few weeks!

 

[quicksilver]

I will say that there are such a tiny number of newly cut OECs (cut to excellent/ideal light performance) that you really just have to look at what each of them have. I don't love every stone. Every stone has to be evaluated individually in terms of cut and whether the specs fit in your comfort zone. Contrast that to ideal cut modern diamonds, and there would be hundreds or maybe thousands out there from which to choose.



You have to understand, people wanting diamonds over two carats often can't find an AVR or other newly cut antique stone that meets the specs they are wanting. There have only been a relatively small number cut over two carats, and only a handful over 3 cts. For that matter, some people search for a long time (months or even years) to find the perfect antique stone. The advantage of ideal cut rounds is that they are plentiful and you can pretty much always find what you want quickly.

Most diamonds are not going to look their best in the car with tinted windows, so that's the last place to view any diamond. You are confusing AVRs and OECs. OECs have leakage. They were created when most people used candlelight, so they take in light from the sides as well as the top. They were not created to have ideal light return from the top, but some are well cut and have good light return. AVR's have beautiful, symmetrical facet patterns, and they have excellent light return from the top of the diamond just like ideal cut rounds do. I wouldn't keep my AVR if it didn't have equally excellent light return, because I did have a superideal cut diamond ring prior to getting the AVR.

I appreciate this super-thorough response. You hit a lot of concerns that I haven't even voiced but thought. So basically if I dont want to lose light return by giving up my superideal, I should go with AVR or run be prepared to turn over every rock. no pun intended

 

[Lina Jade]

Thanks for sharing this! Reading this makes me so excited to get my diamond in a few weeks!

Thanks for sharing this! Reading this makes me so excited to get my diamond in a few weeks!

@icy_jade Do you know any information about sapphire star pink or blue? Is there any value etc? Thankyou

 

[quicksilver]

Here are a bunch of photos that I’ve never posted before. Both 3 carats, 3.04 and 3.0. OEC AND MRB. MRB is an AGS 000. I’ve never really studied them until now. Various lighting conditions. Hope this helps. The OEC is a K. If you don’t already know I will let you guess the color of the MRB. see what I mean when I say color is manifested differently in an MRB and an OEC?

Thanks for the comparison shots! I noticed how the the oec really doesnt pale in comparison to the ags000. Is yours an AVR? It's beautiful! Both are! What worries me is how the perimeter of an oec doesnt light up the way the ags ideal does. But the reason, I think, why I'm not so thrilled with my current ideal cut is precisely because my stone lights up bright, edge to edge but doesnt have that on-off effect that seems to happen with older cuts. Is this normal? Do I just have a dud ags ideal? Since my stone isn't a 3 or a 2 carat-er, I'm also a bit worried about losing width visually. I'm rambling. Point is, those pics really helped. You are very lucky to call even one your own!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Basically, ASET images show light return. Some of the girls here have very well cut OECs that have edge to edge brightness like a superideal cut or AVR would. That's the key to knowing whether the diamond will light up well like ideal cut stones or AVRs. Not many old cut vendors will do ASET images because many stones will show either green or leakage near edges, and that means not as great light return edge to edge. So if you want an OEC with great light return, you could order the cheapest ASET scope and send for OECs that look great in pictures, and evaluate them yourself. Although, seeing the stone in different lighting enviroments is the number one and best way to determine if you LOVE a stone or not. If you have doubts, send it back. Even with AVRs, I sent for a few and sent some back, mostly due to size, color, and clarity preferences.

With old or new stones, I require a very well cut stone which means symmetrical facet pattern (which shows skill in cutting) and good light return. As I may have said before, I do have an antique asscher that is very special to me. It is symmetrically cut, but doesn't have as perfect light return as my other stones, yet it is gorgeous in most lighting. So it really is a case of having to see a stone and having the feeling that you absolutely love it. You can hear that from people like Soxfan and LLJsmom who found great OECs and really love them!

So I'd be open to both and I personally WAS open to both, but ended up with an AVR (or two!). lol!

 

[icy_jade]

@icy_jade Do you know any information about sapphire star pink or blue? Is there any value etc? Thankyou

Star sapphires can be very valuable from what little I know, especially if the stars are nice and clear (not wonky), the stone itself has nice color, etc. Suggest you create a new thread of the pieces you have inherited in the colored stones forum and post pics and measurements. I’m sure some of the experts can then point you to similar stones for you to gauge the price/value.

 

[natasha-cupcake]

I'd like to add, that you need to be careful how you buy and who you buy from. See my thread for a cautionary tale. https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/yet-another-oec-thread.241970/
Stick with PriceScope approved vendors and research return policies religiously. That's what my plan was. Unfortunately, I was still in the dreaming phase and I had no idea my husband, bless his heart, wanted to surprise me by actually buying an OEC.