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Assistance purchasing loose stone - RB

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michelles85

Shiny_Rock
Joined
May 5, 2015
Messages
104
Hello All,
I'm very lost with this whole diamond purchasing experience and after trying to research on my own for about a month, i'd greatly appreciate your opinions/assistance. Currently, my only options are James Allen & Blue Nile. I'd prefer BlueNile as the prices seem a bit more competitive & I'm also going through a 3rd party site for additional discounts. :angel:

1st diamond:
1.38 (7.13x7.15x4.42)
G
VS1 (cyrstal, cloud & pinpoint- this also, would it be visible to the naked eye?)
depth: 61.9
table: 56
crown:35
pavilion:40.8
pavilion%:43
girdle: med
star: 55
lower girdle:75
fluorescence: none
culet: none
cut/polish/sym: EX

2nd diamond:
1.41 (7.20x7.24x4.42)
G
VS1 (Cloud, Needle, Pinpoint, would it be visible to the naked eye?)
depth: 61.2
table: 56
crown:34
pavilion:40.6
pavilion%:43
girdle: med
star: 50
lower girdle:80
fluorescence: none
culet: none
cut/polish/sym: EX


Your help would be super helpful and greatly appreciated! thank you so much in advance!!
 
The first thing many members do when determining which diamond to purchase is run the “numbers” (for lack of a better word) through the HCA.
https://www.pricescope.com/tools/hca
The HCA doesn’t tell you what diamond will the best one for you however it can help eliminate diamonds that may be low performers. I take the term low performer to mean not a lot of sparkle.
You did a GREAT job on your choices Michelles85

I ran the numbers for you and
stone #1 scores: 1.6
stone #2 scores: 0.6

So both are contenders. Without any other info or images I would choose diamond #2 bz it’s a bit bigger :mrgreen: .
 
Generally w/ a correctly graded VS1 the stone is eye clean.

Hope this info helps in your decision.
 
Oh wow! This is great, ive been stressing for the last few months trying to find a decent stone!
If you dont mind, i dont mean to be so buggish, can you please tell me if this stone is worth considering also?

1.33(7.15x7.19)
F
Vvs2 ( pinpoint and internal graining)
Depth 60.3
Table 56
Crown 33
Pav ang 40.8
Pav% 43
Star 50
Lower girdle 74
Fluorescence faint (would this affect the stone appear eith a blue hue)

Between this and #2, which would you suggest? Without photos??

So sorry and i truely appreciate your feedback & assistance!
 
don't be sry at all Michelles85!
stone #3 scores 0.6 on the HCA and is not eliminated by that method.

I am NOT sure abt a lower girdle of 74

I think you would want the lower girdle to ideally be b/t 75-80. Someone chime in here if that info is incorrect.

Still w/ out images stone #2 would be my pick.
 
I'm sorry. i was typing on my phone and made an error! lower girdle is 80 on stone #3. :angel:
How kind of you to assist! it took me so long for anyone to reply :errrr:
well this is great, i guess after you reply regarding this last post, i'll proceed with #2.
I just wanted a 2nd opinion because i've reached out to a few diamond experts and they disagreed with ALL the stones. :(
 
BTW, all 3 stones are GIA so hopefully, it'll appear to be eye clean. Guess i'll find out upon receipt! :)
 
aaaah!
yes 80 is a more typical number one sees for lower girdle.

It's odd . . . sometimes these forms are busy and other times . . . .crickets chirping.
Often images help members respond.

Fingers crossed for you on diamond #2. Please come back and post photos when you get the stone IRL.

How are you going to set it?
 
I was thinking of getting halo setting. :)

Well im going to listen and will proceed with #2.
I really just wasnt sure what im supposed to look at in a diamond.. instead of people being very helpful like you, they just kept telling me the stones were bad choices and instead of searching on my own, to pay them so they can help me look.
BTW, a diamond pro picked out the 3rd stone for me, which is why i was considering that one.. as i thought it was a lot better than all the other choices but i just wasn't feeling it due to the fluorescence. It's not a bad thing but i just prefer no fluor! :angel:
But you've simplified my decision and i will go ahead and purchase #2. :)
I really want to thank you and as soon as i do receive the stone, will post a pic for ya!

Thank you SOOO much, you dont understand how much i appreciate it!
 
I look forward to seeing pictures .
A RB w/ a size of 7.20-7.24 in a halo will look lovely and most likely quite substantial on the hand. :dance:

I have no clue why anyone would say your stone choices were bad. Without images I think you had some fine options.

You are most welcome Michelles85 and I totally know what you mean. When I purchased my diamond(and some pearls for that matter) . . . it was hard to choose the one. I was thankful to have the assistance of quite a few members of this community.
 
Oh wow! that's awesome, thanks to you, ive decided to proceed with #2. Just waiting on shipment now :)

Thank you again very much
 
Hi 16ocean! I purchased the stone you recommended and received today, in a tension clasp setting. :angel:
How does it look? wanted your opinion before getting it set into halo! :appl:
 

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To my eyes in the photo you have it looks good. What was your gut when you saw it?
I love :love: the finger coverage!
Again I am not an expert just a customer like you.


Is it as sparkly as other diamonds you have seen in a jewelry store?

I would observe it in all lighting conditions: soft light, bright kitchen light, outside and then ask yourself is it sparkly in all those lighting conditions?

fingers crossed!!
 
Hi 16ocean! I took it to Jareds to inspect the stone against GIA cert and they thought the stone was E-F in color with great brilliance & fire...... my pic was bad because i live in CA and it was gloomy/cloudy but we compared to Jared's stones.. and the manager said mine, by far looked the best.. so i'm very happy!

I really want to thank you again! :)
 
Can i ask you what site you got that ring from and what the price is? I'm looking to buy a diamond similar to that and wanted to.know if it was in my price range!
 
Hi sf1649ers80, yes of course. I actually found the stones on Blue Nile & visited enchanteddiamonds.com &to look up the cut scores. At the time, enchanteddiamonds had the 1.41 that I purchased, listed at a lower wire price of $11,390. So i got Blue Nile to match the price. Also, i went through fatwallet.com/ebates.com (only available for Blue Nile) as they were paying back 4% on $7,500 so am getting back $300 back. So total cost of stone was $11,090. :angel:

Price wise, i believe enchanteddiamond's better because it's listed slightly lower than Blue Nile. So you can find a stone on Blue Nile, check the cut score on enchanteddiamonds (it'll show you if can buy through them) & get Blue Nile to price match, if you also want the additional savings through ebates/fatwallet.

Hope this helps! If you'd like i can link you to few of the stones i was deciding between before purchasing this one. :D
 
Hey Michelles85, :wavey:
I too hail from CA. You are very welcome. I think you did GREAT. :clap:

from the HCA it's a "keep in consideration"

the numbers look GREAT

the cert is GIA

it is sparkly epically when you compared it to other stones

it looks awesome on your hand

price point wise bz you went the blue nile route w/ the pricematching and the discounts it was at least 2 to 3 thousand less than other stones of that size and color clarity combo.

and I KNOW you did way better than your average brick and mortar.
:dance:

What can I say other than "halo away" and then post some photos!!!

How long did your search take? You had to have done tones of reading and research.
 
Hi 16ocean.. Think my search took about 2 months. I initially just purchased a stone without realizing there were other important factors but i did email couple people asking for their opinion but they disagreed with my choice and suggested to get my money back. So i did but asked bluenile to keep my funds for when i find a better choice. I then encountered enchanteddiamonds. They provided cut scores so the 3 that i posted on here, all scored 100 so i decided, if anyone replies back to me, i would just proceed with the one recommended.

Ill definitely post pics once set.

Thank you again for your help! Made my decision much easier with your input!
 
You are very welcome. Glad to help.
I know exactly what you mean. You have some vary viable contenders, you know they are good you just need to bounce your ideas off some one who is not a sales person.

Great job doing the research and then all the cross-referencing between Blue Nile and Enchanted Diamonds. Thank goodness you bought from a company w/ a solid return/exchange policy.

That is one thing that breaks my heart.
Someone who purchased a diamond from a company or jeweler, later learns that other stones may have a better cost/cut/color/clarity value but become stuck w/ a real dog.

-so- excited for you

is this an engagement ring?

Who is setting it?

looking forward to photos.
 
Hi 16ocean,
It's an engagement ring. :)
As for the setting, nothing special. My BF really likes the halo from James Allen so we sent off to JA on Sat. Hopefully it comes back looking even more beautiful!
I wanted to ask you, is it normal that when diamond sparkles, the colors appear as green, yellow, blue, etc? And does my stone look not so clear? Or might this be due to photos being taken with iphone? :P
This is our 1st stone so wasn't sure. LOL sorry i'm such a noob!

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Sorry for all these bad photos.. i only have an iphone to capture photos with... :eek:

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"is it normal that when diamond sparkles, the colors appear as green, yellow, blue, etc?" yes! that is called fire :appl:

sry I am not a diamond expert and to my eyes your stone looks clear and very white.

I think you can take comfort because when you compared your stone to the other GIA stones at the jewelry store yours knocked them out of the park.

it's a VS1 that is very good clarity!! and it was graded by GIA a reputable lab
and the numbers looked good.

Totally get it though.
this is a big purchase.

I say wear it in good health. You did a great job cross referencing websites.
 
oh great, thanks for taking the time to reply & for all your help in selecting my stone! :)
 
Hi 16ocean! Finally got my ring. Looks nice but my diamond's not set straight so I have to send back. Thankfully James ALlen has great service and asked to send back so they can re-set the diamond. But since you helped, thought id share photos of the finished ring! :P
 

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Michelles85!
It is lovely. What a way to put it all together. Thank you for sharing your photos.
You must be grinning ear to ear.
Wear it in good health.

:)
 
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