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Assistance with Diamond

GoBlueTX

Rough_Rock
Joined
Dec 13, 2019
Messages
8
Hello folks,

It's been a long time coming, but I've decided to take the plunge and propose to my girlfriend in the next month and a half. Not surprisingly, she's been looking into rings / giving me details as to what she wants for the diamond and setting over the course of the last few months. I've been able to do some research, but as a young attorney, I haven't been able to spend as much looking into everything as I would have otherwise hoped. Thankfully, though, my limited research did lead me to this website. I've perused these forums and various articles over the last few days, but I figured it was about time to reach out to the community for assistance, as I have truthfully felt more and more lost and confused with the more research that I've done.

At any rate, here are my ideal specifications for the diamond:

--Budget: Under $15.5k
--Round or oval cut (excellent)
--No less than 2.0 ct.
--Minimal fluorescence
--J, SI2 or better (eye clean)

Some additional background: I know my girlfriend idealizes size, with respect to the diamond. She wants to pair the diamond with a yellow gold solitaire setting. As a relevant aside, she has become enamored with Ring Concierge's Whisper Thin setting (which, I believe, is less than 1.3 mm). Having a band that thin terrifies me, to be honest, so I'm hesitant to go with that option. Does anyone here, by chance, have any experience with that? I found a few threads on here discussing Ring Concierge, and the general consensus seemed to be that thin was too thin.

I greatly appreciate any assistance that any of y'all can provide! Thank you! (And please let me know if there are any additional details needed, to assist in finding a diamond.)
 

whitewave

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
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Feb 29, 2012
Messages
12,331
I would absolutely not do a 1.3mm band unless you want to replace the entire ring after several years.

Look at mm sizes rather than carat weight.

Budget is for diamond and setting? That might be tough.
 

GoBlueTX

Rough_Rock
Joined
Dec 13, 2019
Messages
8
I would absolutely not do a 1.3mm band unless you want to replace the entire ring after several years.

Look at mm sizes rather than carat weight.

Budget is for diamond and setting? That might be tough.

That's just the budget for the diamond.
 

whitewave

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Messages
12,331
You are more or less in 1.8 carat territory with your budget. There is a big price jump at the 2 carat mark.

Looking at ovals might be better.

Where is she on oval vs. round? Which does she prefer more?
 

GoBlueTX

Rough_Rock
Joined
Dec 13, 2019
Messages
8
You are more or less in 1.8 carat territory with your budget. There is a big price jump at the 2 carat mark.

Looking at ovals might be better.

Where is she on oval vs. round? Which does she prefer more?

I'm flexible with everything except the cut (she prefers round, but would be more than happy with oval) and clarity (not going below SI2).
 

whitewave

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Messages
12,331
You might want to give David at Diamonds by Lauren a call because he is good at finding eye clean lower clarity diamonds. When you get to SI2 etc, I personally prefer to deal with someone who has seen the diamond in person and can give you a real life description of the inclusions and how they look.

Also remember, at 2 carats inclusions might be a lot more noticeable simply because the stone is larger, so the size adds issues.
 

whitewave

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Feb 29, 2012
Messages
12,331
Adiamor one is a hard pass. It’s steep/deep and was cut for weight retention and is actually smaller than a well cut 2 carat stone. It does not hit the 8mm mark.
 

GoBlueTX

Rough_Rock
Joined
Dec 13, 2019
Messages
8
You might want to give David at Diamonds by Lauren a call because he is good at finding eye clean lower clarity diamonds. When you get to SI2 etc, I personally prefer to deal with someone who has seen the diamond in person and can give you a real life description of the inclusions and how they look.

Also remember, at 2 carats inclusions might be a lot more noticeable simply because the stone is larger, so the size adds issues.

That is great information / something I definitely didn't think about (i.e., that size could create more issues). Thank you!
 

whitewave

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Feb 29, 2012
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12,331
Run all round brilliant through this tool and toss anything above 2.

 

whitewave

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Feb 29, 2012
Messages
12,331
Yadav one scores over 5 on HCA. Hard pass.
 

whitewave

Super_Ideal_Rock
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12,331
Use this for search engines, and go advanced:

Gia excellent:


Depth 60-62.3


Table 54-57


Pavilion 40.6 to 40.9


Crown 34-35
 

GoBlueTX

Rough_Rock
Joined
Dec 13, 2019
Messages
8
I would absolutely not do a 1.3mm band unless you want to replace the entire ring after several years.

Look at mm sizes rather than carat weight.

Budget is for diamond and setting? That might be tough.

What is the thinnest I could safely go? 1.5 mm?
 

Kaycee2018

Brilliant_Rock
Premium
Joined
May 14, 2018
Messages
994
Congrats on your impending engagement! My husband is an attorney as well (an old one :lol:). My e-ring is 1.85 ct in a 1.8mm setting with a softened knife edge so it appears thinner. 1.3mm is too thin to be durable enough for daily wear. As others have posted, staying just under carat mark is very cost effective. You came to the right place...there are lots of knowledgeable people here to guide you. Looking forward to seeing what they recommend. GL!
 

KKJohnson

Brilliant_Rock
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Aug 15, 2017
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1,834
I like these as well but I agree with Whitewave, DBL will find you a great looking stone, best bang for the buck options and he is very honest in his reviews of stones


 

the_mother_thing

Ideal_Rock
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Messages
6,306
@GoBlueTX I agree with others’ comments re: the durability/integrity of such a thin setting; they’re pretty and trendy, but not very practical ‘in real life’ without significantly babying it and/or wearing it with extreme care.

Also, I have to ask/suggest: is there any chance you/your intended may upgrade (or even possible consider one) down the road for an anniversary, push present, etc? If so, I would highly recommend you at least consider ‘flexing’ your carat-criteria slightly for now, and stick with a vendor that offers a generous upgrade policy AND that gets you a great diamond now that is pretty darn close to your goal-specs, in/under budget.

For example, this WF ACA ... it’s just 14pts (or .14ct) under your 2ct goal; however, it’s a super ideal cut diamond, has better clarity than your ‘minimum’, IS confirmed to be eye clean, IS under-budget, and comes from a vendor with a very generous upgrade policy (spend just $1 more than original purchase when trading up). And, this diamond IS in-stock and can be set in your timeframe of proposing in the next month & a half; the cut will result in this diamond facing up much bigger than one that does not have as ‘ideal’ specs cut-wise. Lastly, given it is just under the 2ct mark, it’s reasonable in most social circles - if asked - to say ‘it’s 2 carats’.

Yes, you can get a less-expensive, nice diamond elsewhere. But you may have to deal with common issues with ‘virtual inventory’, where the diamond you want/think you bought was actually sold to someone else, and you have to start over searching. And if there is even a slim chance of an upgrade down the road - and considering your current budget - I would try my best to stick with a vendor that would best ensure today’ ‘investment’ will yield the most ‘return’ toward an upgrade down the road; only a handful of vendors offer as generous an upgrade policy as WF. At the end of the day, it’s your money & decision, but wanted to ensure you at least consider it given your initial post. :wavey:
 

sledge

Ideal_Rock
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Apr 23, 2018
Messages
5,791
WF ACA 2.04 I SI1 @ $17,049 wire

True H&A stone with killer upgrade program. A little over budget, but throwing it out there in case you have some wiggle room. It's eye clean and you enjoy a color bump up to I so you are getting a little something extra for the money other than size.


GIA XXX 2.01 J VVS2 @ $14,625

Decent proportions -- 57 table, 61.8 depth, 35 crown, 40.8 pavilion & 75 LGF's. And a 1.6 HCA.

Capturehca.PNG

If you get interested, ask for an ASET, idealscope and/or hearts & arrows (H&A) images of the stone. They likely won't be able to provide them all, but maybe you'll get lucky and get some of them. It's free to ask.

My concern while the proportions are within the ranges we recommend, it seems that 35/40.8 is a hit or miss deal. Some ASET's looks great. Others reveal leakage. It's a combo combining a steep crown with a steeper pavilion so on stones with less faceting precision I think you see issues.

If an upgrade program is important to you, check carefully. It will be more restrictive than WF. Also, double check if they can meet your deadline with the holidays, etc.
 

sledge

Ideal_Rock
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Also, FWIW, I had a custom e-ring done for my wife. Thicknesses vary. When doing her wedding band, we talked about dropping to less than 2mm. I believe we ended on 1.8 or 1.9 but only because the wedding band was soldered to the e-ring. All for the main reason already stated -- there isn't enough strength for that sort of thinness.

By chance, have you and she actually saw some of these thin bands in real life? I ask because when shopping for my wife, it became very obvious what I saw online and loved rarely matched the real life experience. The images we see online are extremely magnified and zoomed.

I know my wife's band looks much more dainty in real life than via pictures.

Also, what is your girl's ring size? Sometimes you can couple too skinny of a band with too large of a finger. Not implying she has large fingers or any of that jazz. Just saying the size of the band and diamond play into the equation from an aesthetics side.
 

the_mother_thing

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Mar 2, 2013
Messages
6,306
Also, double check if they can meet your deadline with the holidays, etc.

That would be my biggest concern if I were in OPs shoes with his target timeline, and trying to buy on the virtual inventory market. Not that it can’t be done, but this is a major diamond-buying time for people who want to propose at Christmas, New Years and Valentines Day. With OPs budget, I would not want the frustration, anxiety, nor risk of losing out on a stone I thought I had on hold/paid for and/or may have been marked up due to the holidays without - at a minimum - the knowledge that it was guaranteed in-stock, had images to confirm performance, and knew with 100% certainty I’d never upgrade.
 

GoBlueTX

Rough_Rock
Joined
Dec 13, 2019
Messages
8
As an initial note, I just wanted to thank everyone that has provided assistance thus far! For what it's worth, I am flexible on the details provided above. Also, the $15.5k budget is solely for the diamond, not the whole enchilada. And, for what it's worth, the end of January deadline is not set in stone. I'd have no issue (and wouldn't get in trouble with my girlfriend) if I were to wait until February.

Also, FWIW, I had a custom e-ring done for my wife. Thicknesses vary. When doing her wedding band, we talked about dropping to less than 2mm. I believe we ended on 1.8 or 1.9 but only because the wedding band was soldered to the e-ring. All for the main reason already stated -- there isn't enough strength for that sort of thinness.

By chance, have you and she actually saw some of these thin bands in real life? I ask because when shopping for my wife, it became very obvious what I saw online and loved rarely matched the real life experience. The images we see online are extremely magnified and zoomed.

I know my wife's band looks much more dainty in real life than via pictures.

Also, what is your girl's ring size? Sometimes you can couple too skinny of a band with too large of a finger. Not implying she has large fingers or any of that jazz. Just saying the size of the band and diamond play into the equation from an aesthetics side.

She has only seen images / videos of the super thin bands on Instagram--nothing that thin in person, to my knowledge. My gut tells me to not go below 1.8 mm, but it's just a matter of selling her on that!

And her ring size is 7 3/4.
 

sledge

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Apr 23, 2018
Messages
5,791
We have a couple of Christmas parties tonight but I will try to get a picture of my wife's ring on her hand. Her finger size is similar. I don't think your girl will like a 1.3 with the proportion of her finger, etc.

I'd stay at 1.8+ if possible.

As mentioned earlier, you can cheat this with a visual illusion of a knife cut band. Because the profile comes to a point, it looks thinner than it really is. And if you don't like a sharp knife edge, you can have most shops customize it so it's a "soft knife edge".

This is a knife edge in 2mm. See how thin it looks?


1576271916747.png
 

KKJohnson

Brilliant_Rock
Premium
Joined
Aug 15, 2017
Messages
1,834
As an initial note, I just wanted to thank everyone that has provided assistance thus far! For what it's worth, I am flexible on the details provided above. Also, the $15.5k budget is solely for the diamond, not the whole enchilada. And, for what it's worth, the end of January deadline is not set in stone. I'd have no issue (and wouldn't get in trouble with my girlfriend) if I were to wait until February.



She has only seen images / videos of the super thin bands on Instagram--nothing that thin in person, to my knowledge. My gut tells me to not go below 1.8 mm, but it's just a matter of selling her on that!

And her ring size is 7 3/4.

I went with a 1.9mm on my custom ring in platinum, I have not had any issues with it.
 

whitewave

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Feb 29, 2012
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12,331
2mm on a 7.75 finger is totally fine. See my asscher in my avatar? Each of those shanks are 2mm on a 7.25 finger.
 

the_mother_thing

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Mar 2, 2013
Messages
6,306
As an initial note, I just wanted to thank everyone that has provided assistance thus far! For what it's worth, I am flexible on the details provided above. Also, the $15.5k budget is solely for the diamond, not the whole enchilada. And, for what it's worth, the end of January deadline is not set in stone. I'd have no issue (and wouldn't get in trouble with my girlfriend) if I were to wait until February.

And her ring size is 7 3/4.

If helpful for visual reference, the pic in my avatar is my finger, size is 7.25, and the diamond is 2.10 ct, measures 8.24x8.26x5.09 mm. The shoulders of the ring setting are just shy of 1.5mm-wide and about 1.7mm deep. The *only* reasons I am okay with this thin a shoulder is because: 1) it’s a temporary setting; 2) the shoulders have zero contact with my band that would result in rubbing/loss of metal due to the protruding basket keeping my band at a safe distance from the diamond; 3) the base or shank of the ring is pretty substantial at about 3.5mm wide & 1.7mm deep; and, 4) there is no pave or other ‘accent’ that reduces the strength/structural integrity of the setting.

If not for all those factors - for long-term daily wear - I’d personally go no less than 1.8mm wide with good depth), and possibly more depending on other variables.
 
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