Blue Nile Pre-set Solitaire Pendant

[reena]

A friend would like to purchase a three-stone diamond pendant for his wife, and is considering the pre-set pendants available at Bluenile.com. They seem to be a reasonably good deal--3/4 carat total weight, prong set in white gold for $1500. However, the diamonds are I color and SI2 clarity.

I''m wondering whether, with smaller stones such as these, there would be a noticeable difference in color and clarity between these stones and stones that rate a little higher on the color/clarity scale (for example, H/VS2)?
If so, he could always "build his own" pendant through the site with better quality stones--at a higher cost, of course. Before advising him to do so, I thought I would seek some expert advice from all of you as to whether the difference would be sufficiently noticeable to justify the increased cost.

If anyone has any thoughts--or has seen one of these pre-set pendants in person--I would very much appreciate hearing from you!

 

[headlight]

Honestly, I don't think it matters when you are talking about this size of stones. There won't be an ascertainable difference between the H and I color. And I don't think in those sizes spending for VS quality is worth it nor visible. The price would probably be double if he upgraded it to VS-H, and for $3000, I don't think .75 tcw divided among three stones is worth it. If someone showed them to you side-by-side but didn't specify which was which, I don't think you would know the difference. As long as they sparkle, that is all that counts. And we all know that it isn't the clarity that is going to give them the "wow" factor. These pieces, in this size, are for their design element and bling factor, and not for diamond "quality", per se.

 

[reena]

Thanks, that's what I was thinking, too. Do you think .75 carats is a good size for a 3-stone pendant--do you think it will show up well? (I have no experience with diamond pendants, so I really have no idea.) For a solitaire, I would think .75 is a nice size, but I wonder whether it would be a different story with the three stone. Opinions?

 

[headlight]

I like the configuration of the stones going horizontal (much better than the vertical three-stone pendants). I think with the three stones across, you will be able to see it. I mean, it is not going to be some big, honkin' diamond necklace, but it will be a delicate piece with eye-catching sparkle that will be something she would/should feel comfortable wearing everyday.

 

[reena]

Yes, it's the three across. Great--thanks for the advice.

 

[lmurden]

Hi,

I have the .25 set in yellow gold diamond pendant from Blue Nile and it's very white, clean eye from the top, bottom, and sides, and it's very pretty! It was only $395, but you might want to build your own for about $150 more. I hope this helps.

 

[valeria101]

Hm... I color soudns fine, but SI2 in small stones like that is not the same as in a 1 carat - I would be surprised if they were anywhere near eye clean. The size of those inclusions is not only considered proportionsl to the size of the stone. I would go for VS clarity in this case. Color is more a matter of philosophy between H and I anywhere under 1ct.

The price is low, but this is just because of that low clarity - $1500 does not soudn like a "bargain", it is what it should be.

Would a 0.4cts and two 0.2cts sides H/I-VS do the trick? The larger stone would be around $700 for a better cut piece and the sides about $200 each... so the sum total may not get so much higher than BN's after all. For comparison, the I-si2 center would be just $100 cheaper - given the small size, a few grades here or there do not cost all that much in absolute terms... I took (for convenience) quotes from DCD, but you would need to contact the shop (or any) for the cost of the completeld pendant. The model can be done with catalog mountings, only I do not know what those cost