Bought a tsav, small for its weight, should I return it?

[fluffboll]

Hi! I need some advice regarding a tsavorite ring that I bought online. Its stated weight is 1.7 carat, but it is uncerted. When I opened the package, my heart sank, because the stone is so small! The colour is beautiful, a pure strong green, but I'd say that the face up size is about 5x5.5 or 5x6 mm (it's a cushion). That is much smaller than I expected, so the stone must have a very deep pavilion. I am new to the world of coloured stones, but when I did a search online, it seems that most tsavorites in the 1.7 carat range should be bigger. The price was 750 pounds (1000 dollars), but I´ll have to pay 25% tax on top of that if I keep it (darn Brexit!). The ring is 3.7 grams 18 k gold. My question is this: is the price I paid a fair price for what it is, or should I return it and keep looking? I love love love the colour of the stone, but as I expected a larger face up size, I must admit that I'm a bit disappointed. The tsavorite really needs a halo or a couple of side stones to give it some oomph, but that may be expensive. I am not in love with the design of the ring, and would have a new ring made in any case. The picture shows the tsav with a 0.8 carat diamond for scale. Thoughts?

 

[qubitasaurus]

I don't think that is a 1.7 ct stone. Love the colour though. It's always possible that it has a massive pavilion but I would guess that it was already mounted when it was sold and they gave you the estimated weight-- which sounds like a slightly overly generous estimate. I would have guessed 1.3 ct based on a 5×6 cushion face up -- how did you check this by the way?

Tsavs are expensive and the 18 k setting is worth a couple of hundred. So you didn't trade off badly for 1 k. But if you're going to reset anyway, then once you've tallied the costs of all those daimonds you want to add it might be a bit easier to just buy a bigger tsav.

 

[fluffboll]

I don't think that is a 1.7 ct stone. Love the colour though. It's always possible that it has a massive pavilion but I would guess that it was already mounted when it was sold and they gave you the estimated weight-- which sounds like a slightly overly generous estimate. I would have guessed 1.3 ct based on a 5×6 cushion face up -- how did you check this by the way?

Tsavs are expensive and the 18 k setting is worth a couple of hundred. So you didn't trade off badly for 1 k. But if you're going to reset anyway, then once you've tallied the costs of all those daimonds you want to add it might be a bit easier to just buy a bigger tsav.

I tried to measure the stone with a ruler, so my estimate should be taken with a grain of salt... I will reach out to a local jeweller tomorrow to get the exact dimensions.

 

[qubitasaurus]

I tried to measure the stone with a ruler, so my estimate should be taken with a grain of salt... I will reach out to a local jeweller tomorrow to get the exact dimensions.

Yes try that. Even 1 mm more in either dimension and it becomes more believable that its a 1.7 ct stone. Usually vendors try their best to give accurate information so it's not like I'd be expecting the ct weight to be wrong and the vendor to be deliberately lying -- that's unlikely. Trouble is that you can't measure ct weight directly without unmounting so they could have estimated.

 

[T L]

Do you have a side view of the ring so that we can see how deep the stone is? Sometimes bottom heavy gems do not face up well.

 

[nutellakitty]

could be a very deep stone

 

[seaurchin]

"When I opened the package, my heart sank..."

To me, this said it all. Regardless of the details of how or why it falls short to you, if you still feel this way about it then I think you should definitely return it.

 

[PinkAndBlueBling]

With your heart sinking and a 25% tax, it seems like you know what you want to do.

You really have to go by measurements, not weight. For example, I have a tsavorite 1.76 cushion that's 6.6x6.5x4.8 cut by Gary and a round 1.4 that's 6.5x4.5. The round was one of my first CS purchases 15+ years ago when I thought 1 ct stones were all the same. I now only buy 6mm stones if the color is irresistible.

 

[Arcadian]

as said unless its a deep stone, that likely isn't 1.7cts. Best to return it if it doesn't meet expectations.

 

[fluffboll]

Thanks everyone! If a stone doesn't make my heart sing, it's not the right stone for me. It's the gorgeous colour that has kept me from returning it so far. I have taken a photo showing the side view, but the bottom of the stone is obscured by the setting. I have contacted the seller. She said that they estimated the weight in the setting, and seemed genuinely sorry that I wasn't wowed by the ring. I'm fairly certain I'll return the ring. I never thought I was a size ho!

 

[T L]

Thanks everyone! If a stone doesn't make my heart sing, it's not the right stone for me. It's the gorgeous colour that has kept me from returning it so far. I have taken a photo showing the side view, but the bottom of the stone is obscured by the setting. I have contacted the seller. She said that they estimated the weight in the setting, and seemed genuinely sorry that I wasn't wowed by the ring. I'm fairly certain I'll return the ring. I never thought I was a size ho!

Yes that looks very very deep. People often forget that carat weight is not necessarily a full factor in the face up size of a gem. You also need to consider depth. If you’re paying a great deal per carat of any stone, depth is an extremely important variable to consider. as well as cutting, polish, specific gravity, clarity, color.

 

[fluffboll]

@T L - thank you for confirming my suspicions!

 

[marymm]

FWIW, I think the price for the ring is very fair, even if the Tsav is bottom-heavy -- it is a decent amount of 18kt gold, the setting is carved/ornate, and the Tsav is mounted carefully -- if you like the Tsav's color and the ring itself, I suggest keeping it. If you'd still be looking for a better colored and/or spreadier Tsavorite, then return.

 

[musicloveranthony]

That's pretty deep, but that's a gorgeous stone. If you're concerned about the appearance I'd recommend having it recut. It'll be even prettier than it already is

 

[lilmosun]

Difficult decision as you love the color (which to me is the biggest challenge in shopping for tsavs).

For me, color (incl tone/saturation) is king so due to budgetary constraints, I will often opt for a smaller stone and invest in a setting that gives more finger coverage. (That being said, with the price of gold, I find the cost of settings to be a larger factor than it once was which has caused me to hesitate on loose stone purchases).

If the small size of the stone truly bothers you, then I'd return. But as some have said, the price is very fair all things considered. If you are patient in our search and willing to spend more for a larger face-up size if needed, it's just a matter of the right one coming along.