Buying a First Time Engagement Ring

[chfisher77]

Hello,

I've been doing a little bit of research over the past couple months, and I'm getting ready to propose to my girlfriend of 4 years. I ask her parents tomorrow. I originally thought the diamond was all about cut, clarity, carats, and color. I'm now learning about fluorescence, table, depth, ratio, girdle, etc. I have a budget of around $15k, and I really want to make sure that I can get the most for my money. I'm looking at the following attributes:

Shape: Round Brilliant
Carat: .95-1.2
Color: E
Cut: Every website seems to have different rankings
Clarity: IF
Fluorescence: None
Depth: 58.5-62.5%
Table: 52.4-59.5%

I'm just a little overwhelmed at all of the combinations of possibilities, and I want to make the right choice. I need some guidance on whether or not I'm looking at all of the relevant factors as well as some direction on which websites are the best to look at. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks =D

 

[JulieN]

Why do you want E IF? A 1.5 H SI1 will fit your budget nicely.

 

[chfisher77]

She's somewhat petite. I'd rather buy something that is less carat and greater quality than a bigger stone. She seems to share my sentiment. I just have no idea what a % of table or depth does to the shine of the diamond or if I'm leaving out some important factors.

 

[hawk25]

I understand you wanting to buy a better quality diamond, but after a certain point you'll be paying for something you won't be able to appreciate. An IF diamond sounds great on paper (and in your mind), but to the naked eye its no different than an eye clean SI1/VS2, but the price difference is astronomical.

Its the same for the color. A well cut H color diamond will still appear white to most people (there are a few people who are truly color sensitive and want the higher color grades). In most cases, an H (especially when already set) will only look like an H when it's placed next to a higher color.

As for websites to look at, there's a bunch of vendors that PSers prefer, like Whiteflash, Good old Gold, James Allen, Brian Gavin Diamonds, etc. I can only personally speak for Whiteflash, and they've been exceptionally patient and good to me.

Did you want to stick with your size range? I'm sure you can get bigger, but that's a matter for your personal taste. If not, then you'll probably get to save some money

 

[diamondloveaffair]

posters here will tell you to avoid Internally flawless stones. It's like taboo here. But the thing is, if it means and symbolizes something for you, by all means get an IF stone. If all you need is an eye clean stone, a VS1-VS2 is sufficient. The thing here is to be sure on what you want. This will make your search easier.

 

[tyty333]

Hi chfisher,

You can use the HCA tool to help weed out stones. Look for diamonds that score 2 or less.

https://www.pricescope.com/tools/hca

You have a pretty nice budget. I would not pay for an IF unless its a cultural thing which I understand.

Vendors to look into would be Whiteflash (ACA line of stones), Brian Gavin Diamonds and GOG.

http://www.whiteflash.com/
http://www.briangavindiamonds.com/diamonds/signature-diamonds
http://www.goodoldgold.com/

You can also try James Allen.
http://www.jamesallen.com/


If you are talking round I can suggest a few...I had to broaden your parameters to find something close.
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2684398.htm
http://www.briangavindiamonds.com/diamonds/diamond-details/1.026-f-vs1-round-diamond-ags-104062032012
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-dia...=73568,73836,73508,166008,164414,73667,107877