Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy with it

[wendycataffo]

My older brother is 6 years older than me and got married must be 12 years by now. My brother the cop bought his wife a 2 carat clarity enhanced diamond and now strongly is telling me to "leave my boyfriend alone" about buying from a local guy near us because he doesnt want us (my boyfriend and I) get stuck with something we could not afford...... my brother the police officer claims we will not care after a few weeks, he also states there is no resale / insurance value with most the criminal cases he has worked, I have heard that is mostly true I hear of people going to pawn shops , but I dont want a second hand ring from someone who had bad luck even with the more expensive diamond that they had to sell for cash that they lost, I want my own ring, my own engagement not someone elses troubled relationship. I want us to be new , our own and unique. My brother does not want us to be broke when married. He has even said he would pay half if we went with a clarity enhanced diamond (my dad past away quite some time ago so my brother is very kind to me).

I do not want to look a gift horse in the mouth, but I read so much from people in the industry saying not to buy a diamond that is enhanced I get worried? My brothers wife Audry has a beautiful diamond and it looks great she has worn it every single days for years and makes sure we all see it, I also know because she never takes it off. She knows it is enhanced and I know she swears buy it. She has recommended them to her friends (all of those who got them as far as I know are happy too) when they got engaged but I just worry that she and her friends may have missed something important. IF what my family has done is wrong please let me know?

Like all women I want a bigger diamond but I certainly dont want to make a mistake regardless of what my family thinks, especially if they are all unaware of some trouble they might have overlooked after all these years? Should I tell them they dont realize the problems after all these years or should I just let them enjoy and not share what I have read?

Please help I am not a greedy woman I just want a bigger diamond that we can hardly afford, could all these people be wrong after so many years? I dont know I just worry too much maybe or look for problems in things I just want to be happy too? : P

 

[flyingpig]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

1. I believe not many members here will recommend a clarity enhanced diamond. It has a very little resale value. However, if you find one at a reasonable price and you like it, it is your preference and choice.
2. Regardless of you buy used or new, buy a conflict free diamond from a reputable vendor.
3. Noone should buy anything that is outside his/her financial comfort zone, or makes the purchaser go BROKE. Some vendors offer excellent upgrade policy. You can start small and upgrade later whenever you can afford.

If you post your budget and desired color and carat weight, we can help you.

 

[VRBeauty]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

Buy a diamond that you and your fiance can afford now, and start saving for a larger stone as the opportunity arises.

I understand your dilemma, and I don't think you're greedy to want a larger stone than you and your fiance can afford at this time. Unrealistic, yes... greedy, no. Your brother is offering you a "gift" that comes with strings attached. I'd politely decline it, both because of those strings and because your focus now should be on the decision you make with your fiance, and how the two of you you make that decision, and not on your brother or his offer.

BTW there are different types of clarity enhanced diamonds. Some are durable, others less so. Here's one of several PS threads on the topic: https://www.pricescope.com/communit...ed-to-with-a-clarity-enhanced-diamond.217632/

 

[girlyglam]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

I'm afraid I can't speak much about clarity enhanced diamonds. However, I was wondering if you would ever consider a non-diamond engagement ring? A CS engagement ring might be a way allow you to get the size stone you want within your budget and still get a gorgeous ring (though I'm biased as I have a CS engagement ring myself!). Of course, if you have your heart set on a diamond, I totally get that too! Just thought I'd through it out there in case you haven't already considered it!

 

[gr8leo87]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

It's not good or bad, or right or wrong to go with a clarity enhanced diamond as long as you know and understand what you are doing.

There are a couple o types of clarity enhancements. a) laser drilling : this type is permanent and does not wear off. b) fracture filling: this can wear off if the ring is cleaned/polished in certain chemicals, this has happened to few people as they did not communicate to their Jewellers that it was a FF stone and the jeweller didn't bother to ask.

 

[two_little_birds]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

CS (colored stone) is a good option, or perhaps a diamond alternative (unfortunately we can't talk about those in this forum).

Most PS'ers will sway you from a CI stone, and I would do the same.

You need to be smart here, don't put yourself into financial trouble over a ring... at the end of the day it's a want, not a need. I agree with others, buy what you can afford now and upgrade later.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

Before I would waste money on a clarity enhanced diamond, I would honestly rather have a colored gemstone, a smaller excellent cut untreated diamond, a five stone high quality diamond band, or a high quality simulant. Clarity enhanced stones do not hold their value, and depending on the treatment, they can have problems down the road. If big and colorless was my most important consideration, I'd go for the simulants as they'll probably be better cut and look better than the clarity enhanced diamond and cost less. Otherwise, I'd go with a five stone diamond band or a sapphire.

I realize your brother is trying to be protective of you, but aside from giving his opinion, he should stay out of it and let you and your bf make your own decisions.

If you want to know better options for good quality diamonds at better prices than you'll find locally, you can start a new thread and ask us for help. Almost all of us who participate here regularly bought from online jewelers and found the best quality at lower prices.

 

[heididdl]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

Before I would waste money on a clarity enhanced diamond, I would honestly rather have a colored gemstone, a smaller excellent cut untreated diamond, a five stone high quality diamond band, or a high quality simulant. Clarity enhanced stones do not hold their value, and depending on the treatment, they can have problems down the road. If big and colorless was my most important consideration, I'd go for the simulants as they'll probably be better cut and look better than the clarity enhanced diamond and cost less. Otherwise, I'd go with a five stone diamond band or a sapphire.

I realize your brother is trying to be protective of you, but aside from giving his opinion, he should stay out of it and let you and your bf make your own decisions.

If you want to know better options for good quality diamonds at better prices than you'll find locally, you can start a new thread and ask us for help. Almost all of us who participate here regularly bought from online jewelers and found the best quality at lower prices.

I couldn't agree more

 

[goodliferunner]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

I agree with the previous posts about avoiding clarity-enhanced diamonds. For what it's worth, my husband is also a seasoned cop and we ended up getting a Whiteflash A Cut Above super ideal diamond. I LOVE it!

Because you're justifiably concerned about budget but still want a large diamond, you could start with a Whiteflash diamond within your current budget and upgrade as the years go by. I'm obviously biased towards Whiteflash since I adore my gorgeous diamond, but really, you can choose any vendor with a generous upgrade policy. Never compromise on diamond quality, though!

 

[ringsearching]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

As a paychologist i would add that you should not put down yoir brother or attenot to explain why he or his friends made a poor choice. That just creates bad feelings. Tell him he dis great and you aporeciate his smarts - but that you just like the idea of a monenhanced stine for youraelf. Assure hom that you will stay witiin budget and shop well, and try to move on to other topics. Do bittry to make him or his wife aee your point as it will cause bad feelings. Just say it is "your ocd thing" but taht you wont go abive what u can afford.

 

[Andelain]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

Is the diamond fracture filled, or laser drilled? If it's fracture filled, you don't want it. The filling can come out and leave you with a very ugly, unstable diamond. Laser drilled can be OK, I have one and you wouldn't know it was CE if I didn't tell you.

 

[MollyMalone]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

wendy, something for you & your future husband to talk about as you consider the possible e-ring options is how you feel about replacing the original engagement ring later on?

Although later upgrading to a larger diamond is often proposed here on PS (as seen in this thread), no one I know in my real life has done so. Even the dear friend of mine from college -- who is now the wealthiest of my friends, with a drool-worthy jewelry wardrobe -- still wears the modest diamond engagement ring her husband gave her "back when" because she, and he, are sentimentally attached to it; the pledge it represented then still carries deep meaning for them now & she wouldn't consider wearing anything else on her left-hand ring finger. (We talked about this after her father-in-law suggested to her husband that he give her an upgraded e-ring as an anniversary present; she & her husband decided upon a wonderful emerald ring, but it is a supplemental, anniversary ring -- not a substitute e-ring.)

Of course, it's not outside the realm of possibility that someone who initially thinks "I would never get rid of my original engagement ring" will change their mind. But the poor resale value of a CE & the particulars of a vendor's upgrade policy are of great importance to those who are looking ahead to an upgrade from the get-go.

Here's a quick summary from GIA re the 2 kinds of clarity enhancement of diamonds: laser drilled & fracture (feather) filled:
http://www.4cs.gia.edu/en-us/lad-diamond-treatments.htm
And a more informative article, with a video, from the highly regarded Jonathan Weingarten (a/k/a Rhino) of Good Old Gold; he has a more open-minded view of CE diamonds than you might expect
http://www.goodoldgold.com/clarityenhanceddiamonds.html

 

[artdecolover71]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

just wanted to ask if you would consider a fancy shape like a mq? they appear bigger then similar carat weights in a round and also more affordable.

 

[wendycataffo]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

After reading everyones replies it seems as if many here have strong dislike of clarity enhanced diamonds while some of you said it really doesn't matter either way . I appreciate everyone that commented but as I read through the replies nobody mentioned if my brother made a horrible mistake. Considering it has been many years he has had his, and he and his wife have recommended them to friends it really still does seem like a nice option. My brother is a fine man and I am very proud of him and the choices he has made. Considering on other forums I have read that all diamonds dont really have a resale value, and most of all I do not plan on selling it I am going to be in love till the moment I die with the same ring on my finger. I appreciate nobody thought I was greedy, I am just a girl who wants a big diamond. I did read some of the scary things some wrote words like fracture filled and things like that but overall I have to say to my brothers defense he has never had one problem with his diamond it never faded, it did not break and considering others he/she recommended to are happy too I really think for me clarity enhanced is the way to go. I appreciate all your kind wishes and thoughts.

 

[ChristineRose]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

Your brother is right. The majority of diamonds have more or less no resale value. You can get more for certain outstanding diamonds, and more if you sell privately and patiently as opposed to selling on e-bay, but that may not be what you want anyhow.

The real problem with clarity enhanced diamonds is not the clarity enhancement; it's the people who sell them. The mainstream jewelry industry has not accepted them as an option and buyers tend to perceive them as somehow bad, which translates into your engagement being symbolized with a "bad" thing. It obviously doesn't bother everyone. But the result of this is that most people selling CE diamonds are liars. They don't disclose properly; they don't explain the downsides.

Yehuda, the company that invented the fracture filling process, has a lifetime guarantee on the filling. If you somehow manage to knock it out, they'll fix it for free. It's rare, but it happens. Oh the other hand, people chip, burn, and smash up unenhanced diamonds. Rare, but it happens. There are a lot things you can do to minimize your risks, like maintaining your setting and getting a high quality setting and using someone who does good work. I can't prove it, but I bet the risk is lower with a well-made CE ring than with a regular stone in a flimsy setting.

But to get the guarantee you need to buy your stone from a reputable dealer who will show you Yehuda's guarantee and help you with the paperwork. You also need a bench that knows how to work with the stones. CE stones made by fly by night companies stealing Yehuda's patents are all over the place, and the sleazy dealers figure cheaper is better.

 

[arkieb1]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

Your brother either did his research or got lucky. There are many different levels of clarity enhanced diamonds and as the others have suggested they can have different treatments performed on them. If you get one from say China or India that has been fracture filled after a year or so they can end up looking like frozen spit and are not worth the money. One that has been laser drilled by a reliable company is a much better proposition.

So if you have to get one do the research and get one from a reliable place that guarantees the stone for life. Otherwise go for a simulant with a lifetime guarantee from somewhere like Betterthandiamond.com, or buy a smaller real diamond. There are other ways to save money if you do buy a real diamond like buying and Antique stone from somewhere like Jewels by Grace;

http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/

Or by considering a different shape to a round stone.

 

[MollyMalone]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

wendy, let me offer a couple of additional thoughts re enhanced diamonds:
* Here's a 2011 thread with a photo of a fracture (feather)-filled, Yehuda diamond that had "gone bad" after less than 6 years. Who knows why this happened: a Yehuda diamond is expected to stand up to, e.g., being in an ultrasonic cleaning appliance, but maybe her stone had encountered a cleanser with some ammonia in it, which is a no-no for Yehudas (and all other fracture-filled diamonds).
But you'll see that although the stone could have been sent back to Yehuda for free re-treatment, this PSer's pleasure in the stone had been spoiled & she and her husband elected to replace the stone with an untreated diamond.
[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/pics-what-happened-to-my-clarity-enhanced-diamond.168193/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/pics-what-happened-to-my-clarity-enhanced-diamond.168193/[/URL]

So although your sister-in-law's diamond has fared better, I'll too encourage you to consider laser-drilled a better choice than fracture-filled.

* My late father-in-law was in the trade here in NYC and passionate about diamonds. He never dealt in fracture-filled and/or laser-drilled diamonds, but, like Jonathan of Good Old Gold, thought they have their place in the retail marketplace -- although he railed against the practice of calling fracture-filled diamonds "clarity enhanced"; thought the nomenclature should more precisely reflect the treatment.
Something he pointed out in our "field trips" through the Diamond District he'd take me on & which hasn't yet been mentioned here: fracture-filled stones typically suffer from being poorly cut since size, rather than cut, is what the typical sellers of fracture-filled stones want to tout most.

So my suggestion would be that you contact Good Old Gold to explore what Yehuda fracture-filled stones and laser-drilled stones -- with a decent, if not great, cut -- might be available in your budget. Besides the fact that I think GOG is the only PS sponsor who sells these two kinds of treated diamonds, you can be confident that GOG isn't going to sell you a "no name" fracture-filled stone & that GOG is not indifferent to cut caliber.

 

[denverappraiser]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

CE is not a defect. Your brother is correct that resale is a problem with enhanced diamonds but, realistically, it’s a problem with ALL diamonds. Don’t go into a diamond deal expecting to ever see your money again. The biggest problem here is in the market. Bogus labs abound, and the credible labs won’t grade them at all. Problems are common with other areas, notably cutting, and these things are often not properly disclosed. This makes them difficult to shop and you are highly dependent on the jeweler to provide good council. That’s ok, but it’s good to go into it understanding that you’re buying blind. Shop for advisors accordingly.

I also agree strongly that it’s a mistake to buy more than you can afford. This is true no matter what you get. This is a discretionary purchase and it needs to be done in context. Set a budget and stick to it.

In terms of insurance, I flatly disagree with him. I have yet to see an insurance company that categorically rejects enhanced diamonds. In terms of ‘value’, the typical insurance policy is agreeing to replace or repair a lost or damaged item with another of ‘like kind and quality’, or words to that effect, in the case of a loss. That means that if you lose a CE stone, they’ll replace with another comparable CE stone. They’re readily available and the replacement jeweler should have no specific problem doing it. Insurance here is no more of a problem than with any other stone.

 

[D2B]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

Clarity enhanced or not - this is really irrelevant. At the end of the day this is your engagement ring between you and your husband to be - your brother has nothing to do with this scenario - he needs to stay out and you need to focus on you and your future husband. Doesn't matter what you decide -as long as you two are happy. Whats next... will he have an opinion on your dress?

 

[rubybeth]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

...nobody mentioned if my brother made a horrible mistake. Considering it has been many years he has had his, and he and his wife have recommended them to friends it really still does seem like a nice option.

We aren't here to pass judgement on what your brother decided years ago when he bought his wife's ring. If he came here and asked for opinions on the stone, we might offer them, but if the woman wearing the ring is happy, I don't see a problem or reason to judge that decision. Him being a cop is beside the point, and seems kind of weird that you'd bring that up, unless it has some special meaning that I'm missing.

As for your own ring, if you and your future husband do your research on enhanced diamonds (fracture filled or laser drilled), and decide that you would be happy with one, then the fine posters here have offered suggestions for how to buy one. If you would be happier with a non-enhanced stone, that's fine, too, and we'll help you find what you're looking for within your budget.

 

[ChristineRose]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

I think the relevance of the cop part is that cops know how hard it is to sell diamonds. He's no doubt met more than one disappointed thief.

 

[wendycataffo]

Re: Clarity enhanced diamond my brothers a cop and happy wit

I did not want to write so much, the only reason I mention my brother is a cop is because he works hard, and usually has his facts straight its part of his job and he is familiar with stolen jewelry etc,. so I thought it was relevant I am sorry if I caused any confusion. In the end it seems like everyone agrees there are good things and like all things bad things but again I am happy with going with the Clarity Enhanced diamond and I am most happy we are able to buy it on our own because of the lower price. Thanks all , I think we have beaten this pretty well ; )