Cushion Brilliant

[goobear78]

After much back and forth and back and forth again, I have decided to narrow down my search for the perfect stone and look for a square brilliant cushion cut. It''s funny because originally I was looking at EC, then went to asscher cuts and ended up loving the cushions. I''ve found the threads about cushions and what to look for here are extremely helpful.

I am looking for a cushion a little under 2.00 ct with a 1.01 ratio. I''d like to stay in the G-H range with a VS1 for clarity. My question is how important is color and clarity with a cushion? Do you think those are a good range to be in? I am color sensitive to a point and like everyone, I would like my stone to be eye clean. Do you think it is necessary to stay in the VS range on clarity?

I know a lot chalks up to personal preference, but I''d like to hear your thoughts. Thanks!

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 8/27/2008 11:15:46 AM
Author:goobear78
After much back and forth and back and forth again, I have decided to narrow down my search for the perfect stone and look for a square brilliant cushion cut. It''s funny because originally I was looking at EC, then went to asscher cuts and ended up loving the cushions. I''ve found the threads about cushions and what to look for here are extremely helpful.

I am looking for a cushion a little under 2.00 ct with a 1.01 ratio. I''d like to stay in the G-H range with a VS1 for clarity. My question is how important is color and clarity with a cushion? Do you think those are a good range to be in? I am color sensitive to a point and like everyone, I would like my stone to be eye clean. Do you think it is necessary to stay in the VS range on clarity?

I know a lot chalks up to personal preference, but I''d like to hear your thoughts. Thanks!

Goo, you could certainly consider a verified eyeclean SI clarity, so maybe keep an open mind should a nice cushion pop up which is SI.

Also you might know that Mark at ERD is the Cushion King, so definitely contact him and see what he can find for you. GOG also has a good rep with cushions.

 

[stone_seeker]

Date: 8/27/2008 11:15:46 AM
Author:goobear78
After much back and forth and back and forth again, I have decided to narrow down my search for the perfect stone and look for a square brilliant cushion cut. It''s funny because originally I was looking at EC, then went to asscher cuts and ended up loving the cushions. I''ve found the threads about cushions and what to look for here are extremely helpful.

I am looking for a cushion a little under 2.00 ct with a 1.01 ratio. I''d like to stay in the G-H range with a VS1 for clarity. My question is how important is color and clarity with a cushion? Do you think those are a good range to be in? I am color sensitive to a point and like everyone, I would like my stone to be eye clean. Do you think it is necessary to stay in the VS range on clarity?

I know a lot chalks up to personal preference, but I''d like to hear your thoughts. Thanks!

Congrats on figuring out what you like. Cushions are great stones. You have some pretty good specs and I think you could go as low as VS2 to widen or search. SI-1, if inspected by a trusted vendor can also be ok and may give you some more options.

The 1.01 ratio will be the toughest to find as those perfect squares are rare and when they are found, there is usually something else wrong with them (too deep, not chunky, etc.). I would advise having some flexibility to go to 1.05 or 1.06 (which to the eye still looks VERY square) unless you have a very long time to wait for the perfect 1.01. Usually, anything under 1.09 is considered square-ish in cushion-speak.

G-H is a good limit as cushion sometimes can show a bit of color but it does all depend on the cut. My jeweler said he doesnt go lower than I for cushions so you might have even some more wiggle room but it all depends on your color sensitivity and your preference with respect to warmth. I would suggest visiting a local jeweler and seeing a few side-by-side (cushions, rounds, or whatever).

As for other specs, typically tables in the mid to high 50s and depths in the mid to high 60s may yield promising stones but by no means indicate a great stone and there are many many stones outside of those parameters that are amazing. That will require visual inspection and if you cant see them yourself, you need the help of someone who has seen hundreds, if not thousands, or cushions like those Lorelei mentioned (Mark T or GOG).

Do you have a style of cushion brilliant in mind? As you might have read, there are the chunkier cushions which tend to have 8 main pavilion facets and then there are the 4 main styles which have a slightly different look under the table. There are a number of threads here on PS with pics so you can see the difference.

Best of luck with your search and feel free to post any suggestions for our thoughts.

 

[Lorelei]

Good post SS!

 

[goobear78]

Thanks Stone_seeker and Lorelei for the tips! I will expand my ratio to at least under a 1.09.

I will keep an open mind about color and cut and put out calls to GOG and ERD. Do you know how WF is with cushions?

I haven''t decided yet which style of CB I have in mind. I have to do more research as I''m not sure I could tell the difference of a 8 facet to a 4 right now. Time to search past threads!

 

[Lorelei]

WF have certainly found some nice cushions! Also check out GOG''s videos, they have some cushion videos which might be useful.


http://www.goodoldgold.com/video/

 

[panda08]

Not sure what your budget is but here''s a couple from GOG in the 1.70 carat range that look pretty good:

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/4740/

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/4812/

And two more that are slightly over 2.0 carats:

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/4799/

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/3610/

As you can see, the appearance of cushions varies from stone to stone. I second Lorelei and SS''s suggestions. Definitely get out there and take a look to see which kind of cushion you prefer and see how color sensitive you are. Broadening your seach will help as well. When I first started, I wanted a cushion with no more than a 1.05 ratio, in the D-H color, and VS clarity. As I saw more cushions and got a better feel for the market, I broadened my search and I wound up with a 1.11 ratio, G, SI2 that I absolutely love. As for the clarity question, it depends on the stone. Not all SI''s are created equally. I saw a square SI2 cushion I loved but couldn''t live with the black inclusions that were visible from the side. My SI2 cushion has two white inclusions that are barely visible with a 10x loupe and is eye clean from all angles and distances.

Good luck with your search!

 

[stone_seeker]

Thos 2 GOG stones under 2ct look great! I hope they are within budget or if the F color takes it over.

And they are both in that 1.01 range

 

[goobear78]

How funny, I''ve actually been talking to Jon at GOG over email and those were the two stones on the top of my list (1.70 ct). We live about an hour away, so I''m trying to figure out a day that we can go see them in person. I really like that 2.09, but sadly that one is out of our price range. Maybe some day with an upgrade! LOL. I''m also going to take a look at the 2.17ct since it is in the same price range.

Anything I should look for when I see them? Anything you see there that I might be concerned with regarding those stones?

 

[stone_seeker]

Great that you can see these in person. Will help for sure. I love that small table on the H VVS2 (1.70ct). The 2.17 is also good looking and if Jon picked it, i''m sure its very clean. The video was great.

 

[panda08]

Date: 8/27/2008 2:17:01 PM
Author: goobear78
How funny, I''ve actually been talking to Jon at GOG over email and those were the two stones on the top of my list (1.70 ct). We live about an hour away, so I''m trying to figure out a day that we can go see them in person. I really like that 2.09, but sadly that one is out of our price range. Maybe some day with an upgrade! LOL. I''m also going to take a look at the 2.17ct since it is in the same price range.

Anything I should look for when I see them? Anything you see there that I might be concerned with regarding those stones?

Oh, good, when you see them, I''m sure you get a much better idea of what you prefer. My fave was the 2.09 too. But I think any of three are lovely.

If this is the first time you''re looking at loose stones, have GOG line them all up for you on a white background so you can get an idea of the color grades. These four stones are a good sampling, as they are F, G, H, and I. Look at them upside down and then face up. I was surprised at how white even a M color stone faced up. The pic of the 2.17 looks eye-clean but only you can determine whether it meets your eye clean standard. My idea of eye clean is any distance, any angle. I''ve had some vendors tell me that their idea of eyeclean is top down only. Turning the stones upside down will also give you an idea of its clarity. I saw some stones that were eye clean face up but the inclusions were visible when they stone was upside down. Look at them in natural light and indoors.

Have fun! That''s very exciting, I love cushions!