Cushion Stats/Help Needed

[BRE41]

Looking for help finding a Cushion, looking at quite a few, ideal price range is about $12-14K. Any one have info or a link to info on the ideal Cut details for a Cushion? Ideal Table and Depth %s as well as opinions on how to rank cut, clarity and color on Cushions. Which has greatest affect on overall appearance, etc...

Thanks,

 

[ChunkyCushionLover]

ChunkyCushionLover''s Guide To Buying Cushion Cut Diamonds

Step 1 (Choose The Type of Cut)

Decide the look of cushion you like best. (Watching the videos should help you the most with this.)

i) Cushion Modified Brilliant (often referred to negatively as the "crushed ice" variety as many in this category have only small flashes and were cut to save weght not to optimize light return),
a) 4 Pavillion main facets (several varieties)
b) 8 mains (several varieties) http://www.vimeo.com/3164922 Pictures and commentary here https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/the-shocking-final-diamond-choice-i-gave-to-my-fiance-which-one-would-you-pick.121154/
c) Square Brilliant (rare seen more in Belgium)
ii) Cushion Brilliant
a) 4 main like this one http://www.octonus.com/oct/projects/foxymovies/round_cushion2_office_fr.phtml or http://www.vimeo.com/2120607 (4 main is on the far left)
b) 8 main modern http://www.vimeo.com/2120607 (stone on the left)
c) 8 main old mine cushion http://www.vimeo.com/5310842
d) BGD modern 8 main cushion (the mains intersect at the corners) https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/bgd-cushion-let-me-know-what-you-think.128493/

iii) Square Cushion Hearts and Arrows http://video.jogiadiamonds.com.au/images/analysis/CXF7266-2.mov http://video.jogiadiamonds.com.au/images/analysis/CXF7266.mov

iv) Cushette http://www.vimeo.com/3164922

A helpful thread to see the plots and pictures of different types of cushions can be seen here https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/a-cushion-by-any-other-name.36001/ (keep in mind pictures aren''t as useful as videos and can only be used reliably to understand facet structure not light performance)

If you want to learn about cushions a great video by Jon at GOG can be watched here http://www.vimeo.com/7579666 and bonus footage here http://www.vimeo.com/7611843.

Step 2 (Choose the 4Cs)

1) Post your budget, Color, Clarity, Carat Weight, LW(length to width) Ratio (do you like perfectly Square or Rectangular?) and cut preference. We will help find stones in your price range or tell you if your budget is realistic for the specs you have chosen or if you will have to make some tradeoffs. If you would rather go directly to the vendor at this point I suggest you speak to:

i) Mark at Engagementringsdirect.com
ii) Jon at Goodoldgold.com
iii) Bob at Whiteflash.com
iv) Brian at Briangavindiamonds.com

This list is limited to what I beleive are vendors who specialize in cushion cuts designed for light performance there may be others but I haven''t had experiences with them. Some vendors like GOG and BGD have even developed their own cushion signature cut diamonds lines not available for sale by any other vendor. All of these vendors will be able to provide ASET images and pictures of stones to help you decide prior to purchase.

Example:

Budget: $10,000
Color: H and above
Clarity: SI1 and above (Anything Eyeclean from 6 feet away looking faceup)
Carat Weight: 1.3Ct+
Lw Ratio = 1 - 1.05 (I want square) or 1.1 - 1.3 (I want rectangular)
Cushion Brilliant (Modern) either 4 main or 8 main

Than we can help you narrow things down considerably.

Step 3 (View and Post ASET Image and Photographs and/or see in person)

Ask the vendor for a Video and/or ASET image (http://www.ideal-scope.com/1.using_ASET_scope.asp) of your possible choices and we can help you narrow down which of your selections we prefer and why.

Step 4 (View a side by side comparison at a vendor or appraisor for final selection)

If you are still not sure I would send your two or three favourite stones to a PS listed appraisor https://www.pricescope.com/appr_list.aspx close to you, where you can view your final choices in person prior to purchase you will just have to pay shipping. Many PS vendors will send stones to a trusted appraisor without you having to pay first and the appraisor will only release the stone to you only upon payment to and consent of the vendor. For such an expensive purchase $100 in shipping and $100 in appraisor time seems well worth it to make the most informed choice possible.

Happy Hunting,

CCL

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 12/5/2009 3:12:18 PM
Author:BRE41
Looking for help finding a Cushion, looking at quite a few, ideal price range is about $12-14K. Any one have info or a link to info on the ideal Cut details for a Cushion? Ideal Table and Depth %s as well as opinions on how to rank cut, clarity and color on Cushions. Which has greatest affect on overall appearance, etc...

Thanks,

Hi Bre

There really aren't any ideal proportions for a cushion cut as various proportion configurations can result in a beautiful stone. I would first suggest watching this video, it was recently made by an expert to help new cushion buyers. It is an excellent video and will be very helpful to you.

Here is the video The Consumers Guide to Purchasing a Cushion Cut Diamond

If you don't know what type of cushion you want, this video will help you with that too, the two most popular types of cushion are the modern and vintage ' chunky' cushion. Once you know which type appeals to you the most, then we can go from there.

Cut is incredibly important as without a great cut you won't have a pretty stone - cut has the most influence on beauty and performance. Cushions can't be judged by the numbers so working with a vendor who has detailed photos, ASET images and the means to provide a Sarin report in order to get the crown height is very helpful. Some vendors also provide videos which can really give you a good idea of what you are buying. So I wouldn't advise ' buying blind' from a vendor who cannot provide images at least as it is a complete gamble as to what you will get when you open the box....

Clarity - depends on budget and preference but you can consider reliably graded ( GIA) SI clarity grades if verified eyeclean to your standards by a trusted vendor.

Colour - again depends on budget and preference, you can have a very white diamond if you choose G or H colour in these shapes, some enjoy the slight warmth some I or J colour diamonds show, some go even lower for colour to K or L as an example as especially with the vintage style cushions, they feel the warmth adds to the charm and character of the stone.

Here are some vendors whom are renowned for their expertise with cushions, do have a browse through their websites and see if they have anything that appeals to you if you want to buy online.

www.goodoldgold.com

www.briangavindiamonds.com

www.engagementringsdirect.com

What exactly are you looking for with a cushion for size, type, quality etc? If you let us know we could suggest some cushions that might suit you.