Cut Nut...Ideal Scope

A Day Late · Mar 5, 2008

I noticed on another thread that the customer actually took an i-scope into Tiffany''s with him... Can you but these? Or is it necessary? I live in Canada, and have been to thirty stores, and none of them seem to have the technology to show me anything other than the actual diamond... I mean, a few of them had certs to go with the diamonds, but nothing else.

I know this is probably a canadian thing, but does it bug anyone elde that jewellers rely on the customers ignorance and cash - before I dicovered PS, I did enough research to at least ask for a cert (even if I knew nothing about them), and the SA''s (including B & M owners) looked at me like I just fell off the idiot wagon. Am I insane to ask about the stone and settings, or do people actually just show up and buy the first thing they can afford?

diamondseeker2006 · Mar 5, 2008

I think what you have observed is pretty much true everywhere. Most people do go into jewelry stores and buy diamond rings knowing nothing. They may know about color or clarity but rarely do they know about cut. People on PriceScope are certainly not the norm. While you can certainly buy an idealscope and carry it into jewelry stores with you, I''d recommend just buying a great diamond from an online vendor specializing in ideal cut stones. I don''t think you can get as good a price shopping in your typical jewelry store.

Sparkalicious · Mar 5, 2008

A Day Late - You''re not insane at all. This is a big purchase, I completely agree with your diligence and have a hard time understanding how people can just "wing" it.

I can also relate to your frustration with the apparent ignorance of some sales agents at local B&Ms. If it helps any, I am in Vancouver, BC and my friend is looking for an upgrade and wanted to go shopping last weekend. In order to ensure that our day went as smoothly and efficiently as possible, I spent some time researching some local B&M''s and made a list of the "best" ones to go to.

Here is a link to the Canadian Jewelers Association website.

You should be able to input your location and perform a search for "recommended" jewelers in your area. From this point, I ensured to visit the websites to see if they noted if they carried AGS and GIA certified stones etc. If you ask for one and the jeweler looks at you like you fell off the idiot wagon, that place is just not for you.

The research worked out well for us. We ended up visiting 2 B&M''s for an extensive time and the people we dealt with were incredibly helpful and knowledgeable ... additionally, they were excited to be able to share their diamond knowledge with someone else who both appreciated and understood it. I can''t stress enough the importance of also asking whether or not they have the type of stones you are looking for or else, typically, you may just be presented with the "usual" non-educated diamond buyer stones that they more readily sell. Given that I like to know the "numbers" or specs of the diamonds I am looking at, I also ask to see the certs and/or get the measurements.

I hope that this helps and that you are more successful with your local search!

I know that you can buy an idealscope ... just not sure how. Somebody else should be able to chime in on how to purchase an idealscope, however, I know that some B&M''s do have "Hearts & Arrows viewers" that you can use to view your diamond.

Please come back with an update to let us know how it''s going!