Decisions, decisions...

[kim75]

I am new to this website and I need some advice (I apologize in advance for the length of this post!). I''m sure this all comes down to my priorities and preferences, but I just can''t seem to make a decision, so I''m looking for someone to tell me what to do. I have joined in the hunt with my boyfriend to find my engagement ring. Initially, I was all about cut, cut, cut. I wanted a diamond that really sparkled (sorry, I don''t know the technical terms!). And being the greedy girl that I am, I wanted as big as I could get! I was comfortable at the 1 carat size, but more than open to taking it up a couple notches

. After my boyfriend had done a lot of research online (and using this forum!) we were looking at some of the supercuts, but budget restrictions forced us to look at just under the 1 carat size. We went to a local jeweler, to get a better idea of how things looked. They didn''t have the greatest collection (only one true ideal cut!) but the stones looked really nice. I tried on quite a few, then spotted a 1.5 carat stone, tried it on, and it was all over... I thought I would pass out. And the ring fell just within our budget (around $4400). However, on closer inspection, the stone is I-J color (closer to J than I, I can definitely pick up on the yellow), clarity is I (although I really had to look close to spot the inclusion, near the prong), and measurements are far from ideal (depth 66.5%).
But in my eyes, it was a very pretty ring, that still had a lot of sparkle. THe jeweler let me take it outside the store (away from the misleading lights) and while the sparkle did decrease a bit, it was still there.
Because we were so shocked at the price of the ring, and never thinking we could afford something that big, we put down a small, refundable deposit.
Prior to this, we were not really considering buying locally.
My question is, am I being blinded by the size, and the misconception that bigger is better? Probably no one can answer this but me, but I need some objective opinions. I feel like now that I have had that ring on, the other stones (which will undoubtedly be of higher quality) will look smaller.

Should we stick to Ideal cut stones only (I''ve now pretty much ruled out super cuts because I''m almost certain I would like something bigger)? If I am willing to sacrifice quality for size, what in your opinion, should be my minimum requirements? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!!!

Here is an example one we found online, that I was thinking may be a better balance of size and quality:

Price: $3,909.00
Report: EGL
Shape: Round
Carat: 1.25
Color: G
Clarity: SI2
Depth: 62.3
Table: 58
Girdle: MED F
Polish: Good
Symmetry: Very Good
Culet: None
Fluorescence: Negligible
Measurements: 6.89-6.85X4.28
(cert. says ideal cut)

 

[lenore80]

I would go with a smaller diamond, with a ideal or super-ideal cut. You can always upgrade when you have more money, or for an anniversary, esp. if you find a place online that will let you trade in your diamond. Personally, I would go with what I could afford in an ideal (or superideal) cut, then go down on the color and clarity to match the budget.

Take a look at this link on the pricescope tutorial. https://www.pricescope.com/tutor_carat.asp

It compares a .65 and a .50ct diamond. The .50 looks larger (and sparkly) compared to the .65 ct.

Also, you didnt mention your setting metal...is it going to be gold, white gold or platinum? IMHO, a J color stone probably wont look v. good in white gold or platinum.

hope this helps!

 

[hoorray]

Only you know how you will feel down the road. Think about 5 years form now. Will you love having the bigger stone, or will you know that the quality isn't as good as it could be and will that bug you?

If it were me, the quality would bug me down the road, but that's me. Buying from a vendor with a good upgrade policy might be the best solution. Find a good combination of quality and size now, and upgrade for an annyversary or something if it makes sense.

 

[Giangi]

Wel, that 1.5 I-J/I 1 doesn't look good to me... With a 66.5% depth it looks like a well cut 1.25-1.30ct diamond, you're paying for some fat you can't see. And that G/SI 2 looks so and so too. From what you posted, it looks like it was graded by EGL Israel, so you may be getting an H-I I 1.
If you want an ideal cut, my suggestion is to look at a H&A in the 1ct range J/SI 2, otherwise someting very nicely cut (but not ideal) weighing about 1.20-1.30 I/SI 2... If you really want size, you can get a ~1.50 J/I 1 GIA graded stone.
I guess it's all about priorities... Would a 1.20 look good for you or is it too small?

 

[kim75]

I guess it's all about priorities... Would a 1.20 look good for you or is it too small?----------------[/quote]


Yes, a 1.2 would look good to me. We actually just returned from another jeweler in town (more well respected, but unbelievably pricey)and looked at some nice stones. The difference in the sparkle more than made up for the size difference. So now we're trying to find a nice 1-1.2, ideal cut, G-H color, online. Also I saw a couple settings that I fell in love with. Any suggestions of websites with good setting selection.

Thanks for all the advice.

 

[aljdewey]

See, you know where it's at!

Carat size means weight....but it doesn't always mean visually the largest.




A well-cut (doesn't have to be super-duper-louper) diamond will appear larger than a poorly cut, heavier diamond. The most important thing about a diamond.....the WOW factor that catches people's eyes.....is the sparkle, and that comes from cut.




Good luck - let us know if we can help in finding some stones for you.

 

[kim75]

We can use all the help we can get! My boyfriend is about to kill me, as I seem to change my mind with every diamond I see...

If anyone has any recommendations for an ideal cut 1-1.2 carat, SI1-2, G-H stone, we'd be very appreciative! We'd really like to make a decision ASAP, becuase this search has somehow overtaken our lives (I'm certain I had nothing to do with that

)

And if anyone has any suggestions of a good website for settings. I found a Scott Kay setting that I love, but we'd like to find something not over $1000. I like very simple, dainty, settings with small round diamonds running down the sides.

Thanks again!!!

 

[Giangi]

I'm always happy when I can run a search. It's great fun!

Ideal H&A:
1.08 J/VS 2

AGS Ideals: (http://www.whiteflash.com)
1.000 G SI2 AGS 61.1 57 $3,960.00 View
1.000 G SI2 AGS 60.7 57 $4,202.00 View
1.000 H SI2 AGS 60 57 $3,864.00 View
1.010 G SI2 AGS 60.6 57 $4,241.00 View
1.010 G SI2 AGS 62 56 $4,241.00 View
1.010 G SI2 AGS 60.6 57 $4,241.00 View
1.050 G SI2 AGS 63 55 $4,294.00 View
1.060 G SI2 AGS 61.8 55 $4,542.00 View
1.070 H SI2 AGS 60.6 57 $4,132.00 View
1.070 G SI2 AGS 62.1 55 $4,455.00 View
1.080 H SI2 AGS 61.7 56 $4,423.00 View
1.090 H SI2 AGS 61.1 56 $4,441.00 View
1.090 H SI2 AGS 61.3 56 $4,441.00 View
1.120 H SI2 AGS 61.2 57 $4,310.00 View

 

[Giangi]

Here we have some other nice ones...

1.00 I/VS 1 DCD Signature Series

Or...
1954103 1.19 H SI2 GIA $4,255 60.8 57 EX EX None 6.88x6.84x4.17

1436432 1.17 H SI2 GIA $4,337 61.9 57 VG VG None 6.75x6.83x4.20

1824749 1.30 H SI2 GIA $4,386 61.8 56 VG VG None 7.02x7.09x4.36

1590682 1.16 F SI2 GIA $4,236 62.8 58 EX VG None 6.67x6.7x4.2

1939344 1.23 G SI2 GIA $4,411 62.3 58 EX VG None 6.82x6.89x4.27

 

[kim75]

Thanks! This gives us a great start!
One question, why only AGS Ideal cuts? Is AGS preferred to other labs?

 

[kim75]

Giangi,
oops, I posted that last question before I saw your most recent post, which includes GIA diamonds too.
Thanks again, for all your suggestions!

 

[derekinla]

AGS is the only lab (of the big 2) that grades cut and gives all of the measurements and angles on the cert. AGS grades cut on a scale of 0 to 10 with 0 = ideal. Most people would say that AGS and GIA are the big 2 labs in terms of being the most rigorous and well respected. GIA certs only give a depth percentage and a table size so all of the other cut parameters are not reported (for reasons unclear to me). An AGS 000 ("AGS triple zero") usually refers to a 0 for cut, 0 for polish, 0 for symmetry and will be a very nice stone indeed! Although there are certain situations when an AGS 0 cut will not look as nice, you can at least plug the cut numbers into the Holloway Cut Advisor to weed out the bad apples. In general though, AGS000 are going to be visually stunning stones. There are of course, non ideal stones that will look just as nice and the HCA can be a great way to at least screen out some of the poor performers. Since GIA certs won't report all of the cut info, you may need to ask the vendor to run the stone on a sarin or megascope machine to get the complete measurements. Another way to get around knowing all of the #'s is to use the ideal scope to look at the stones in person. You can then get a sense of symmetr, light return, light leakage. Hope this helps!

 

[Giangi]

Derek... Great minds think alike.

Kim, at the beginning I chose only AGS lab graded stones with table and depth within acceptable ranges (believe it or not, even within ideal cut ranges, some combos are a real disaster) because it's easier to find a well cut stone, since an AGS certed diamond has all percentages and angles posted on the report. Then I selected a few GIA graded diamonds with nice numbers (but a GIA report doesn't tell you anything about cut other than polish and symmetry so they may be real dogs. But I'm pretty sure they aren't

). But be advised that you should ask for a Sarin/OGI report (that tells you all the missing data) on every stone.
Have fun!