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phyxie

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 21, 2014
Messages
8
Hi :)

So I'm shopping for an engagement ring, and I've been lurking these forums for a while, sucking up all the juicy information here - really great knowledgebase guys+girls :)

I think I've got a decent handle on the important factors, and so I'm just about decided on a diamond/ring, so I thought I might see if anyone here had any advice/suggestions on my purchase. It would be very much appreciated of course.

Here's the diamond:
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3059438.htm

Here's the ring: (boring I know, but I like the idea of a simple ring with a really nice diamond)
http://www.whiteflash.com/engagement-rings/solitaire/4-prong-tiffany-style-solitaire-engagement-ring-1024.htm

Ash
 
I'm sure most people will tell you that you can't go wrong with an ACA diamond. If you want to save some money, you can always go into the VS1-2 range, which should be eye clean. Getting anything in VVS range is not visible to the naked eye.
 
If you are color sensitive like I am, stay within D-E-F. ACAs will face up white, but will exhibit a faint tint at slight angles, which may not be desirable to you. It drives me crazy!

treasurehunter|1395384443|3638567 said:
Unless you like small diamonds I suggest you forget about getting VVS2 grade and get an eye clean VS2 or SI1

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3063802.htm

G faces up white if its cut ideally like this one, ohhh she's a beauty :love:
Click to expand...
 
Is there a reason you are going with such high clarity (and color but the clarity is really overkill)? Are there cultural reason? I know that some cultures value high color and clarity.

If there aren't cultural reasons then I highly suggest dropping to F-G VS2-SI1 and going a bit larger in size. You won't be able to tell the difference between an F Vs2 that is eyeclean and an E VVS but you will be able to see a difference in size. Or even if you can't go up in size. You can save money that you could put toward a nicer solitaire setting.

Also there are much nicer solitaires than that at Whiteflash that are nicer to look at and flow better and sit on the hand better. So I would definitely get a different solitaire.

Here are some stone suggestions:
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2953769.htm Look at the large 40x magnified picture of this diamond and you will see that it is perfectly clean and it is the same price as the E VVS stone. This is what I'd buy.

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2962074.htm This will save you money (for the setting upgrade) and be indistinguishable from the E VVS. You could set it as a sidestone with the E VVS it is so close.

Setting suggestions:
http://www.whiteflash.com/engagement-rings/solitaire/comfort-fit-surprise-diamond-ring-183.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/engagement-rings/solitaire/legato-sleek-line-solitaire-engagement-ring-728.htm

Either of those settings will be more comfortable to wear and be nicer to look at from the profile (where the wearer sees it most often). Also the will be easier to find a wedding ring for.
 
Im colour sensitive too but face up I couldn't tell the difference between a G and an E if they are extremely well cut.
 
larryjenkins|1395384685|3638570 said:
If you are color sensitive like I am, stay within D-E-F. ACAs will face up white, but will exhibit a faint tint at slight angles, which may not be desirable to you. It drives me crazy!

treasurehunter|1395384443|3638567 said:
Unless you like small diamonds I suggest you forget about getting VVS2 grade and get an eye clean VS2 or SI1

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3063802.htm

G faces up white if its cut ideally like this one, ohhh she's a beauty :love:
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

G will have no tint. It is perfectly white even for the color sensitive. Set on the hand, even from profle you won't see tint.
And the stone treasurehunter picked is a beauty. The ES line coupled with the idealscope image make this a fabulous choice.
 
Wow, thanks for the awesome responses :)
I'm pretty new as I said, so I don't really have a handle on how far down the clarity range I can go before I start noticing it.
I'm glad you suggested a nicer setting actually, and I don't think I can get away from that 1.015ct. It's really nice and ACA as well.
I guess it's easy to fixate on inclusions in a 10x magnified image, but will you really not see any at all ? Even on an SI diamond like that?
 
Its certified eye clean and looking at the picture and certificate its looking really promising… basically its reverse logic for certificates the more inclusions it has on a certificate the better it is , as one inclusion will be more visible than lots of little ones.
 
I would definitely like one listed as eye-clean :)
I feel like insisting on an ACA one is the only thing I should stick to above all else, is it not worth taking a hit on carat size to get a "perfectly cut" diamond?
 
basically it goes like this in rounds.

Colour- D-G no noticeable difference
Clarity - Flawless- SI1 - No noticeable difference ( if SI1 is bought well aka eye clean )
Carat weight- size difference so noticeable difference
Cut- Excellent(Ideal) vs Excellent GIA huge noticeable difference but similar price….
 
This one is the one you like? http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2953769.htm

Yeah, from that magnified image (remember you are talking about something the size of the pencil eraser) I feel pretty safe saying there is nothing you are going to see, at any angle or any distance in that stone.

And yes, I do think a slightly different setting would be a good choice. :wavey: Both the ones I posted for you are really nice proportionally to the stone you are considering. Thick enough to feel substantial, but thin enough to really show off the center stone on the hand.
 
I think I prefer the slightly smaller one that gypsy suggested, simply because it looks really clean, and the hearts aren't broken.
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2962074.htm#

As much as I'd like to make the 1ct mark, it would allow me to buy a nicer setting and we're talking about 0.2mm diameter difference.

Based on that last point, should I be insisting on an ACA diamond then?

Sorry to be a difficult one :P
 
I would highly suggest that you put the stones you like on hold. We do have lurkers and what you are looking for (both in size and in budget) is very popular.
 
phyxie|1395386738|3638586 said:
I think I prefer the slightly smaller one that gypsy suggested, simply because it looks really clean, and the hearts aren't broken.
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2962074.htm#

As much as I'd like to make the 1ct mark, it would allow me to buy a nicer setting and we're talking about 0.2mm diameter difference.

Based on that last point, should I be insisting on an ACA diamond then?

Sorry to be a difficult one :P
Click to expand...

I promise you, you aren't being difficult. I think in the balance of setting/budget/color/clarity and size this is a really nice and safe choice. Safe is not bad. F VS2 (and yes, that is a very clean stone) is a great combo.

You are right it is only .2 smaller (which is right at visible range, but she won't be wearing this next to another stone and with the light return it will easily look like most full carats). And it will let you get a nicer setting to showcase it. Which is a good thing.
 
Well that's good to know :)

I presume that this one (being not eye clean) would mean that I could see the inclusions, and so even though it's ACA, I think I'd prefer the other.

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2953769.htm

How important is it really to make the 1ct mark? I guess I compare the size of the diamond to the width of the ring. A 6mm diamond on a 2mm ring would actually look quite large I would think.

That is a nice diamond, the H&A looks really clean too. So many choices, I should have posted sooner!
 
Here's the thing. I can't tell you how important that one carat mark is. It was important to me at that time, and important to my fiance (for his own reasons) But I'm not the recipient. And I don't know what your finances, and social groups are like. Or what hers are like.

I can honestly say that there is no wrong choice.

Also the 'eyeclean' label is sometimes missing on perfectly clean stones. So I wouldn't put too much stock in the lack of it. Best thing to do is call and ask, or email and ask about the stone if it doesn't have that.
 
We're generally pretty relaxed people, so I'm not looking to maximise the carat at all, I'd rather it be a nice stone than be a big one.
I guess I'm looking for the biggest diamond I can get without sacrificing any noticeable quality (but then I guess almost everyone is hey).


So I think I'm ending up at the 0.9-1ct mark, and really Its between these stones:

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2962074.htm
(My favourite so far -thanks gypsy- nice and clean, and probably not far off ACA)

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3034525.htm#
(Maybe I can still go ACA if I add some inclusions, It's still eye-clean apparently!)

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3034521.htm#
(Pretty cheap, but beware the single big inclusion as treasurehunter said I guess (although still eye-clean))

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2953769.htm#
(A nice big diamond, I am curious as to why this isn't eye-clean, I'll have to ask when I call. Plus it seems like the crowd favourite :)

I feel like the longer you search, the harder it is to make a decision with these things...
 
It does get that way sometimes.

Call and talk to them. See what you think after that. We're here to help so if after you have talked to them you have narrowed it down further we can help you hone in on the best choice.
 
You can ask about it when you talk to them. :wavey:
 
Thanks for all your help guys, in the end I decided to go for the following, as the trade-up to a 0.9-1ct diamond really didn't seem worth the hit in quality. If we get 1ct fever, I guess we can always convert to a 3-stone setting with a 1ct center diamond, although now I need to stick with ACA E-colours to match - ouch :s

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3059438.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/engagement-rings/solitaire/legato-sleek-line-solitaire-engagement-ring-729.htm

I should especially thank Gypsy for recommending a nicer setting, I'm really glad you convinced me to go that way :)

Ash
 
You can get E's or even G's for the sidestones. Within two colors is what we recommend. F would be safest. But you can save money on clarity by going down to VS2 (highly recommend) if and when the time comes.

I am happy you went with the nicer setting. And the Legato is a favorite of mine. Great choice!
 
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