Diamons @ Jewelry Exchange NJ: Can someone tell me what this diamond may be worth?

[sunseeker]

Hi! I found this diamond at a store in the Jewelry Exchange in NJ and would like some opinions on what it may be worth, not just what the jeweler is telling me. I was hesitant going to the Exchange, but I have done major research on the internet and read "Diamonds: The Antoinette Matlins Buying Guide" from cover to cover and feel I am somewhat educated on what to look for when buying a diamond. Originally, I went into Zales and was going to buy there, and decided to learn a bit before spending a chunk of money on something that doesn''t even come with a report. This is a really beautiful diamond and I think I''ve already fallen in love with it!! Thanks for your help!

EGL USA Natural Diamond Report
weight: 1.16 ct
shape: Round Brilliant
cut: measurements: 6.93 - 6.78 x 4.14 mm
depth: 60.7%
table: 59%
crown: 13.9%
pavilion: 43.7%
girdle: Medium to thick faceted
Culet: None
polish: Very Good
symmetry: Good
clarity grade: VS2
color grade: G
Fluorescence: none

Any opinions or comments will be GREATLY appreciated! Thanks!
~

Sunseeker

"This too shall pass"

 

[Trinity]

Be careful when shopping there. I heard some pretty bad things about that place.
That is the one in Woodbridge right?
Not sure if you are talking about that one or not.
If it is, just be careful!

 

[strmrdr]

It isnt very well cut.
It is out of round with a big table.

Using the % which isnt as accurate as angles it gets an hca of 3.1.
Which is an indication that this will not be a well performing stone.
The price would have to be low and it look good in person before Id consider it.

If its at a b&m you might be able to get a much better cut diamond for the same price online.

 

[fuffi]

This diamond is a bit out of round. I wouldn't personally buy a diamond with less than VG symmetry. JMHO.

 

[sunseeker]

Yes, it's at the Exchange in Woodbridge. I was hesitant going there, and honestly a lot of the dealers attack you as you try to look at their merchandise, but I did happen to find a jeweler who was not pushy in the least and told me to take my time and gave me all the information I wanted. I have been shopping seriously for about 6 months, and am ready to make a purchase finally! The setting I found has two round diamonds and four bagettes which are of very good quality, too. I will wait for some more posts but appreciate your concern shopping at the Jewely Exchange. Thanks!

 

[sunseeker]

I compared the total depth, table size, crown height and pavilion depth to a chart I found online, it came up that this diamond falls within the ranges to be considered "premium cut"? This whole diamond thing can make me crazy! Thanks for your viewpoint, tho!

Sunseeker

"This too shall pass" (and I hope I figure it all out, soon!)

 

[strmrdr]

Im being lazy and just copying my post from another thread but it applies here in this thread just as much.

"It depends on whose idea of ideal your looking at.
The problem is that a lot of different groups consider different things ideal some are stricter than others.
As more science is applied to diamonds the ranges change slightly and that results in some of the confusion.
Also what is considered ideal and super-ideal here is much stricter than at other places.
We tend towards the very top performing diamonds and insist on the information to make that determination.
We are also willing to pay and recommend others pay when needed a slight premium to get it.
The tutorials will explain why we recommend the ones we do and why we are picky about cut."

Tutorials:
http://diamonds.pricescope.com/

goodoldgold.com

 

[sunseeker]

AArrgghh! It's so tough... I went back to see the diamond again today, and also found a wedding band to match the setting for the diamond. My husband and I are purchasing new rings for our 20th wedding anniversary (We got engaged very young and didn't have the cash to buy me an engagement ring, and now we are finally getting me new rings! Yahoo!!!), and want to be sure this is really what I want. I will let you know more as I think about it longer. more advice out there please???

 

[phoenixgirl]

The most similar stones I could find online for price comparison (take into consideration size and cut quality differences):

1.12 G VS2 EGL cert for $5200

1.20 G VS2 EGL cert for $5800

 

[aliciamt7]

Hi! I love this forum and read it all the time, but I am no expert on diamonds except that I know that I love mine! My fiance bought it at that Jewelry Exchange, and ironically, he ended up buying it from the one vendor who didn't push him! Besides loving the stone, he said he bought it from him because everyone else in there attacked him. I wonder if it's the same booth! Anyhow, my diamond sparkles like I've never seen before (and EVERYONE is amazed at its look--I get so many compliments all the time!), and he got it for a nice price. We will be shopping for wedding bands there as well!

I have heard many shady things about the vendors there, so I would be cautious, but we had my stone checked out independently and I was assured that it was a real diamond (which is something I was warned about)! But the place we got it from gave us a 30 day guarantee to get it checked and appraised and whatever we wanted by whoever we wanted, and if anything was not what they said it was (on the report, etc...) we get a full refund.

The vendors here are extremely reputable, and my honest first instinct was to buy from one here, like Good Old Gold, and my fiance was going to as well, but he ultimately felt better about seeing the stone first, and when he saw this one, he fell in love with it. I would totally trust the vendors here, especially in the future with future jewelry purchases, but our engagement ring purchase went very well (thank goodness!) at the Jewelry Exchange. Just proceed with caution if you decide to get the stone, and good luck in whatever you decide!

Alicia

 

[fire&ice]

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On 3/27/2004 2:24:57 PM sunseeker wrote:

cut: measurements: 6.93 - 6.78 x 4.14 mm

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Are these measurements accurate? If so, the diamond is a bit out of round.

 

[aljdewey]

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On 3/28/2004 11:12:31 AM fire&ice wrote:




Are these measurements accurate? If so, the diamond is a bit out of round.

----------------

Ditto that - I'll chime in as the third person to note this. It appears to be out of round.

 

[strmrdr]

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On 3/28/2004 11:39:29 AM aljdewey wrote:

----------------

On 3/28/2004 11:12:31 AM fire&ice wrote:




Are these measurements accurate? If so, the diamond is a bit out of round.


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Ditto that - I'll chime in as the third person to note this. It appears to be out of round.

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too late your #4 :}

If it was me even if I was in the market for a lower cost non-super-ideal stone id pass on this one.
There are better ones out there.

 

[Jennifer5973]

The Jewelry Exchange is a lot like 47th St in NYC--there are good diamonds and good deals to be had but you MUST know your stuff.

I personally have had exceptional experience with a particular jeweler in one of the metro area Jewelry Exhchanges but I also did the time to learn about the importance of the cut and how to understand all of the numbers (Thanks, Pricescope!

) And the customer service he provides is wonderful--he's replaced at no cost diamonds I've chipped becasue I was stupid enough to wear my 7-stone band while tyring to operate a hedge clipper.

Many find it just more convenient to go with one of the very reuptable Pricescope dealers for buying stones/jewelry and that's perfectly fine as well. The benefit is that you don't have to be quite as on guard becasue of their well-earned reputation for quality and honest representations of the stone.

In any event, if you love your stone and paid a fair price for what you have, that is all that matters, IMHO.

 

[sunseeker]

Thanks Phoenix! I checked out both of these diamonds online. Actually, the price for the diamond I am considering is lower than both of these and the size of mine is 1.16 ct. Thanks for the info!

Sunseeker

 

[sunseeker]

Alicia, that's amazing because I am getting the same guarantee and return policy as your fiancee did which is why I am very much considering this purchase since I will get another appraisal right away if I do buy it. He swears the diamond will be the same as the one on the report and will definately appraise higher than I would be paying for it. Also, the setting he has there I haven't seen anywhere else (similar, but not exact), and the wedding band I am considering really compliments the engagement ring. Altogether the rings will be a total of a little less than 3 carats (center stone 1.16), and I feel is just enough for me to wear (I am not a flashy person!). Do you want to share the details of your ring? I would love to know what you got! Thanks Alicia!

~Sunseeker

"This too shall pass"

 

[sunseeker]

"Out of round" seems to be popping up as the negative to this diamond. It LOOKS round, so what exactly does that mean? Will is not be nice in the setting? Unfortunately, I won't buy online because my husband really wants to see the diamond in person. Also, the price we are getting for this diamond is lower than what I hae seen online anyway. I wish I could post a picture for you all to see, because it is really beautiful! AAAAHHHH! What to do, what to do????????

~Sunseeker

 

[aljdewey]

Well, none of us have seen the diamond......if you like it, then don't worry about what any of us think. Just get it and enjoy.

 

[sunseeker]

Yeah, Al, you are right. They are closed tomorrow, so I will take one more trip there on Tues (I think) and take it from there.

I appreciate everyones advice here, and am glad I heard so many replies and will take all into consideration and will most definately have a few more questions for the jeweler on Tuesday! Looking forward to maybe some more advice but if not, I feel as if I learned a few things the last couple of days that I didn't know before I found Pricescope.

THANK YOU ALL AGAIN!

~Sunseeker

 

[Mara]

Hmm I don't know what sort of 'deal' you are getting on this stone, but 4 people noted it was out of round (which I will chime in as the 5th), it's EGL graded, it's cheaper than online (not necessarily the best thing as online prices tend to be pretty darn low!), it's got a funky table and depth combo, thick girdle, only Good symmetry, it's a 3.1 on the HCA...hmmm all of those add up to a big NO for me. But your idea of a 'good value' may be difference from mine.

I would go back to that vendor and tell him you want something similar but a better cut. Forget 'premium' cut charts online, there is no such thing as a real premium cut. It's just someone trying to plunk diamonds into their idea of a cut grade. Tell the vendor you want GIA or AGS certified. You want at least VG VG on polish and symmetry, table between 55-58, depth between 60-62, you want a Sarin report (which will yield crown and pavilion angles), no thick girdles. As for the color/clarity, that's a nice combo...but I would even go to SI1 if you can see that it's eye clean.




My two cents, continue to work with this vendor if you desire...but up your cut requirements a notch and try to stay in the same price range and carat range.




However, you note that you love it and it's beautiful regardless of what the numbers say...so maybe what we think doesn't matter after all.

Good luck!

 

[pqcollectibles]

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On 3/28/2004 4:52:13 PM sunseeker wrote:

'Out of round' seems to be popping up as the negative to this diamond. It LOOKS round, so what exactly does that mean? Will is not be nice in the setting? Unfortunately, I won't buy online because my husband really wants to see the diamond in person. Also, the price we are getting for this diamond is lower than what I hae seen online anyway. I wish I could post a picture for you all to see, because it is really beautiful! AAAAHHHH! What to do, what to do????????

~Sunseeker----------------

The "out of round" comment is because of the diameter you posted. 6.93-6.78 The variance is 0.15mm. Usually, in diamonds of this carat weight, the variance runs around 0.05mm. While it may not be obvious to you in a loose stone, it may become more noticible when the diamond is mounted.

Based on the info you gave, this diamond could be a Cut Class 2A. The diamonds that PhoenixGirl listed are good comps, but you said the price you've been offered is lower. Internet Vendors operate on very low profit margins. If the price you've been offered is a sizeable % below $5K, and I were shopping, it would make me wonder why.

 

[aliciamt7]

Sunseeker,

Sorry for posting late, I've been away this weekend. My ring from the Jewelry Exchange is simply gorgeous (to me, anyway, but I'm biased!). The center stone is Round Brilliant, 1.52 ct, and there are 3 .10 ct round stones on each side, which is simple, but VERY sparkly!! The total for the ring is a little over 2 cts...honestly, go see that stone again--like the others on here, the only thing I would be cautious about is that it is a little "out of round" but if it's so minimal that you do not notice it or care about that, go for it!

Like I had said before, I was hesitant, as the others here are, about buying jewelry from places like this, and I was TOTALLY going for stones from GoodOldGold and the others here, but in the end, my fiance felt better seeing this stone in person because he's never looked at diamonds this closely before in his life and was nervous about such a big purchase online. But I absolutely fell in love with my ring when he gave it to me, no matter where it was from, and if you absolutely feel the same about this stone, go for it, and make sure you do your follow-ups with independent appraisers to check it out. I think that the vendor my fiance had bought from gave him a satisfaction guaranteed sort of thing, so if you're comfortable with this diamond, go for it if your heart tells you to! Let us know what you decide, and good luck!!

Alicia

 

[sunseeker]

Hi Everyone! First, I must thank you all for your opinions over these past few days. You have all been terrific and gave me some food for thought. I learned a few things and was able to go to my jeweler with a couple of questions I didn't have before.

Next I must let you know, I just got back and I DID buy not just my diamond, but also the e-ring setting and wedding ring, too! I feel totally comfortable with our purchase as I have a 30 day, no questions asked, money back guarantee. I posed the concern to him about the "out of round", and was assured that if I'm not satisfied after then stone is set, I can change the diamond or get my money back.

Details: The e-ring setting is yellow gold with the center stone round brilliant G, VS2, weighing 1.16 ct., with a round diamond on either side, then two baquettes next to that on either side totaling .50 for the rounds, .25 for the baguettes. The wedding ring is also yellow gold with baguettes, then a round, then baguettes, then a round, then baguettes, totaling .44 for the baguettes, and .40 for the round diamonds. CTW for the rings, 2.75.

My finger is a 5 3/4 so they look terrific together. Not too much (I am by no means a flashy person), but just enough for me to wear and feel good about it.

Question: should the wedding band be a quarter size larger than the engagement ring?

It took 20 years (actually 21 years since we got engaged with NO ring) of being married to finally get the set I want (our 20th wedding anniversary is May 19th). As soon as I get the rings I will post pictures if I can figure out how to w/ my digital camera.

Again, thank you all so much for your help and guidance. I am so happy to have found this site and and grateful for all of your comments. I went from walking into Zales thinking I would just buy rings out of a display case there, to researching and learning about the 4 c's and a whole lot more, and making what I feel is the best choice for the money we want to spend. Much applause to you all!

Note to Alicia: Your ring sounds wonderful! My husband is like your fiance and didn't want to buy online either. From the sounds of some of the great buys discussed at this website, hopefully my husband will consider purchasing online some day. Thank you for the vote of confidence. Honestly, I can't imagine that EVERY vendor in a place like the Jewelry Exchange can't be trusted but I WILL most definately get my rings appraised asap when they are ready. Thanks again!

Note to Magnum: I didn't know the location of those stores, I thought they were just places to buy online from. I will consider them in the future if I have a problem with these rings or for a future purchase! Thanks for the information!

AND THANK YOU AGAIN TO EVERYONE!!!!!

~Sunseeker