Do all well cut diamonds must appear dark?

[Dfordiamond]

Hi,
I just upgraded my engagement ring from 1.05 H vs1 to 1.75 I vs2 at T&Co. They both are 3ex cut and it’s 1.4 and 1.3 on HCA and both are very sparkly but somehow the I color diamond look really dark to me, first I thought it’s because it’s an I then I read people here say the well cut diamond will look dark even D color. But that’s not how I want the diamond to look like, shouldn’t a well cut I color diamond look white? It does look white sometimes but 80% times I feel it’s dark. So I had the H color for more than five years and I never felt it’s dark. I kind regret I traded my H color ring, it’s really bothering me now, I want to grow the love of my new ring. Can you guys help what should I do? So can you see the difference? The H appeared much whiter than the I

 

[Pimberly]

My Tiffany I colored diamond only appears dark under direct sunlight or spotlighting. Can you exchange it for a new diamond?

 

[MK Malone]

Maybe it has a brown tint? Can you exchange it? Have you talked to your sales rep?

Here is my I stone for comparison.

 

[AV_]

I understand that the 'dark' you describe is a feature of the cut.

Other proportions might suit you better - I would guess the 'FIC' range of the HCA (or beyond), or types of round brilliant.

Other cuts are meant to deal with that darkness www, but I cannot think of such a round @diagem

2p

 

[distracts]

Do you have the GIA reports so we can see the angles?

 

[Wewechew]

Have you looked at it under a scope? Just because the HCA is below 2 does not mean it doesn’t have leakage.

 

[Wewechew]

Do you have the GIA reports so we can see the angles?

Tiffany doesn’t use GIA. They do their own grading.

 

[distracts]

Tiffany doesn’t use GIA. They do their own grading.

oh ... well ... do they give the angles? I guess OP has them since she has the HCA numbers? But we might be able to compare them and see why she's seeing a difference in performance.

 

[Wewechew]

oh ... well ... do they give the angles? I guess OP has them since she has the HCA numbers? But we might be able to compare them and see why she's seeing a difference in performance.

I am 99% sure they include angles.

OP- can you post the angles?

 

[Rose-gold-or-bust]

A well cut diamond will often appear dark in bright sunlight... not all the time. In your case, is it looking dark all the time or just in some lighting? If it is all the time, it may be because you went down in color but also bigger in size (the larger the diamond, the more color it will show).

 

[Dfordiamond]

Hi thank you for all your replies, unfortunately I already sized the ring and it’s already past the return period, so I can’t return it. The picture was taken at Tiffany’s store, it just feels so strange that under same light that one looks white and the other look dark. When I was at the store she showed me the four diamonds they all looked dark so I thought it was normal. Does new diamond look like that now?
And here’s the numbers
Table 56%
Depth 61.3%
Crown angle 35.2
Pavilion angle 40.7

 

[distracts]

Hi thank you for all your replies, unfortunately I already sized the ring and it’s already past the return period, so I can’t return it. The picture was taken at Tiffany’s store, it just feels so strange that under same light that one looks white and the other look dark. When I was at the store she showed me the four diamonds they all looked dark so I thought it was normal. Does new diamond look like that now?
And here’s the numbers
Table 56%
Depth 61.3%
Crown angle 35.2
Pavilion angle 40.7

Just like sunlight, spotlighting like at Tiffany will make diamonds appear darker. Was it still very sparkly? Is the other ring your old ring and if so, how recently had it been thoroughly cleaned? And what were its angles? Because it could be that it was dirty enough for the light to impact it differently (which could be dirt/oils accumulated over just a day or two) or it could be that it had different proportions and you just prefer different proportions than what you got.

 

[Dfordiamond]

So in my picture under the same light the H don’t look dark at all and it’s also a well cut diamond. Can anyone explain that? I don’t think it’s because the color, H and I shouldn’t be that big difference.

 

[Kaycee2018]

I’m wondering if the different angles of the rings are having an affect on what you are seeing. Even though they are photographed together in the same light, the larger diamond appears to be slanted down and the smaller one appears to be slanted up. I have noticed this myself when comparing multiple diamond. It is very difficult to get them all lined up and facing the same way to do a true comparison. I don’t think any warmth from the lower color is to blame for the darkness though.

 

[headlight]

I didn’t know Tiff does upgrades???
I think you need to go back and speak to some higher up. Don’t bring the photo. Just express that this isn’t your 1sr tiff and this is obviously a very expensive purchase and you’ve tried to live with it, thus being happy with your previous, and it just doesn’t seem like the visual aesthetic that should come out of Tiffany.

 

[foxinsox]

So in my picture under the same light the H don’t look dark at all and it’s also a well cut diamond. Can anyone explain that? I don’t think it’s because the color, H and I shouldn’t be that big difference.

In your picture, it looks like your H is pointed up toward the light and your I is pointed down away from the light.. so the H is reflecting more light and the I isn’t.

 

[Dancing Fire]

These are all ideal cut stones G-H color. Do they look dark to you?. It all depends on the lighting condition.

 

[distracts]

check out some videos like this one that have diamonds in different lighting - in this video the second lighting condition is spotlighting like what you'll find in the Tiffany store, and you can see the diamonds are comparably darker like they then are in sunlight:

 

[Karl_K]

I’m wondering if the different angles of the rings are having an affect on what you are seeing. Even though they are photographed together in the same light, the larger diamond appears to be slanted down and the smaller one appears to be slanted up. I have noticed this myself when comparing multiple diamond. It is very difficult to get them all lined up and facing the same way to do a true comparison. I don’t think any warmth from the lower color is to blame for the darkness though.

Likely.
Given the goofy lighting in store even more likely.
One is catching a spot light one is not.

 

[Dfordiamond]

These are all ideal cut stones G-H color. Do they look dark to you?. It all depends on the lighting condition.

The first picture looks fine but second picture the middle and bottom ones look dark. I wonder it’s because the lighting or the diamond? The top diamond is what I would prefer.

 

[Dancing Fire]

The first picture looks fine but second picture the middle and bottom ones look dark. I wonder it’s because the lighting or the diamond? The top diamond is what I would prefer.

The same two rings under different lighting.

 

[Dancing Fire]

The top ring is a G color different ring from the above. The bottom is the same ring H color.

 

[diamondoll]

I'm experiencing a similar concern with a 2.53 RB GIA triple X, VVS1 color L (but shows more like a K). My Princess cut is 1.25 carat, and dirty in this picture, while the RB is new from jeweler and spotless clean. RB has no fluor, while the princess cut does have some. The RB in the sunlight is unbelievably gorgeous, sparkly, and faces white. However, under LED light or flash from a camera, it goes very dark. Doesn't matter the angle of light, it always does this phenomenon. 3 pictures with flash, one without.

 

[diamondoll]

What could be the cause for this above? The RB has amazing fire and sparkles like crazy in all other light.

 

[MamaBee]

oh ... well ... do they give the angles? I guess OP has them since she has the HCA numbers? But we might be able to compare them and see why she's seeing a difference in performance.

They definitely give the angles..They mail it to you after the purchase if I remember correctly. I have mine from my pendant..

 

[mommylawyer]

What could be the cause for this above? The RB has amazing fire and sparkles like crazy in all other light.

My Ideal diamond, 1.66 ct, J/VS1, and 0.9 on HCA does the same thing. It's worse when it's clean. I would love to know why. The lighting in elevators is the worst.

 

[kb1gra]

Why do diamonds look dark in sunlight?

I’ve noticed that my BGD Signature round diamonds sometimes look dark in sunlight. This concerns me because I thought that I was buying the very best.

www.briangavindiamonds.com

.

 

[kb1gra]

A good way to understand the phenomenon is to look at your ring in the sideview mirror of your car in bright sunlight. Looking directly at the ring, you will see darkness. Looking at the reflection of the ring in the mirror, you will see a ton of sparkle because the light is not traveling directly from the diamond surface to your eye.

Your diamond will almost always appear sparklier in a camera shot or to an adjacent observer than it will to you.

 

[mommylawyer]

A good way to understand the phenomenon is to look at your ring in the sideview mirror of your car in bright sunlight. Looking directly at the ring, you will see darkness. Looking at the reflection of the ring in the mirror, you will see a ton of sparkle because the light is not traveling directly from the diamond surface to your eye.

Your diamond will almost always appear sparklier in a camera shot or to an adjacent observer than it will to you.

Thanks for the explanation. I notice that my diamond goes dark in elevators. Is that because the lighting is directly overhead? Honestly, all my diamonds look weird in elevators, but it's more noticeable with the diamond in my halo ring.

 

[kb1gra]

Thanks for the explanation. I notice that my diamond goes dark in elevators. Is that because the lighting is directly overhead? Honestly, all my diamonds look weird in elevators, but it's more noticeable with the diamond in my halo ring.

Likely broad spectrum LED light directly overhead, yes. Similar effect to sunlight.