Do most ACAs/Superideals have dark cores?

[jdhunter]

Hi Everyone!!

I am curious to get everyone''s feedback on this, and particularly other owners of Superideal diamond rings.

A few months ago we purchased a 1.5ct ACA for an engagement ring. It sparkles crazily in several lighting environments and overall is quite nice. However, the one aspect of it that has been driving us a little bonkers is that it almost always seems to have a dark ''core'' (under the table). This is especially prevalent when it is in lighting environments that make it the most sparkly, such as in restaurants with lots of strong direct in-ceiling lighting. We find that the core is very dark, but the outside (crown?) is multiple colors mixed in with white and very nice.

Another thing that has bugged us is that it appears almost dirty grey looking in the sun, but I understand this is just normal for diamonds.

I am curious whether this dark core is normal in ACAs or whether it may be caused by:
a. We may have gotten a ''dud''? Doesn''t seem likely since from my understanding these ACAs are all carefully screened at WF.

b. The setting is very low Tiffany-style setting - maybe this is causing us to see a shadow of the platinum underneath?

c. All diamonds have this, but the larger size (at least larger than our friends who have very ''white sparkly'' rather than ''dark sparkly'' diamonds) is showing the dark table more than smaller diamonds. Maybe we were expecting more of a ''crystal'' look and diamonds do not look like this?


Thanks for any help you can provide!!!

 

[belle]

well cut diamonds have so much more personality than mediocre cut stones. they really work in the environment they are in, so that you get many different looks depending on the lighting. poorly cut stones need bright flooding light to look ''sparkly'' so sunlight is one of the best lighting situations to view them. this is not the case with well cut stones. bright direct light, such as sunlight will tend to make the them appear dark. this darkness is just another personality of a diamond with superior cut and nothing to worry about at all. sunkist has taken some amazing shots of her new stone in this thread. you can see many of the different looks a well cut stone has from the great pics she has taken.
also, don''t forget to keep the diamond clean! a dirty diamond will not look good!

 

[Mara]

honestly, i don't think that an ACA dud is likely at all...those diamonds are so carefully checked out by Brian, they carry his brand and he is very protective over what makes it into that classification. i have owned 3 of their ES stones that to my unpracticed eye look just like ACA's from things like specs, my own H&A taken at home, the IS image etc, but for whatever reason they didn't make the stringent cut.

that said, sometimes i have seen darkness in ideal cut stones based on lighting, and yes dim lighting can make the diamonds seem more colorful and dark inside. i find it pretty intriguing actually because of the light return in other lighting situations, the darkness in dimmer lighting is a more 'moody' and 'mysterious' personality. walk that diamond out into diffused lighting and it will be blinding you with colors and brightness inside the diamond in those same areas you felt dark a few minutes ago. i love how the diamonds show differently in various lighting.

 

[jdhunter]

Thanks Mara and Belle. If I''m understanding you correctly, it appears that all diamonds have this dark ''core'' and that our expectations were probably just unrealistic. Our friends'' diamond rings have smaller stones and don''t appear to have this dark core, but perhaps it is because they are smaller in size so we don''t notice is like we do ours.

I guess I was expecting a diamond that would have colored sparkles on a white background versus on a dark background. The way it appears now in 80% of lighting is something like a poppy. Dark in the center/table and very vibrant around the outside/crown. We were expecting more of a symmetical shade.

Actually in the shade or in a shadow is when the center is the whitest. During then, the entire diamond is quite white. But as soon as it gets some like on it, the outside is very vibrant and the center goes dark. This is the first major diamond purchase, I guess we were expecting something that doesn''t exist!


Thanks again for the help!

 

[Carlotta]

I have several ideal cut stones......in my brightly lit kitchen (similar to restaurant spots) I love the way they sparkle RIGHT to the center of the stone!!!

 

[JohnQuixote]

In simple terms, the more intense the light the darker the diamond may appear. However, intense lighting generates more dynamic performance. Part of the attraction of a diamond is its dynamic appeal through a vast range of lighting conditions and the different mixes of surface reflection and internal refraction you see in different situations. Perception can play a part in this: Different people can see color, clarity and performance dynamics slightly differently. It is also possible that when you were surprised to notice a ‘dark core’ under bright lights you started focusing on it more.

I’m not a huge proponent of using 2D images to represent performance, but this is a graphic that’s been used here to illustrate that bright lights = darkness in diamonds: The bottom photo was taken in brighter conditions than the top photo.

 

[aljdewey]

It''s normal for well cut diamonds to look dark in the core in intense, direct light.

The best example I could think of that mimics this.......have you ever taken a picture of someone with really fair skin in direct, intense sunlight? The result - the intense sun washes out his/her face, and makes him look ghostly white.

However, photograph that same person in soft fading sunlight, and his face takes on a warm tone.

Same thing with diamonds.....except in reverse. Harsh light doesn''t wash them out; it makes them dark......lessen the intensity of the light (such as filtered light, diffused light, cloudy-day lighting) and the stone shows brightness.

 

[jdhunter]

Carlotta, is yours a ''superideal'' type stone?


Thanks!

 

[Mara]

for me my recessed kitchen lighting is not the same as many restaurants, so it''s important to ensure that apples to apples are being compared here. some restaurants my stone is sparkling so intensely that it''s the dark moody sparkles in the middle. others are more like my kitchen where it''s bling bling america going on. so it really depends on what type of lighting you are discussing. i don''t think it''s accurate to say that kitchen is like restaurant etc...aka jd i don''t want you to think that your stone is a dud when it probably is just doing what''s normal for whatever lighting situation you were in at the time. i have to say that my stone only sparkles darkly every once in a while, it''s not common at all.

 

[Dancing Fire]

jd
i think it all depends on the lighting and if your ring is dirty

you want a stone that looks like the fireworks on 4th of july in all lighting condition.

i don''t think there is such a stone.

 

[jdhunter]

It''s definitely not dirty, but could be that it has normally in fairly bright lighting so far, or outside (which I had already anticipated would look poor). Maybe as we go along it will look better in other lighting.

 

[Carlotta]

Hey, JD...please don''t think I was implying there was anything wrong with your diamond....just stating that I saw something different, perhaps...(but perhaps different lighting (not recessed, BTW).)

But YOU seem concerned, and say that it only looks the way you expected like 20% of the time.......Do you have any pictures of what you mean? Are your friends'' stones ideal cut???

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 5/8/2006 11:30:03 PM
Author: jdhunter
It''s definitely not dirty, but could be that it has normally in fairly bright lighting so far, or outside (which I had already anticipated would look poor). Maybe as we go along it will look better in other lighting.

Home Depot.

 

[^]

JD,

I''m new to this forum, but I''ve watched Garry''s video, and it showcases this phenomenon quite convincingly. Best not to let her out in the sunlight.

Garry''s video

-^