Emerald Cut Diamond Engagement Ring Help - Online Buying

[rexblackheath]

Hi there,

Again I''m one of these looking to find a bargain online as I''m no way a billionaire oligarch.

Looked round Tiffany''s in Selfridge''s with the Mrs. and she liked the look of the Emerald Cut''s, that is what I need to deliver on. Loved it''s fire, that is what I''ve always wanted to get right.

I had already been looking online and the one in the shop did look great, but the stats didn''t stack up, I believe it was an F in coulouring as well as a VS2 - and at £7,700 for 0.8ct twice the budget I have! But even with the lower stats for that particular diamond than ones I''ve been looking at it did look stunning from a fire perspective, any explanation for this? Is it just that they have cut it perfectly?

I''ve been looking around for approx. 3/4 of a carat and have a budget in the region of £3500 for the ring, have found one with the following stats on zsdiamonds.com (any experience with these chaps?), GIA certified, I''ve researched that this is the certification of choice. Ideally I would like flawless and colourless - assuming that more effort would go into getting these higher quality stones looking right - please correct my naievety if need be. This is reflected in the sizing of the ring vs. my budget.

GIA Report Stats
Shape: Emerald Cut
Symmetry: Very Good
Polish: Excellent
Carat: 0.74ct
Table %: 65
Colour: D
Depth %: 62.4
Clarity: IF
Girdle: TN-STK
Cut: Very Good
Flourescence: None
Certificate: GIA
Measurements: 4.44mm x 6.4mm x 2.77mm
L to W Ratio: 1.4414

Thoughts? Would this one sparkle? Sorry for the rambling...

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 4/27/2009 1:04:16 PM
Author:rexblackheath
Hi there,

Again I'm one of these looking to find a bargain online as I'm no way a billionaire oligarch.

Looked round Tiffany's in Selfridge's with the Mrs. and she liked the look of the Emerald Cut's, that is what I need to deliver on. Loved it's fire, that is what I've always wanted to get right.

I had already been looking online and the one in the shop did look great, but the stats didn't stack up, I believe it was an F in coulouring as well as a VS2 - and at £7,700 for 0.8ct twice the budget I have! But even with the lower stats for that particular diamond than ones I've been looking at it did look stunning from a fire perspective, any explanation for this? Is it just that they have cut it perfectly?

I've been looking around for approx. 3/4 of a carat and have a budget in the region of £3500 for the ring, have found one with the following stats on zsdiamonds.com (any experience with these chaps?), GIA certified, I've researched that this is the certification of choice. Ideally I would like flawless and colourless - assuming that more effort would go into getting these higher quality stones looking right - please correct my naievety if need be. This is reflected in the sizing of the ring vs. my budget.

GIA Report Stats
Shape: Emerald Cut
Symmetry: Very Good
Polish: Excellent
Carat: 0.74ct
Table %: 65
Colour: D
Depth %: 62.4
Clarity: IF
Girdle: TN-STK
Cut: Very Good
Flourescence: None
Certificate: GIA
Measurements: 4.44mm x 6.4mm x 2.77mm
L to W Ratio: 1.4414

Thoughts? Would this one sparkle? Sorry for the rambling...

Hi Rex and welcome!

I will make sure strmrider sees this as he has great advice for emerald cuts. To begin with, these shapes often need higher clarity as they can show inclusions more readily than a round diamond for example.
It is very difficult to pick out an EC by numbers as they only really give you a chalk outline, so if buying online a vendor who can provide photos and images such as ASET is invaluable. GIA is normally preferred for the lab grading report.

However there are some guidelines. Usually it is preferred for the table to be less than the depth in percentages, with the diamond above it has the reverse. A smaller table along with a good crown height can aid the production of coloured light or fire in an emerald cut.

I haven't had any experience with the vendor you mention, someone you could contact in London is Dr Indira Marchant at

www.bestdiamonds.co.uk Indira posts here and is a super lady who sells some beautiful fancy shapes, so it could be well worth contacting her.

Unless you want IF clarity then you could consider VS2 and above, colour maybe D to G unless you are set on a colourless diamond. But whatever you do make sure you work with a vendor who can supply images of the diamond - photos at a minimum otherwise it is really buying blind and you want the best EC you can get, as it is cut which gives a diamond its beauty.

If you are open to buying online from the States, Jon at www.goodoldgold.com sometimes has beautiful EC's in stock and can also make a video of your selections if he has the time!

Emerald cuts can also vary tremendously in shape, some are square, others more elongated and everything in between - do you know what shape your GF likes best?

 

[chrono]

Colour and clarity do not play as large role in having the diamond look stunning as cut does. For the EC to look colourless, you can safely go down to a G and a clarity of VS2 is also very clean to the eye.

Colour: H and better because fancies like ECs tend to show body colour. This is subjective to the wearer's taste/tolerance level.
Clarity: VS2 and better. No point getting VVS because even with a VS, you can't see a thing and I haven't seen any eye clean SI1s.
Table: 65% and under to avoid a glassy look and for more fire
Depth: 68% and under to avoid having a smaller diameter diamond
Crown height: 10% and higher for more fire
Girdle: Avoid very thin and under, very thick and over to avoid chipping and hidden weight. An even medium girdle is very hard to find so don't aim for one.
Polish: Very Good and better
Symmetry: Very Good and better
At this point, the parameters on your EC looks to fit the bill but it still does not guarantee a fiery stone. The next step is to procure an Idealscope or ASET, which is even better, to view the light performance. Short of that, if you can post a magnified picture of the diamond straight down through the top (table), it will be very helpful in evaluating the cut.

 

[strmrdr]

You have got some excellent advise so far.
I would drop down to H/vs and see if you can go larger.

As far as the diamond you found goes you cant buy EC''s without pictures or seeing it in person.
A couple people here have been lucky doing it but unless you are prepared to send a few back it is not a good idea.