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Engagement Diamond 2ct

E

Edward333

Rough_Rock
Joined
Feb 21, 2018
Messages
4
None of those are eye clean. I did a search from I-M, 1.98+, SI1+ on JA under $9500 but I didn’t see any I could recommend.
 
Is your intended ok with lower colors and/or vintage shapes? You will have a hard time getting a large well cut stone in budget. I would look into pre-loved and old cuts as well. For example, here is a cute tranny (transitional cut) stone with a lovely face and size: https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/152914870825

The stone will be warmer, but I find old cuts especially to be very beautiful in warmer colors. Here is how @msop04 set her warm OEC diamond and it is stunning: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/1-84-u-v-faint-brown-oec-in-dk-halo.235449/
 
Edward333 said:
What about 1.7+, is that possible?

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...j-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-3748766

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...j-color-vs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-2310616

Above 2 seem to be much cleaner or will it still be really noticeable?

Thanks. Sorry for silly questions, I am very new to this and just want to make sure that I spend money wisely.
Click to expand...
Both stone are graded by IGI lab which means that (most likely) they are not up to par with GIA or AGS grading labs.
 
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its a REALLY tough request. What is your goal? Are you trying for the biggest stone possible within budget? Does your intended have a preference on stone shape, color and clarity? WHat about setting, style and color (White/yellow/rose gold or platinum?) If you're going for size, a halo can really help with finger coverage.
 
There are no deals in diamonds! What are you priorities? Hitting the 2 carat mark? How low in color and clarity are you willing to go? Is there any flexibility in your budget?

Slightly over $9k but over 2 cts and a 60/60 stone so it faces up larger and whiter: https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...l-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-3678541
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...l-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4326727
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...m-color-vs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4224101

This ring used to belong to soxfan I believe then was lovingly sold to fund her old cut dream ering and now it looks like it's being sold again - it's already in an amazing Victor Canera halo which would provide even more presence....I'd offer $10k for it and see what happens! http://www.loveaffairdiamonds.com/2-04ct-round-brilliant-in-victor-camera-emilya-halo-gia-k-si2/
 
ac117 said:
There are no deals in diamonds! What are you priorities? Hitting the 2 carat mark? How low in color and clarity are you willing to go? Is there any flexibility in your budget?

Slightly over $9k but over 2 cts and a 60/60 stone so it faces up larger and whiter: https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...l-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-3678541
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...l-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4326727
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...m-color-vs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4224101

This ring used to belong to soxfan I believe then was lovingly sold to fund her old cut dream ering and now it looks like it's being sold again - it's already in an amazing Victor Canera halo which would provide even more presence....I'd offer $10k for it and see what happens! http://www.loveaffairdiamonds.com/2-04ct-round-brilliant-in-victor-camera-emilya-halo-gia-k-si2/
Click to expand...


That VC halo ring is amazing! Just the halo will run you 4-5k (not sure what VC charges nowadays) so this is a great value!
 
Setting will be white gold or platinum pave type of style, something like: https://www.jamesallen.com/engageme...ch-cut-pave-diamond-engagement-ring-item-7090

I now see that 2ct with eye clean is not possible :)

I would prefer to go down in ct size, but still overall have a decent diamond. I would prefer round cut. I am not sure how color and clarity will play a role, so not sure about it. No pre-owned diamonds.

Any thoughts on the following:

https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-details/LD08360144
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4125798
Since it's graded by IGI, maybe it's a red flag?

Is there any other website or place that I can look?

Thank you very much!
 
the BN stone is an SI2 and you'll notice on the cert that the clarity is "based on clounds not shown". Pretty much guarantees that the clouds not noted on the cert is causing some haziness or cloudiness in the stone. pass.
JA is IGI, prob more of a K color. not a total dog but i think you could do better.

https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-de...AMONDS&track=viewDiamondDetails&action=newTab may not be eye clean


https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-de...AMONDS&track=viewDiamondDetails&action=newTab very nice, just have to make sure the fluoro isn't causing any haziness in the stone.

https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-de...AMONDS&track=viewDiamondDetails&action=newTab :love:

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-3614431 Some might discount this stone because it appears to have a brown tint vs a yellow tint but i prefer it.

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4276473

smaller but a safer color
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4415660
 
I like these from @SimoneDi
https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-de...AMONDS&track=viewDiamondDetails&action=newTab {7.16 mm}

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-3614431 {Love this one!!}

I'd add this one to consider
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3826685.htm {1.42 J SI1}

Settings from WF
https://www.whiteflash.com/engageme...tani-1rz2498-diamond-engagement-ring-3921.htm
https://www.whiteflash.com/engageme...o-micro-pave-diamond-engagement-ring-1011.htm
https://www.whiteflash.com/engageme...eek-line-pave-diamond-engagement-ring-422.htm {a personal fav}

These are measurements to help you stay in ideal cut territory with a GIA excellent cut stone. We suggest you only consider AGS or GIA stones. If you look at WF or other superideals, don't worry about these numbers.

table: 54-58 (I prefer under 57)
depth: 60-62.3 (consider 59.5)
crown angle: 34-35.0 (up to 35.5 crown angle can sometimes work with a 40.6 pav angle)
pavilion angle: 40.6-40.9 (sometimes 41.0 if the crown angle is close to 34)
Lower girdle facets between 75 – 80% (I prefer the low end of this)
 
Adding another here that is smaller but higher in color:
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4446061

This one appears to be a very high I ( would almost say it looks like an H) and is an overall beautiful stone.

Have you been to a jewelry store to see different colors in person? And, more importantly, do you know how color sensitive the recipient is? I hate to say this on this site (because I know a lot of people love lower-colored diamonds here) but I think a J color is going to look "off" in a platinum pave setting, particularly when the pave is F-G in color like the one you linked from James Allen. Now, if this was a yellow gold or rose gold solitaire, I'd say go for it. But you should be careful with this choice.

Size is not going to be everything in this case. You need to know whether the recipient would rather have a larger diamond at the risk of it looking slightly dingy compared to the surrounding metal and pave diamonds, or whether they would prefer a slightly smaller stone that blends in with the rest of the ring.

One of the benefits of working with a smaller company that does custom ring designs (like WhiteFlash) is that they'll also allow you to choose the color of the surrounding melee diamonds for a pave ring to blend with the center stone. But if going for an off-the-shelf ring with F-G melee or side stones, like the rings from James Allen, I think an I is the lowest I would personally go.

Any reason you decided on 2 carat as the size you should go with? Did the intended recipient indicate that this would be her preferred size after trying on different sizes in a store, or did you just arbitrarily choose it?
 
Thank you everybody.

I didn't even realize that J color might look off in white gold or platinum pave setting.

Recipient will be happy and wants me to select everything. I just didn't realize initially that 2ct in my budget, with a clean eye is not possible. Ideally 1.5ct+ would have been great, I think.

From all the feedback that I got, it seems like following options will work best:

https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-details/LD09439325
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4415660
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4273576
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-2557481
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4446061

Possibly:
https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-details/LD00029425
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4276473

Any of them seem like a better deal?
 
I personally don’t think a J will look off in platinum. I have a K in platinum (and cushions show more color than rounds) and the halo is f-g melee. A well-cut J or K will look white face up, maybe slightly tinted on the side but an I could have a slight tint on the side as well.
 
Keep these on your list:
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4415660 {video looks really nice. Worth an IS, 7.09 mm}
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4446061 {good angles, 7.08 mm}

I prefer this one and would recommend you put it on hold...asap.
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4347962 (bigger than your selections; I actually like this a lot Need to confirm with an IS, but I'd put this on hold. Great angles that fall very much in the middle of our recommendation with a nice 55% table. Has clouds not shown that needs to be reviewed, but not likely at issue with VS clarity; 7.19 mm}

Add this if you like the idea of a super-ideal (and the better upgrade policy)
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3897563.htm

I'd keep this in the running.
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-3614431

Budget stretch for this super ideal
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3947690.htm
 
rockysalamander said:
Keep these on your list:
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4415660 {video looks really nice. Worth an IS, 7.09 mm}
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4446061 {good angles, 7.08 mm}

I prefer this one and would recommend you put it on hold...asap.
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4347962 (bigger than your selections; I actually like this a lot Need to confirm with an IS, but I'd put this on hold. Great angles that fall very much in the middle of our recommendation with a nice 55% table. Has clouds not shown that needs to be reviewed, but not likely at issue with VS clarity; 7.19 mm}

Add this if you like the idea of a super-ideal (and the better upgrade policy)
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3897563.htm

I'd keep this in the running.
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-3614431

Budget stretch for this super ideal
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3947690.htm
Click to expand...

All good suggestions, but if I had to shortlist three of them, I would say these:
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4415660
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4446061
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3897563.htm

But you should ask for IdealScope images for the two from James Allen to confirm performance. The 1.41, while appearing nice in the video, I suspect will have some light leakage under the table. The 35.0/40.8 cut angles can work in a lot of cases (WhiteFlash actually has quite a few diamonds in this range) but it usually requires a smaller table to work well. I think a 58 table is too large for these angles, but again, you would need IdealScope images to confirm performance. If it looks good in the IdealScope images, this would get you a slight size increase over the other two, but I would still prefer the 1.31 from James Allen or the 1.28 from WhiteFlash for their all-around great characteristics.

While this one is nice as well
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4347962
it looks like the symmetry is slightly off, which would bug me. Still would likely be a good choice though.

To @absolutme77's comments about color, I would say that an I color is still a safer choice in this situation. Regarding color choice, I think it's always better to be conservative when you're "buying blind" and don't know the color sensitivity of the recipient or their preferences as to how white they want their stone to be. While you might not be able to see the color in your cushion K, I can personally see the color in a RB H IRL, even face up. Granted, I have an extremely acute sense of color because part of my job entails identifying and recording minute differences in color within tree rings, but that's the point: Everyone is different as to when they can start to see color in diamonds.

To @Edward333, if you want to know how a J would look in this particular setting with F-G pave, James Allen actually has wonderful illustration in their example videos for this ring:
https://www.jamesallen.com/engageme...ch-cut-pave-diamond-engagement-ring-item-7090

First, look at the video of the recently purchased 1.50 J. Then look at the video of the recently purchased 1.00 F. See a difference? I personally think the J looks out of place in this setting in WG/platinum, and the F looks much better matched. Perhaps you wouldn't see a difference, but do you know if your soon-to-be fiancée would see a difference? If you don't know the answer, best to play it safe and get a higher color. :)
 
TreeScientist said:
First, look at the video of the recently purchased 1.50 J. Then look at the video of the recently purchased 1.00 F. See a difference? I personally think the J looks out of place in this setting in WG/platinum, and the F looks much better matched. Perhaps you wouldn't see a difference, but do you know if your soon-to-be fiancée would see a difference? If you don't know the answer, best to play it safe and get a higher color. :)
Click to expand...
I had a look at those two you referenced and while I agree F and J are poles apart in terms of colour, I don’t think those two are good comparisons - look at the white background in each video. The J video skews yellow where the F video is cooler so the contrast between the centre and the melee is exaggerated.
I do think the F is a much better match to its melee but I’m not sure the J difference would be as noticeable in person
 
JA will usually give IS (idealscope) images for 3 JA stones. I would request them for the following two and save your third.
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4446061
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4347962 {I don't see any asymmetry and these angles are really good}

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4415660
I was ready to say recommend against this this one, as the CA/PA combination is not perfect (you want a 40.6 with the CA). But, the video showed a really bright and lively stone. I think you will find varying pavilion angles, but it is visually nice. Since the two above are right in the middle of the ideal recs, I'd put this on hold but only get IS for the above two for now.

If your girl wants a halo, this ring by Mytal Hannah is a steal. Her work is stupendous. It would accomodate the size stone you are looking at and it is hand-forged!! If you like this, I'd snap it out as I don't expect it to last long at the posted price. But, this may blow up your budget.
https://loupetroop.com/listings/settings/hand-forged-platinum-maytal-hannah-engagment-ring-setting
 
rockysalamander said:
If your girl wants a halo, this ring by Mytal Hannah is a steal. Her work is stupendous. It would accomodate the size stone you are looking at and it is hand-forged!! If you like this, I'd snap it out as I don't expect it to last long at the posted price. But, this may blow up your budget.
https://loupetroop.com/listings/settings/hand-forged-platinum-maytal-hannah-engagment-ring-setting
Click to expand...

That is a gorgeous ring! Would go well with any of the diamonds the OP is considering too, since all of these center stones are in the 7-7.5mm range. Great price too, and would likely fit in your budget if you stick to the lower end of the $8-9K range you set aside for the diamond (I'm guessing you're budgeting $10k for the total ring?)

Also, just wanted to add, don't forget to ask for the PriceScope discount if you decide to purchase from James Allen. Should knock $100-$300 off the purchase price in a diamond of this cost bracket. :)
 
absolutme77 said:
I personally don’t think a J will look off in platinum. I have a K in platinum (and cushions show more color than rounds) and the halo is f-g melee. A well-cut J or K will look white face up, maybe slightly tinted on the side but an I could have a slight tint on the side as well.
Click to expand...

I agree with @absolutme77... I had a GIA J in a halo that looked white. I think the issue is the setting. Settings that do not show much side view are going to be your best bet to camouflage any tint that may be present (since tint is seen most from the side while set). There have been several PS members with lower colored stones set in white metal, and they looked amazing.

Here is my old ring... 2.43 ct GIA J 60/60 type stone. Also, it should be noted that the larger the diamond, the more tinted it will appear in the same color, so a 1.8-ish stone should be fine...
Ring_1.jpg msop04.jpg

This is as tinted as it ever looked - notice how the girdle was barely over the halo...
msop04_profile.jpg

I would also check out the link for @soxfan's K stone... it looked amazing in platinum. Hope this helps.
 
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