Exhausted and overwhelmed.

[sledge]

Please post the links.

 

[whitewave]

I’d call Adam at OWD. I’m sure he can send photos. Some of them are slightly off round, as they were hand cut before machines. It’s part of the charm. Maybe make an appointment with old world when you are in NYC.

 

[DoeEyes]

@sledge sorry, I couldn't get the website to work on my phone and this forum doesn't work on my computer. I guess it doesn't really matter too much since I probably wouldn't buy a diamond on my own, but maybe I can mention this option when I go to IDJ and ask him to find me a good one from OWD? I'm not sure if that's how things work?

 

[partgypsy]

This is the thing. Modern round brilliant and older cuts can look very different from each other. Older cuts in general have more variability in their cut quality than modern round brilliants. It will take additional learning from you to learn about the different cuts, preferably seeing them IN PERSON, to see if they appeal to you and see the differences. The upside, if you do like them you can score a larger stone for less than a modern round brilliant. And you will have peace of mind it is an old/preloved stone, if that is important to your boyfriend. It's not an easier route though. If you do find contenders, you can post them here. But there is nothing like seeing them in person. That's the first thing I would suggest if you think you might go this route. Also, and this might just be me, I would be interested in an antique ring, not just because of the stone, but also for the design and beauty of the setting, most which feature smaller, multiple stones. If you are going to buy an old ring so you can take the stone and plop into a new plan setting, might as well get a modern stone to begin with.

 

[SimoneDi]

@sledge sorry, I couldn't get the website to work on my phone and this forum doesn't work on my computer. I guess it doesn't really matter too much since I probably wouldn't buy a diamond on my own, but maybe I can mention this option when I go to IDJ and ask him to find me a good one from OWD? I'm not sure if that's how things work?

No, these are two different vendors. You can visit them both while you are in NYC.

 

[sledge]

@whitewave I'm looking at old world diamonds. Filtered for .74-1c and sorted by price, didn't filter for color or clarity at all just so I can see everything.

#OWA16866 is $921 for .74c G/I1. It looks very black. Is that just the picture or is that what a I1 diamond looks like? Most of them don't have pictures so the next one on the list that's higher than SI with a picture is OWA22263, $1826 for .77c I/SI2. That one looks much less black. I'm also noticing that none of these look very round. Is that the way the picture is cropped or are they actually that misshapen from years of use? Will that be less noticable when it's in a setting?

I found them:

http://www.oldworlddiamonds.com/dia...=PRICE&shape=EU&item=diamond&referer=diamonds

Since you are looking for "white & sparkly" I can't imagine this stone would impress you too much. The inclusions make it ugly from that perspective. Additionally you might start to have structural issues (need to see the stone & inclusion plot).

While I like OEC's, this is not a stone I would personally be interested in pursuing regardless of cost.

http://www.oldworlddiamonds.com/dia...=PRICE&shape=EU&item=diamond&referer=diamonds

This stone looks much cleaner, but as the cert eludes -- the symmetry is poor. Again, for me personally, this is not a stone I would want to purchase although I will say at least in this photo, you are starting to see some of the beauty of the OEC style of cut.

@sledge sorry, I couldn't get the website to work on my phone and this forum doesn't work on my computer. I guess it doesn't really matter too much since I probably wouldn't buy a diamond on my own, but maybe I can mention this option when I go to IDJ and ask him to find me a good one from OWD? I'm not sure if that's how things work?

Sounds like your work is filtering traffic through a proxy server of sorts.

Anyhow, I doubt that IDJ will be too thrilled to hear you want them to pull a stone from OWD. It's kind of like going to a Ford dealership and asking them to bring in a Chevy for you to consider purchasing.

You could ask IDJ (ahead of time) if they have any OEC stones they can pull and let you look at while you are there; however, I would avoid saying "go to OWD and pull stock #XXX". First, let them tell you if they even deal in OEC's, and then allow them to source their own stones.

As mentioned before, IDJ is aware you are a PS member and consequently will be expecting a well cut stone. Based on others experience, I think they will treat you right and show you some stones that are gorgeous and somewhere in or near your budget constraints.

 

[DoeEyes]

@sledge you are correct I was not impressed with either of those but that's the price point I would want. Definitely no higher than the $1826 and even that is pushing it since that's just the diamond and the setting and labor would cost more. I was hoping antique/pre-owned would be much more of a price difference.

Thanks for explaining IDJ vs OWD! I definitely won't ask IDJ about getting a diamond from OWD. I didn't realize they were basically in the same market, I thought IDJ was a jeweler and OWD was like a diamond dealer or something? I'm learning.

I emailed IDJ again today in preparation for my visit letting him know I would be interested in seeing OEC as well as amora gem, moissanite, and anything else that he thinks might look enough like a diamond that I'll like it. I know we can't talk about simulants in this board, but I do think it's important for me to see them in real life and compare them to diamonds so I can truly decide what's important to me. I'm thinking I probably don't want to spend what it's going to cost to make me happy with a real diamond, so maybe a simulant will be what I end up with after all this. I hope not, I hope I can find a real diamond that I love and that I can stomach the price tag, but I'll keep my expectations low because I know that might just not be realistic.

 

[DoeEyes]

This is silly but I have to share... I ordered some cheap CZ rings on Amazon just to get an idea of size and practice wearing them around the house.

This one is the size of a .75c diamond:

And this one is 1 carat:


Guys... I LOVE THEM. They are so sparkly! I joked to my boyfriend that maybe this will be THE ring and it was $9... It was a joke but my mom actually did have a CZ in her wedding ring. She later replaced it with a diamond but she had CZ for a few years. How mad would you guys be if after all this I settled on a $9 CZ??

 

[partgypsy]

I wouldn't feel bad at all! I think people should do what feels right for them! I wish I was like you!

 

[sledge]

"It's just begun..."

The sparkly diamond bug that is.

Today CZ. Tomorrow .75ct mined diamond. Two years from now when fiancee is financially healthy in his self employment, "help me find a 3ct super ideal".

How does the Kool-Aid taste?

 

[bludiva]

i don't want to invoke the wrath of the mods but there are some threads in fab fashion jewelry that talk about a couple of brands of CZs people seem to really love if that's a direction you want to go in

 

[KristinTech]

Lol, my 1.5 carat CZ I bought last week as I dream about an upcoming anniversary diamond (married 18 years this year, together for 24 total). But I want the real deal.

 

[DoeEyes]

@sledge I definitely feel that happening. This is bad...

 

[LLJsmom]

Make a separate appointment with Adam at OWD. Go either before or after your visit at IDJ. You can walk between the two locations. @missy correct me if I don’t remember correctly. On the phone, tell Adam your budget and that you are looking for a beautiful OEC and let HIM pull the diamonds for you. He knows OECs and you can trust his eye. I would stop looking at the OWD website. Don’t take this personally but you don’t know what you are looking for and you won’t until you have seen some in real life. I would try to see both places in the same day. Good luck!

 

[MollyMalone]

It will be easy-peasy to visit both in the same day (but make the appointments in advance) -- OWD is at 580 Fifth Ave; IDJ is right around the corner at 15 W. 47th. Hope it turns out to be a fun & rewarding day for you!

 

[whitewave]

I shouldn’t say anything about Winkcz from wink of HPD. Lol. See fabulous fashion jewelry board

 

[missy]

Make a separate appointment with Adam at OWD. Go either before or after your visit at IDJ. You can walk between the two locations. @missy correct me if I don’t remember correctly. On the phone, tell Adam your budget and that you are looking for a beautiful OEC and let HIM pull the diamonds for you. He knows OECs and you can trust his eye. I would stop looking at the OWD website. Don’t take this personally but you don’t know what you are looking for and you won’t until you have seen some in real life. I would try to see both places in the same day. Good luck!

Yes he does exactly this. IMO Adam @oldworlddiamonds has the most amazing supply of Old cut diamonds and also is one of the nicest and fairest vendors you could ever work with. I trust him completely and you cannot go wrong calling him and seeing what he has in stock. The OWD website does not represent the beautiful diamonds they have. Talk to him and I bet you will be pleasantly surprised. Good luck and have fun!

 

[DoeEyes]

I did something last night. This feels like a confession, like I did something bad. I bought a ring from brilliant earth, lab grown. I know we aren't supposed to talk about them here but this thread help me so much I wanted to give a quick update. I am keeping my expectations low because it scores 5.5 on HCA. But the price was right, the video looks great, and I can return it for free if it's not good enough for me.

I didn't go to see IDJ and OWD. I made appointments with both, bought Megabus tickets, we were supposed to go today but my boyfriend is sick. Instead I went to another local jeweler last night and looked at more options, realized I'm very forgiving when it comes to "bad" diamonds (basically had him show me his worst ones and though I could see why they were bad, I still liked them), and decided to just pull the trigger on a brilliant earth purchase.

I paid just under $2k for a .9 carat J SI2 Ideal cut in the white gold 6-prong petite comfort fit setting. The diamond on it's own was $1470. I am aware that this is a really low price for that size and specs, which is why the poor HCA rating makes sense. I really wanted that size and price, and if I see it in person and it meets my expectations, I'm going to be so happy. But again, I'm keeping my expectations low!

If I'm allowed, I'll update this thread with pictures and video when I get it.

 

[missy]

I did something last night. This feels like a confession, like I did something bad. I bought a ring from brilliant earth, lab grown. I know we aren't supposed to talk about them here but this thread help me so much I wanted to give a quick update. I am keeping my expectations low because it scores 5.5 on HCA. But the price was right, the video looks great, and I can return it for free if it's not good enough for me.

I didn't go to see IDJ and OWD. I made appointments with both, bought Megabus tickets, we were supposed to go today but my boyfriend is sick. Instead I went to another local jeweler last night and looked at more options, realized I'm very forgiving when it comes to "bad" diamonds (basically had him show me his worst ones and though I could see why they were bad, I still liked them), and decided to just pull the trigger on a brilliant earth purchase.

I paid just under $2k for a .9 carat J SI2 Ideal cut in the white gold 6-prong petite comfort fit setting. The diamond on it's own was $1470. I am aware that this is a really low price for that size and specs, which is why the poor HCA rating makes sense. I really wanted that size and price, and if I see it in person and it meets my expectations, I'm going to be so happy. But again, I'm keeping my expectations low!

If I'm allowed, I'll update this thread with pictures and video when I get it.

Oh please do update with your new purchase. If you aren’t allowed to share here there’s another forum on PS for lab grown beauties.

 

[SimoneDi]

@frogplus you do know that any day now Lighbox will be selling lab diamonds at $800 per carat, correct? Essentially, the diamond that you purchased will be valued $720 at best. Also, HCA of 5.5 does not sound good at all.

 

[whitewave]

I did something last night. This feels like a confession, like I did something bad. I bought a ring from brilliant earth, lab grown. I know we aren't supposed to talk about them here but this thread help me so much I wanted to give a quick update. I am keeping my expectations low because it scores 5.5 on HCA. But the price was right, the video looks great, and I can return it for free if it's not good enough for me.

I didn't go to see IDJ and OWD. I made appointments with both, bought Megabus tickets, we were supposed to go today but my boyfriend is sick. Instead I went to another local jeweler last night and looked at more options, realized I'm very forgiving when it comes to "bad" diamonds (basically had him show me his worst ones and though I could see why they were bad, I still liked them), and decided to just pull the trigger on a brilliant earth purchase.

I paid just under $2k for a .9 carat J SI2 Ideal cut in the white gold 6-prong petite comfort fit setting. The diamond on it's own was $1470. I am aware that this is a really low price for that size and specs, which is why the poor HCA rating makes sense. I really wanted that size and price, and if I see it in person and it meets my expectations, I'm going to be so happy. But again, I'm keeping my expectations low!

If I'm allowed, I'll update this thread with pictures and video when I get it.

The problem is, it is only worth $800 as soon as lightbox comes out. In buying it, you immediately lost $1200.00

You could have sent $1200 to me! I would have taken it lol


You can put the link up on the man made diamond board. Please do.

 

[whitewave]

I did something last night. This feels like a confession, like I did something bad. I bought a ring from brilliant earth, lab grown. I know we aren't supposed to talk about them here but this thread help me so much I wanted to give a quick update. I am keeping my expectations low because it scores 5.5 on HCA. But the price was right, the video looks great, and I can return it for free if it's not good enough for me.

I didn't go to see IDJ and OWD. I made appointments with both, bought Megabus tickets, we were supposed to go today but my boyfriend is sick. Instead I went to another local jeweler last night and looked at more options, realized I'm very forgiving when it comes to "bad" diamonds (basically had him show me his worst ones and though I could see why they were bad, I still liked them), and decided to just pull the trigger on a brilliant earth purchase.

I paid just under $2k for a .9 carat J SI2 Ideal cut in the white gold 6-prong petite comfort fit setting. The diamond on it's own was $1470. I am aware that this is a really low price for that size and specs, which is why the poor HCA rating makes sense. I really wanted that size and price, and if I see it in person and it meets my expectations, I'm going to be so happy. But again, I'm keeping my expectations low!

If I'm allowed, I'll update this thread with pictures and video when I get it.

Is it .8 or .9? You said .9 here and .8 on the other post.

 

[ac117]

Sorry to be a debbie downer but you paid close to $2k for a non-diamond with low color and clarity and presumably bad cut if it scores 5.5 on the HCA. I'd cancel while you can and at least get something worthwhile.

 

[whitewave]

I put up two new choices on the man made diamond post

 

[sledge]

While I believe the majority of us are pro natural diamond, I also think the majority of us believe that sometimes the preference and economics of those requesting help better aligns with lab created diamonds.

That said, I respect your decision to get whatever type of diamond you want; however, I don't understand the logic of giving up on IDJ and OWD because your BF was sick. A reasonable person would re-schedule the appointment and continue the journey.

The BE purchase seems like an impulse decision based on frustration. As others (and yourself) have pointed out, the stone is poorly cut if it is ranking a 5.5 HCA. Why bother purchasing and wasting your time and resources? Not to mention with LightBox around the corner, it's almost like setting money on fire, literally.

While I may not understand your thought pattern, the beauty of this world is that I don't have to as it's your decision and resources. If this makes you happy, then so be it. I wish nothing but the best to you and your future fiancee.

 

[bludiva]

i'm going to give you a minority opinion. take a break until the BE ring arrives. let your eyes and your gut tell you if it's the ring for you or not. if you're not completely, absolutely thrilled with it, there are many others out there and people here can help you find them. if the ring arrives and makes you happy and ends the misery of ring searching for you, it may be worth calling it a day vs. continuing to search for an optimal result.

FWIW. when we first started looking for an ER, i saw a halo ring that i loved the look of but i wasn't sure about the cut on the center stone and i worried about it being too big and we ended up down a months long rabbit hole that resulted in the ring i have now. i would have been more satisfied if we'd just gotten the first one and stopped looking to be honest. what i ended up with is objectively better but i don't know that it was worth the stress and wasted time. (don't throw tomatoes at me, people!)

 

[SimoneDi]

One more comment, you could have gotten a comparable mined diamond for the same price. Here is an example:
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...k-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4696174

It is a nice 60/60 style diamond with complimentary angles and a great spread. GIA K will 99.99% equal or be better that whatever lab cerified a lab made stone as a J.

JA offers $100 off for new customers who sign up for their newsletter and have multiple budget settings.

 

[sledge]

One more comment, you could have gotten a comparable mined diamond for the same price. Here is an example:
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...k-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4696174

It is a nice 60/60 style diamond with complimentary angles and a great spread. GIA K will 99.99% equal or be better that whatever lab cerified a lab made stone as a J.

JA offers $100 off for new customers who sign up for their newsletter and have multiple budget settings.

Great point & find. I might add this natural diamond has strong fluor which should help whiten it a bit. Plus being a 60/60 stone it will throw a little more white light anyhow.

The awesome part is a 33/41 angle really works on this style of stone. Puts you in IDEAL territory!

 

[vintageloves]

One more comment, you could have gotten a comparable mined diamond for the same price. Here is an example:
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...k-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4696174

It is a nice 60/60 style diamond with complimentary angles and a great spread. GIA K will 99.99% equal or be better that whatever lab cerified a lab made stone as a J.

JA offers $100 off for new customers who sign up for their newsletter and have multiple budget settings.

That stone is 500 more than the stone she chose, and she sites price as the reason for her choice. Considering OP wanted to get this over with quickly and cheaply, and her boyfriend is opposed to mined stones, I'm not surprised by her choice. I hope this ring works out for her!

Lightbox hasn't started selling yet. They could sell a couple of white stones, sell them out in seconds, and then never again. There has definitely been rumors they will focus on colored stones. Or they could flood the market. Or lab diamonds could be like cultured pears and no one will care about whether a stone is mined or not in the future. We don't know. I'm not sure it's something a young person in love who plans to wear her ring forever is going to worry about, or even should.

 

[DoeEyes]

Wow. I'll try to address everyone's comments.

LIGHTBOX: I will admit that only after I ordered it did I remember that I wanted to wait to see what Lightbox does this month. That being said, I do have 30 days to return this ring from BE. If LB is not offering 1ct solitaire stones within 30 days, which will be October and they said they would start in September, I don't want to wait anyway. It hasn't been confirmed that they will even offer a full 1ct stone, just 1ct total weight. The solitaire necklace on the website is currently only shown in .5ct. And even if they do offer a 1ct solitaire stone, it's still unknown how long of a wait it will be once you do order one. Someone else said 6 months to a year. I'm not waiting that long to get engaged. I'm almost 30, I'm ready to start planning a wedding, get married, and hopefully start having children. I don't have forever to wait around hoping to save a few hundred bucks.

VALUE: This is NOT an investment to me! I have never been interested in the resale value of my stone. I plan to keep this stone forever. I do not plan to upgrade or sell it, ever. I'm sentimental, I want to always have the one used in my proposal. Maybe one day I'll give it to my child or grandchild as a necklace or something. Or maybe he or she will be like me and not care about the value and will want to use it as an engagement ring. My point is that saying I lost $1200 by buying this when LB is about to release $800 diamonds doesn't really matter to me. $1200 is also is not true, I spent $1470 on the diamond and LB will be $900 when you factor in the setting you have to buy, plus whatever you have to pay a jeweler to remove it and set it into a ring, so at most I lost out on what, $200? And I saved the hassle of having to go through the setting process. So maybe I paid a $200 premium for the convenience of the one-stop shop ordering everything from BE.

MINED V LAB: My boyfriend's only input in this entire thing was that the diamond industry sickens him and he doesn't want us to support it. I thoroughly researched alternatives and really still wanted a stone that would look and behave exactly like a diamond, so we decided to go with lab-grown. Even if I could have gotten an equivalent mined diamond for the same price, we didn't want one. Even waiting for LB would have been icky for him since they are owned by DeBeers so the money is going to the same place.

@whitewave I bought a .9, different than the .8 I posted about before. I'll check out the ones you posted, thank you!

@ac117 I disagree that I bought a non-diamond. It is a diamond in every way other than the source. But this is not the place to discuss that.

@sledge I did try to reschedule. When my boyfriend said he was sick and couldn't go, I had to quickly change the Megabus ticket because Megabus requires you to rebook within 10 minutes. I picked a date that ended up being a Jewish holiday when both jewelers were closed, so now I have to change it again. Every time you change it it's another $5 fee. And honestly, I don't even want to go. I hate going to NYC. I hate jewelry stores. The whole trip felt more like a chore, and I'm almost certain I would have just been exhausted and frustrated afterwards. Sure, if I was excited about it a reasonable person would have rescheduled. But in my case, the reasonable thing to do was to realize and admit to myself that I'm sick of this whole industry. I'm opting out. I'm buying lab-grown online. I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off of my shoulders.

@bludiva Yep, I'm taking a break. I shouldn't have even posted here until after I had it in hand, to be honest.

@vintageloves YES! You get me.

So look, at this point I'm closing out of PriceScope and not coming back until I have the ring in hand. I really do appreciate everyone's help and feedback, but I'm not a diamond purist like most of you are. I'm never going to agree with you that I should spend that much money on a high quality mined diamond. My mom had cubic zirconia in her first wedding ring and didn't even have an engagement ring. I don't come from diamond people, it's just not me, and being here is starting to make me feel bad, so I'm leaving. I'll post on the MMD forum when I have the ring, but I probably won't ever come back to RockyTalky. Thank you again.