tankertoad
Rough_Rock
- Joined
- Nov 9, 2007
- Messages
- 14
Even though I purchased some ACA studs a few years back, I had all but forgotten whatever diamond education I had acquired since and when it came time to shop for a 10th anniversary stone (around 1.75 carats, at least H/VS2)) I had to come back here and start from scratch. It was a crash course and I quickly frustrated the local jewelers with my savvy. I could have bought the first "decent" thing I was offered in the beginning by a trusted family jeweler (an average cut EGL 1.7 J VS1 with an HCA in the 5s) because my wife isn''t picky (thankfully).
But I quickly learned that cut should be a differentiator and so I kept searching. A trip to Robins Bros. to get an idea of what was what (they have a large inventory, if nothing else) turned into a joke when the rep tried to push on me a two carat M with strong fluorescence on the principle that size was everything. Then the family jeweler called back with an EGL 1.73 G VS1 with slightly better cut (T-60, D-62.3, C-13.8%, P - 43.6%, HCA - 4.3). It was actually a pretty stone but I had to at least look at something "ideal" to satisfy my curiosity.
After some more researching here, I found another shop (The Jewelry Source in El Segundo CA)that showed me an "EGL Tolkowsky", an AGS ideal "fresh from Antwerp", and an EightStar. Long story short, I fell in love with the EightStar. If I hadn''t seen it, I could have easily accepted one of the others. But the broad flashes of fire and overall brilliance won me over and I couldn''t go back. I brought my wife back and, while she would have been happy with anything, she agreed it was indeed beautiful.
So, I briefly struggled with having to accept a stone that is two color grades and one clarity grade lower than what I previously thought was my minimum in order to get the "performance" I observed with the EightStar cut. In the end, I felt it was justified at the price premium. There''s plenty of EightStar threads here if you search so I won''t go into whether it was worth it except that it was to me (and I wasn''t a victim of BrillianceScope images and EightStars marketing and "hype" either). I will say face up it is completely colorless (slight tint underneath) and the inclusions at 10x weren''t all that obvious to me. The only undesirable aspect of the purchase was the stone was in a setting the whole time. Here''s the specs:
1.64 Carat J/SI1 GIA graded
7.63 x 7.64 x 4.67mm
T - 54%
D - 61.2%
C - 34.5
P - 40.7
Polish - Very Good
Symmetry - Excellent
I think the Mark Morrell settings are beautiful but my wife wants a simple six prong solitaire. I stood firm on the stone so she can choose the setting.
Two questions:
1. the GIA report is from ''04. Should I just have it sent back to the GIA or would it be weird to have it graded at AGS this time (having one report from each lab)? I realize AGS might not match (not be ideal) but I bought the diamond for its beauty and not the numbers (although they''re nice as supporting figures). Just thought it would be cool to get the most precise readings.
2. Should I still get it independently appraised even though I know exactly what it is? What about for insurance purposes?
Thanks to everyone here for the knowledge and advice. Pricescope has been indispensable!
But I quickly learned that cut should be a differentiator and so I kept searching. A trip to Robins Bros. to get an idea of what was what (they have a large inventory, if nothing else) turned into a joke when the rep tried to push on me a two carat M with strong fluorescence on the principle that size was everything. Then the family jeweler called back with an EGL 1.73 G VS1 with slightly better cut (T-60, D-62.3, C-13.8%, P - 43.6%, HCA - 4.3). It was actually a pretty stone but I had to at least look at something "ideal" to satisfy my curiosity.
After some more researching here, I found another shop (The Jewelry Source in El Segundo CA)that showed me an "EGL Tolkowsky", an AGS ideal "fresh from Antwerp", and an EightStar. Long story short, I fell in love with the EightStar. If I hadn''t seen it, I could have easily accepted one of the others. But the broad flashes of fire and overall brilliance won me over and I couldn''t go back. I brought my wife back and, while she would have been happy with anything, she agreed it was indeed beautiful.
So, I briefly struggled with having to accept a stone that is two color grades and one clarity grade lower than what I previously thought was my minimum in order to get the "performance" I observed with the EightStar cut. In the end, I felt it was justified at the price premium. There''s plenty of EightStar threads here if you search so I won''t go into whether it was worth it except that it was to me (and I wasn''t a victim of BrillianceScope images and EightStars marketing and "hype" either). I will say face up it is completely colorless (slight tint underneath) and the inclusions at 10x weren''t all that obvious to me. The only undesirable aspect of the purchase was the stone was in a setting the whole time. Here''s the specs:
1.64 Carat J/SI1 GIA graded
7.63 x 7.64 x 4.67mm
T - 54%
D - 61.2%
C - 34.5
P - 40.7
Polish - Very Good
Symmetry - Excellent
I think the Mark Morrell settings are beautiful but my wife wants a simple six prong solitaire. I stood firm on the stone so she can choose the setting.
Two questions:
1. the GIA report is from ''04. Should I just have it sent back to the GIA or would it be weird to have it graded at AGS this time (having one report from each lab)? I realize AGS might not match (not be ideal) but I bought the diamond for its beauty and not the numbers (although they''re nice as supporting figures). Just thought it would be cool to get the most precise readings.
2. Should I still get it independently appraised even though I know exactly what it is? What about for insurance purposes?
Thanks to everyone here for the knowledge and advice. Pricescope has been indispensable!
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