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Has anyone ever seen a poor Original Radiant Cut?

O

olehru

Rough_Rock
Joined
Apr 16, 2013
Messages
5
I’m in search of a radiant cut, but it’s been harder than I thought it would be. I’ve visited a number of local jewelry stores, but most carried stones that were lifeless. Trying to find a radiant online has been difficult too. As far as I can tell, only GoodOldGold and Jamesallen carry radiants in stock. Everyone else, Whiteflash, BGD, et al, use networked vendors that don’t give a good sense of cut quality.

Then finally, I came across a local vendor that produced an Original Radiant Cut, and in comparison to what I had seen so far, it had much better pop. It also had a good spread for its carat weight, coming in at 6.05mm x 5.66mm for a 1.04/H/SI1. I’m tempted to just go with it, but I'm not sure I have a sense for what a good diamond looks like. Everything so far has been a dud. I’m thinking about having the vendor put it next to a GIA excellent round to get a better sense of what a good stone should look like, but has anyone ever seen a poor Original Radiant Cut? I’d compare it to other ORCs but I don’t know where to look for one.

There are a couple of potential candidates on GoodOldGold, but I’d have to pay $90 or so to ship one back and forth. Maybe I'm just splitting hairs.
 
yes bank your money lol on GOG ....the money goes toward a purchase. They just came out with a new cut that they are doing and it is gorgous. So I would have them find a stone for you.
 
HI olehru,
Radiant cuts are indeed far more varied than round ( for example) so you will find a very wide range of stones being sold as "Radiant Cut".
When you look at a well cut radiant next to a well cut round, the differences will be stark.
IMO, the best radiant cuts have no patterning- with a lot of sparkle.
Less contrast than a round. Different.

It does put buyers in an "interesting" position that GIA does not classify any diamond as a "Radiant Cut"- which has created this situation where a lot of less than excellent stones being sold under that umbrella.
 
olehru|1368127144|3443517 said:
I’m in search of a radiant cut, but it’s been harder than I thought it would be. I’ve visited a number of local jewelry stores, but most carried stones that were lifeless. Trying to find a radiant online has been difficult too. As far as I can tell, only GoodOldGold and Jamesallen carry radiants in stock. Everyone else, Whiteflash, BGD, et al, use networked vendors that don’t give a good sense of cut quality.

Then finally, I came across a local vendor that produced an Original Radiant Cut, and in comparison to what I had seen so far, it had much better pop. It also had a good spread for its carat weight, coming in at 6.05mm x 5.66mm for a 1.04/H/SI1. I’m tempted to just go with it, but I'm not sure I have a sense for what a good diamond looks like. Everything so far has been a dud. I’m thinking about having the vendor put it next to a GIA excellent round to get a better sense of what a good stone should look like, but has anyone ever seen a poor Original Radiant Cut? I’d compare it to other ORCs but I don’t know where to look for one.

There are a couple of potential candidates on GoodOldGold, but I’d have to pay $90 or so to ship one back and forth. Maybe I'm just splitting hairs.
Click to expand...

My rec is www.diamondsbylauren.com
Call in and talk to David (the owner). Radiants of all types, especially ORCs, have a special place in David's heart - it is obvious when you talk to him!

Radiants weren't cut to look and behave like rounds so IMO you won't get anything meaningful from comparing them. I don't believe ORCs are designed per any particular standards - from what I can tell they can be quite different in terms of both looks and light return, unlike the various boutique RB H&A lines wherein all branded stones have similar characters and characteristics. I don't think it's a bad thing - it just makes it that much more important to work with a vendor whose eyes and opinions you trust.

ETA: And of course, David had to jump on a thread about radiants - and of course he posted while I was typing ::)
 
LIfeless radiants you say could you describe what you meant by that? What attracts you to this cut?
The square shape with cut corners or the small numerous flashes?

This isn't a hard and fast rule but the more squareish or perfect square radiants tend to have better brightness overall in my experience.
 
I'm getting a radiant because my girlfriend wants a radiant. She thinks Rounds and Princesses are too common and wants to be a little different.

When I say "lifeless" I mean they hardly sparkled and looked small for their carat weight. I would look into the table and had to work my hand a bit to get some sparkle.

The ORC in comparison looked a lot better, but I feel hesitant to pull the trigger because it's the first good stone I've seen. I guess I'm trying to assess the confidence I should have in the ORC brand, and whether I should do more work to ensure I have a good diamond.

Good Old Gold does have this diamond:

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/10221/

It's a better color, but it doesn't face up quite as big.

Thanks for the information so far.
 
If you saw an Original Radiant Cut at a dealer, they should be able to get more branded stones to show you.
 
The GOG radiant is similar to a princess, but with clipped corners. Once you put prongs on it, it might not be different enough from a princess to satisfy your gf.
 
Look at the emerald crisscut by Christopher Designs. :love:
 
What about an asscher? Those aren't extremely common. Probably is with all step cuts it will face up small. But still I would take an asscher over a radiant any day. Just .02 cents.
 
JulieN|1368139134|3443617 said:
The GOG radiant is similar to a princess, but with clipped corners. Once you put prongs on it, it might not be different enough from a princess to satisfy your gf.
Click to expand...

+1
 
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