help! looking for a diamond...

[Chynnany]

Hi Everyone,
I am currently looking for a a square radiant diamond (length to width ratio of 1.00 to 1.05). I really want a 3 carat. preferably the best cut, at least a G color, at least a VS1 clarity, no flor. Like any other woman I want the best I can get for the money. I want a diamond with the most sparkle (fire, brilliance) out of the diamond. Luckily, my mom knows a whole sale diamond distributor in the diamond district (higher up office not ground floor). I went to see him and he said he would give me the diamond 30% of report price. I saw a diamond it was 4.1 carat, I color ( he said it looks like and H color), good cut, vs1, no flor, vg symmetry,vg polish (46,000). I liked the diamond but I really did not like that it was I color. He had another diamond but it was 2 carat, so he said he would show me more when he comes back from his vacation. I also went to a reputable diamond guy, one that I do not have a relationship with and he showed me two diamonds one was 2.5 ct, F color,vvs2, vg cut, vg, symmetry,vg polish, no flor (39,000). The other diamond was 3.00 ct, excellent cut,excellent symmetry, excellent polish, F color, Si1 (40,000)

My question is does Si1 differ from vs2 a lot?
Can an I color look like an H color?
Should I go with the wholesale diamond distributor that my mom knows or the reputable diamond guy that I do not know?
The reputable diamond guy also said that his prices are at almost wholesale price.
Any advice would help on me finding my perfect diamond for the best price.

 

[sakari_8]

Hi

I think if you want to buy Square Radiant than its better to go with VS Clarity stones, SI1 may not be eye clean considering the size of the stone, difference between SI1 & VS2 may not be significant, but general observation has been VS clarities eyeclean wherease SI. stones are subject to Gemolopgist check, I think you should look around more to find more stones in the criteria that you have, I thinnk below may suit your taste:

http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-3240711-3.01-carat-Radiant-diamond-H-color-VS1-clarity.aspx
http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-1906228-3.01-carat-Radiant-diamond-G-color-VS2-clarity.aspx
http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-2454735-3.05-carat-Radiant-diamond-G-color-VS1-clarity.aspx
http://www.bluenile.com/round-diamond-3-carat-ideal-cut-h-color-vs1-clarity_LD02816560?keyword_search_value=LD02816560

 

[Chynnany]

Thank you so much for your advice. I agree and I am not going to get a SI1. It is a big investment and I think it is best if I get a better quality diamond.

 

[Gypsy]

Don't listen to the words of a poster with 23 posts and no experience to speak of. And ignore her recommendations. The stones she posted for you have no images and are at vendors that do not provide images or ASETs. And you cannot by a radiant (except in person) without images. And an ASET.

Now, to set the other misrepresentations straight:

First, most diamonds are not investments. If you want an investment diamond you need to by a D color flawless-- 5 carat and never wear it and stick it in a bank and keep it there because any ding could cause it to loose value. The diamond you are looking for is not going to be an investment quality. I'm sorry to break reality to you, but it's best you understand this.

SI is fine, especially in radiants. They are so busy that you can easily get an eyeclean and safe SI in a radiant. All you need is a vendor who can pull the stone and examine it for you to tell you if the inclusions are visible or not. And as a trade off you get the significant savings an SI stone can garner you.

The most important thing is CUT and by that I mean-- light return and faceting, these are the things that give you a bright appearance to the stone and all the sparkle and shine that you want. The other chief thing is a lab report ONLY from GIA or AGS. You cannot buy radiants the way you do rounds. You can't say I want a H and an SI and etc. You order of priorities has to be different:

1. Best performance.
2. Color (H or better as radiants trap light)
3. Eyeclean
4. Dimensions (carat weight is not a guarantee of size with radiants. You have to look at the actual measurements of the stone)

With that said. You should stick to vendors that provide images and ASETs and those who have stone in house, so you don't have to pay fees for getting stones imported to them. James Allen and Good Old Gold are going to be your best bet.

 

[Gypsy]

Regarding you diamond vendors you mentioned. I wouldn't go with either of them. Why not your mom's guy: Anyone who claims to sell at wholesale but sells to you IS LYING. Why? Because they are selling to you, that's retail. A real wholesaler wouldn't sell to you. The other guy: how do you know he is reputable? How did you come to that conclusions? What research did you do? Without knowing how you determined this guy was reputable, I can't tell you if I would go back.

Are these stones GIA stones? And how can they guarantee performance and light return for you? If you are spending 40-50k on a stone shouldn't you buy from someone with the tools to confirm performance? You need an ASET image. OR you can buy an ASET scope yourself if you want to shop in person and learn hot to use it.


GIA doesn't grade radiants for cut NO ONE DOES. So anyone who is telling you the diamond is "good cut" is using their own criteria. It's arbitrary.

Even JA which I would buy from assigns cut 'grades' and they are arbitrary so I only shop by the image. And then get an ASET to confirm performance.

This (ignore color, clarity and price) is what you want in a square radiant: http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/F-VS1-Ideal-Cut-Radiant-Diamond-1330734.asp the faceting and everything is really lovely. If you want a 3 carat stone, this one is a strong contender. But I suspect it's above budget for you.

This one might be okay too. http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/G-VS1-Very-Good-Cut-Radiant-Diamond-1501524.asp It's a different facet structure than the other one. This one is more princess-like.

This is the one I'd buy: http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-VS1-Good-Cut-Radiant-Diamond-1487043.asp or http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-VS1-Very-Good-Cut-Radiant-Diamond-1487029.asp

This one is a possible contender: http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-VS2-Ideal-Cut-Radiant-Diamond-1292484.asp

 

[Chynnany]

Hi Gypsy,

When I said investment I did not mean that I was going to get some kind of return on my diamond for money. I meant it would be an investment for me because I do not plan on upgrading, its a one shot deal.
Its actually my moms friend's brother that is the wholesaler. He does not deal with the public, he sat down with me as a favor for his brother. My mom and her friend have been friends for over 30 years. The diamond that I mentioned that was 4ct, I color etc...although I know no two diamonds are alike, I searched online for similar diamond and it was priced for over 63,000 and he gave me a price of 46,000.
I am not a diamond expert by no means but I do believe he is a wholesaler.

As far as the other guy I went to, I think he is reputable because I have done research and so far everyone has been happy with him. He was the one that said something similar that you mentioned, si1 as long its eye clean can be a diamond that can deliver sparkle and fire, which is what I am looking for. So I guess he was right.

(This is so confusing, one person tells me one thing and another tells me another!)
All the diamonds are GIA certified.
Also you mentioned ASET image, what is that? when I go see a diamond can I ask them to show me these images?

As far as the links you shared, you are absolutely right the first diamond is out of my budget. The diamond that is 2 ct ( the one that you would buy), I like the way it looks, it looks like hearts and arrows. I thought radiant didnt have hearts and arrows or am I mistaken?
I really do like it but I want something closer to the 3ct range.

Also have you heard of Leon Mege?

 

[sakari_8]

Thank you so much for your advice. I agree and I am not going to get a SI1. It is a big investment and I think it is best if I get a better quality diamond.

Yes, as the stone is bigger VS Clarity would be a better choice, You could ask the store for Ideal Scope Image or ASET Image,
I am sure they could provide you, read the link below to understand more about ASET

https://www.pricescope.com/journal/aset-%E2%80%93-diamond-evaluation-tool

 

[DiamondBrokersofFlorida]

I wouldn't even dismiss a stone with a J color if accurately graded by AGS. I've seen a 3.00 ct. VS1 J that was gorgeous and still looked really really white.

 

[Gypsy]

Hi Gypsy,

When I said investment I did not mean that I was going to get some kind of return on my diamond for money. I meant it would be an investment for me because I do not plan on upgrading, its a one shot deal.
Its actually my moms friend's brother that is the wholesaler. He does not deal with the public, he sat down with me as a favor for his brother. My mom and her friend have been friends for over 30 years. The diamond that I mentioned that was 4ct, I color etc...although I know no two diamonds are alike, I searched online for similar diamond and it was priced for over 63,000 and he gave me a price of 46,000.
I am not a diamond expert by no means but I do believe he is a wholesaler. Okay well, there are exceptions

As far as the other guy I went to, I think he is reputable because I have done research and so far everyone has been happy with him. He was the one that said something similar that you mentioned, si1 as long its eye clean can be a diamond that can deliver sparkle and fire, which is what I am looking for. So I guess he was right. He was right about that, but do a BBB search and a jewelers association search before progressing

(This is so confusing, one person tells me one thing and another tells me another!) Well I don't get paid. I do this because I enjoy it. And I have no stake in this. So my opinion is not tainted with ulterior motives. I just want you to get the best stone for your budget
All the diamonds are GIA certified. Good
Also you mentioned ASET image, what is that? when I go see a diamond can I ask them to show me these images? Please see link below

As far as the links you shared, you are absolutely right the first diamond is out of my budget. The diamond that is 2 ct ( the one that you would buy), I like the way it looks, it looks like hearts and arrows. I thought radiant didnt have hearts and arrows or am I mistaken? Radiants are 'cut cornered square brilliants". It's like fruit. Diamonds are fruit. Just as there are oranges, bananas, pears with fruit, with diamonds there are princesses, radiants, rounds. But within each type of fruit there are sub-types. If you have ever gone apple shopping you have seen there are red delicious, yellow, gala, fuji... all different types of apples. Radiants are VERY much like that. There are different faceting plots for radaints. ONE of those plots is a cut cornered square brilliant that has hearts and arrows. It's a flavor of radiant, in the larger group of "cut cornered square brilliant" Here is one: http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/5324/ Unfortunately it's way out of budget
I really do like it but I want something closer to the 3ct range.

Also have you heard of Leon Mege? Yes, and I personally would only use him to set stones he sources. His stone finder, Perry, finds lovely stones though. But I wouldn't use him for setting outside stones. For that I'd use Steven Kirsch who used to work with him and is now at timelessluxury.net or Victor Canera While Perry has never had any complaints, Leon has had many so you can do a search on here to see what past poster's experiences have been.

Here's how to read the ASET: http://www.ideal-scope.com/1.using_reference_chart_ASET.asp

Here's where you buy it: http://www.ideal-scope.com/cart_order.asp

Incidentally Leon hates ASETs or anything that hints of science.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Hi Gypsy,

When I said investment I did not mean that I was going to get some kind of return on my diamond for money. I meant it would be an investment for me because I do not plan on upgrading, its a one shot deal.
Its actually my moms friend's brother that is the wholesaler. He does not deal with the public, he sat down with me as a favor for his brother. My mom and her friend have been friends for over 30 years. The diamond that I mentioned that was 4ct, I color etc...although I know no two diamonds are alike, I searched online for similar diamond and it was priced for over 63,000 and he gave me a price of 46,000.
I am not a diamond expert by no means but I do believe he is a wholesaler.

do you really believe he's gonna give away $17k ?

 

[Chynnany]

HI Gypsy,

Thank you for all your advice and the links (especially the link on how to read the ASET images). Should I buy the ASET image kit or will the jewelers have it?

I really love the jubilee stone from GOG. I never knew they had that kind of radiant. Your explanation made a lot sense.
Thank you so much for all the helpful info.
I am going to look at more stones within the next two weeks. Now that I have more knowledge, hopefully I will find the one that I love.