Help! Need PS experts input on a few stones

[gadawgs17]

I am just starting my search for both a stone and an engagement ring. This is my very first post! I am very excited and have learned a great deal by studying all the articles on PS, however I don't feel confident in being able to tell if a stone is worth buying based on my research so any help at all would be very much appreciated.

What I am basically looking for is the best stone I can get that is at least a 1.00ct with a budget of around 7,500 give or take. For the setting I don't want to go any higher than 1500 - 2k but I figure I should worry about the stone first. My GF is not overly picky but I do know she wants it to be at least 1ct, so the bigger it looks the better as she probably won't know the difference between some of the other C's such as clarity or color. Here are the best options I have found so far using those criteria and HCA to filter out low scoring stones:

#1
Price - 7,016
HCA Score - 1.2
Weight - 1.00 ct
Color - F
Clarity - VS2
Cut - Very Good
Depth - 60.29
Table - 59
Polish - Excellent
Symmetry - Good
Girdle - Very Thin to Slightly Thick
Fluorescence - Med. Blue

GIA report can be found on solomon brothers site, stock #5656HF96. This one seems like the best overall to me but I am worried about the cut being only Very Good instead of Excellent.

#2
Price - 7,375
HCA Score - 1.3
Weight - 1.05ct
Color - F
Clarity - VS2
Cut - Very Good
Depth - 62
Table - 59
Polish - Very Good
Symmetry - Good
Girdle - Very Thin to Very Thick (5% faceted)
Fluorescence - NONE

This one is also from Solomon Brothers which has the full GIA report, stock #59YY5838. It is the biggest but again only has a VG cut and also looks like it has several inclusions on the report. The GIA report says this cut is only Good instead of the Very Good that Solomon Brothers has it listed at.

#3
Price - 7,289
HCA Score - 1.1
Weight - 1.01ct
Color - F
Clarity - VS2
Cut - Excellent
Depth - 61.3
Table - 57
Polish - Excellent
Symmetry - Excellent
Girdle - Medium to Slightly Thick
Fluorescence - Very Strong

This one is from Blue Nile, GIA report availible. Stock# LD02596174. This one has the best cut, but also appears to have many inclusions on the GIA report.

Can anyone shed any insight or possibly point to some better stones in the same range??

 

[gadawgs17]

Update, looks like #2 is no longer availible

Here is the GIA Number for #1 - 2135777484
and for #3 - 1139257790

 

[stone-cold11]

https://myapps.gia.edu/ReportCheckPortal/getReportData.do?&reportno=2135777484&weight=1.00

https://myapps.gia.edu/ReportCheckPortal/getReportData.do?&reportno=1139257790&weight=1.01

From the numbers, prefer the #3 stone. Also prefer it because of the very strong blue fluor but that is due to personal preference, and you have to double check with the vendor to make sure it is not an over-blue which will turn hazy/oily under the sun. Also check with your gf on her preference on fluor and color. Do a blind test and you will find that some may actually prefer more tinted stones and strong fluor if they are not brain-washed by advertizement.

Also clarity, you can easily find eye-clean SI1 stones at that size, just go with a trusted vendor and trust their eyes to make the judgement for you if you cannot see it for yourself.

Size wise, is due to both cut and weight, 1 carat can actually be and look smaller than a well cut 0.9carat stone.

This is from the knowledge section, under carat weight. The stone on the left is 0.84c while the right stone is 1.00c.