Help needed

[lsudu2]

After much debate, I''ve decided to go with a local jeweler for purchasing a stone for my soon-to-be fiance''s engagement ring. I know she either wants a cushion or a round stone between 1.2 and 1.5 carats. I would like to keep the stone between the G and I range. Also, I''m really not that conserned about clarity, all I want is eye clean. Other than that, I AM LOST. I was hoping to draw up a sort of "cheat sheet" to use when shopping for the stone. I was hoping that the guru''s on this site could help me draw up a cheet sheet of depth/table, crown angle, etc. ranges that a good cushion and round cut diamond should fall into. I don''t want to go into the jewelry store blind. Thanks for the help.

 

[tyty333]

I can give you the round cheat sheet but I dont have anything for a cushion cut.

Color - personal preference but G seems to be the middle ground unless really color sensitive
Clarity - Some like VS2 or higher but if you are looking for bang for your buck you can go with
eye-clean SI1.

Round
depth 60-62%
table 54-57%
crown angle 34-35 degrees
pav angle 40.6 - 41 degrees

girdle - avoid extremes like very thin to very thick

polish and symmetry - very good and above


Hope that helps!

 

[tyty333]

Honestly, I think if I wanted a cushion (there doesnt appear to be specific specs) I think I would work with
one of the expert cushion vendors here on PS. I dont know if individual jewelers sell many cushion cuts and
whether they have much experience with them. These 2 vendors are well known for selling cushions and know
what they are looking at. Also, there are various kinds of cushions so you need to look at some to see what
you are interested in. Some are considered to look more like crushed ice and some have bigger facets with
bigger flashes. I'll see if I can find some links to the different looks to show you.

Here are the 2 well known cushion cut vendors here on PS

www.engagementringsdirect.com
www.goodoldgold.com - they can make a video for you if you are interested in a specific stone so you can see
the performance

If you go to this site and look down under "Product Comparisons" you'll find a vido that is called
"Undrestanding the Apperance of Cushion Cuts"...this would be a good video to see.

EDIT - whoops, forgot the link to the page with videos
http://www.goodoldgold.com/Diamond_Videos/


Edit - If you look here you can see 2 different types of cushions.
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamondResults.php?shape=4194306&ctMin=&ctMax=&clarity=&color=&sym=&polish=&agsCutGrd=&giaCutGrd=&cert=&certNum=&optSym=&tblMin=&tblMax=&depthMin=&depthMax=&crnAMin=&crnAMax=&crnDMin=&crnDMax=&pavAMin=&pavAMax=&pavDMin=&pavDMax=&grdlMin=&grdlMax=&fluo=&priceMin=&priceMax=&wireMin=&wireMax=&widthMin=&widthMax=&lenMin=&lenMax=&culet=&depthPctMin=&depthPctMax=&upGrdlMin=&upGrdlMax=&lowGrdlMin=&lowGrdlMax=&dateMin=&dateMax=&inHouse=&resultsColumns=268435471

 

[tyty333]

Also, I found this diagram on another thread to show you that there are several different looks to cushions...

 

[FB.]

I'd say that fairly safe, "fast-screening" proportions for the most commonly encountered cushions would include the crown measurements of a round, with the pavilion measurements half-way between round and Princess.
Length-to-width ratio can have an effect, with the more elongated stones bing more likely to need careful examination.

Roughly:

Table: 54-59%
Total depth: 64-69%.
Girdle: thin to thick

That's about all you'll get from most lab reports and isn't entirely helpful, but the likelihood of a bad stone is much reduced and allows you to focus on higher-probability stones, although you will miss some beauties unless you see them for yourself.

In cushions, colour and clarity is slightly more detectable than rounds, due to larger facets and a different kind of sparkle - fewer but larger flashes - so look at the stones carefully for colour/clarity.

Watch out for excessive amounts of dark areas under the edges of the table.

Some cushions have very large crowns - greater than 40 degrees. But although listed on grading certs as a warning, an "oversize" light-gathering crown seems part of their design. I guess that's why they are called "candlelight diamonds".

I have a nice-performing square cushion cut (not modified cushion cut, which has an extra ring of pavilion facets and performs more like a round for light handling) and my cushion has a 41-degree crown (crown height: 26%) and 41-degree pavilion (pavilion depth: 38%).

 

[ct-appr]

When you find one you like, post the lab report here. It would also be helpful to get an ASET scope image of the stone if possible. A little info and you''ll get more feedback than you can imagine. Good luck!

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 10/29/2009 10:20:31 AM
Author:lsudu2

After much debate, I've decided to go with a local jeweler for purchasing a stone for my soon-to-be fiance's engagement ring. I know she either wants a cushion or a round stone between 1.2 and 1.5 carats. I would like to keep the stone between the G and I range. Also, I'm really not that conserned about clarity, all I want is eye clean. Other than that, I AM LOST. I was hoping to draw up a sort of 'cheat sheet' to use when shopping for the stone. I was hoping that the guru's on this site could help me draw up a cheet sheet of depth/table, crown angle, etc. ranges that a good cushion and round cut diamond should fall into. I don't want to go into the jewelry store blind. Thanks for the help.

Sorry isudu there is no cheat sheet for cushions as Ty says. If you prefer to go with a local jeweller to find your stone, make it a mission to get out there and view as many different cushion types as you can, take notes of what you like and the various types ( pavilion mains/ faceting/ shape etc) then once you know what the perfect cushion is to you, then you can seriously look for purchase.

I would also suggest you buy an ASET scopehere as this would be of immense help to you, they are simple to use and to interpret the results.