Help on buying a fancy yellow diamond ring

[WillHsu]

I''m a complete novice (aside from one day of running the jewlry store circuit) and need advice on the purchase of a fancy yellow diamond ring. I''m bascially looking for

- ~1 carat square fancy yellow diamond VS1-VS2 (no emeral cut)
- 2 triangle trilliant cut white diamonds on both side of the yellow diamond (not as important on clarity/color)
- platinum or white gold ring (size 4.5)

I''ve found one at baily banks for ~10K, while Tiffanny''s wants 30K, Cartier wants 40K. Also Ebay has one for 5K (see link below) . . . i definitly wants to spend less than 10K. . .

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2636431835&category=15181

(seems sketchy to me, whats GHI Certification?)

basically I''m looking for help in

1) determining how much I should pay for something like what I have in mind
2) the price difference between how deep the color is (vivid vs intence vs regular?)
3) is the ebay one legit?
4) what is the best cut? (table vs depth)
5) and where I can find something like what I''m looking for (dealer/sellers feel free to point me your way)

 

[kiwifuz]

GHI cert doesnt sound at all familiar to me.... Never heard of it..

I don't really have any thoughts on any item you've mentioned in particular. But you have to view the color of the yellow diamond itself. Also a natural colored diamond will cost more than one whose color was made in a lab. From what I've learned around here, fancy colored diamonds aren't held to the same "ideal cut" standards as regular diamonds are.

You may want to look around www.icestore.com or www.fancydiamonds.net until tomorrow when the experts might have some suggestions for you.

Good Luck!

 

[Richard Sherwood]

The heading on that item describes it as a "heartshape", while the body of description and picture describes it as a "radiant". You might want to check that out, as heartshapes usually go for less.

If you go with a natural "fancy yellow" grade and your parameters, you probably can find a ring for less than $10,000.

If you want a natural "fancy intense yellow", you're probably going to spend more than $10,000. A fair amount more.

If you want a natural "fancy vivid yellow", it will be much tougher to find and you'll probably exceed $20,000 pretty easily.

Those $30,000 and $40,000 rings you're seeing at Tiffany's and Cartier's are probably "fancy intense" yellows or better. The ring on Ebay is described as a "fancy yellow", although the picture has more the look of a "fancy intense". I doubt if the color looks quite that intense in person.

You also now have the option of purchasing a lab created "fancy intense" or "fancy vivid" for about what a natural "fancy" yellow would cost you, possibly less.

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Also, note that the modifying hue of a fancy yellow can have a dramatic effect on price.

For example, a fancy yellow color modified by a brown hue is worth dramatically less than a "pure" fancy yellow.