Help! Should I upgrade? I need to understand GIA Si1.

[jdljbt]

Hi everyone! I am looking to upgrade my current stone from a 1 carat to a 1.8 carat. The specs of the stones are as follows:

Current Stone
- 1 carat
- E color
- triple excellent cut - hearts and arrows
- VS2 Clarity
- GIA certified

New Stone
- 1.8 carats
- D color
- triple excellent cut - hearts and arrows
- Si1 clarity
- GIA certified

I know cut is king, so this is what I focused on. My search included stones in the D-F range because I am color sensitive and I don't want to go down to a G. The D color is just a bonus. There were no stones that satisfied my cut criteria in the E-F range in the VS range without going up $5000 min. My only concern is the clarity grade. I will attach a picture of the diamond. The person who inspected the stone said there is a minor needle that MAY be visable in the table. This tells me that it is pretty hard to see. I can HARDLY see it in this 30x magnified picture. What do you guys think? Should I be worried? I obviously dont want to be looking down at an inclusion! Thanks for your help and advice

 

[rockysalamander]

Do you have a video? Can you tell us the crown angle, pavillion angle, table%, depth%? What are the clarity setting inclilusions? Or ...just post the cert with the gia#blacked out

 

[jdljbt]

Do you have a video? Can you tell us the crown angle, pavillion angle, table%, depth%? What are the clarity setting inclilusions? Or ...just post the cert with the gia#blacked out

Thank you for your response! They told me that line in the middle is a needle. Here is the GIA cert.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Well, the cut looks good. I can easily see the needle inclusion, but as you said, that is high magnification. You will need to see the stone with no obligation to keep it. Does your vendor have an unconditional return policy? I personally prefer VS2+, but it sounds like you'll have to sacrifice something if you want D-F and a certain size. I do think it will be eyeclean, but I would never make a commitment to buy any diamond without seeing it.

 

[jdljbt]

Well, the cut looks good. I can easily see the needle inclusion, but as you said, that is high magnification. You will need to see the stone with no obligation to keep it. Does your vendor have an unconditional return policy? I personally prefer VS2+, but it sounds like you'll have to sacrifice something if you want D-F and a certain size. I do think it will be eyeclean, but I would never make a commitment to buy any diamond without seeing it.

Thank you for your response. I would normally prefer VS2 as my ideal clarity, however this stone looks so clean that I don't want to pass it up if there is a good chance I will not see it or if I have to squint to see it. Also, because it is white won't that help with not being able to see it?

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Thank you for your response. I would normally prefer VS2 as my ideal clarity, however this stone looks so clean that I don't want to pass it up if there is a good chance I will not see it or if I have to squint to see it. Also, because it is white won't that help with not being able to see it?

Yes, it is likely eyeclean, but never commit to any diamond without seeing it first. If there is no return policy, I would change vendors.

 

[Miki Moto]

Hi! I would not get a SI stone. I have purchased both VS2 H and also SI2 F diamonds. While the SI2 F is whiter, I regret purchasing a SI2 clarity as while I cannot see it with the naked eye, mentally, it bugs me to know I have a SI2 stone. My lowest clarity would be VS2. I know SI2 is eye clean, but for me, I know it’s a SI2 stone. Does a SI stone bother you? Is the key reason you are considering this stone is because it is a good price? If yes, a SI may bother you in the future. For me, I would pass on this stone. The price is good “because” it is a SI stone.

I’m not a diamond expert, there are others here to help with that. I just want to share with you the emotional side of a diamond purchase and the trade offs in clarity and color. Most people keep their diamonds for a long time, so in ten years, will that $5K really matter to know you got the diamond of your choice. For me, knowing what I know now, VS2 G would be my first pick.

Just my two cents.

 

[ccuheartnurse]

That looks like a really nice SI-1. I've had several SI-1's that have been just as eye clean as my VVS1 - VS-2's were. Depends on your own priority system. If you are mind clean, then maybe SI isn't for you & you should go with VS-2 & above. If you are eye clean, want to maximize your budget & get the best colour/size combo by dropping to an SI that has no integrity issues, then get the SI. Everything is about balance. You need to decide which one suits you best. Good luck.

 

[ac117]

That looks like a really nice SI-1. I've had several SI-1's that have been just as eye clean as my VVS1 - VS-2's were. Depends on your own priority system. If you are mind clean, then maybe SI isn't for you & you should go with VS-2 & above. If you are eye clean, want to maximize your budget & get the best colour/size combo by dropping to an SI that has no integrity issues, then get the SI. Everything is about balance. You need to decide which one suits you best. Good luck.

Couldn't agree with this more! Everyone needs to compromise somewhere to get what they want (without sacrificing cut). I'm definitely in the camp of paying for what you can see and appreciate. Size and color are important to me and am willing to play around with clarity to get where I want to be. Eye clean is fine for me and don't need mind clean to be happy. I'd be very happy with this contender, which has a white inclusion and I think would barely be visible unless you're really looking for it at the right distance/angle. My previous stone was a 1.81 VS2 with a few black crystals under the table that I never saw face up-I had to look from the side at maybe 3 inches away to even spot them.

Think about which camp you're in so it could possibly make your choice easier.

 

[jdljbt]

Couldn't agree with this more! Everyone needs to compromise somewhere to get what they want (without sacrificing cut). I'm definitely in the camp of paying for what you can see and appreciate. Size and color are important to me and am willing to play around with clarity to get where I want to be. Eye clean is fine for me and don't need mind clean to be happy. I'd be very happy with this contender, which has a white inclusion and I think would barely be visible unless you're really looking for it at the right distance/angle. My previous stone was a 1.81 VS2 with a few black crystals under the table that I never saw face up-I had to look from the side at maybe 3 inches away to even spot them.

Think about which camp you're in so it could possibly make your choice easier.

Thank you so much for all of your advice. For me, an inclusion is an inclusion so even a VS2 doesn't make it "mind clean" as there are still inclusions, they are just harder to see. As long as I can't see them with the naked eye and the inclusions don't affect performance, I am happy! I am also a big fan of super white, crisp diamonds so color is more important to me than a small white needle that I will hardly notice. If it was a black speck, I think that would be different. I am going to go for it and I will keep everyone updated when I receive it

Thanks again for everyones comments and help. Much appreciated !!!

 

[ac117]

Thank you so much for all of your advice. For me, an inclusion is an inclusion so even a VS2 doesn't make it "mind clean" as there are still inclusions, they are just harder to see. As long as I can't see them with the naked eye and the inclusions don't affect performance, I am happy! I am also a big fan of super white, crisp diamonds so color is more important to me than a small white needle that I will hardly notice. If it was a black speck, I think that would be different. I am going to go for it and I will keep everyone updated when I receive it

Thanks again for everyones comments and help. Much appreciated !!!

Yayyy! Please post pictures when you get it!!!

 

[KingKuda]

I know everyone is different, but I find people who prioritise clarity over colour very odd. Eye clean is perfect for me, get a good quality SI1 and use the savings to get a bigger size or whiter colour. As someone else said, unless it is IF then it isn't mind clean either.

 

[Lorelei]

Thank you so much for all of your advice. For me, an inclusion is an inclusion so even a VS2 doesn't make it "mind clean" as there are still inclusions, they are just harder to see. As long as I can't see them with the naked eye and the inclusions don't affect performance, I am happy! I am also a big fan of super white, crisp diamonds so color is more important to me than a small white needle that I will hardly notice. If it was a black speck, I think that would be different. I am going to go for it and I will keep everyone updated when I receive it

Thanks again for everyones comments and help. Much appreciated !!!

Congratulations!!

I think it'll be a beautiful stone and that's the thing, everyone has different priorities. DS and Miki prefer higher clarity, KK and myself love a great Si, nothing wrong with either choice, it depends on the buyer.