Help - which diamond is better?

[cutandclarity]

Hi PS Community,

After weeks of searching, I've found two diamonds that I really like for an e-ring for my partner.
The two requirements I've been (clearly!) given are;

1 - must be 1 carat
2 - sparkle > size

Here are the two diamonds I'm considering

Diamond | 1.043 ct G VS2 Expert Selection Round Cut Loose Diamond AGS Certified | 4164587

This fabulous 1.043 carat Round Ideal cut diamond has a clarity grade of VS2 and color grade of G.It is an excellent choice for engagement rings. | 4164587

www.whiteflash.com

1.06 Carat F VVS2 Round Brilliant Natural Diamond GIA Certified 2203500244 Affinity Cut - D43724096

www.adiamor.com

Which one would you recommend? Has anyone purchased from Whiteflash or Adiamor recently? How was the experience?

Many thanks!

 

[lovedogs]

Welcome to PS!

What is your ideal budget? In general, WF is going to have better stones than Adiamor (especially the expert select and ACA stones). THat doesn't mean that Adiamor can't have great stones--they certainly can. But WF has all of the ES and ACA stones in house, and you know EXACTLY what you're getting and can have people from WF make recommendations for you, compare stones ,etc. You won't get that with Adiamor, nor will you get advanced images (like ASET/IS, etc).

I would ask WF about the inclusion in the table. It says "Eye clean", and I 100% believe them, but everyone's definition of eye clean is different. From how far away is it eye clean? From what angles? Those are important questions, IMHO. But certainly if given the choice to buy from WF or elsewhere and both are in budget, eye clean, etc, I would buy from WF every time because of their amazing customer service, upgrade policy, etc.

 

[TheUnconsciousBeauty]

I like the second stone more. The 1.06 is very bright and clean.

 

[sledge]

I prefer the WF stone as it is better cut. Proportions are amazing, and you have a complete set of advanced images to make an educated decision about the performance and quality of the stone. In short, it's amazing. Look at the video, and be mesmerized by those big bold rainbow flashes!

While the Adiamor stone also has very nice proportions, I would prefer a smaller table and also I'd prefer 75 LGF's (with GIA it's rounded to 75 or 80, and there is about 5 degrees variance).

The WF stone is certified by AGS and not subject to the whacky rounding of GIA, and the LGF is reported at 76. This is a nice fat arrow that will provide big bold flashes of rainbow light. The Adiamor stone is GIA certified and has reported 80 LGF's. You can see the arrows are more skinny and will consequently favor a little more white light return.

My only hesitation with the WF stone is what appears to be a black crystal in the middle of the table. As @lovedogs pointed out, the WF website states the stone is eye clean, but I'd want them to pull the stone and give me additional feedback concerning it so I could feel all warm & fuzzy.

Also, there is no universal industry standard for "eye clean", so it varies from vendor to vendor. I believe WF utilizes a common definition of 10" away looking at the top with 20/20 vision and good lighting.

I tend to be more critical. When I was shopping for my wife, I specified 6" away and nothing visible from the top or sides with 20/20 vision and good lighting. Later I saw an interesting spin from a different vendor that said something along the lines of "casually looking" at the stone. No way. I'm too picky, and will stare at the stone intently so if I were shopping for stones today I'd want it to be eye clean when intently looking, and not just casually.

WF is pretty critical on themselves, even at the expense of a sale so I believe they will shoot you straight.

Assuming it checks out to be eye clean, it's only $300 difference in price. The reason it's an ES and not ACA is because some of the hearts symmetry is off from the very particular requirements that ACA stones have to meet. Make no mistakes, while the ES misses it by a hair, it is vastly superior to most stuff GIA XXX stones you are going to find.

Because it's a "near miss ACA" and consequently gets the moniker, ES, it also enjoys a price reduction which makes it a great value IMO.

Couple the above with the fact it comes with a lifetime upgrade program that only requires you spend $1 more to get full credit of the original stone and the deal just keeps getting sweeter. You and yours may be thinking you'd never upgrade -- but the reality is diamond shrinkage syndrome (DSS) sets in rather quickly and it's nice to be able to upgrade as budget and life allows.