Help with a 1 ct Oval

[sunnypier]

Hello,

I'm looking to purchase a 1ct (ish) oval that will be set in a yellow gold solitaire setting.

my stone budget is $4,100, which I know is tight. In my cursory search, it seems like if I want a stone with a decent cut (stones that are way too deep seem to be common in the lower prices) I can hold out and try to find a D/E SI2 that is eye clean. Or I can more easily find a G/H with slightly better clarity. I'm using table of 53-63 and depth up to 64 as my basic search parameters.

I know it's preference, but which type of stone would you "target" and why? Or would you pursue a different strategy?

thank you in advance for your help.

 

[ecf8503]

A G color will be plenty white. I'd try to find an eye-clean SI1 +/-.

Cut is more important than color - the better the cut, the fewer "dead" areas it will have, and the more sparkle and apparent size it will have. Dead ends make a stone look smaller.

Have you looked at James Allen? Or Good Old Gold? GOG can call in some stones for you and help evaluate it.

 

[Gypsy]

Throw out the numbers.

You have to shop from images and videos. Numbers tell you very little with ovals of value.

H is fine and so is I. Even J.

Eyeclean and safe is all you need for clarity.

You focus should be on performance, light return and faceting.

 

[Gypsy]

OK so here are the top choices at JA.

Your budget is low, and also the selection is not great right now for one carat ovals (even if you could go higher) so something has to give.

http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/1.01-carat-d-color-si2-clarity-sku-171311 Is probably eyeclean, looks good though it has a slight bowtie (it blends though and is not pronounced). But I would ask if the feather breaks the surface. If so it is a durability concern. Still, nice looking stone.

http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/1.01-carat-j-color-vs2-clarity-sku-271363 Best performer for your budget IMO with the nicest faceting,and another slight bowtie that blends. But it is a J. I personally would be just fine with that. But it's a personal thing. If you wanted to take a chance of it, JA pays for shipping both ways and has a 60 day no questions asked return policy so you'd lose nothing if you wanted to have it shipped to you so you could check it out in person (which is what we recommend).

http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/1.01-carat-g-color-si2-clarity-sku-281197 Faceting is a bit chaotic for me. Has a feather at the heart of the stone. But looks like it is eyceclean, and doesn't look like it breaks the surface. It's my least favorite but it does have some potential.

 

[Gypsy]

Also, as I said, regarding your desire for a certain stats... 64% depth and so on. You aren't even in the right zip code.

First, ovals can't be bought with numbers. THere is more than one facet plot for ovals (four main, six main, 8 main and then combos) and those all have different requirements for performance that go along with them. Much like cushion.
Second, ovals are highly prone to bowties.
Third, shallow ovals tend to bowtie more than deep ones. So often you NEED a deeper oval for better performance.
Fourth, again, number's don't tell you anything about ovals. You have to shop with pictures, videos. And ASETs.

 

[sunnypier]

Thanks everyone. I ended up with a GIA 1ct I SI1 and a yellow gold solitaire band for $4k all in and I'm quite happy.

I really appreciate the input.

For a while i was really trying to go up in color and find just the right eye clean SI2, but it was almost a fools errand. Endless emails for pics with multiple online vendors and my budget started to drift higher and higher. Then i went to look at some stones locally just to see some of the characteristics in person with the naked eye and found that I'm comfortable with a GIA I color.