Help with picking Oval 1.5-2.0 carat

[roy_jones]

Hi

I am a n00b who is looking to buy a stone for my gf. We went to look at rings in nyc and came across a great ring that she really liked. the only probably is that it requires an oval stone. i have read a lot about rounds, but it doesnt seem like there's that much about picking ovals. the most ive read, is that its very diff to actually pick a good one. I am looking for

1.5-1.9 carats
VVS2-VS1
F-H
and hoping to get it for <15k (would ideally like the whole ring to be about that)

I saw this on b2c jewels from the pricescope search:
http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-6459015-1.51-carat-Oval-diamond-F-color-VVS2-clarity.aspx

any thoughts on it?
how do I spot the bow-tie effect that ppl keep mentioning. Also, when i look at the aset images, its not a lot of red...

please help!

thank you in advance,

Roy

 

[JulieN]

Pleasing l/w ratio. (This is personal preference.)
VG+ symmetry. Good tends to have a slightly wonky outline.
Bowties show up as blue under ASET. You don't want it to be too big.
No large areas of leakage. Mush (small areas of leakage) is unavoidable in ovals but try to minimize.
Normal not to have a lot of red under ASET. Buy ovals because you (or she) likes the shape, and keep it clean to maximize its performance.

From B2C I'm mostly interested in these:
http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-6342641-1.52-carat-Oval-diamond-G-color-VVS2-clarity.aspx
http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-6384768-1.74-carat-Oval-diamond-G-color-VVS2-clarity.aspx
http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-6498220-1.50-carat-Oval-diamond-E-color-SI1-clarity.aspx

If she's not in love with ovals but loves the setting... I'm sure they can make a new setting to fit a stone in her favorite shape. And if they can't, there is no shortage of jewelers who are willing to.

 

[roy_jones]

Thanks a lot for the information and the links.

I have a couple from ritani that I wanted your thoughts on also:

https://www.ritani.com/diamonds/oval-diamond-1-70-Carat-E-color-GIA-certified/D-DR3922

https://www.ritani.com/diamonds/oval-diamond-1-70-Carat-G-color-GIA-certified/D-9QPMNH

I was also wondering if you had any advice of working w/ a dealer to purchase something online or do I just purchase it online and do the work myself before getting the jeweler to put it in a setting?


this process is both exciting and frustrating, but I want to get it right

thanks again.

RoY

p.s. she likes the shape and the setting. the prob w/ ovals is that it takes so much work from me to get it right

 

[JulieN]

Ritani videos are terrible... barely serviceable for rounds, and for fancies just really bad.

Ok here is the thing about ovals.... they are kind of not that different from each other. A really bad round and a really good round is a world of difference. Ovals are more yes/no. it is mostly about shape/outline, and avoiding large "dead" areas. So if you work with a jeweler who is willing to show you about 4-5 ovals with your desired characeteristics, I'm confident that you should be able to pick something that is nice.

If you want to work with an NYC retailer, Brilliantly Engaged, ID Jewelry, and Diamonds by Lauren are just a few that are popular on Pricescope and will be able to help you find a nice oval.

James Allen and B2C are more web-based and you kind of have to do the initial weeding out work yourself, and I'm not sure their NYC offices are really set up for local customers to come in for a viewing. But they both have generous return policies with free shipping both ways.

 

[Gypsy]

Here are some choices. You do NOT need VS1 clarity, eyeclean Si1 is fine as long as you are shopping at a reputable vendor with pictures and trained gemologists to review the stones, and will look the same as a VS1 stone to the naked eye. And you are ruling out very nicely cut and clean stones that you should really not be. Ovals are hard enough to shop for without unreasonable clarity requirements weeding out great options. The gemologist at JA will tell you if the stone is eyeclean and be honest with you.

This one is really nice, but if you want the whole ring for 15K then it might be overbudget. But it's a really nice and large stone with very nice faceting: http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/1.81-carat-g-color-si1-clarity-sku-319854

This is a nice option as well: http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/1.54-carat-f-color-vs2-clarity-sku-365545 And will be eyeclean.
Also nice: http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/1.51-carat-f-color-si1-clarity-sku-278274
And this one: http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/1.51-carat-f-color-si1-clarity-sku-380941


I personally would try to stretch the budget to afford the 1.8 I would send it for an ASET.

But put three of the above on hold and request ASETs. Will be 5 business days max before they get them for you, and also the gemologist will examine them for you.


This B2C stone is a pretty decent stone you picked though. And no, that's not a bad bowtie bad would be blue where all the red is: http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-6459015-1.51-carat-Oval-diamond-F-color-VVS2-clarity.aspx

Julie's choices have merit as well. Those are computer generated ASETs though. I would ask them if they can get real ASETs of any of those for you instead.

 

[roy_jones]

thanks a lot for the help. unfortunately, gypsy, i was too late and your #1 pick is already sold. I am going to go to the jeweler this weekend to discuss what sizes best fit the setting and what he can see and will start reserving stones for review.

again,

thanks a lot for your help. i will msg you next week for more advice if you are available.

 

[msop04]

thanks a lot for the help. unfortunately, gypsy, i was too late and your #1 pick is already sold. I am going to go to the jeweler this weekend to discuss what sizes best fit the setting and what he can see and will start reserving stones for review.

again,

thanks a lot for your help. i will msg you next week for more advice if you are available.

How do I say this...? Hmmm... here goes. (and I swear, I'm not trying to be discouraging -- only cautioning you)

It's hard enough to find a good oval, but to find a nice oval that will also fit into a setting you've already purchased --- good luck. I hope you do find one, but you're going about this backwards... You really need to find the stone first, then you get a setting that will accommodate it properly. I imagine it's gonna be even more difficult for a fancy.

I hope maybe I'm wrong and you can order the setting to fit whichever oval you decide on??

 

[Gypsy]

thanks a lot for the help. unfortunately, gypsy, i was too late and your #1 pick is already sold. I am going to go to the jeweler this weekend to discuss what sizes best fit the setting and what he can see and will start reserving stones for review.

again,

thanks a lot for your help. i will msg you next week for more advice if you are available.

How do I say this...? Hmmm... here goes. (and I swear, I'm not trying to be discouraging -- only cautioning you)

It's hard enough to find a good oval, but to find a nice oval that will also fit into a setting you've already purchased --- good luck. I hope you do find one, but you're going about this backwards... You really need to find the stone first, then you get a setting that will accommodate it properly. I imagine it's gonna be even more difficult for a fancy.

I hope maybe I'm wrong and you can order the setting to fit whichever oval you decide on??

Nope. You are right. Backward. Ovals are not rounds.

Ovals of different weights can have very different dimensions. So if you want to know how big an oval to get make sure you get EXACT dimensions.