How do you request a stone that looks "clear not matte"

[anika]

Okay so I was trying on stones of different sizes to get an idea of the right size for my upgrade. I tried on a FSI 1.6 ct RB next to my 1.23 FSI RB. What I noticed straight away and I have seen this before is that the 1.6ct looked clear, crystal clear- kind of like clear nailpolish. It was a crisp, clear looking diamond. Mine, cleaning aside, is also sparkly but tends to look more white (ie the stone looks white and not clear) vs seeing through the diamond. If I want a clear looking diamond, what should I ask for spec wise. Can anyone explain how this is caused? My stone is not a dud but its just I liked the clearness, crispness of the other stone.

thanks, Anika

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Anika, the 4 C's are all you need to worry about! If you are looking at AGS0 stones or many GIA excellents, then you will see that the diamonds look great! I think what you are seeing is that your stone is not cut as well...my old one is the same way. It looks good to me except when I compare it to an ideal cut! You may want to avoid strong flourescence as well since that on occasion can make a diamond look oily or milky.

 

[Lorelei]

Anika, some folk might think I am potty here, but I have noticed a similar effect with one of my diamonds which has a very large table ( about 63% if I remember rightly.) It is a carat in weight and is very brilliant with no fire and doesn't look as clear and crisp as one of the others with a smaller table at 58%. I don't know if a larger table could cause this possibly but I was wondering as you brought it up...Also I know that polish of good and above isn't supposed to be discernible with the untutored eye, the differences in between, however I am sure I can see a difference with the Good with the larger table and the ex with the smaller.

It probably is just the difference in between cut quality you are seeing between the new contenders and the old. To get the look you want you are almost there anyway as I understand you are looking at some very nice diamonds, use your eyes to make the decision! Your existing diamond is probably a nice make but when you compare to the super duper Ideals this is probably where you are seeing the difference.

 

[glitterata]

Are you sure your diamond is perfectly clean? Try asking the jeweler to put it through the ultrasonic and then compare again.

 

[diamondsrock]

I don''t think the table has anything to do with it, although I can''t be sure. My stone has a fairly large table and is not ideal cut but it has a crispness to it which I love. It is so clear and it has a lively aspect to it. Good scintillation I guess.
Cut is extremely important but I think all diamonds have different transparency by nature. I''ve brought this up on this board before. I don''t know why this aspect of diamonds is not considered more when I think it''s so important. I think the fact that my diamond is not ideal cut and is still a very lively stone proves that cut is not always the only factor affecting the look of a diamond, although it is of course extremely important. My stone is not poorly cut, just not "ideal". I know exactly the visual differences which you''re talking about with regards to one stone looking more white than the other and not as clear.
I think somewhere it was discussed that even an si 1 stone with clouds as the main feature can display this lack of transparency. I would tend to stay away from any stone with clouds as a main clarity feature. If I had a choice I''d take pinpoint inclusions or crystals. Maybe a lot of surface graining or low clarity diamonds as well would show this as well.
Just my opinion!

 

[diamondsrock]

here''s a link to one discussion on clouds and transparency:
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/clouds-are-not-shown-help-this-could-be-it.14344/=

 

[Arcam]

are you comparing a loose stone vs your current mounted stone/ring? From my viewing experience, I noticed that the glass like clearness of loose stone would change as soon as it got mounted, due to the reflection prongs/ring. If the stone you are comparing is mounted, is the setting the same as your current ring?

 

[Mara]

there are various reasons why stones can look cloudy inside or not like crisp glass...

dirty stone (you'd be amazed at how dirt on the stone can make it look like big poo)
clouds or inclusions throughout the body of the stone or one or two that are richocheting around the inside of the stone and reflecting each other
bad cut quality
too much fluor causing a milky or cloudy look inside

i really haven't seen too many of these cloudy or milky stones...maybe because i don't go into too many B&M's but every ideal or superideal i have bought has that beautiful crisp glass look...i love it. also viewing it mounted should not make a visual difference, as long as it's not reflecting up scratches or poor worksmanship (aka rough spots inside) inside the setting through the stone. i had some scratches on the inside of my setting that i had put there through cleaning, and they were reflecting up through the table and making it look like my stone had inclusions it didn't. the next time WF had my setting i had them polish it out!