How important is it to buy the ring your girlfriend asks for?

[MissDimity]

Moneyman- I totally think your making a better move staying within the 1.5- 1.8 ct range. That would still be a huge diamond, and there are a lot more options open to you .

 

[moneyman]

Date: 1/29/2009 1:31:16 PM
Author: cara
Date: 1/29/2009 12:49:16 PM
Author: moneyman
Well, the point of my original post was that I don''t think she knows what she wants so why not use my own best judgement since I''m confident I know more about the price to value tradeoff in diamond buying (but I''m still very very wet behind the ears compared to the ladies and gents on this board!) than her. I made the suggestion about Eva Longoria''s ring because I really like it, but also because it''s not a round diamond and therefore should on average be cheaper per carat.
Because its not only price that matters. The lower price per carat of fancies would only matter if you were trying to hit the magic 2 ct mark and didn''t care what it actually looked like. I''m going to go out on a limb and guess that she does care what it actually looks like. Rounds often face up bigger per carat or simply have a shape-based premium that you pay for the round rough. Some people think marquises look big for their weight, but they are a particular look and NOT interchangeable with a round or an emerald or anything else. Get your gf the shape she wants, do as well as you can on specs, and remember that *she* is wearing the ring, not you. Eva''s is lovely but not what she asked for.


Let''s turn this discussion on it''s head. For $13-15k, what would you ladies get? Let''s say the only constraint is that the diamond must be a round brilliant. Feel free to make suggestions as high as $20k if you feel it''s a compelling value.


To figure this out, it would be useful to know what you want to priortize. Cut, cut cut? Superideal or not necessary? High color at the expense of size, cut, and budget? Eyeclean only or mindclean clarity? Eyeclean at hand-waving distance or under eagle-eyes inspection? Size, size, size! Yes to all, Budget fungible to get everything you want?

These are near colorless, superideal SIs near 1.5 ct and in budget. I would probably get one of these in your shoes, save some money until better employed:
1.51 H
1.45 H
1.51 H no pic yet
1.53 I
1.52 G

This is a 1.5 ct F, non-superideal, if you really want colorless.

This 2.0 ct F SI2 is probably not eyeclean, given the price and the pic. But, hey, 2 ct colorless in budget!

This 1.79 H SI Infinity I like if you are going to blow the budget a bit. Still not 2 ct but a nice stone in an difficult size range.

Keep in mind that the pickings are slim in the range from 1.6 to 1.99 ct, and the price jump at 2 ct is hard to deal with in your budget. So if you want something in that difficult range, patience is needed.
Thanks for the many suggestions!!!!

I''m probably going to stay away from SI2. I haven''t come across a single eye clean SI2. In a couple cases I was told they were eye clean only to find out we had different interpretations of the term. I don''t think I can splurge on the infinity. I''ve even heard that the infinity cuts make a diamond look several color grades better, but I don''t trust my eyes to make that judgement when we''re dealing with such a large premium. The 1.5cts look great, but I''m going to keep looking to see if I can find something bigger while holding all other things constant.

 

[Miss Fortune]

Please do not get her an Emerald cut (like Eva Longoria's ring) if she wants a Round. Watch out for fluro in a diamond. For example a G/H/I would look good with fluro but a D with fluro IMHO would not. Just my 2 cents - others on this board like it. Just do some comparison and GOOD LUCK!!

 

[MissDimity]

Just another diamond to consider:

Whiteflash Expert Selection 1.5 F Colour VS2 med blue fluro HCA 1.9 score $14596
http://www.whiteflash.com/round/Round-cut-diamond-680229.htm#

 

[moneyman]

Date: 1/29/2009 2:18:15 PM
Author: MissDimity
Just another diamond to consider:

Whiteflash Expert Selection 1.5 F Colour VS2 med blue fluro HCA 1.9 score $14596
http://www.whiteflash.com/round/Round-cut-diamond-680229.htm#

beautiful diamond.

 

[moneyman]

http://www.szul.com/d_3314161_GIA-certified-1.84ct-Round-diamond-F-SI1.html

This one looks like it has potential too. Have you guys ever dealt with Szul Jewelers before? Are they reputable? I googled them to see if there were any customer complaints and all I found was something about a model suing them because of a racy ad.

I''m waiting for them to email me a scan of the GIA report on the other diamond I mentioned. It''s supposedly eye clean.

 

[chrono]

Date: 1/29/2009 2:33:11 PM
Author: moneyman
http://www.szul.com/d_3314161_GIA-certified-1.84ct-Round-diamond-F-SI1.html

This one looks like it has potential too. Have you guys ever dealt with Szul Jewelers before? Are they reputable? I googled them to see if there were any customer complaints and all I found was something about a model suing them because of a racy ad.

I''m waiting for them to email me a scan of the GIA report on the other diamond I mentioned. It''s supposedly eye clean.

Moneyman,
I replied on Page 1 about the E SI1. The same question applies to this F SI1. You''ll need to know the crown and pavilion angles and also have magnified pictures to see if the inclusions bother you.

 

[MissDimity]

Saw this one on another thread. This one could have potential if it is eye clean and the fluorescence doesn''t make the diamond look hazy
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/F-SI2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1107217.asp?b=16&a=12&c=77&cid=131

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I agree with everyone. Get her the style she wants.

 

[emeraldlover1]

I wanted to add one more suggestion. Is it possible for you to take her to try on rings at a local jeweler? Maybe he would like something different once she trys it on. Maybe not. Its worth a shot I think.

 

[Kelli]

Get her what she wants!!! Do what you can within your budget of course, but please don''t get her a ring that isn''t the style she wants!!!

 

[razzie]

I totally agree with getting her what she wants. But I do think that EM1 has a great idea. Take her to a local jeweler to shop, somewhere that carries the size & color she has stated she wants. Maybe you both can compare a diamond in the same carat range that is nearcolorless to the colorless or smaller carat range that is colorless. Any luck and maybe just maybe she ll be able to tell which is more important and stay with in budget. Good luck!!

 

[moneyman]

I don''t think I can take her to a jewelry store. We''ve actually been dating for quite some time (11yrs!!!), we started dating in high school. When she told me what she wanted, it was more as a reaction to looking at the rings of friends who have gotten married in recent years. I do want to preserve some element of romaticism and surprise so I can not take her to a store. When I asked her what she thought about certain attributes, I had also slyly done so in the context of friends'' rings and purchases.

 

[Gypsy]

I think that I would interpret what she wants this way:

She wants a round diamond... largest you can reasonably afford, from a dealer who allows upgrades on diamonds (so that she can later upgrade to a 2 carat if it's important to her). She wants eyeclean, and she wants a white diamond. Colorless is D-E-F, but personally, I think as long as you have an AGS 0 you can safely go to an H in a round solitare. I would AIM for a G, seriously.

I would also get her a very nice, but fairly inexpensive tiffany style setting (Whiteflash has lovely Tiffany style settings), in white gold (not platinum) so that if she does want to upgrade down the road, the setting $$ isn't a complete waste.


http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/4941/ I think this one would be stunning, it's a G, it's 1.5 carats, GOG has a great upgrade policy, and you can get a GORGEOUS Vatche Caroline setting through them in 14 or 18K.

Vatche Caroline: Although she asked for Tiffany Style... so you might want to play it safe and go for the Whiteflash Tiffany Classic setting. It's six prong and beautiful.

 

[oldminer]

Moneyman;

You should not spend $13K from the $20K savings you have while you are unemployed. Ask her if she''ll marry you and tell her that when you are back at work you will find her a 2 carat diamond she will love. This approach may be the best test of your long term relationship you will find BEFORE you are married. With 20K in the bank and no job, I would not buy a big or costly diamond. Buy her a big, temporary CZ or a smaller engagement ring and replace it with a big diamond when you can afford it..... I apologize to all the vendors and people will be distrurbed by my advice. Of course, you don''t have to take it, so just consider me an old guy who isn''t with it....That''s okay, too.

 

[chrono]

Dave,
Thank for writing this. I too posted this as my very first reply to this thread that it isn''t prudent to be spending so much at a time when the economy is down and in an unemployed status.

 

[coatimundi_org]

Great advice oldminer!--Then, later, get her what she wants.

 

[moneyman]

Date: 1/29/2009 4:22:05 PM
Author: oldminer
Moneyman;

You should not spend $13K from the $20K savings you have while you are unemployed. Ask her if she''ll marry you and tell her that when you are back at work you will find her a 2 carat diamond she will love. This approach may be the best test of your long term relationship you will find BEFORE you are married. With 20K in the bank and no job, I would not buy a big or costly diamond. Buy her a big, temporary CZ or a smaller engagement ring and replace it with a big diamond when you can afford it..... I apologize to all the vendors and people will be distrurbed by my advice. Of course, you don''t have to take it, so just consider me an old guy who isn''t with it....That''s okay, too.

Oldminer, I think it''s actually great advice. Thank you very much for giving advice from your heart!!! I only have $20k in the bank account, but have about 14x as much in other liquid savings so I feel like I should indeed splurge and buy her something kind of close to what she wants since we don''t have student loans, car payments, mortgages at this point. In addition, I feel a lot better about things because she has a fairly secure job and makes quite a bit - definitely enough to help with the cost of the wedding. So long story short, I think your advice is great and absolutely correct, but at the same time i am comfortable spending the $13-15k (maybe even up to $20k if I find an amazing deal) on this ring.

Once again, thank you for your honest advice!!

 

[JulieN]

Did you check out this thread: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/best-2-0-ct-round-diamond-12k-could-buy.105856/

 

[moneyman]

Also, oldminer you advice makes a ton of sense, but after 11 years, I just feel like it''s time to pay the piper.

 

[NeverEndingUpgrade]

I removed my post because it does not sound like you would have liked the diamonds I picked out, one of which was the 1.79 ct. Infinity that Cara liked too.

ETA-- has anyone posted this one yet?

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/3659/

 

[Gypsy]

http://www.highperformancediamonds.com/index.php?page=view-id-diamond-infinity&id=553 that Cara picked out in a lovely Vatche setting would bring you in to 20K. 5% pricescope discount on the diamond. It will be WHITE and it looks just beautiful. If you are really looking for a deal, this is actually a pretty good one. Plus, it's insured for a year for you, already. And they have a decent (though not phenomenal) upgrade policy.

I do think that Infinity is worth the money, especially as your GF has said she wants a white 2 carat and this stone is the best option I see for getting her as close to that as possible.

 

[NovemberBride]

I have to agree with OldMiner. I do not think it is prudent in this economy to spend such a large portion of your savings while unemployed. I know of people who have been unemployed for over a year and it is only getting worse right now. I would have been horrifed if my DH had bought my ring while unemployed as it would have raised serious questions for me about our financial compatibility and future stability. I know you said she made a good living, but is she making enough/willing to support you financially if your savings run out before you get a job because you spent 33-50% of them on her e-ring?

 

[NeverEndingUpgrade]

I think that the OP established the fact that he is OK if he buys a ring right now.

 

[I Love My Sailor]

Its really important for a girl to have the ring of her dreams(within means).. there may be another way to insure you get the best ring for your money, while still giving your sweetheart what she wants.

Search around any price scope vendor, or if your not comfortable with buying an online diamond, there are a few good stores around.

Whats your budget?

Before buying a diamond from anywhere!!! make sure you get all the states and proportions. Post them here and we will let you know if its a good value. We can also help make sure your girl gets what she wants as far as fire,brilliance and florescence go.

 

[moneyman]

http://www.whiteflash.com/round/Round-cut-diamond-1879901.htm

Just heard back....the diamond is eye clean and has the following characteristics:
Table: 58%
Depth: 62.5%
Crown Height: 15.0%
Crown angle: 35.0%
Pavilion Angle: 41.2%
I''m having a hard time seeing the other numbers because the attachment they sent was a very poor copy.

 

[MissDimity]

Date: 1/29/2009 5:23:50 PM
Author: moneyman
http://www.whiteflash.com/round/Round-cut-diamond-1879901.htm


Just heard back....the diamond is eye clean and has the following characteristics:

Table: 58%

Depth: 62.5%

Crown Height: 15.0%

Crown angle: 35.0%

Pavilion Angle: 41.2%

I''m having a hard time seeing the other numbers because the attachment they sent was a very poor copy.

That diamond gets a HCA 3.8 score.
Light Return Very Good
Fire Good
Scintillation Good
Spread Very Good

I would reject it based on this score. A score under 2 will give you a more brighter/ sparkly diamond.

 

[stone-cold11]

Can you read the report number? If so, use this http://www.gia.edu/reportcheck/ to check the values.

But sounds like it is a little deep and a little steep in the pavilion. Can we get an IS image for it?

 

[moneyman]

Just heard back from this diamond:
http://www.szul.com/d_3464322_GIA-certified-1.8ct-Round-diamond-E-SI1.html

It''s supposed to be eye clean and has the following characteristics:

Table: 59%;
Depth: 61.3%;
Crown angle: 34.0%;
Pavilion angle: 41.4%;
Pavilion height: 14.0%;

Yikes, HCA score is 5.0 eventhough GIA cut grade is excellent....but I guess there''s probably already a topic on PS for that.

 

[NeverEndingUpgrade]

the diamond I listed above rates an 0.5 on the HCA, Ex/Ex/Ex. The wire price is $13,954, only $170 dollars over the WF one. Unless you have an aversion to I color, I would think it would be a better deal. Tiffany goes down to I-color, so it's not a bad thing. I have one and it is plenty white. This one: http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/3659/

Is Szul a PS vendor?