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How to evaluate OEC's?

Joined
Mar 6, 2018
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Hello all! I've been lurking around for a bit, learning what I can about round brilliants, but I've ended up falling in love with OEC's. With round brilliants, I see 'excellent' or 'ideal' thrown around a lot, but looking at OEC's on Jewels by Grace, GIA reports seem to be comprised of 'good', with occasional 'very good' or 'fair's thrown in. I've looked at AVR's, and while they seem really promising, they're pricier, and I don't know enough to really understand if I'd appreciate the differences enough to be worth the money. I'm still pretty much a complete novice, and I like the idea of having an antique stone.

My budget would be $15-$20k, preferably a 7.5 mm or greater spread, H or I color, VS2 or better. From this point on, though, it's hard for me to tell if 'Good' symmetry/polish/cut should be any sort of deal breaker. Also, with Jewels by Grace, I've noticed quite a few stones with small chips on the girdle- should this be a deal breaker?

I thought this stone was absolutely lovely, with nice crisp facets:

https://www.jewelsbygrace.com/1-73ct-old-european-cut-diamond-gia-i-vvs1

Would you say I could do better for the money?
 
Antique cut stones are a breed all of their own. They’re not precision cut (not original antiques, that is). The signature antiques that are being cut, today, by August Vintage & VC are likely cut with more precision, whereas those cut almost a century ago, were not. Obviously, that affects the cut grade. JBG gets a lot of pre-loved diamonds, and some have some chips & girdle scratches from wear. Most times, a prong or a setting can help to protect that issue in an antique stone, but, for peace of mind, it wouldn’t hurt to have it examined to ensure no real damage or risk to the integrity of the stone has been done.
All of these characteristics of Antique Cuts add to their character, and increases the likelihood that you’re wearing a piece of history. I, too, fell in love with Antique Cut Diamonds, after I inherited 2 OEC’s from women in my family who had passed away. I recently reset one of them, and intend to give it to my son, for when his time comes.
These diamonds were worn around the early 1900’s by these women, and they are truly unique, in their own way.
Good luck in your search! Your budget allows for a lot of wiggle room for a nice sized sparkler with something delicate to hold that beauty on your finger! I can’t wait to see what you choose!!!
 
How exciting to be searching for your own OEC or AVR. It takes looking at many stones to realize what you find pleasing and what you love and what you might not love in an old cut.

Here are a few things I look for...
Even brightness across the stone and even facet light play and similar sizes of facets under the table and in the periphery
(Symmetry/similar faceting across the whole face meaning that the facets are similar size under the table and around the periphery with even light play)
Not all the facets turning on or off at the same time but a pleasing mix of on and off so at no time does the entire stone appear dark. That is the center facets and the peripheral facets working together and not against each other. On-off scintillation should be pleasing to your eye.
Crispness of facet pattern
Symmetry of shape of stone
Color that is good for you and we all have different tolerance levels regarding color especially in old cuts. You need to see many old cuts in person to determine your color tolerance level. For example in old cuts I have a higher tolerance for color than in modern cuts.
Eye clean clarity which means different things again for different people. Again need to see many stones in person to determine your comfort level. I like VS stones generally but there can be exceptions to that.

Good luck and cannot wait to see the stone of your dreams.:appl:
 
I would suggest you reach out to Adam at Old World Diamonds. He has the largest inventory and can educate you as well as to help you find a lovely stone. That would be a start for me. Wishing you luck - I own a few OEC's and am very much in love with the old cuts.
 
There is a video on this thread that shows a great example of a beautifully cut OEC.

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/oec-next-to-a-mrb.241004/#post-4346321

I love stones that light up edge to edge. I also like a decent amount of symmetry in the center petal facets. I like J-L colors. I would consider an I color if I liked the faceting of the stone. The stone swould need to be very lively in all levels of light.
 
The beautiful thing about OECs is the cut is uniquely their own, which makes it a bit harder to shop for than MRBs. I think you have to enjoy the facet pattern and be less concentrated on other parameters, like polish/symmetry. It's an eye-feel-good thing more so than a certificate thing. The certificate does help for things like color and clarity, which helps evaluate the value of the diamond itself. However, when it comes down to cut and the facets, it's a deeply personal choice as well.

When I bought my OEC, I knew absolutely nothing about diamonds. It was about 3-4 months that I truly started to realize what I should have been looking for. My OEC suffers from being a bit shallow and head obstruction at very close distances, it would be a perfect pendant or earring, but definitely could leave me wishing more about the head obstruction.

This is a good example
image.jpgDiamond-5.jpg

Now if I angle it away from my head, or have more light from the back, you can see all the facets turn on beautifully!
Diamond-4.jpgFBD9BD05-EE54-401D-9F69-73320BC05E0A.jpeg

Things like this are things I wish I knew. I loved the facet patterns and how it looks 95% of the time, but that last 5% doesn't bother me as much, except when I try to take pics. I would try to avoid this if you think you're the type of person that's going to be really bothered by your head getting in the way when you look dead-center. If you have the chance to look at the diamonds in real life, and this does bother you, look for this and avoid! Good luck!
 
https://www.jewelsbygrace.com/2-11ct-old-european-cut-diamond-gia-k-vs1
I like the one above cause I prefer fatter petals.

The 1.73 is very pretty too, but has a more tranny feel.

Can u see them both in person? That will also let you see the different colors perform IRL.

I prefer fatter petals as well, the one I posted was pretty borderline to me. I think it's partially that I want a stone that faces up pretty white, and doesn't have too much fluorescence. I'm worried the K range might be past what I really want, color-wise. I also probably need to see a bunch of stones in person so I get a better idea of what they look like in real life. I'm just doing preliminary research now so that when the time comes, I can narrow down which ones I want to see in person.
 
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