I live in Toronto, Canada and my search for a pear shape has begun.

[happyToronto]

Hello everyone,

I live in Toronto, Canada and my search for an engagement ring began two weeks ago. I walked into Tiffany & Co and asked to see some pear shaped diamond rings. The lady showed me a 1.11ct pear. It looked awesome! I was blown away at how sparkly diamonds can be. Price was $16,000cdn(I didn''t take note of the specs, sorry). The price is higher than what I am able to spend, so I told her my budget. She said she would bring in some diamonds within my price range for me to see within the next month.

This is what she came up with:
.54ct
f vvs2
$7450

.55ct
e vs1
$8550

.57ct
e vs2
$8050

.59ct
g if
$8700

I''m still waiting for them to arrive at the store. In the meantime I''ve been doing a little more research and I happen to come across Pricescope. I am absolutely amazed at how much information there is about buying diamonds. I''ve been on this site every single day for the past two weeks. It''s very addictive.

Knowing what I know now, I don''t feel like it''s worth it to buy my ring from Tiffany. Instead i will buy online. Based on everyone''s experience I would these online wholesalers:
http://www.exceldiamonds.com
http://www.usacerteddiamonds.com/
http://www.goodoldgold.com/
http://www.bluenile.ca/
http://www.whiteflash.com

I''ve decided to go with Whiteflash since they also have the setting that i want. USAcerted was high on my list since I live 20 minutes away, but I don''t think Martin does settings, does he? Also I''ve read that it''s better to get the stone set from the same place you bought it from.

 

[happyToronto]

So today is the day I finally made first contact with whiteflash. I called in and spoke with someone in person.
I found a diamond i liked on their site and gave him the item code. He told me that the diamond isn''t in house
and that he had to have it shipped in from new york. Since it is an SI1 he would have someone from whiteflash
look it over to make sure it is eye clean. I told him okay, and that I will be patiently waiting to hear from him. Is there anything else i should ask him? Is he supposed to email me scans and picturs of the diamond? Or do i have to specifically ask for them?

This will be my first ever purchase of a diamond. I feel i''ve done a lot research and I''m a lot more informed now than i was before. I tried to pick a diamond with the best cut i could find. I followed the AGA Rules For Determining "Overall" Cut Grade when choosing a pear shape. I know that fancy shapes really do have to be seen in person to be sure i get the one that sparkles the way i want.

Here is the link to the diamond:
http://www.whiteflash.com/pear/Pear-cut-diamond-647286.htm#

Here are the specs:
. Report: GIA
. Shape: Pear
. Carat: 0.97
. Depth %: 63
. Table %: 56
. Girdle: SLIGHTLY TK-VERY TK
. Measurements: 8.61-5.38X3.39
. Polish: Very Good
. Symmetry: Very Good
. Culet: None
. Fluorescence: None
$3,501.00

I believe everything falls within 1A for the AGA cut rules. What do you guys think? If whiteflash tells me that it is eye-clean then the next step would be to view pictures of it? Possibly send it to a local independant appraiser so that we both can have a look at it to make sure it looks good?

 

[happyToronto]

I received an email from Bob at Whiteflash. Wow, that was quick! He said the diamond should arrive at whiteflash within a day or two and then they will be visually inspecting it for eye-cleanliness, and they will be sending me pictures+scans. I will post them as soon as i get them. I''ll also post all the measurements as well, as soon as i get them. I know there is a tool where you can input all the measurements of a diamond and it will return a score telling how nice the diamond is. Will this tool work for a pear shaped diamond?

 

[Gothgrrl]

It will only work for round diamonds. As far as pear shapes go, you are right. It''s a class 1A. Everything looks good, and you''ll have to wait and see the diamond. Fancy shapes are a bit tricky, as in you have to see for yourself. I recently purchased a pear, and I totally love it. Of course my length to width ratio is a lot fatter than yours. I personally like my pears fat. Hope this helps.

 

[Lynnie]

Congrats on your future engagement! From another pear-lover - the stats look good to me! My l-w ratio is higher, but I like ''em a little longer rather than fatter - it''s all about personal preference. What is the color?
I don''t really know about buying online - but from what I''ve read, pears can be tricky and you can''t really get an idea of how it looks unless you see it in person. Most pears have the "bow tie effect". Mine has one, but only at certain angles/lights. Some of the websites (GOG) say it is nearly IMPOSSIBLE to find a pear without a bowtie. Personally, it doesn''t bother me a bit. It seems most people on PS use Whiteflash and Good Old Gold.
Here is a link to my pear ER https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-pear-er-a-great-deal.79956/
What kind of setting are you getting?
Good luck and let us know how it works out!!

 

[happyToronto]

Bob from whiteflash has emailed me the pictures. Advise would be much appreciated. Anyone care to comment?

 

[happyToronto]

iscope

 

[happyToronto]

i don''t know what this is.

 

[happyToronto]

sarin.

 

[happyToronto]

Any comments? I guess i''m most concerned with the ideal-scope. It''s not as red as i''ve seen with a lot of people''s round brilliants. I guess that is to be expected with a pear. Also in the sarin report - it says the culet is off center. How big of a concern is that? I wouldn''t expect it to be dead center, but is 11% considered too high?

Thank you guys so much for your help.

BTW, I didn''t mention the color. It''s a G.

 

[Jenn5504]

I''m no pear expert, but I''m definately a huge pear fan! You''re so lucky to be working with Bob! He''s awesome I hear! He''ll tell you what he thinks and that input would go a long way for me. I think the stone looks beautiful in the pictures!

L:W ratio is obviously a HUGE point when it comes to pears. I personally really like the look of this pear!

But as for performance, I''m CLUELESS when it comes to pears......you''re correct though that an IS for a fancy cut isn''t going to look like one of these ideal RB''s. I''m anxious to hear what the pear pros say about this stone, it sure looks pretty to me!

 

[Cachette]

I know nothing about pears but that picture that Bob sent you is yummy!!!

I''m from Ontario and have dealt with Whiteflash not that long ago and I have nothing but good things to say about them!

Good luck.

Cachette

 

[Dreamer_D]

I know nothing about pears but wanted to chime in to say it looks really pretty. Seems to have a bowtie, but that seems common from what Lynnie said. From what I read on the diamond tutorials on PS (go find them they are really helpful) the idealscope is not a useful for fancies because it doesn''t tend to differentiate cut quality as much as it does with RBs. On the other hand, the ASET, which is the colorful one with greens and reds, shows more variations in light. Red means it is really strong/bright, green means strong light return but not as strong as you get on the red... etc...Expert know how to interpret those and I am not one. What did Bob say about the diamond? Is it a beaut?

Remember with pears you aren''t going to get the same level of light return as you do in an RB, so really it comes down to whether you love the facet pattern and if it catches your fancy (no pun intended

)

I would be tempted if I were you to also contact Good Old Gold. They seem to do a good job with fancies and will bring in a couple and do a little video of them side by side. That may help you make a decision easier.

DD

 

[swingirl]

I don't know anything about pears but in my opinion it looks very nice. Good proportions--not too fat, not too skinny. And WAY better pricing than Tiffany!! What did Bob think about the culet? It might be something you can live with and it has brought down the price.

But there is a lot of white in the idealscope which shows light leakage (I think).

 

[Diamond*Dana]

I am a pear owner myself, and I think that one is lovely! I prefer mine to be on the fatter side rather than long and skinny. That one looks perfect

 

[happyToronto]

So I decided to take the plunge. Rob says the diamond is a winner so i trust him. This is my first diamond purchase online so i have a few questions regarding what to do after i receive it.

Rob says i''ll be getting the original GIA Certificate and also a ''Verification letter from an independant appraiser''.

What is a verification letter? Is that an appraisal?
If it''s not an appraisal, or even if it is, do I still need to get another appraisal from someone local just to verify that the diamond i received is the one i purchased?