IGI diamond buying advice!!!

[pete1979]

Hi everyone!

I am currently considering the following diamond. It's being sold by a small jewelry shop here in Munich (Germany) for 873€ (about 1150 USD). Has anyone had experience buying IGI certified diamonds? What do you think of the report?

Report City, Date: Mumbai, February 2013
Shape and Cut: Round Brilliant
Carat Weight: 0.40
Color Grade: H
Clarity Grade: IF
Cut Grade: Excellent
Polish: Very Good
Symmetry: Excellent
Table: 57.5%
Girdle Thickness: Thin to Medium (faceted)
Total Depth: 60.4%
Culet: Pointed
Fluorescence: Very Slight

Thanks a lot for your comments!!!

 

[msop04]

Hi pete1979!

There is nothing wrong with an IGI diamond per se... however...

As many PS members will tell you, buying a diamond with an IGI report would warrant concern due to the soft grading. There is a chance that you will get what is listed on the cert, but the likelihood is that you will not. The H color may actually be more like J-K in color -- you just never know. If possible, try to stick to GIA or AGS, as they are more strict and consistent in their grading. I have read (on PS) about reports of color being off by up to 4 grades and the clarity up to 3...

Have you been able to view the stone under different lighting situations?

 

[JulieN]

IGI is fine. Maybe one color soft compared to GIA. The report should have the data for you to use HCA: https://www.pricescope.com/tools/hca

The 3-4 grades off is usually EGL International.

 

[msop04]

IGI is fine. Maybe one color soft compared to GIA. The report should have the data for you to use HCA: https://www.pricescope.com/tools/hca

The 3-4 grades off is usually EGL International.

Oops!! Thanks for clarifying!! I read IGI and my brain went to EGL Israel or something... Who knows?! It's late in AL...

My apologies, OP!!

 

[BhavinJ]

There's nothing wrong with IGI certified diamond.

Also try searching on other online stores, you may get a good deal.

 

[sakari_8]

Hi

Every lab has the reputation & so does IGI, apparently IGI is not accurate like GIA however IMO differs 1-2 grade
when compare with GIA, I kind of encourage people to check the prices online as now market is quiet transparent,
no harm checking the prices on the online stores like B2c Jewels, James allen etc, this will help you immensely in your
search.

 

[John P]

In the global picture IGI reports are very reputable. The IGI Antwerp lab has a very strong history in Europe. IGI Mumbai is well respected and IGI Hong Kong has nothing short of a top reputation in Asia. In fact the loose diamond reports from the IGI HK lab are considered on par with GIA but more consistent. Increasingly, the IGI HK "Hearts & Arrows" grading report is becoming the report of choice for cut-quality focused diamonds in China.

The negative sentiment about IGI in the USA has largely been arrived-at based due to the "finished jewelry appraisal-reports" seen at many jewelry-counters. These reports list a replacement-value and are famously misused by salespeople. Note that IGI NYC is the only lab to issue such reports. The other IGI worldwide locations do not.

 

[yssie]

In the global picture IGI reports are very reputable. The IGI Antwerp lab has a very strong history in Europe. IGI Mumbai is well respected and IGI Hong Kong has nothing short of a top reputation in Asia. In fact the loose diamond reports from the IGI HK lab are considered on par with GIA but more consistent. Increasingly, the IGI HK "Hearts & Arrows" grading report is becoming the report of choice for cut-quality focused diamonds in China.

The negative sentiment about IGI in the USA has largely been arrived-at based due to the "finished jewelry appraisal-reports" seen at many jewelry-counters. These reports list a replacement-value and are famously misused by salespeople. Note that IGI NYC is the only lab to issue such reports. The other IGI worldwide locations do not.

I was hoping one of our tradepeople would come in to talk about different labs' reputations in different countries - it's always interesting to read about! I didn't know that IGI NYC is the only one that issues those ubiquitous appraisals, and I didn't know there were reputable H&A reports besides HRD's...

 

[John P]

I was hoping one of our tradepeople would come in to talk about different labs' reputations in different countries - it's always interesting to read about! I didn't know that IGI NYC is the only one that issues those ubiquitous appraisals, and I didn't know there were reputable H&A reports besides HRD's...

Time is short today Yssie, but I'll gladly return with comments later.

Edited to add: I thought I saw a question from you about specs, etc?

 

[Rockdiamond]

I defer to John's experience in the far east- however for anyone reading this in the US, Australia, or the UK, I feel very strongly that consumers should stick to GIA or AGSL.

Pete- given the scope of the purchase- and the fact you're able to buy it face to face, you should be fine.
If it was a larger purchase, I'd also suggest sticking to GIA graded stones.
IN general, the market for diamonds in EU countries aside from the UK has traditionally been quite small.
In France, Germany, even Belgium, it's rare to see stones being offered in shops that are larger than 1.00ct for example

 

[yssie]

I was hoping one of our tradepeople would come in to talk about different labs' reputations in different countries - it's always interesting to read about! I didn't know that IGI NYC is the only one that issues those ubiquitous appraisals, and I didn't know there were reputable H&A reports besides HRD's...

Time is short today Yssie, but I'll gladly return with comments later.

Edited to add: I thought I saw a question from you about specs, etc?

Oh yes, I edited it - I didn't know if this thread was the right place to ask but since you've already seen it I will anyway: I did a couple of searches on IGI's H&A report and didn't find much but maybe I'm looking in the wrong places. Could you tell us more about it? And have they published any requirements/definitions specs that are accessible by the general public like HRD has?

Thanks John, I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts when you have time!