In search of... The Rock!

[GoodBishop]

Ok, well I''m new here, and after reading many of the threads, I decided to post about my search.

But of course, all stories should start with something exciting. Interesting.

Mine starts with a year of online dating and 54 first dates. Every horror story that you''ve heard of happening happened to me. Until finally, I met "the one". And after a mere six months of dating, it''s time to start that search for... "The Rock". That one stone that every girl dreams about when she gets older and married.

So I started learning about diamonds by visiting the local jeweler. They were very informative and gave me a brochure about the 4 C''s. Plus they pressured me a bit to purchase one right away.

But of course I didn''t. Just like dating, I had a mentality of abundance. Surely there''s a way to get a good deal AND knock her socks off (and don''t call me Shirley).

So, naturally I go online. The amount of information intrigued and amazed me.

And I have to tell ya, diamonds are cool. I didn''t get it until I have to purchase one, but yeah. They rock.

I turn to my trusty friend Google, and start plowing through the webpages.

I find BlueNile. I have to tell ya, they have the slickest interface for finding diamonds that I''ve seen. Very user-friendly.

I find Diamond.info... talk about a eye-opener! To be able to search for different diamonds from different vendors and see the prices? No wonder the internet is threatening the store jewelers.

I go through every vendor listed at Diamond.info as well as Amazon''s site, and I googled NY diamond district and started going through their webpages....

I find GOG... what a cool informative site! And what''s this? Not normal diamond cuts? Interesting...

I remember reading somewhere that online diamond retailers have about a 22% markup from the vendor... while a B&M (when I first saw this term I was like, what is this, something kinky?) store has a whopping 49% markup! And after searching online and seeing the prices, then going to the stores... I just about fell out of my chair when I saw the prices. I felt sick to my stomach, actually. They hurt the frugal nature of my wallet.

Ah, but I digress. On to the diamonds.

So here''s what I know. My girl wants to have a traditional round cut, with yellow gold setting. Something simple yet classy. Something like a gold Tiffany''s setting is what I''m thinking.

Of course she wants to pick the ring, which is fine, but I plan to get the diamond first and then have it set in the setting she likes.

I went to the local jeweler the other day to see some diamonds, and it was good for me to see some actual diamonds, even though the price sickened me.

I learned that I can''t differentiate between a D and a G... but I noticed color in a H.

I learned that inclusions can be seen at SI2... but I have a hard time seeing them at SI1 or above.

So knowing all this, I started figuring out what I wanted to have.

I know that I wanted to get her something 1.00 carats or above, and that 1.5 carats was too big. I saw several diamonds that were 1.2 carats and that seems about the right size for her hand.

So my specs are:

Cut - Round Brilliant
Symmetry - Excellent
Polish - Excellent
Carat - 1.00 to 1.40... but in the 1.20 range seems to be about right.
Clarity - IF to VS2... though I can go as low as SI1 or SI2 (if there are no visible inclusions that detract in the SI2)
Color - D to G... possibily a H, but I''s are too colorful for me.

What I''d like to spend is in the 5k-7k range, but I could go up to 8k if I need to for something reallly outstanding.

Here were some of the diamonds at the jewelry store:

1.21ct
I SI2 Ideal
5925.00

1.23ct
H SI1
7090.00

1.24ct
H SI1 Ideal
7660.00

I saw these at the store, and fell out of my chair. Doing a search on diamond.info gives me prices substantially lower.

So, I turn to BlueNile. I go through their nifty diamond interface and find some good choices.

I also check out Whiteflash, and their Hearts and Arrows collection (really, a great way to market them). I have to tell you, I saw a Hearts on Fire 1.5 carat diamond through a scope, and the hearts and arrows were pretty awesome. Not that she''ll be able to see those when it''s mounted... but still! A nice test of symmetry and cut. Having that hearts and arrows show is pretty cool.

I find this diamond that looks interesting from Whiteflash:

1.21 ct H VS2 Whiteflash ACA
. Report: AGS
. Shape: Whiteflash ACA
. Carat: 1.210
. Depth %: 61.4
. Table %: 57
. Crown Angle: 34.8
. Crown %: 15
. Star : 54
. Pavilion Angle: 40.7
. Pavilion %: 42.8
. Lower Girdle %: 77
. Girdle: Thin to Slightly Thick Faceted
. Measurements: 6.82-6.84X4.19
. Light Performance: 0
. Polish: Ideal
. Symmetry: Ideal
. Culet: Pointed
. Fluorescence: Negligible
For $7576... so a little pricy, but still very good.

Compare this to a Blue Nile diamond...

Price: $8,726
Bank wire price: $8,596
Carat weight: 1.17
Cut: Signature Ideal
Color: G
Clarity: VS1
Price per carat: $7,458
Depth %: 61.3%
Table %: 57%
Symmetry: Excellent
Polish: Excellent
Girdle: Thin to medium
Culet: None
Fluorescence: None
Measurements: 6.81 x 6.77 x 4.16 mm

Yes, it''s more expensive... but I get 10% off due to coupon use.

So, onto the questions. Does anybody have a BlueNile Signature Ideal Cut diamond, and how would they compare to a normal AGS 000 diamond, as well as say this Whiteflash Hearts and Arrows one above? I''m kind of bummed that BlueNile only has GIA reports, and not AGS.

I guess what I''m wondering is what do people think of BlueNile''s Signature Ideal Cut?

The thing that is drawing me toward the BlueNile diamonds isn''t the diamond... it''s price. If you Google for coupons, they have a 10% off coupon... and 10% of 8k is 800 bucks... so I could either get a more expensive bigger diamond, or save 800 bucks (bigger diamond, of course).

I saw multiple Hearts on Fire diamonds as well the other day... and some of the prices I got for those were:

.91 H SI1 for 10,400
1.11 I SI1 for 12,535
1.07 I SI2 for 11,020
.91 G SI1 for 11,105

Which is out of my price range (I can''t handle the 20% markup

).

I gotta tell you though, the Hearts on Fire diamonds were very nice. Not nice to the wallet, but I can appreciate the brand effect, plus that feel-good feeling.

Speaking of feel-good feeling, I have to tell you, the jeweler made quite a production in trying to convince me to purchase a diamond right away. They had Coldplay going (mood music for jewelry stores?), offered me soda and cookies (mmmm... cookies), and the salesperson really tried to tie emotions to the diamonds. I was all cool about it... but still.

The next step in my research is to look at the other ideal cuts out there as well as some non-traditional diamond cuts like the Solasfera and Eighternity. I''ve also heard the type of diamond called a Leo, and I need to do research on that. Anybody have any thoughts on those?

Thanks for your help, and reading through this monster of a post.

 

[TripleG]

I got my ring at Blue Nile. My FI chose it for several reasons, one of which was the quality and ease of use in finding exactly what he wants. BN does have AGSL, but I havent seen that many. As for Signature Ideal vs Ideal, I dont think you''ll see a difference and its them telling you what they feel is ideal. Consider a diamond to a hearts and arrows. The Hearts and Arrows have specific measurements and qualities that make it certified to be a hearts and arrows, however, you can get a diamond that hasnt been certified but you still can see hearts and arrows, granted they arent "ideal" but you would never know the difference. I went with "Ideal" and not signature ideal because the table ratios were better I thought on the ideal (When I say "I" it was my FI picking it out, I just got told in the end what he did and agree with him after learning in the short time what I know now).

The White Flash, James Allen and GOG are great vendors too. They give you pictures of the diamonds whereas Blue Nile doesnt. Also BN does not do upgrades, where as some other vendors will. For me that wasnt an issue because I will never want to "upgrade" my diamond. At least not this ring. I may choose a new RHR one day but not this one. We got the Petite Trellis setting in Platinum. They have the tiffany style settings there too. I think from what I have seen in regards to color I am color sensitive. But if you are going with yellow gold I have seen tons of people recommend here to go lower in color and that its ok because the yellow gold may help it sparkle even more and you wont notice the color difference there. So up to you, just wanted to throw that in there.

I think you picked out some winners. I do think though you dont need to deal with the "Signature-Ideal" and save money and go with the "Ideal".

Good Luck and let us know what you pick out!

 

[jet2ks]

Welcome to PS.

Just a couple of comments. I think you will find that a Whiteflash ACA (along with several other brands of H&A diamonds) is the equal of HoF. Keep in mind that WF offers a 5% discount on ACA's to Pricescope members, so that kind of eliminates any advantage to the "coupon" from BN. Blue Nile represents their Signature Ideal as a H&A cut, but do not provide images to justify the label and price. I'm sure they are beautiful stones, but if you really want H&A, you are better of sticking with a vendor who will supply hearts images.

Some other places to look for branded Hearts and Arrows would be:

www.highperformancediamonds.com carry Crafted by Infinity

www.niceice.com also have Infinity

www.goodoldgold.com has hand selected Signature H&A diamonds

www.briangavindiamonds.com Brian Gavin is the originator of the ACA line and left Whiteflash to start his own company. Their database is not fully online yet, but if you go to the website and contact them by phone or e-mail, Lesley will be glad to help you out. They have Brian Gavin Signature H&A diamonds.

Any of these brands of H&A will be gorgeous and cost much less than HoF.

EDT: As TripleG points out, a really well cut diamond that is not H&A will have light performance that is just as good and without the premium that H&A commands. If you want H&A, that is great, I would just stick to vendors that can show why their diamonds deserve the term.