Inquiring Mind Wants To Know! (Princess-Cut)

[AllenDawg]

Before I begin, I just wanted to you let all of you know how helpful your expert opinions have been in helping me decide on a diamond for my still girlfriend. I have been lurking around for about a month reading a large percentage of posts and have learned A LOT. Probably the biggest thing I am thankful for is the knowledge that cut is king which made me take a completely different look at some the diamonds I was originally pursuing.

Below is the loose stone I just purchased. It is on its way and I should have it in my hand by tomorrow or Thursday. Given that I am such a researcher and I am buying this sight unseen, I HAD to have a 30-day fee-free return policy. Luckily, this also gives me a chance to ask you educated ladies and gentlememen for your thoughts.

Anyway, without further ado, here is all the information I had to go on (was able to puill up the cert on a competing site from which I actually price-matched) with nothing else being available to me...

Cert: GIA
Shape: Princess
Size: 1.41 ct
Dimensions: 6.11 x 6.02 x 4.45
Cut: Signature Ideal (I understand that this is subjective and almost vendor-specific)
Color: F
Clarity: VS1
Polish: Excellent
Symmetry: Excellent
Culet: None
Fluorescence: None
Depth %: 73.9
Table %: 67
Girdle: Thick
Price: $9022 (total cost w/ shipping and free appraisal - not sure how useful that will be, if any)

Now, taking into account what I read on this forum, I know some of you will probably say I could have sacrificed a level or two on color and clarity for sake of a bigger size. I guess I just can not wrap my mind around it though as I am obsessed with quality. Heck, before learning about PS, I had my mind set on D-E color stones with nothing less than VVS2 clarity.

Please lemme know honestly what you think. I am open to all opinions since I can still look around thanks to the return policy.

Thanks a million sparkles!

 

[Italiahaircolor]

That actually looks like a very good stone, and the price seems to reflect that as well! Job well done, Allendawg!

 

[chrono]

I don't see any red flags but as to the performance of the stone, I cannot make a judgement without a real picture of the stone and an ASET or Idealscope picture. I hope you have at least an Idealscope to view the PC when it arrives, or have an independent appraiser lined up. It sounds like a Blue Nile stone?

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 1/29/2008 12:04:26 PM
Author: Chrono
I don't see any red flags but as to the performance of the stone, I cannot make a judgement without a real picture of the stone and an ASET or Idealscope picture. I hope you have at least an Idealscope to view the PC when it arrives, or have an independent appraiser lined up. It sounds like a Blue Nile stone?

Welcome to Pricescope

Added to this sound advice from Chrono, if it is a Blue Nile stone, they have 30 days in which you can return it, but if it is a BN diamond, then as far as I am aware they don't supply photographs or ASET images, Idealscope images, which are very helpful to help judge cut quality and performance. So hopefully you will like the diamond when it arrives, and you have plenty of time in which to decide if it is the one or not.

 

[talen316]

Assuming this is a BN stone, I thought that their Signature Ideal stones aren''t supposed to have depths above 70%?

Anyway, you can do a price check on PS to see where this stone compares to others of similar size, color & clarity. At quick glance, it looks like your''re well within the range. It also appears that the cost/ct seems to go up appreciably once you hit the 1.5 size for PR F VS1''s.

Based on the basic dims you had to work with, I''d say you did a great job identifying a potentially excellent stone. If you had the crown height % and crown and pav angle information, that would help further with the assessment along with the reflector images as previously noted.

I hope the stone measures up to your expectations and you''re covered if it doesn''t! If you decide you don''t like it, I''d suggest perhaps broadening your search to some other vendors that provide additional value added analysis to assess light performance.

I''m curious to hear how you like the stone once you receive it! Good luck!

 

[AllenDawg]

Actually, I purchased the stone from DiamondsOnWeb which was originally selling it for $9290. The site I used to see the cert and obtain the lower price from was everyone''s favorite, WhiteFlash, where it was listed as a 4-star. While I would have LOVED to order it from them, I am in TX and the sales tax alone would have nixed the great deal. Neither obviously had the stone in-house so no IS or ASET images.

Which brings me to my next question. What is the best thing to do once I get the stone? Should I bring in into an appraiser which will most likely cost a fair amount? How much proof can I gather myself (with modest equipment costs) to ensure I have a wonderfully performing stone?

Thanks again and keep the comments coming!

 

[AllenDawg]

The depth % is one of the only reasons (along with the thick girdle) I considered not purchasing the stone. I know I could get a little more shallow diamond which would have face-up larger but this one just called out to me so I figured I would give it a shot. The combination of price, size, quality, and near perfectly square proportions just made it seem like a great deal. But, this is why I have to ask you all for reassurance to make sure I didn''t miss something glaring.

 

[talen316]

Actually, I think most would probably agree that the depth % of the stone you selected is generally considered to be within the range of what is generally regarded as "ideal".

My comment regarding depth % not exceeding 70% on BN signature ideals was because that was where it seemed that you had purchased the stone and I was wondering why they had a signature ideal with a depth of 73% when that seems to contradict their specs for that cut... but that is not applicable now.

I don''t think I would have let the TK girdle stop me either on a well cut stone.

Most will probably recommend that you take the stone to an independent appraiser. The cost of that is negligible as compared to confirming that you spent your $9k soundly.

You can buy an Idealscope or ASET for a relatively small cost as well and then learn how to interpret the image.
http://www.ideal-scope.com/cart_order.asp

The final and perhaps most important confirmation of all is how the stone looks to you. If you think it looks beautiful and are satisfied with its performance, then be happy with your purchase!!! If you''re still not sure, you can always shop around some of the finer jewelry stores in your area to see what other stones look like in your $9k price range.

 

[AllenDawg]

Thanks so much for all your responses. Anyone else feel strongly about this diamond one way or the other?