is this diamond ugly?

[froufrou]

I was looking on dimend scaasi at loose diamonds and found this one,

$531
.71 ct
Color: O
Clarity I1
Cut: "good"
Depth % 67.7
Table % 61
Polish "good"
symmetry "good"
fluorescence "faint"
measurements 5.34 5.45 3.65
GIA cert.

the problem is the GIA cert link is broken on the website so I cant view the Pavilion and Cullet numbers so I cant run it through the cut advisor thing...i think it said something about the depth being dangerous though?

Its obviously a big compromise on clarity and possibly the cut (im not sure about the cut?) but i dont think i would mind one bit the O color, Ive looked at some O pictures online and they look pretty (old fashioned looking?)

anyway this place is in chicago which is nearby so i could probably go even see it or they also let you have an online viewing...do you guys think the cut and clarity are just so awful that i shouldn''t bother? is it possible it would look pretty though?

also does anyone know other vendors online that will sell O diamonds?

thanks much!

frou

 

[Lorelei]

It isn't so much the clarity that would worry me - but the cut if this is a round diamond, going by the figures you have I wouldn't bother, JMO. The O colour is going to look very tinted and especially with a less than great cut too. If you wanted an O colour, it might take some searching but not impossible, get a really great cut and if you enjoy a strong tint, get some sparkle and performance to go with it. An O will be priced much lower anyway, no need to sacrifice cut quality, even a higher clarity O will be reasonably priced. There is no harm in looking though if it is convenient and you wish to, but I would save my cash towards something else with a great cut. If this is a round, that depth % would knock it out of the running immediately for me. Just my 2 cents. Just a thought if you like vintage diamonds, have you looked at OEC's etc? Also looking at these colour grades online isn't really going to give you a true picture of the tint of the diamond.

 

[froufrou]

hm, yes it is a round. the depth percent makes it really deep right? so it would look even smaller than the carat weight suggests?

 

[Lorelei]

Yes it will look smaller, that carat weight in a round should measure about 5.8mm

Also it is out of round measuring 5.34 by 5.45. At least it has a GIA cert but I really think you can do better, especially as these tinted diamonds are such a good price to begin with.

 

[froufrou]

okay thanks

i will keep looking...

 

[diagem]

its a matter of taste, i am a strong believer that there is no such thing as an ugly diamond!!!!!

 

[Scooba]

An O will be tinted pretty much, I think an M looks "old-fashioned" I don''t know about an O though. And an I1 is almost always going to have an inclusion visible to the naked eye. I know some people say you can find a great I1 and maybe you can but every one I have ever seen I could see the inclusion immediately, with the naked eye, and from them on was obsessed with it, I could never get over a visible inclusion. Just my opinion though.

 

[Mara]

forget the O I1 part, but that cut has gotta go...definitely keep looking! that probably looks more like a .50c than a .71.

 

[icekid]

yikes... that stone is WAY smaller than it should be at .7 ct! If you want your diamond to sparkle, I would pass too!

 

[Kaleigh]

Yeah the cut stinks on that one. Good luck in your search. Why an O?? Just curious.

 

[firebirdgold]

How about this diamond from dscaasi.com? It''s a .5 L VS2 Signature cut for $882.
61.6%
55%
34.0
40.4
5.27 - 5.31 X 3.26

 

[sanfranciscoellen]

I think the best thing for you to do is click the "live chat" button on dscaasi''s website...within seconds you''ll be chatting with Isaac, the owner. I was blown away by how responsive he was. I had been waiting days to get answers from the usual PS suspects and Isaac was soooooo available and ready to answer questions quickly and it took less than 45 minutes to finalize my diamond, the setting, the quotes, the timelines....everything.

I would tell him what you are looking for, awesome cut with warm color and inclusions OK if properly placed, and your budget parameters, and let him do the work sifting the dogs from the beauties. You can then go meet him in person if he has or finds something promising. He has access to tons more diamonds than what you will find on his site.

The innerview session is cool too, if you don''t want to drive in. But if I were you I''d go...everyone raves about dimend scaasi''s customer service at appointments.

 

[stermag]

FrouFrou,

I noticed that you seem to be interested in finding a diamond that is as close to 1ct as humanly possible for the lowest possible price. Perhaps you're just looking around out of curiosity... I don't know, but let me share with you one find.

A few months ago, my BF's brother got in touch with me with what I thought was a very far fetched aim of finding a .90-1ct diamond for under $2000. Now, I was honest with him and told him exactly what I thought he would be able to find for that kind of money, but he didn't seem to care. Also, I never turn down a challenge, so I started digging around. I'm stubborn, too, so I spent quite a bit of time on this, just to see what I could find.

This is the best diamond I found... and I do not mean to imply that it is some miracle find, ideal cut rock... No. It is a medium quality I1, but at least it doesn't have any black inclusions and you can see the actual photo of the rock.

Just thought I'd add it to your collection... If nothing else, it has GOT to be a lot better than the one you started the thread with.... then again, maybe not

http://www.winkjones.com/xcart/customer/product.php?productid=16243&cat=272&page=1

 

[froufrou]

hey thanks everyone. yeah, i was trying to find something closer to .7-1 for a cheaper price... a couple of my friends recently got engaged and have .5 ct stones and they look okay on their fingers but my fingers are bigger (actually my HANDS are what is big I think) and .5 on me looked really small I think. so id rather have a bigger and not perfect stone than a smaller one. though maybe when i go in person to see I will think differently. mainly that diamond popped out at me cause it was a .7 and like 2,000 dollar less than most other .7s that id seen

im trying to stay in the 2000~2500 budget for the diamond and the ring. when i looked at an online site with pics of all sorts of color diamonds though I really liked the I-O colors better than the really colorless one, to me the colorless ones looked more like glass? but maybe in person its different, I havent really looked in person yet. for my setting though I just wanted a simple solitaire so maybe if the diamond was just "average" it would not look so great in a simple setting (i was thinking like if the setting were more elaborate it would take away from the diamond''s problems?)

stermag: you mentioned that diamond from Winfield''s, isn''t it bad if the diamond does not have a cert.??

 

[mrssalvo]

Date: 4/21/2006 2:44:20 PM


stermag: you mentioned that diamond from Winfield''s, isn''t it bad if the diamond does not have a cert.??

not necessarily, especially if it''s coming from a very well respected and trusted vendor like Wink. My old stone did not have a cert. it was way before PS for me and we purchased it from and estate dealer because it looked pretty to me. I later had it appraised but never had it certified. Cert are great and are very helpful if you are planning on selling it down the road but I wouldn''t necessarily rule it out completely if I was seeking a certain size on a budget.

 

[mrssalvo]

oh, and definitely pass on the O I1..I agree with the rest..very poor cut..

 

[stermag]

FrouFrou,

As mrssalvo already said, not having a cert is not necessarily a bad thing.

Having a diamond certified costs the seller a few dollars. This investment is well worth it if it ensures that the diamond sells well. However, on a diamond such as the one at Wink''s, the certificate might cost close to 10% of its current selling price. Basically, it''s a business decision - if Wink had the stone certified, he would just have to pass the cost on to the buyer (i.e. you)... and, as you surely know, when you''re on a budget, every dollar counts.

Your preference for size, even at the cost of the remaining C''s, is obviously a personal one. Let me warn you, however, that when you hope to get a lot for a little, you enter shark-infested waters. In other words, unscrupulous e-bay sellers, shady online vendors, etc. all prey on folks who hope to find a deal that is, in some ways, too good to be true by offering misrepresented merchandize masked as an amazing once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Be very wary of such dealers.

If you''re interested in "Flash for the Cash" type of stone, I''d sooner just get in touch with one of the PS vendors, explain what I''m looking for and hope that they might run across something, than venture out and risk my hard-earned money with someone I know nothing of.

Just my thoughts, of course.

 

[mrssalvo]

stermag brings up very good points. You also might consider purchasing from a vendor with a trade up policy. That way you could get an ideal stone in your pricerange now and then when you a bit more cash you can trade it in and trade up. Many pricescopers have inched or are inching their way to their ideal size by taking advantage of vendors who offer this. Just another option you might want to consider.

P.S. I'd also call Wink on that stone, it really could be a great find..

 

[valeria101]

Date: 4/21/2006 2:44:20 PM
Author: froufrou


I really liked the I-O colors better than the really colorless one, ...

Wouldn't love a spatter of inclusions, but about color... I can surely understand your preference for 'cape' colors (i.e. GIA's M -Z range). Any chance you might look for fancy cut ones? You may be in for a pleasant surprise. If Dimend Scassi (or?) can bring in one or two cape examples it would be great to take a look, IMO - they may also be quite less expensive than a well cut round, and it is not uncommon to hear that old cuts (or some sort of cushion) & cape colors go hand in hand pretty well.

(LINK) What's not to like?

If a light yellow shade is a good thing, then... maybe something like this could work? I don't know how many light yellow H&A are around or if the folks selling precisely cut graded and thoroughly branded H&A would agree this is one, but it certainly shows some 'pattern' there. Wonder if the little bit of 'smudge' at 9 and 12 o'clock in the picture is 'sediment' or indication of SI clarity - either way, it doesn't look like much, and I have no trouble imagining a white ring with YG prongs holding the beauty. Maybe an engraved version of THIS ? The ring in the picture above has a bit of hypnotic power on me (which doesn't have to apply to anyone else, of course) - wish I knew of reasonably similar settings anywhere. However, the woodstock (?) engraving pattern and milgrain do not seem too exotic and should be feasible, if at all compelling.

 

[WinkHPD]

Date: 4/21/2006 2:44:20 PM
Author: froufrou

stermag: you mentioned that diamond from Winfield''s, isn''t it bad if the diamond does not have a cert.??

With shipping and insurance both ways, the cost to certify that stone will be in the $150 range. The stone is definitely an I1 and may well be an H color, so if I call it an I, then there is no worry to me that the stone will ever cert lower.

It is a trade off. When you buy a certed stone the cost of the cert is in the price, when you buy an uncerted stone, especially if you do not have the right to return it if you are not happy, the cost of the cert may be a foolish saving if you are not dealing with someone you trust.

The stone that you have asked us about if it were a well cut 5.34mm round would weigh approximately .56cts. As it is now it is probably a fairly lifeless lump of crystallized carbon and even with a cert is not worth the asking price in the opinion of people who like sparkle. The stone pictured from my site also has its cutting problems, but that is why it too is cheap. It can be very tough to balance the desire for size with the desire for beauty and still keep it in a reasonable price. You should arrange to look at some stones that you think you might like, and then return the ones that do not make the grade. Any vendor who will not do that for you does NOT deserve your business.

I think you will be surprized at how much difference the cutting makes. Since I am a cut specialist, I may never sell that stone that was shown, but it is an option that may fill the bill for someone, somewhere, someday. If and when it does I will be happy for the new owner, as he/she will have bought it knowing that all of the warts were shown and explained and decided that it was what was right for them and their needs.

Wink

 

[E B]

FrouFrou,

Are you set on a round? If you''re looking for something bigger, both pears and marquise face up larger because of their fancy cut.

Something like this:
.58ct G, VS2 Premium Pear

 

[E B]

Sorry, double post!

 

[Ice Grinder]

You haven''t seen my wifes ring...ha

 

[valeria101]

Date: 4/22/2006 1:46:46 AM
Author: Ice Grinder
You haven''t seen my wife''s ring...ha

Can we at least hear about it ?

now that you mentioned...