it''s time....

[firetrax]

I have been researching my @$$ off trying to determine if princess cuts can achieve the same level of fire as rounds. This brings me to your site throughly confused. Spent countless hours on Blue nile and googling information.

My budget 6-10k (stone only)
Princess (perfect or very near perfect square)
The setting will be unique (4 prong diamond shape set)

One thing I noticed in princess cuts in person is that the larger the stone, the easier it is to seen color variation or less pop due to cut or imperfections.
My friend spent 7k on a 1.5 solitare. SI1, H or I color on a platinum setting indoor lighting it definately looked dirty and yellow. I am picky, however, in all seriousness, I might not even know what I am talking about. Again...this is why I am here.

Clarity- VS1 or better
Color- G or better
Carat- 1.10- ?
Cut- Very Good or better
Princess - according to experts table of 64-68% and Depth of 70-75%
Cut and symmetry obviously important
Would a the smallest table (64%) produce the most fire due to picking up less glare?
How can I determine "fire" from an online retailer?

Thanks for all your help!

 

[decodelighted]

Some folks are now selling AGS 000 Princesses ("super ideal"). I think they're probably as pretty & fiery as a Princess can get. It's a great "short cut" I guess, but you do pay a bit more.

There are also other similar square cut shapes (or square with clipped corners) ... like Jubilee & Queen of Hearts & Tiffany's Lucida or Cut-Cornered Square Brilliants ... check out Good Old Gold's diamond chart for pictures.



ETA: I also do know what you mean about Princesses looking "dirty or yellow" in indoor light. Maybe the stone wasn't GIA or AGS certified (EGL & others are sometimes two color grades "lower") .. so it could appear like a "K" or "L". And I have noticed that bigger radiants & princesses can hold onto color somehow - more so than "brilliant" cut shapes & even STEP cut shapes (like EC & Asschers). Or -- it could have just been reflecting tan wall color, or a yellow shirt or something.

 

[wen104]

If you are willing to purchase online I would call Whiteflash, Good old Gold and/or, ERD to see what they have. I know there are alot of ladies on here who have the Jubillee and Princess of Heart and they are beautiful. You can do a search above and look at them. Also it is very true that step cuts will show color so you don''t really want to go too low on color but might be able to get away with it if the stone has florescence. It seems like you know exactly what you want but I would maybe consider going lower on clarity and higher on color if you need to. Good luck.

 

[neatfreak]

An AGS0 princess is the shortcut way to assure the best light performance (i.e., SPARKLE!) out of a princess cut. Whiteflash and Good Old Gold stock a number of these stones.

 

[firetrax]

Wow...you folks are fast an helpful. I feel like I just took a simester in diamond grading just watching the videos.

hearts/arrows cut seems to be the way to go, but keep the comments coming!


Thanks again..

 

[mrssalvo]

Date: 11/30/2007 4:16:27 PM
Author: neatfreak
An AGS0 princess is the shortcut way to assure the best light performance (i.e., SPARKLE!) out of a princess cut. Whiteflash and Good Old Gold stock a number of these stones.

icemine, winfields and pearlmans do too or at the very least have easy accesss to them, so you can add them to places to check as well.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

The key question here is, has your girlfriend expressed a preference of shape? If not, I''d go with round because it has excellent performance and is a timeless shape. But if she specifically has said she wants a princess, then I''d look at princess and the other square stones.

Your friend''s stone may not have been a true G or H. Do you know if the diamond had a GIA or AGS cert? If not, it was probably lower color than G-H.

Add me to the list of those who''d recommend an AGS0 princess if you decide to go with a princess. But I prefer the other square stones more, such as princess of hearts and jubilee, which are carried by Good Old Gold or the x-factor by WhiteFlash.

 

[Sharon101]

My Mum has a J princess which at one stage was looking awfully yellow and not at all like a beautiful diamond. It turned out to be her hand cream!!! And now that she cleans it every day it looks white enough to be considered white imo. I also have a princess not yet finnished being set and it is very white which it should be as an`F`.

My sil also has a very white looking princess. So I think it has to do with the original color grade and whether it is kept clean.