Jewelry Scope & AGS Scope help for a newbie ??

[Shoney]

Hello. Am going to be upgrading my engagement stone, and after lurking on PriceScope knew it might be helpful to run the specs on HCA. That done, I contacted the diamond retailer my husband wishes to use and he suggested 2 of the 9 stones. Looking at the Jewelry Scope and AGS Scope images he sent me were very confusing.
Not sure if I'm posting these right with the attachments.
Any feedback or insight would be greatly appreciated!



Option 1 pics are for: 1.20 J VVS1 HCA 1.4


Option 2 pics are for: 1.22 K VVS2 HCA 1.7

 

[ecf8503]

Why such high clarity? It's overkill. You could go up in color and/or size if you drop clarity a bit...

 

[Shoney]

I would rather go up in size, believe me.
On paper my original e-ring looks great - VS2, E color, Excellent Cut - but really it almost always looks dirty or smudged and the sparkle, such as it is, is limited to the center of the stone. Learned a couple things since then, and as hubby made it clear this would be our one and only upgrade, want to do it right.
In terms of the posted pics, do the images suggest lively diamonds or should I keep looking? Fortunately there is a return window should I not like the stone, but hoping to avoid that.

 

[ringo865]

The GIA excellent grade is very broad; it actually encompasses AGS grades 0-4 - maybe even 5.

Your current E VS stone should not look dingy, unless it actually is - have you cleaned it really well, including the pavilion? If so, and it still looks not bright, it is more likely to be caused by the angles not being complimentary to each other.

Out of curiosity, what are the stats? Table and depth percentage and crown and pavilion angles. Post them here and/or run them thru the HCA tool https://www.pricescope.com/tools/hca.

I bet the look of your E VS has nothing to do with the color or clarity.

You will certainly notice a difference in color going from an E to a J or K. If you stay within ideal parameters (measurements) you could safely be looking at a bit larger VS1 to eye-clean SI1 stones in F-I color.
.

 

[Shoney]

I've had my e-ring professionally cleaned many times, and it still looks off to me. HCA score was 4.6 if I recall.
Love the warmer look of the JKL stones; have spent hours perusing pics online, which I know may not be the greatest representative of that color range. Saw a J in person and rather liked the antique look of the warmer color.

 

[ringo865]

If you're good with a lower color then you will definitely be able to find something awesome. You can safely drop the clarity and go bigger. Your stone at a 4.6 HCA score is the reason you're not getting the most brightness, fire, and scintillation. VS1 stones are going to be completely eye clean and a very high percentage of VS2 will be, as well. Many SI1s are eye clean, and these can give you more bang for your buck.

What are the table and depth percentages and the crown and pavilion angles on the two you posted? I'm not an expert scope reader, and i think the red ones are hearts, not idealscope images. With no other info, only the scope pics, the second one looks better to me.

Let the people here help you look. What is your budget? For the stone only, or including the setting? Do you have a setting picked out or a certain style in mind?

 

[Shoney]

The first stone:
Depth: 59.1
Table: 60
Crown Angle: 32.5
Pavilion Angle: 41
It's a 1.2 J VVS1

The second stone:
Depth: 59.3
Table: 61
Crown Angle: 32.5
Pavilion Angle: 41
It's a 1.22 K VVS1

I had a couple stones on my list with lower clarity and closer to 1.5 carats, but the seller pointed me to these two. Having looked at videos of the stone, I do prefer the creamier warmth of the J over the more yellow tinge of the K.
On the forums I have seen dazzling stones in these ranges, and might be willing to go down to an M depending on the color. Have seen wonderful M's and P's. Don't mind the creamy/beige vanilla-type tones around the edges. Very charming in my opinion.
Looking for an upgrade stone for my engagement ring. 5-7k is roughly the budget.

 

[ac117]

Both stones have very low crown angles so they'll be more prone to chipping but the images don't look bad. Some other options:

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.42-carat-j-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-1908193

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.38-carat-j-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-2007257

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.33-carat-j-color-vs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-1000604

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.51-carat-k-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-1976834

How about an actual antique?
http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/loose-diamonds/1-ct-to-2-00/1-31ct-old-european-cut-diamond-gia-k-si1#.V8nctnj3arU

http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/loose-diamonds/1-ct-to-2-00/1-48ct-transitional-cut-diamond-gia-j-vs2#.V8ndWXj3arU

http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/loose-diamonds/1-ct-to-2-00/1-41ct-old-european-cut-diamond-gia-k-vs1#.V8nfb3j3arU

http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/loose-diamonds/1-ct-to-2-00/1-48-old-european-cut-gia-k-sl1#.V8ndd3j3arU

http://www.loveaffairdiamonds.com/1-35ct-old-european-cut-diamond-ags-l-vs2/

 

[Shoney]

ac117 - thank you so much! Those antique stones are so warm and unique; love the personality!
Chipping would be a concern - thanks for pointing that out!!