Lab diamond purchase: technical questions (including cut)

[Tweedi]

Hi All

Have been looking at diamonds for a few months and have discovered there is a lot more I need to take into account than I thought. Can you please let me know if the below thought process makes sense or am I already making incorrect assumptions/choices?

- Ring will be a solitary, cushion shape, approximately 1.5ct.
- Color probably E or D as I would like the stone characteristics to be better than average and I read that color matters more than say clarity.
- Clarity, VS1 or VVS2. I won't care if there are inclusions not visible to naked eye, but it should be clean eye. With that being said, Just browsing I see a VVS2 (should be clean eye) which seems to have a clear mark in a corner of the table, what the heck is this really VVS2? : https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/cushion-cut/2.01-carat-e-color-vvs2-clarity-sku-10533960 ?
- Cut: can you tell me what I should look for here? Your site calculator asks for crown and pavilion angle but IGI reports on JA do not report this, How do I calculate them myself? Also I read the girdle should not be very thick but the IGI and GCAL reports do not give this info.

Thanks for your help, once I understand this better I will start hunting for real.

Cheers!

 

[tyty333]

Hi @Tweedi

This forum is for Earth-mined diamonds but your questions seem to be generic cushion questions so I'll get it a shot.
(Just FYI, this thread probably needs to be moved to the Lab-created forum.)

Your points...
- Ring will be a solitary, cushion shape, approximately 1.5ct.
- Color probably E or D as I would like the stone characteristics to be better than average and I read that color matters more than say clarity.
D/E should be good and white. Really, better characteristics should be associated with a better-than-average cut
(much more important than color/clarity).
- Clarity, VS1 or VVS2. I won't care if there are inclusions not visible to naked eye, but it should be clean eye. With that being said, Just browsing I see a VVS2 (should be clean eye) which seems to have a clear mark in a corner of the table, what the heck is this really VVS2? :
Labs like IGI are not known to be not as strict on color and clarity as labs like GIA/AGS. This might be why you are seeing something.
Remember that these are fairly blown-up pictures but still wouldn't expect to see that in a GIA stone. In honesty, each stones
needs to be evaluated on its on merits. You may find an eye-clean SI1 but chances are you'll do better in the range you posted.
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/cushion-cut/2.01-carat-e-color-vvs2-clarity-sku-10533960 ?
Yep, I see it.
- Cut: can you tell me what I should look for here? Your site calculator asks for crown and pavilion angle but IGI reports on JA do not report this, How do I calculate them myself? Also I read the girdle should not be very thick but the IGI and GCAL reports do not give this info.
IF you are looking at the HCA tool, that is for round cuts only. Because there are several different cuts of cushions there are no defined angle numbers. I'm sure somewhere there are some table/depth ones but I dont know them off the top of my
head.

I would think one of the easiest things to do is to have this thread moved to the other forum, post your budget and ask for help.
You can also try picking some stones on your own and asking for opinions. We have lots of opinions .

Other forum linked below for lab-created questions specifically. There are certain inclusions and color issues to watch out for.

Lab-Grown Diamonds/Man-Made Diamonds (MMD)

Learn about and discuss everything on lab-grown diamonds here! No simulants (CZ, Moissanite, YAG, etc), please.

www.pricescope.com

 

[Tweedi]

Thank you so much! Happy for the post to be moved of course (let me know if I need to do anything to make it happen).

Thanks for clarifying that the calculator is for round cut. From browsing JA and BE and looking at what they deem the best it seems to be around 60/67 (table/depth).

I also found this table:

here.

Does this sound correct?

I am looking for circa 1.5ct, fairly squared (say below 1.1 ratio side by side) and non crushed. Budget about $6000 or £4500 inc taxes. After a few hours I spotted the following:

This 62/68 (table/depth) color E clarity VS1

This 60.5/67 (table/depth) color E clarity VS1 (weirdly so much more expensive than first one ?!)

This 59/68.5 (table/depth) color D clarity VS1

This 60/67.8 (table/depth) color D clarity VVS2

This 59/68.6 (table/depth) color D clarity VS1

Do you think I am on the right track?

Many Thanks!

 

[tyty333]

It definitely needs to be moved now . I've notified admin. Once the tread gets moved, I'll comment on the stones.
(Or you can open a new thread over there yourself). Sometimes it takes a while for admin to get to it. They are busy people!

 

[Tweedi]

Thank you tyty333, I reposted over there:

Need advice on cut for a Lab cushion 1.5ct

Hi All Looking for a diamond for an engagement ring and having a bit of a challenge with picking a good cut (stone proportions) for a diamond with these settings: - Budget approximately $6000 inc taxes (can go a bit above if a significantly better diamond is found) - Lab grown - Cushion shape...

www.pricescope.com

This post can be closed (I reported it).