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Looking for a ~1.5ct round for under $8500. Suggestions?

B

Beernuts

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 18, 2012
Messages
7
Hey all, been lurking for awhile and this is my first post.

Went to a local well respected jewelry/diamond store yesterday looking for a 1.4-1.5 round stone and they showed me some EGL diamonds which were priced nicely (1.46ct for $6500-6700) but didn't have enough fire for my taste. I ran the numbers on my phone and one scored a 6.1 HCA even though it was a "Tolkowsky Ideal Cut." :eek:

They didn't have anything else in-house that suited my needs so they are bringing some more in this week.

In the meantime, here's what I'm looking for: 1.4-1.5ct round , SI1-SI2, G or better color, under $8500.

Here's the best I've found so far for the price (1.54ct, SI2, G, HCA: 2, $7,920): http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/G-SI2-Very%20Good-Cut-Round-Diamond-1452981.asp

Any other suggestions? I understand James Allen can send Idealscope images? What is the process for getting those? I dont see it mentioned on the website.

Thanks for the help!
 
Though I am by no means an expert, and have only been lurking on this site for roughly a month or so, I will tell you that the advice you will likely get is some of the following:

- never give up on cut, that should be your highest priority
- if you found your EGL "G" diamonds to be satisfactory to your eye, you may be able to go much lower on your color scale - they are known for having a wide variance in what they grade their color
- you may be able to go below your 1.4 lower limit and find a nice stone with a good HCA that faces up like a 1.4 - 1.5, the diamond will also look bigger with a better cut

With that being said, I lowered your criteria to I color (again EGL "G" is likely much lower) and re-did your search keeping carat size the same as what you wanted.

The forum will be able to evaluate this stone better, but I only got one result:

http://www.eternitydiamonds.com/diamond_detail.php?id=652702&ref=pricescope

ED doesn't keep its stock in house i believe (it's like BN), but the stone faces up well (7.48-7.50x4.38), it's GIA certified, has faint flour (which really isn't going to do much but some say can make a warmer diamond whiter) and has a 1.7 on HCA (forum members from what I have seen like to keep it between 1>HCA>2).

I'd also use the pricescope search engine, that helps me a lot and it automatically runs the HCA for you :).

- as a side note, I'm also looking around 1.5 carat stones (by summer) and look forward to seeing what the forum gives you.

:) good luck
 
SI2- you really need to comfort that it will be eyeclean.

Don't sacrifice on cut- better I get a slightly smaller cut with ideal cut then a larger dead looking stone
 
Thanks for the tips, nic!

The EGL stones I was looking at were actually F's - which looked fine to me. I compared an EGL F to a GIA G and couldnt tell a difference colorwise.

I would be willing to go down as small as 1.35ct for something with a great HCA score, which led me to this: http://www.bluenile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-ideal-cut-g-color-si2-clarity_LD02392815

Light Return: Excellent
Fire: Excellent
Scintillation: Excellent
Spread: Very Good
Total Visual Performance: 1.5 - Excellent
 
I think the JA one is a good option if you want to stay in the 1.5ct range! I would just email, call or do an instant chat to request the idealscope...and definitely place it on hold in the meantime!
 
I agree with shimmer, the second one you found faces up MUCH smaller. I'd put your first stone on hold in the mean time while your others come in and talk to JA. You also get a pricescope discount - don't forget about that :).
 
Thanks guys - Just put the JA one on hold and should have an Idealscope image by Wednesday. :)
 
If you work with a place like ID Jewelry you can have them call in all of these stones and get ideal-scopes on them. Furthermore with your budget, you are going to need to find an eye clean SI2 which will require a place that gives you a higher level of customer service (pictures and a trustworthy opinion of the stone).

I would also recommend going a little worse on color than a G. It will really really open up your possibilities on stones. With a budget only slightly higher than yours (10K), I was able to get a just under 2ct stone in a J. So I would go look at more stones in person and see if H and I stones are okay.

A few recommendations:
GIA ex, 34/41 proportion
http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-2293862-1.51-carat-Round-diamond-G-color-SI2-Clarity.aspx?sku=2293862&utm_source=pricescope.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=pricescope.com

GIA H ex 36.5/40.6 Proportions (Fiery Cut) HCA 2.4.
http://search.virtcert.com/cgi/u/1012/v.cgi?stock=14731108&_s=1012&_p=sdf348gd743&_c=&_fs=1&prestock=&_ln=ps
 
Wow.. good luck! I'm trying to find a diamond with exactly the same goal stats for a pal of mine.. and I'm having trouble with a 13k budget! I'm sticking with GIA or AGS, though.. If it's that "one" purchase in your life, you don't want to play games with EGL and risk a dud!

:wavey:

I'll be watching this thread for the pros' advice!

ETA: That JA one looks gorgeous! For an SI2, it sure appears clean!
 
On the 1.54 JA stone, please ask the gemologist if the clouds impact the brilliance in any way. A long time expert here has a strict belief that if clouds are the primary grade setting inclusion as they are in this diamond; those clouds impact the brilliance of the diamond in a negative way. My guess is this the case here given the price. There is a reason as why it is dicounted by at least 4 grand. I would look for alternate choices on the JA website. I would advise buying a smaller diamond that has the most sparkle, bigger is not always better. Good Luck!!!
 
bagelboy|1332168625|3151989 said:
On the 1.54 JA stone, please ask the gemologist if the clouds impact the brilliance in any way. A long time expert here has a strict belief that if clouds are the primary grade setting inclusion as they are in this diamond; those clouds impact the brilliance of the diamond in a negative way. My guess is this the case here given the price. There is a reason as why it is dicounted by at least 4 grand. I would look for alternate choices on the JA website. I would advise buying a smaller diamond that has the most sparkle, bigger is not always better. Good Luck!!!
Click to expand...

Thanks Bagel, and I agree 100%. I really wasnt looking for anything bigger than 1.5cts but this is too good of a deal to not consider.

I am working with JA on finding some alternatives as well - I'll keep this thread updated.
 
Definitely Inquire as to how the clarity grading affects the stones performance..
 
UPDATE:

Idealscope and comments are back from JA.

"Diamond 1452981 (1.54crt G SI2) is not recommended because it's very cloudy. The clouds greatly affect the diamond's light performance and cause it to look dark."

Looks like this one is out of the running. :(

1452981id.jpg
 
I'm glad about their honesty. Have they found any other contenders? Are you willing to go down to an H color if not?
 
Update:

After not having much luck online a friend suggested a local shop. I stopped by and he had a wonderful selection of 1.3-1.5ct GIA stones all within my price range. I ended up picking out a 1.5ct SI2, VG cut, I color stone for $8500 including taxes. The stone is completely eye clean and looks great! I was worried about the I color but we compared it to a G and the difference was negligible - I could only see a difference when the stones were on a white background and looking through the pavilion.

I have an appointment to pick the ring up on the 14th as I will be traveling until then - I'll post pics when I get back!
 
Pictures as promised (on my hand, not hers lol)

I'm very pleased with the results

ring3_17.jpg

ring4_14.jpg

ring5_13.jpg

Details are as follows,

Stone: 1.5ct GIA, very good cut, ex sym, ex polish, SI2, I color - $8500
Band: Scott Kay Palladium 950, .63ctw, VS1, G - $1350 (normally $4000+, found on clearance)

Thanks for the help everyone! I hope this helps those who were looking for a 1.5ct under $8500.
 
It looks like a beautiful ring, congrats :twirl:
 
SO LOVELY! Great choice. :appl: Congratulations.
 
YOWZERS!!! :appl: :love: :appl: Its stunning, Beernuts! Great choice of diamond and setting - good work!! Congratulations on the upcoming engagement!
 
:appl:

CONGRATULATIONS!! BEAUTIFUL ring!!!
 
Beautiful ring! Good luck with your proposal!
 
Great job and fantastic find for the setting. Did you start a thread on SMTB? you need to show this pretty off!
 
Lovely Beernuts, so glad you found just what you were looking for!! love that you found such a great deal on the setting too, that's icing on the cake for sure!

if i may be so bold, could you post closeups and sideshots of the prongs... i hope my eyes are just playing tricks on me but they don't appear to be holding the stone very securely, they seem close to or even off the edge a bit.
 
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