looking for a dream diamond

[Guri]

Which one do you guys think is the best?

Is it possible to get round, 1.8-2.0 carat, above VS2, above I color, Ideal/true hearts/astro ideal cut diamond and setting under 10k or is it too much to ask for? How much would it be to get that kind of diamond?

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-5883310

https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-de...AMONDS&track=viewDiamondDetails&action=newTab

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3855518.htm

https://www.ritani.com/diamonds/round-diamond-1-70-Carat-I-color-GIA-certified/D-7W16QH

Thank You!

 

[lovedogs]

I would reject all of those stones except the WF one, and even that one isn't my favorite.

IMHO 10K won't get you an ideal cut stone and setting with those parameters. I am not an expert on how much that might cost, but my guess would be closer to 15-19K for both stone and setting. This is the lowest cost and best cut stone I could find (when sticking to ideal cut parameters).

https://www.fourmine.com/shop/diamond/1814118?utm_source=rarecarat&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=2017

 

[sledge]

Which one do you guys think is the best?

Is it possible to get round, 1.8-2.0 carat, above VS2, above I color, Ideal/true hearts/astro ideal cut diamond and setting under 10k or is it too much to ask for? How much would it be to get that kind of diamond?

First off, the "astro cut" is marketing. Toss it out the window.

You're asking a lot for the budget. Diamonds are a zero sum game meaning if you have a static budget, then the 4 C's will move up/down to find balance.

IMO, the one C you never sacrifice on is cut. This makes or breaks a diamond, period.

The two most controversial C's are color & carat weight. Most are okay with dropping clarity to an eye clean SI1.

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...i-color-vs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-5883310

Reject. IGI is an untrusted lab. Additionally a 36.1 crown & 40.6 pavilion is not the best combination.

https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-de...AMONDS&track=viewDiamondDetails&action=newTab

Reject. Crown too steep at 35.5 to play nicely with too steep of a 41 pavilion. 58 table and 62.5 depth is pushing the limits on both.

On a positive, good job on finding a GIA stone. Stick with either GIA or AGS as they are reliable and trustworthy labs.

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3855518.htm

Not my favorite WF stone, but the good news is it's a Premium Select. This means it misses their true H&A super ideal criteria (called A Cut Above, or ACA). It also means it comes at a cheaper price. It also comes with their excellent customer service, and upgrade programs.

Consequently, we can see why. It has 36.5 crown paired with a 40.6 pavilion. While it's not a true ideal cut diamond, it still looks very good.

Also, I might note that clouds are the grade setting inclusion, and there is a note on the certificate that "additional clouds are not shown". This is a bad combination, even for a VS2 stone. The positive is WF owns the stone and has vetted it meaning someone reviewed it and they have it marked as eye clean. If you consider this stone, you need to ask them to pull from their vault and verify there are no cloudy/hazy issues going on.



In regards to the angles, you can start to see what I am talking about in the idealscope image here. The light pink areas is where you have some issues.




You can see them again on the ASET image:



Here is a comparable stone from WF that is much better and not considerably more expensive, while still staying within your original desired parameters:

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3765691.htm

Look at the difference in the idealscope & ASET images:

https://www.ritani.com/diamonds/round-diamond-1-70-Carat-I-color-GIA-certified/D-7W16QH

Thank You!

Reject. 60 table, 62.5 depth, 35 crown & 41.4 pavilion just do not play nicely together at all.

You can see how this lands at roughly a very good (VG) cut quality, despite GIA's "excellent" rating. Unless you find the right proportions, GIA's term of "excellent" is not very excellent at all.

 

[sledge]

When shopping GIA diamonds, you will be well served to stay within these parameters:

• 54-57 table
• 60-62.4 depth (prefer <62)
• 34-35 crown (maybe 35.5, if paired w/ 40.6 pavilion)
• 40.6-40.9 pavilion (maybe 41, if paired with 34 crown)
• 75-80 lower girdle facets (many prefer 75 for "fat arrows")

Additionally, you want to make sure the angles are complimentary. This means pairing a steep crown of 35 with a steep pavilion of 40.9 is risky and may not work. Instead, a 34 crown with a 40.9 pavilion would be better.

Once you get a stone with the right proportions, then you need to request images, videos and performance data. The performance data can include an idealscope image, ASET image and H&A (hearts & arrows) images.

Many internet retailers won't provide all those images. Getting any of them is helpful, but an idealscope should be the minimum you request. An ASET can tell us the same (and more) than an idealscope. The H&A images confirm symmetry, as opposed to light performance that the ASET and idealscope images do.

 

[gm89uk]

https://www.jamesallen.com/mobile/l...i-color-si2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-5888292

Looks clean, need to check scattering with gemologist. Cut looks good enough! A bit painted, but good value.

If you want bang for buck, go with IDJ