Looking for comfort on my buy...

[CJC]

Hello one and all,

I am making a purchase of a round brilliant. A little nervous...doing it on the web without seeing the merchandise. Working through a reputable vendor with money back guarantee, etc.. So far I am very happy with the interaction with the company.

Searched high and low for the perfect diamond. I will be eloping to Scotland in August with my French fiance then bringing here back to the US after a three year courtship. I want it to be perfect. I opted for a smaller stone in favour of the cut, color and clarity - this because I havc always been amazed by an ex-colleague''s diamond solitaire that would sparkle and light up a room whereever she was. No other woman''s diamond has ever caught my eye consistently like this. I am assuming that it is color, cut and clarity that do this.... (I have read all the education on the website here)

I opted for the following:

Shape: A Cut Above H&A
Carat: 1.00
Color: G
Clarity: VS2
Depth: 60.2
Table: 57
Crown Angle: 34.9
Crown %: 15.2
Pavilion Angle: 40.6
Pavilion %: 42.8
Girdle: 0.9%-1.5%FACETED
Polish: Ideal
Symmetry: Ideal
Culet: Pointed
Fluorescence: Negligible
Measurements: 6.52-6.54X3.92

I was happy to find Pricescope.com with its advice and the HCA. I poured through diamond listing until I found the closest to perfect I could find. This diamond registers .7 on the HCA with excellent in all four categories. Here are my questions:

1) How exceptional is .7 on the HCA. Does it put the stone in the top x% of diamonds on the market?
2) What is the marginal difference between a .7 and, say, a 1.4?
3) Is it going to sparkle and light up a room as I hope?
4) Should I have gone for size instead of such an ideal cut?
5) What should I check for when I receive the diamond?

Hoping I made the right choice...

Thanks in advance.

 

[quaeritur]

I'd hardly call 1.00ct "small"

! As for the marginal difference between a 1.4 and a .7 on the HCA, I don't think that kind of difference would necessarily be visible. The HCA really is meant to weed out the poor performers, which neither a .7 nor a 1.4 would be. I don't see how you can go wrong with this stone. I'd take it into a variety of light conditions and see how you like it.

Also, having looked and looked at diamonds, I've become a firm believer that cut and cut alone has the greatest impact on how good the diamond will look. I've seen awesome I color I1 stones thanks to a superb cut. Color and clarity matter, but cut matters most!

By the way, your plans for eloping sound so cool!!!

 

[CJC]

Thanks Quaeritur, what promtitude! this website is awesome. Another question that comes to mind: Is it scintillation or fire that causes a diamond to sparkle?

Thanks, CJC

 

[dbling]

I think you made an excellent decision in not sacrificing the cut, clarity, color for size. When buying diamonds for myself, I try to get the biggest diamond I could get for my budget without compromising those all important Cs. The beauty in diamonds is in their brilliance so you did the right thing in my opinion, of course I'm no expert.

 

[MelanieC]

1.00ct is not small at all. The stone sounds absolutely beautiful. Being the owner of an H VS2 just over 1 ct, I think it sounds like a superb stone. My stone actually falls on the HCA scale at 2.1 because of a 41 degree angle. My stone is so beautiful that I couldn't imagine it performing any better. I have yet to see anyone with a diamond that looks as sparkly and firey than mine. I would always pick CUT over color and clarity. It is what sets a diamond apart from the majority of diamonds on most girls fingers.

Your girlfriend will be in heaven with the combo G/VS2 Ideal cut! Congrats on your choice and the wedding plans sound fabulous!

 

[CJC]

Thanks Dbling and MelanieC,

I can't wait to receive the diamond to see how it performs. It is currently at AGS for the certification - so I am hoping all the numbers come back precisely as advertised!

Update on the elopement: Just had the Scottish registrar's office on the phone. They have received all our papers, French and US, and everything is in order for a Aug 24 Wedding in Gretna Green at high noon...the quaint old town where the British have been eloping to for centuries. Now I have to pop the question to my girlfriend (expected) and the ring (unexpected).

 

[fire&ice]

All I can say is this should be a stunner. All eyes will be on that diamond.

Good luck!

 

[quaeritur]

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On 7/17/2004 2:48:10 AM CJC wrote:

Thanks Quaeritur, what promtitude! this website is awesome. Another question that comes to mind: Is it scintillation or fire that causes a diamond to sparkle?

Thanks, CJC----------------

I'd say both, but I think that's kinda hard to nail down, because different people have different ideas of what "sparkle" is. I'd say (and I'm no expert nor scientist on things gemological) that sparkle occurs as flashes of returned light hit your eye. That could describe scintillation (which I think of as the glitter-like quality of a diamond) or fire (which to me means dispersed light that shows color, where the diamond acts as a prism, splitting light into its component colors). Then again, sparkle could describe the combination of both those factors.

 

[Patty]

As soon as I saw that you bought an ACA from Whiteflash, I stopped reading the other details.

You don't have to worry a bit about whether or not you made a good purchase. That's how good the Whiteflash reputation is.

Okay...I lied...I looked at the color and clarity. I'd say that a G, VS2 is the "sweet spot" that most shoppers look for. It will be a great white color and eye clean.

As for sparkle, it's an ACA. It will do what it's supposed to do!

 

[Lynn B]

OH! It sounds GORGEOUS! Absolutely stunning, I am sure. FOUR "ex's" on the HCA... it just doesn't get any better than THAT!

Only one piece of advice... QUIT thinking of 1 ct as "small"! It's so NOT!

It's a WONDERFUL size.

BTW, I read once that the average size of e-rings sold in the US is .38 or .39 ct.

ENJOY your beautiful diamond!

Lynn

 

[ame]

If it doesn't sparkle as much, look into Star 129 stones. HOLY SPARKLE batman.

 

[CJC]

Thank you all. I feel more confident. I am definitely a neophyte. I will dust off the digital camera when it comes in and try to share it with you.

I have my fingers crossed!

CJC