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Looking for help purchasing a diamond!!!

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Steve88

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Jul 10, 2018
Messages
160
Good morning!

I am looking for help finding a diamond for my soon to be fiancé. My budget is around 10-11k.

Size - pref 1.4ish
Color - G-H (Pref G)
Cut - Ideal, Super Ideal
Clarity - Anything vs2 and up.

I've tried blue nile and james allen. I found some diamonds I like in my price range but the Fluorescence is strong.

Please help!!

Thank you
 
Here are 2 super ideals from WF. You can ask for side by side pictures to see the color difference. They are SI clarity so ask them if they are eye-clean
and from what distance.

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3955174.htm
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3950139.htm

Fluorescence is rarely a problem and gets a bad rap. They might have been in your price range because they had strong Fluor. Strong Fluor stones
usually get a small discount. If you go with a strong fluor have the gemologist evaluate it to make sure it has no hazy/cloudy/oily issue under fluorescence.
It is very rare for them to have an issue but check just to be sure.
 
tyty333 said:
Here are 2 super ideals from WF. You can ask for side by side pictures to see the color difference. They are SI clarity so ask them if they are eye-clean
and from what distance.

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3955174.htm
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3950139.htm

Fluorescence is rarely a problem and gets a bad rap. They might have been in your price range because they had strong Fluor. Strong Fluor stones
usually get a small discount. If you go with a strong fluor have the gemologist evaluate it to make sure it has no hazy/cloudy/oily issue under fluorescence.
It is very rare for them to have an issue but check just to be sure.
Click to expand...

Thank you! The current stone I chose from blue nile has a strong fluor but scored a 1.1 on the HCA test on this site. How reliable is it?
 
What are the mm measurements from blue Nile?

I will throw this one out as a wild card (I am adding another of their diamonds to my collection for a project, so I have been on their database all day yesterday and today lol)

https://www.hpdiamonds.com/en-us/diamonddetail/HPD10091

1.27H Si1
6.96 x 6.97 x 4.27
$11,002 credit price

It’s a little smaller in carat weight, but is a super ideal. H in a super ideal will look more like a G and it is a guaranteed eye clean SI1.

Their trade up policy can’t be beat.

I’ll look at blue Nile in a minute to see if I can find any you missed. Most of my diamonds came from Blue Nile.
 
A guaranteed eye clean Si1 (like from whiteflash or HPD or Brian Gavin etc) will get you more bang for your buck. With Blue Nile, I do tend toward VS2 to be on the safe side, but my studs are si1
 
whitewave said:
What are the mm measurements from blue Nile?

I will throw this one out as a wild card (I am adding another of their diamonds to my collection for a project, so I have been on their database all day yesterday and today lol)

https://www.hpdiamonds.com/en-us/diamonddetail/HPD10091

1.27H Si1
6.96 x 6.97 x 4.27
$11,002 credit price

It’s a little smaller in carat weight, but is a super ideal. H in a super ideal will look more like a G and it is a guaranteed eye clean SI1.

Their trade up policy can’t be beat.

I’ll look at blue Nile in a minute to see if I can find any you missed. Most of my diamonds came from Blue Nile.
Click to expand...


MM Measurements are 7.18 x 7.15 x 4.44 mm .

Link to the actual diamond:

https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-details/LD10661812

Thanks!
 
whitewave said:
What are the mm measurements from blue Nile?

I will throw this one out as a wild card (I am adding another of their diamonds to my collection for a project, so I have been on their database all day yesterday and today lol)

https://www.hpdiamonds.com/en-us/diamonddetail/HPD10091

1.27H Si1
6.96 x 6.97 x 4.27
$11,002 credit price

It’s a little smaller in carat weight, but is a super ideal. H in a super ideal will look more like a G and it is a guaranteed eye clean SI1.

Their trade up policy can’t be beat.

I’ll look at blue Nile in a minute to see if I can find any you missed. Most of my diamonds came from Blue Nile.
Click to expand...

That diamond is beautiful! I wish the carat size is a bit bigger though :'(
 
whitewave said:
Ah! The IF clarity— you are paying for that! It’s beautiful though.

Let me look in the Hs at blue Nile. I was focusing on G but there isn’t much unless you drop to Si1.

What is your time frame?
Click to expand...

Time frame I have about 2-3 weeks so its certainly not a rush. Do you think the IF grade is worth it on a H with strong Fluoro? The only reason I chose the IF is because I saw a similar H with a vvs1 grade and it was only a 90 dollar difference to the IF so I thought why not.

Thank you so much for helping! I'm learning a lot
 
tyty333 said:
Here are 2 super ideals from WF. You can ask for side by side pictures to see the color difference. They are SI clarity so ask them if they are eye-clean
and from what distance.

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3955174.htm
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3950139.htm

Fluorescence is rarely a problem and gets a bad rap. They might have been in your price range because they had strong Fluor. Strong Fluor stones
usually get a small discount. If you go with a strong fluor have the gemologist evaluate it to make sure it has no hazy/cloudy/oily issue under fluorescence.
It is very rare for them to have an issue but check just to be sure.
Click to expand...

These are also amazing diamonds, and white flash has a much better trade up policy than blue Nile.

I have run into a dead end with the blue Nile trade up for my asscher. I would have traded up for 6-8K more, but you have to spend double the amount, so that was 11-12k and I didnt want to do that.
 
whitewave said:
These are also amazing diamonds, and white flash has a much better trade up policy than blue Nile.

I have run into a dead end with the blue Nile trade up for my asscher. I would have traded up for 6-8K more, but you have to spend double the amount, so that was 11-12k and I didnt want to do that.
Click to expand...

I think theyre gorgeous too! Showed them to my fiancés friends to get some feedback and theyre adamant that I get at least a V grade clarity....
 
Looking at your time frame, budget and wants, i'd definitely snap up one of the WF stones @tyty333 posted. they're both gorgeous stones, eye clean and in the size range you want.
 
farrahlyn said:
Looking at your time frame, budget and wants, i'd definitely snap up one of the WF stones @tyty333 posted. they're both gorgeous stones, eye clean and in the size range you want.
Click to expand...

I wish I can explain to her friends that a S Clarity grade that's eye clean will be just as good as the V clarity but they don't seem to understand that cut is more important
 
Steve88 said:
I think theyre gorgeous too! Showed them to my fiancés friends to get some feedback and theyre adamant that I get at least a V grade clarity....
Click to expand...

is there cultural reasons for this? That i can understand. BUT, most people are misinformed that VS or VVS clarity is needed and that could be why her friend is pushing for that clarity. for some people, they want that "Mind clean" stone and a clarity plot will bug them. My thought is why pay for something i can't see. If an SI stone is eye clean then why pay for VVS?
 
farrahlyn said:
is there cultural reasons for this? That i can understand. BUT, most people are misinformed that VS or VVS clarity is needed and that could be why her friend is pushing for that clarity. for some people, they want that "Mind clean" stone and a clarity plot will bug them. My thought is why pay for something i can't see. If an SI stone is eye clean then why pay for VVS?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure but that's the feedback I'm getting back so far. I totally agree with your logic but I guess not everyone thinks the way we do...
 
Steve88 said:
I'm not sure but that's the feedback I'm getting back so far. I totally agree with your logic but I guess not everyone thinks the way we do...
Click to expand...

do you know if this is her friends logic or your GF's thinking?
 
I would stop asking her friends lol

I also would like to know if there are cultural reasons for no SI. They likely haven’t heard of a super ideal diamond either, so are only going by what they have seen in “maul” stores.

With a super ideal diamond, like the brand “a cut above”or “crafted by infinity”, there is no reason IMO not to get an eye clean Si1.

With whiteflash or high performance diamonds, you are not only getting a much better trade up policy, but also you are buying a branded diamond. It’s not a “generic” diamond—these are in house diamonds that have been vetted to pass quality assurances and meet the standards for the brand. They have excellent personal customer service and you can buy these diamonds sight unseen, or you can call and ask them a bazillion questions and they will truthfully answer.

HPD/CBI for instance— their SI1 have clear inclusions. I have a CBI .56 SI2 and I have never been able to find the inclusions with a 10x loupe.

Well, looking at VS2 at whiteflash:
1.39 h vs2
$1,661 credit
7.17 x 7.19 x 4.41
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3965468.htm
 
Last edited:
whitewave said:
I would stop asking her friends lol

I also would like to know if there are cultural reasons for no SI. They likely haven’t heard of a super ideal diamond either, so are only going by what they have seen in “maul” stores.

With a super ideal diamond, like the brand “a cut above”or “crafted by infinity”, there is no reason IMO not to get an eye clean Si1.

HPD/CBI for instance— their SI1 have clear inclusions. I have a CBI .56 SI2 and I have never been able to find the inclusions with a 10x loupe.

Well, looking at VS2 at whiteflash:
1.39 h vs2
$1,661 credit
7.17 x 7.19 x 4.41
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3965468.htm

Dropping to an I color with
Click to expand...

Quick question, what does the brand "a cut above" or "crafted by infinity" really entitle? Is it that much higher in quality than an excellent grade?
 
farrahlyn said:
do you know if this is her friends logic or your GF's thinking?
Click to expand...

Very hard to tell as I'm trying not to ruin the surprise of a ring for my girlfriend. I've had two of them tell me that they would go with at least a V clarity. It's clear that they don't really understand that the difference is miniscule
 
Steve88 said:
Quick question, what does the brand "a cut above" or "crafted by infinity" really entitle? Is it that much higher in quality than an excellent grade?
Click to expand...

Instead of meeting the broader category of GIA ex ex ex (which can include some less than stellar cuts), they meet the tighter standards for ideal cut AGS 0.
 
In other words, if you get an eye clean Si1 from whiteflash and you don’t tell her friends it is an Si1, I doubt they will ever be able to tell, even if they scrutinize the diamond. You can ask them at whiteflash if someone puts it up to their eye, what will they see in terms of inclusions.

Besides, what terrible friends if they do that!!!
 
whitewave said:
In other words, if you get an eye clean Si1 from whiteflash and you don’t tell her friends it is an Si1, I doubt they will ever be able to tell, even if they scrutinize the diamond. You can ask them at whiteflash if someone puts it up to their eye, what will they see in terms of inclusions.

Besides, what terrible friends if they do that!!!
Click to expand...

I mean they have good intentions. I'm sure they just want the best for their friend. Especially on paper. I hope they don't go around comparing their ring GIA reports! lol
 
whitewave said:
What do you think of this one?
Click to expand...

I'm taking a hard look at that one now and it looks good! So ive been reading all morning and some sites say that with a H-G color, fluoro can actually help?! My god all this information is going to make my head explode lol
 
Steve88 said:
Very hard to tell as I'm trying not to ruin the surprise of a ring for my girlfriend. I've had two of them tell me that they would go with at least a V clarity. It's clear that they don't really understand that the difference is miniscule
Click to expand...

yeah if its not for cultural reasons (in some asian cultures, high clarity is expected) then ignore the friends. i'm sorry but listening to them would be like asking one of your buddies who is a bow hunting enthusiast, with little to no knowledge in guns, to help you choose a new handgun.

I say go with a super ideal like WF or CBI or BGD, it really will blow her socks off and her friends will NOT look at it and say, "ew, that's an SI stone." it'll more likely be "Wow, look at the sparkle, WOW!" You don't have to tell them. lol!
 
Steve88 said:
I mean they have good intentions. I'm sure they just want the best for their friend. Especially on paper. I hope they don't go around comparing their ring GIA reports! lol
Click to expand...

Oh, I am sure they are good friends lol. They are wanting the best for her, which is obviously nice and kind and what we hope with our friends, that they have our backs.

They will be wowed regardless. My first engagement ring was an eyeclean I1 and no one ever saw any inclusions unless I turned the ring over and showed them the underneath.
 
Steve88 said:
I'm taking a hard look at that one now and it looks good! So ive been reading all morning and some sites say that with a H-G color, fluoro can actually help?! My god all this information is going to make my head explode lol
Click to expand...

Additional clouds not shown should be ok with a vs 2 and the same with surface graining.

But, you see, with whiteflash or BGD or HPD, you would have that assurance. You would have diamond light return images, etc.

You can ask with Blue Nile and they will have someone (likely overseas) pull the diamond and look at it and they will get back to you with an answer.
 
whitewave said:
Oh, I am sure they are good friends lol. They are wanting the best for her, which is obviously nice and kind and what we hope with our friends, that they have our backs.

They will be wowed regardless. My first engagement ring was an eyeclean I1 and no one ever saw any inclusions unless I turned the ring over and showed them the underneath.
Click to expand...

I'll take a good look at those WF rings again. They do look beautiful. Any idea how their return policies are just in case?
 
farrahlyn said:
yeah if its not for cultural reasons (in some asian cultures, high clarity is expected) then ignore the friends. i'm sorry but listening to them would be like asking one of your buddies who is a bow hunting enthusiast, with little to no knowledge in guns, to help you choose a new handgun.

I say go with a super ideal like WF or CBI or BGD, it really will blow her socks off and her friends will NOT look at it and say, "ew, that's an SI stone." it'll more likely be "Wow, look at the sparkle, WOW!" You don't have to tell them. lol!
Click to expand...

It's funny because I'm Asian and so is my gf and her friends. Definitely must be a cultural standard kinda thing. Really sucks because these SI graded diamonds probably look better than their V graded diamonds
 
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