many questions

[bbb in to]

great site
really helpful and informative
who would have thought this was soo complicated

currently in toronto and interested in buying an engagement ring in the next 2 months

approx 10,000 - 15,000 canadian dollars as price range
want solitaire > 1 carat
platinum band with pronged setting (love the vache x prong)
and obviously something spectacular (as everyone does i imagine)
don''t really want to do the whole tiffany thing though

questions

is this an achieveable goal?
in your experience which would be better a good quality 1 carat vs a 1.5 of not so great quality?
should i concentrate more on cut?
is getting a separate diamond and then getting a jeweller to "copy" the vache design a better possibility?
can anyone recommend diamond sellers and or jewellers in toronto?

planning the proposal for holidays in august is time a factor? - should i really get moving?

am i thinking about this too much?

do i ask too many questions?

thanks in anticipation

bbb in to

 

[pqcollectibles]

Hi BBB!

Welcome to the forum!

CUT is THE #1 consideration to diamond buying. If you get a great CUT, the diamond has a larger visual appearance, looks whiter, returns more light (virtually no light leaks out through the diamond), and flashes more colors of the rainbow. With your budget, you won't have to sacrifice CUT, CARAT, color, or clarity to get a rock that will knock her socks off.

You didn't say what shape you prefer, but Round Brilliants are the most sparkly. Here's just one for you to consider:

http://www.whiteflash.com/acut/diamond_details.asp?ItemCode=476555

1.537 carat, F, VS2, Hearts and Arrows with a Cut Adviser rating of 1.4, Excellent White Light Return, Excellent Fire, Excellent Scintillation, and Excellent Spread. If you haven't read the tutorial, that's a FABULOUS diamond. Price Scope customer priced at $14,497 US. And, White Flash carries Vatche rings too. They have skilled craftsmen jewelers that can set the whole thing up for you. The folks at White Flash are great to work with.

If Round Brilliant is the way you want to go, you can search for the cream of the crop on the Price Scope homepage. Toward the upper right is a "Search by Quality" link you can use. True Hearts and Arrows diamonds are cut to exacting standards. The internal symmetry is soooooo good that they exhibit a hearts pattern when viewed with a special viewer while looking from the cutlet, bottom, end. From the table, or top, you can see the arrows with the naked eye, but they really grab you when viewed with a viewer. Most all H&A vendors include a viewer kit with the purchase of the diamond.

You might want to take time to read through the Tutorial to familiarize yourself with terms and specs. Also, there are Cut Charts available by clicking on the links at the bottom of the left hand side bar on the 1st page of the Tutorial. At this point, you shouldn't have any problem with your time frame.

Check out return periods, refund/exchange periods, life-time upgrades and compare the brass tacks of the transaction. White Flash, Good Old Gold, Nice Ice, SuperbCert, etc, are great vendors that stand behind their diamonds. The Price Scope vendors are very helpful and friendly. Call several and chat with them. Find the one that makes you feel the most comfortable.

Enjoy, and have fun! You have a great budget that will afford you lots of choices!

 

[bbb in to]

thanks for your prompt reply
unfortunately it's canadian dollars not usd - oh that they were the same!

bbb in to

 

[aljdewey]

Hi, BBB:

Yes, you can get a beautiful stone right in between 1.0 and 1.5 that will be superb.

NiceIce has a 1.3 carat, G, SI-1, GIA certed, AGS 0 cut, ex/ex polish & symmetry, scores 1.3 on HCA for $7280 USD.

Good Old Old has a 1.237, H, VS-2, AGS certed, AGS 0 H&A cut, ideal/ideal polish/symmetry, scores 1.3 on HCA for $7227 USD.

Either should be a dazzling stone, and both still leave another $1800 USD for the setting. Well within your budget.

(For those of you who would suggest less money on the setting and more on the stone, there were no larger stones available in cut quality search than the two I've selected in the G/H, VS2/SI1 range.)

Good luck!

 

[pqcollectibles]

ALJD!! You are soooooo GREAT, and RIGHT!

LOL

I am sooooo sorry, BB. I went backwards in my currency conversions.

Thanks to ALJD, I reran it, CORRECTLY, this time, and see that you still have a very healthy budget!

ALJD gave you a couple very nice diamonds to consider from 2 verrry reputable vendors. Both Nice Ice and GOG hand select their diamonds, have very high standards, so you can be sure they will be absolutely marvelous. Both are great CUTS and will set up beautifully in platinum.

G and H color diamonds give you the best value for color choices because you don't take the premium hit for the D/E/F colorless range. You don't have to sacrifice a thing to get her the size you want and maintain quality!