My Infinity 1.00 M SI2 is here! Photos!

[Lula]

Today the diamond for my anniversary upgrade arrived from Wink at HPD and I am thrilled! It's everything I wanted -- size, color, and it's eye clean even though it's an SI2!

You can see the video of the M (along with a K) here

I chose the M because I hoped that it would have more of the "golden glow" that my J VS2 Infinity showed only rarely. I was not disappointed! The stone is beautiful, and is another example of how excellent cut can bring out the beauty in a stone that in other less expert hands would have ended up at the maul!

I love, love, love the warmer shade of this M! It is not a fancy yellow by any stretch; in fact, it most lights it just looks creamy. It is not brown either. But the warm tint does amazing things for the colors in this stone. And in some lights (incandescent, which I will try to capture later) the stone takes on a slightly golden glow. Love it!

I have no idea how I'm going to set this puppy, so suggestions are welcome. I like the idea of a bezel, and perhaps combining it with amethysts as a complementary color to the yellow in the stone.

I tried to take as many pictures as I could in sunlight and in shadow to try to capture the chameleon nature of this stone.

 

[Lula]

against a white wall

 

[Lula]

Bad art photo -- on a stick on a white sheet of paper

 

[Lula]

On a white sheet of printer paper

 

[Lula]

Amazing colors!

 

[Lula]

Yummy!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Very pretty stone. I love the almost buttery tone it has. I'm still wishing I could see a warmer, well-cut diamond in RL. All the great ones only show up here on PS!

ETA - is the J you mentioned your original eng. ring (possibly in your avatar)?

 

[Lula]

Last one - on my hand in its ring-thingy. You can see the tint pretty well here, I think.

Thanks for looking!! Setting ideas welcome!!

 

[jet2ks]

Gorgeous!!!

As far as setting ideas, I''m sure if you sent it to me for a year or two, I could come up with something.

 

[Lula]

Thanks, MC, "buttery" is a good term for what it looks like IRL. My original E-ring was a blue sapphire, and for my anniversary present, I upgraded to an Infinity .53 J VS2 (my current avatar). But I really wanted a larger stone, and I grew to love the slightly creamy tint of my J, so I spoke to Wink about this M and he sent it to me for "approval," but literally 30 seconds out of its little tissue paper package, I knew he wasn''t getting it back!!

According to Lorelei, it''s not the fastest upgrade in PS history, but close!

 

[Lula]

Date: 7/28/2009 7:24:03 PM
Author: jet2ks
Gorgeous!!!

As far as setting ideas, I'm sure if you sent it to me for a year or two, I could come up with something.

LOL!!! Not a chance, Jet!

 

[tigian]

I love the 5th pic of your new stone. The colors are amazing! So pretty. Can''t wait to see how you set it.

 

[tyty333]

Its a lovely stone Sara! I think a halo would be pretty. The white diamonds in the halo would show off
the pretty color of the M. Congratulations on your new ball of fire

!

 

[mayo1209]

It is beautiful. I second the idea of the halo that would look gorgeous

 

[ficklefaye]

beautiful diamond, sara! i can''t wait to see how you set it, the color is mesmerizing...

 

[glitterata]

Congratulations on your lovely new carbon friend, Sara!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

The J in your avatar looks a lot bigger than a .53.

Can't wait to see how you set the M stone! Have a great time picking something out.

 

[Lula]

Thank you so much MC, Jet, Tigian, tyty, Mayo, Ficklefaye, and Glitterata!

I like the idea of surrounding it with a halo of super-white diamonds, and if I can find a halo setting that''s not too delicate, I will definitely consider it.

Glitterata, it is so nice to have a carbon friend -- my SI2 has a grade-setting "cavity" that I was really wondering about, but I can''t see it except under a 10x loupe, and I sort of like it because it reminds me that diamonds are ancient stones. Maybe Paul Slegers can shed some light on how this stone was cut and how the cavity was accounted for in the cutting. Cavities and naturals are such fascinating inclusions.

 

[mayo1209]

Sara - I had a question for you. Did you see the K-VS1 in real life? Ever since I saw the video I have been in two minds - if I like I-Js, I might like the K? But I have never seen a K so I dont know if I''ll like it - kwim.

Now ur M is sooooo delish I am back on the fence again

 

[Venice]

Very nice! I like the "bad art" photo the best. Enjoy!

 

[Lula]

Hi, Mayo, I''ve been following your thread, too. Good luck with your search!

I did not see the K in person. I loved my J, but I was very curious about something slightly more tinted than my J. I didn''t think I''d see enough difference between my J and the K. And my J was a .53 carat, and from my understanding, the smaller the stone, the less likely you''ll see the tint.

I wanted to stay in the creamy tones, though, and not venture into the Q, R, S and below shades (or the fancy yellows $$$$$) because a true yellow would not suit my coloring.

Dreamer Daschie has a K and she helped me quite a lot in making my decision to go with the M. Read her posts on my earlier thread (linked above) for her perspective on the J''s and K''s. The problem, as I understand it, is that when you get into K and below shades, it really does depend on the particular stone on what type of "tint" you''ll see.

One thing that really freaked out one of my friends is that my J would occasionally look very golden (we went out for a beer one night and the lighting in the bar was making my J look like a golden sphere). I expect (and hope!) my M will do this even more. But you do need to be prepared for the changeable nature of these stones, I think.

 

[Lula]

Date: 7/28/2009 8:00:52 PM
Author: Venice
Very nice! I like the ''bad art'' photo the best. Enjoy!

Thanks, Venice, that''s kind of you! I had limited props to work with today!

 

[risingsun]

Enjoy your lovely new diamond! I would set it in a halo, but then I do have a preference towards a halo

 

[Snicklefritz]

Oh la la! C''est magnifique! Glad you went with the M. Can''t wait to see how you set it.

 

[glitterata]

Sara, I bet if you ask Paul he''ll be able to tell you about the history of your lovely M.

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 7/28/2009 7:24:21 PM
Author: sarap333
Thanks, MC, ''buttery'' is a good term for what it looks like IRL. My original E-ring was a blue sapphire, and for my anniversary present, I upgraded to an Infinity .53 J VS2 (my current avatar). But I really wanted a larger stone, and I grew to love the slightly creamy tint of my J, so I spoke to Wink about this M and he sent it to me for ''approval,'' but literally 30 seconds out of its little tissue paper package, I knew he wasn''t getting it back!!

According to Lorelei, it''s not the fastest upgrade in PS history, but close!

LOL! ITS STUNNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[beechezz]

sarap,

That M is yummy! I love the pastel colors coming off of it! I can''t wait until you have it set!

 

[stone-cold11]

Nice.

 

[Amethyste]

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh... I love love love your new diamond Sara
I am sooooo impartial to lower color diamonds. I love them! They show lushious flashes of color!
In my opinion, they are so much more captivating to look at.
In term of setting, a halo bezel would look lovely!

Enjoy your new companion!!! She is a beauty!!!

 

[Lula]

Thanks for your compliments, Amethyst, Stone, beechezz, Lorelei, Glitterata, risingsun, and Snicklefritz!

Seriously, I would not be gazing at this beauty without your encouragement, and without the beautiful pictures other PS'ers posted of their lovely lower color-lower clarity stones! I never thought I'd be able to afford a 1.0 carat when I started my search, and I never thought I'd love the lower colors the way I do. Any my aging eyes allow me the luxury of going with slightly lower clarities, to boot!

This is the best thing about PS, IMHO -- the encouragement to stretch our boundaries.

Risingsun, I do know you love your halos -- and if I could reach through the computer screen and put the setting in your avatar on my hand, I would be a happy camper. I think the white of the HOF stones would set off this M like nothing else.

Glitterata, I will send Paul an e-mail thanking him for creating my beauty and ask him about the history.

The best thing about the M is that its color goes from creamy white to straw, to golden, depending on the lighting conditions and the angle. I love this, but it may be very disconcerting to someone who does not know what to expect.

Here are some pictures of settings I'm musing about: