Need advice - Choosing a diamond w/ twinning wisps vs knots

[Sam_K]

Hi,

I'm new to the forum but I've been searching around for a while. I read is several threads that twinning wisps are the best type of inclusion to have and knots are one of the worst types to have. That being said, I saw the following diamond in person and it was really hard to see the knots through a loop. If you didn't know that it had knots you'd probably think it was much better clarity.

http://www.gia.edu/cs/Satellite?pagename=GST%2FDispatcher&childpagename=GIA%2FPage%2FReportCheck&c=Page&cid=1355954554547&reportno=2151240677

I asked the dealer to help me find them and even he had trouble seeing them. I'm nervous about getting this diamond because of the 3 knots especially the large one.

However I also found the following diamond online which is about $800 more but this one has mostly twinning wisps.

http://www.gia.edu/cs/Satellite?pagename=GST%2FDispatcher&childpagename=GIA%2FPage%2FReportCheck&c=Page&cid=1355954554547&reportno=2126610398

The online dealer is unable to get me a picture so I'm concerned about what the twinning wisps look like. He says it's 100% eye clean.

Would people not get the first diamond because of the 3 knots? Would you definitely choose a diamond with twinning wisps over a diamond with knots even if the knots cannot be seen?

In case people are wondering, I'm basically looking for a round diamond around 2 carats G-H color SI1-SI2 but SI2 falls more into my price range.

Thanks in advance.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Re: Need advice - Choosing a diamond w/ twinning wisps vs kn

I cannot advise you about knots and hope an appraiser or gemologist will give you some advice. What would concern me is that apparently the knots somehow are at the surface level shown by the green lines on the report. Did you look at the stone with magnification? That usually helps to know where the inclusions are and then you can be more observant and see if you can see them without magnification. Sometimes people have stones for quite awhile and then suddenly notice inclusions they had not seen before.

But I wouldn't consider any diamond with no magnified images and especially an SI2 (if you cannot see it yourself).

 

[Christina...]

Re: Need advice - Choosing a diamond w/ twinning wisps vs kn

I agree with DS, the stone really needs to be evaluated. Magnified images are helpful at the very least, but with an SI2 I would want a professional assessment.

 

[SMC]

Re: Need advice - Choosing a diamond w/ twinning wisps vs kn

I'm not an expert, but I once put a diamond on hold at James Allen that had a knot smaller than yours near the edge of the stone. The gemologist recommended against the knot because pressure on the knot (like due to a whack of the ring against a hard surface) could cause the stone to chip or break. I think that insurance on the stone (to cover loss and damage) can give you some piece of mind, but to me personally, it seemed like it was too much of a hassle for a daily wear ring.

I agree with all the others, if you like the stone, have a gemologist look at it an assess it for structural integrity.

 

[Sam_K]

Re: Need advice - Choosing a diamond w/ twinning wisps vs kn

Thanks everyone.

Yes, I looked at the stone through a loop which I'm assuming had 10x magnification and I couldn't see anything. Also the stone is triple Ex so that made me consider it. The seller who is in the diamond district didn't seem to be concerned about the knot but he's trying to sell it to me so he has no incentive to talk about the negative aspects of the stone.

I'll try to get high resolution pictures of the other stone before I consider it. I don't think I'd feel comfortable buying a stone without seeing at least one high resolution picture of it.

 

[SMC]

Re: Need advice - Choosing a diamond w/ twinning wisps vs kn

Thanks everyone.

Yes, I looked at the stone through a loop which I'm assuming had 10x magnification and I couldn't see anything. Also the stone is triple Ex so that made me consider it. The seller who is in the diamond district didn't seem to be concerned about the knot but he's trying to sell it to me so he has no incentive to talk about the negative aspects of the stone.

I'll try to get high resolution pictures of the other stone before I consider it. I don't think I'd feel comfortable buying a stone without seeing at least one high resolution picture of it.

Just FYI, this is a magnified image of the diamond that I was looking at. It was a 1.69ct F SI1, also GIA XXX. You can see the knot at the 7:00 position near the edge. It could've been covered with a prong, but that would put more stress on the stone if the prong was knocked.


I think a SI2 might have additional durability risks, but again, not an expert.

 

[diamondloveaffair]

Re: Need advice - Choosing a diamond w/ twinning wisps vs kn

just looking at report alone, there is sufficient information that the SI2 diamond with the knot is very likely to be a poor choice.

 

[Sakuracherry]

Re: Need advice - Choosing a diamond w/ twinning wisps vs kn

I've avoided a knot in a SI1 stone (around 0.5 range) per advice from a gemologist.

 

[Sam_K]

Re: Need advice - Choosing a diamond w/ twinning wisps vs kn

Thanks again everyone. Based on the comments here and some other threads and web pages I've read about knots I've decided to eliminate the diamond with the knots from consideration.

Does anyone have any comments the other diamond with the twinning wisps? I'm a little considered about the concentration of inclusions at about 9 o'clock on the report but I thought some of them could covered with a prong. Here's a link to the report of the other diamond.

http://www.gia.edu/cs/Satellite?pagename=GST%2FDispatcher&childpagename=GIA%2FPage%2FReportCheck&c=Page&cid=1355954554547&reportno=2126610398

And if I was going to increase my budget a bit, where would people recommend I spend more money? Would you spend it on better clarity (from SI2 to an SI1) or better color (from H to G)?

 

[Sakuracherry]

Re: Need advice - Choosing a diamond w/ twinning wisps vs kn

I'd probably spend a little more to get a SI1. I wouldn't mind getting an eye-clean SI2 at all, though. I've seen a completely eye-clean 2ct F/SI2 in person before. Twinning wisps were not visible.

 

[Sam_K]

Re: Need advice - Choosing a diamond w/ twinning wisps vs kn

Now that I've eliminated the diamond with the knots, I just got another option from one of the stores I'm working with in the diamond district in NY.

Here is the cert of the new option they sent me. This one has mostly cloud, crystal and feather inclusions.

http://www.gia.edu/cs/Satellite?pagename=GST%2FDispatcher&childpagename=GIA%2FPage%2FReportCheck&c=Page&cid=1355954554547&reportno=2125874858

And here is the cert from my previous post. This one mostly has twinning wisps.

http://www.gia.edu/cs/Satellite?pagename=GST%2FDispatcher&childpagename=GIA%2FPage%2FReportCheck&c=Page&cid=1355954554547&reportno=2126610398

Could some people please share their opinions about one of these certs looks better and why. Thanks in advance.