Need help deciding!

[April086]

I''m torn between these 2 stones...

1.91 H SI1 H&A - This stone is gorgeous! It is so white and bright and I love that the size is close to a 2 ct... this weight is hard to find. The only thing is that after viewing the stone with a loupe, I saw a tiny spec of black carbon in the center of the table. After realizing it was there with the loupe, I can occasionally find it with my naked eye (I have very good eyes). It is more noticeable in the pavilion, but I feel that my 6 prong solitaire would hide it. It doesn''t really bother me, but I know that most people wouldn''t recommend buying a stone that had any visible inclusions... no matter how hard it is to spot. I also know that no one will ever inspect my diamond the way I do! It is so beautiful and the price is right so I''d hate to give it up.

1.50 G SI1 Excellent cut - This stone is gorgeous as well! Also white and bright and there is absolutely no color difference between the two. It looks flawless! I can barely see any inclusions even with the loupe. The only negative is that I don''t see the same yummy patterns in this stone as I do in the one above.

Both stones rated high on the HCA scale. The 1.91 is a bit more money, but the arrows are so worth it! So would you rather have a H&A with a teeny tiny freckle the can barely be seen or would you rather have a gorgeous diamond with inconsistent patterns, but without any visible flaws?

Please give me some feedback!

 

[Lorelei]

Welcome!

Personally I would pick the bigger H&A diamond with the wee birthmark in a heartbeat, I love a teeny ' secret code inclusion' which to me is like a unique way that I can indentify my stone, should I ever need to leave it anywhere! But some others it may bother, it depends...To me it helps to personalize the diamond, but you need to decide whether you can live with that little birthmark and see it as part of the stone's uniqueness, or whether it would bother the heck out of you!!! I couldn't live with a huge black blob staring at me on a diamonds table which was visible to all, no way, but the tiny freckle, probably certainly!

There seem to be folk from both camps here, yes there are some of us who have ' birthmarked diamonds" and adore them, but others are very clarity sensitive and couldn't live with it, so you have to think hard as to which group you fall into!

BTW that is normal that you can find the mark easily now you have louped the stone, once you know where to look, your eye automatically zooms in on it!

ETA - when you say both stones rate high on the HCA can you add the scores? Also as you have seen both diamonds, if you decide you don't mind the inclusion, pick the one you love the most!! Your own eyes trump everything else!!

 

[chrono]

Do you mind posting the HCA scores (and more details on the angles) please? I'm just curious. I also take it that you've seen the hearts and arrows pattern through the H&A viewer? Can you please post idealscope and H&A pictures?

I'm the sort that needs to be mind clean and eye clean. I don't need my H&A to be perfect but I'm a stickler for being able to pick out inclusions with the naked eye (no matter how hard it may be for others to spot) because I know it will always bother ME. I want my diamond's birthmark to only be viewable using a high powered loupe or microscope. Therefore, I'd pick the 1.5 G SI1. Do you have any other options?

 

[arjunajane]

It sounds to me like you really loved the larger stone - and it is a bit of a size difference from your other choice!
All things granted that it''s a true H&A, I say go the 1.91 for sure. Like Lorelei said, as long as its not a big obvious inclusion I''m actually fond of little "birthmartks".

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 5/3/2008 7:55:46 AM
Author: arjunajane
It sounds to me like you really loved the larger stone - and it is a bit of a size difference from your other choice!
All things granted that it's a true H&A, I say go the 1.91 for sure. Like Lorelei said, as long as its not a big obvious inclusion I'm actually fond of little 'birthmartks'.

Which gives me the excuse to recycle one of my favourite diamond stories, read on PS!

Although we are not considering an inclusion of this magnitude and visibility, it is an interesting story nevertheless!

It might have been Jeff Mod Brill or Neil, or Wink who came up with the story. Apparently there was a 1 ct or so diamond which had an inclusion smack bang in the middle of the table, where it could be easily seen. It was sent to GIA for grading with much interest, as the inclusion was of rather an unusual nature. GIA agreed, and even made a note in the comments section of the report ( it received an I1 grade I think) "inclusion resembles a man in a sled."!!! This festive stone was mounted into a pendant and sold very quickly, all on the strength of it's unique inclusion!

I enjoy inclusions and have seen some photos of some here over time, some of which have looked like a pair of little hanging clogs/ slippers inside a diamond, a rabbit, all sorts!

I had better stop now...

 

[rainydaze]

april, it does sound like you really love the 1.91 in your post. you even say you''d hate to give it up..... so don''t!!

me personally, i would go for the 1.91 as well. if it is just a tiny speck, that wouldn''t bother me. i would also like that i could ID *my* stone. i would rather have a nice sharp arrows pattern, as that really makes my heart skip a beat, and have the size (since all else appears to be equal between the two)......

 

[chrono]

Boo hoo, I''m the only odd one out do far.

Really, April, are these 2 your only options? Anything in between that is clean and still well cut?

 

[April086]

Thanks for all of the responses! I plan on purchasing a stone from a local jeweler that my family has done business with for almost 20 years. I''m receiving better pricing on stones that are in his current inventory rather than the ones he had brought in... understandable. Out of the stones that he already owns, these are my 2 favorite! I know that this is not the ideal situation to be in while purchasing a stone I will wear for the rest of my life, but it is what it is! I can''t justify not using my credit towards this type of purchase and I really wouldn''t feel as if I were settling.

I don''t have pictures, but here are the numbers...

1.50 scored 1.1 on the HCA
Depth % 62.2
Table % 55.4
Crown Angle 33.9
Pavilion Angle 40.8

1.91 Rated .7 on the HCA
Depth % 60.8
Table % 56.1
Crown Angle 35
Pavilion Angle 40.6

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 5/3/2008 8:52:22 AM
Author: April086
Thanks for all of the responses! I plan on purchasing a stone from a local jeweler that my family has done business with for almost 20 years. I'm receiving better pricing on stones that are in his current inventory rather than the ones he had brought in... understandable. Out of the stones that he already owns, these are my 2 favorite! I know that this is not the ideal situation to be in while purchasing a stone I will wear for the rest of my life, but it is what it is! I can't justify not using my credit towards this type of purchase and I really wouldn't feel as if I were settling.

I don't have pictures, but here are the numbers...

1.50 scored 1.1 on the HCA
Depth % 62.2
Table % 55.4
Crown Angle 33.9
Pavilion Angle 40.8

1.91 Rated .7 on the HCA
Depth % 60.8
Table % 56.1
Crown Angle 35
Pavilion Angle 40.6

April please don't worry! We try to help anyone purchasing a diamond, regardless of how or where they choose to purchase from! Both diamonds seem to be well cut, do you have the diameter measurements of each? And are they both GIA? What are the polish and symmetry grades?

But all that aside, the best advice I think personally, is to pick the one which speaks to you the most. It IS ok to love a diamond with a teeny inclusion, it is just that some can and some cannot, it depends on you. So if you feel you adore the bigger hearts and arrows diamond with the little birthmark, then all well and good.

One thing though, do you know for sure the larger diamond is a true hearts and arrows stone? Well cut diamonds can display an arrow pattern but not necessarily match up to true hearts and arrows standards, here is a link which might help.

https://www.pricescope.com/hearts_indx.asp

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I wouldn''t worry about whether it is a "true" hearts and arrows stone if it looks symmetrical to you. You can''t see the hearts once it is set anyway!

I am very clarity conscious, but I''d have to choose the better cut stone, and it sounds as though your observations have picked the H stone. A tiny black carbon spot just proves the diamond is real! And honestly, feathers bother me more because they are actually cracks! But you probably need to take the stone home and look at it a couple of days in your normal lighting to see if you notice the inclusion.

 

[NeverEndingUpgrade]

Are you still taking opinions? I would choose the larger diamond. The numbers look great. If you had not seen the inclusion with a loupe, do you think you would be able to see it now without one?

I had a really pretty F/VS2 emerald cut diamond that had an inclusion right in the middle, on the glassy part where it was not covered up by a facet. It was practically impossible to see without a loupe. So even though I knew it was there, it never bothered me. The cut was what I was enamoured with.