Need help picking diamond!

[mjg]

Hi all,

I'm new to the forums and I am in need of some diamond expertise. I have found a stone at blue nile I think I like. It's 1.09 cts H SI2 for just under 5,000. It scores 1.0 on the HCA also. I called blue Nile to ask about it, and whether the inclusions are visible (my understanding is that some SI2 are, others are not). I got a response today that it is eye clean to the untrained eye at 12-15 inches, but may have visible inclusions when viewed from the side or under close scrutiny. I'm not really sure what to do. It seems like a great deal and measures larger than most diamonds of similar ct weight but I don't know much about inclusions and how to know if they're a deal breaker. I appreciate any help!

Here is the link to the diamond, but it is on hold for me currently.
http://www.bluenile.com/diamond-search?saction=PAGE&startIndex=0#diamonds_pid=LD02661285

 

[webdiva]

GIA Excellent cut grade has a wide variance. AGS Ideal is more guaranteed to have great light performance. Can Blue Nile provide pictures and an idealscope of this stone? It's a great price if the performance is great. HCA is just an indicator to help you sort out a bunch of diamonds, it's not a guarantee of great performance.

Here's another alternative on James Allen - an AGS0 (Ideal cut) 1.07 in a J color with medium fluorescence - which many times helps it face up "whiter". You can pick out 3 stones on JA and have the gemologist review them plus do idealscopes.
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/J-SI2-Very-Good-Cut-Round-Diamond-1475329.asp

Keep in mind, there are probably 10 lurkers for every poster on PS and that price for that great cut will go FAST. Put it on hold with JA if interested.

 

[TitanCi]

GIA Excellent cut grade has a wide variance. AGS Ideal is more guaranteed to have great light performance.

I'd say GENERALLY speaking, Webdiva, as we're seeing some "Ideal/000" AGS stones that are leaky. Kenny recently started a new thread that addressed this concern and G. Holloway is looking into it too...