Need Help with matching Stone to Custom Setting

[Smith505]

Hello,

I''ve never bought a diamond before, so all help greaty appreciated!

Attached is a pic of what the final product will hopefully be. I am having a ring custom made, because it is "the one" that she instantly fell in love with. (The original in the picture was sold, and the jeweler said they can contact the creator of the setting and get another made).

However, the stone that the jeweler has offered me is what I need advice on.

I don''t have a lot of info, but can call and get whatever you folks tell me to find out. The jeweler is offering to sell me a 1.15 ct princess cut stone, that is Yehuda clarity enhanced, for $2,350. He said it was a "G" with "visible inclusions" before enhancement. I''m not sure why he said this, as I didn''t think "G" referred to clarity, but rather color. I know little about diamonds, but it looked nice and white to me. Very very sparkly.

He says this setting will require $350 of custom work after the creator sends it to the jeweler in order for the diamond to be mounted. He said he wrote the dimensions for me, but my paper says: 6.08 and then the next line says 5.55 x 4.15. Not sure what that means. I also wrote down that he said 4.55mm width.

Should I look elsewhere for a stone? I''ve read the mixed reviews on this board about CE stones, but I''m now afraid I won''t be able to afford the size of stone that apparantly needs to be used for this ring.

Right now I have only ordered and put a down payment on the setting work. I told them I would hold off on a stone for a few days, so hopefully I can get some good advice from you fine folks!

Thanks!

 

[Summer]

Hi,

I can't comment on the clarity enhanced stone but you're right that G refers to color. I think he may have meant the stone was a G color and had visible inclusions before it was enhanced. So now it's a G color and I assume less or no visible inclusions as a result of the enhancement. I'm sure someone here can answer all your questions.

I did want to comment on that setting. It's beautiful! I see why your gf likes it so much.

 

[Smith505]

Thanks for the comments! Yeah, I'm pleased with the setting, and am just hoping I haven't made finding a stone difficult by getting the setting first. The more I read about CE the more I don't think it is what I want. However, I can't really go above $3k on the stone, so I'm looking for advice. I guess I'm wondering if I am locked in to having to locate a princess cut stone with some EXACT dimensions.

 

[radiant]

I would contact the jeweler you ordered the setting from and ask if they will set a stone from another vendor and if there will be an extra cost to set a stone that is not from their store. You should also ask what size of stone fits in the setting. I think many settings accomadate a range in size. For example some settings can accomadate a diamond between 1 and 1.5 carats. You can also ask the jeweler to specify the measurements of stones that fit in the setting, i.e. the lenght, width, and depth of the stone. Then you can do a pricescope search and look for those measurements.

Good Luck.

 

[Summer]

You could also send the setting when you get it to the vendor you purchase the stone from and have them set it, assuming you get a stone somewhere else. Also, depending on the color/clarity/cut I think you may be able to get around a 1 carat or a little smaller on your budget. I would suggest what Radiant did in terms of finding out what size stone would fit the setting. The new stone wouldn't have to be the EXACT size of the clarity enhance stone. There's some flexibility in what size stone would fit the setting and the jeweler should be able to tell you what that is.

 

[Smith505]

Thanks for the replies! I feel better now.

I'm finding 1c sub-$3k stones from links on this site, so if the jeweler can't match it with a GIA cert. stone I'll be shopping online. The only requirement I have is princess, so it looks like I should be able to find a VS1 or VS2 in I or J for my price.

I'm glad to have found this site!
Thanks again.

 

[jenibear]

Hey Smith.
In my opinion, you can get much better than a clarity enhanced diamond for your money.

In doing a quick pricescope search I found this stone that doesn't look half bad by the numbers. I would suggest getting any stone you are interested in sent to you and viewed by an appraisser before buying.

I found a 1.05 ct. H VS2 GIA stone with both very good polish and symmetry, 71.8% depth and 71% table and measurements of 5.92x5.39x3.87. That will make it more rectangular than square - don't know if that bothers you or would work in the setting. The price is $2993 at affordable diamonds and $3004 at USA certified.

This is just an example. I just wanted to show you there are options out there. I'd look for a slightly smaller table and maybe smaller depth, but you really need to see most fancies in person. Numbers don't tell the whole story.

Your best bet may be to work with a vendor. Ship them the setting, tell them your budget and what your looking for and let them find the diamond that will fit the setting and your budget. That takes less off your back. And I am sure you can find at least one reputable vendor on here that would do that for you.

I purchased my princess from dbof.com - diamond brokers of florida. I recommend them highly.

Good luck in your search.

And by the way, that setting is to die for.

 

[valeria101]

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On 12/9/2003 12:19:19 AM Smith505 wrote:


I'm finding 1c sub-$3k stones from links on this site, so if the jeweler can't match it with a GIA cert. stone I'll be shopping online. The only requirement I have is princess, so it looks like I should be able to find a VS1 or VS2 in I or J for my price.
Thanks again.----------------

Hi!
Maybe my eyes play tricks, but is the stone in the original picture a Princess? It looks like a square radiant to me... but I could be wrong. Whatever that is, that stone has a rather high crown which contributs alot to the "antique" look of the ring, which is in line with the choice for a nicely cut princess, or rad.

This project should result in a beauty! Best of luck!

 

[Smith505]

jenibear:

Thanks for the example stone and sites. That is very encouraging!! I think a $700 difference is a very small price to pay for a non-CE stone that is being placed in such an important piece of jewelry (engagement ring). If I weren't trying to keep this a surprise, input from the soon-to-be owner would be incredibly helpful. As it is, I'll do my best and take all the help I can get from this forum!


valeria101:

That is the only picture I have of the original stone and setting, and I haven't seen it since March. I took it to the jeweler and they seemed to remember the piece right when I showed them the picture. They said it was a princess cut, but now that you say square radiant it does seem to look a lot like one... I will double check tomorrow. When I compared the picture to the princes cut stone they showed me, the stone seemed much more faceted than the picture. Does that make sense?

 

[valeria101]

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On 12/9/2003 2:53:58 AM Smith505 wrote:

jenibear:

valeria101:

That is the only picture I have of the original stone and setting, and I haven't seen it since March. I took it to the jeweler and they seemed to remember the piece right when I showed them the picture. They said it was a princess cut, but now that you say square radiant it does seem to look a lot like one... I will double check tomorrow. When I compared the picture to the princes cut stone they showed me, the stone seemed much more faceted than the picture. Does that make sense? ----------------

Yes. Princess cuts give a more 'pin-fire' type of sparkle tha radiants which produce broader flashes. This is what might have appeared as "more faceted" look. There are far fewer square radiants than princesses out there (not that SQrads are rare, just fewer) and most small-scale jewelers would shy away from stocking anything but rounds and princesses because these sell more. So there may be some bias involved. The picture does not look conclusive to me... and both the rad and princess cuts come in quite a few cut variations.
Take a look at some rad rings (even online) and at diamondsbylauren.com there are a couple of square rads for measure.
Hope this helps!