Need help with mounting / deciding engagement ring

[dgres]

I''ve been lurking around here for a few weeks now. I went to a local B&M, and they didn''t have the quality of stone i preferred.

Heres my background:
grad student w/ a boatload of debt

looking to spend between $2000-2400 on ring/ stone

I''ve been eying this diamond for a while:
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/3888/

Though, James Allen seems to have much cheaper diamonds that seem better. Can these be compared?
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/D-VVS2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1104468.asp

Secondly,
I would like to get the diamond mounted locally. I''m in the Minneapolis/St Paul area, and not sure if local jewelers will mount someone else''s diamond.
If they will, who will, and how much should i expect to pay for the mounting... Am I better off just getting it mounted online? Or does that make the appraisal more expensive?

Thanks-
David

 

[Ellen]

Hi David,

You can't compare the cut of these two stones. The GOG is a Hearts and Arrows, while the other is not. And the JA stone is not facing up (looking as big) as the GOG stone of the same size, because of depth. I would pick the GOG stone of these two.

However, you can really drop the clarity at least, but could do color also, to try and get more size for your money. As long as a stone is totally eyeclean, you don't need any more of what you can't see. And in very well cut stones, you can expect even H to appear white. I and down is where some may see some warmth, but it's really an individual call. Some don't see it, some see it but don't mind.

Here's some that will get you a bit more size. (if eyeclean)

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/3868/

http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/F-SI1-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1122687.asp

http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-5272.htm#

PS discount not included in price.
http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-540875.htm#



I would recommend getting the setting at the same place as your stone, that way the vendor will take responsibility for the stone while setting it, should something happen. (rare) And I don't think you'd pay more, maybe less.

 

[dgres]

Thanks ellen for the quick reply. I could easily tell the color difference between G and H at the B&M, as well as difference between colorless (DEF) & GH
I''m not looking for a big stone, it''s not size that counts right? I would rather buy something small yet very nice, then something larger. My g/f would most likely never replace the ring (very sentimental), so I''ll do what I can w/ the money.

I''ll have to look into goodoldgold''s setting prices.

 

[Ellen]

You''re welcome.

And I can believe you could see the difference in comparing stones, but it''s really what the stone looks like by itself that should be considered.

As for the size, and whether it counts or not, don''t ask most of the gals on here that. lol They''d tell you it does indeed matter. I''m not a real size gal myself (one of the very few), but even I would tell you to get the largest eyeclean, near colorless stone you can afford.

 

[marcy]

Date: 4/5/2008 3:34:44 PM
Author: Ellen
You''re welcome.

And I can believe you could see the difference in comparing stones, but it''s really what the stone looks like by itself that should be considered.

As for the size, and whether it counts or not, don''t ask most of the gals on here that. lol They''d tell you it does indeed matter. I''m not a real size gal myself (one of the very few), but even I would tell you to get the largest eyeclean, near colorless stone you can afford.

Ditto what Ellen said. I''d rather have a small quality stone than a larger one and I actually prefer smaller jewelry.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

You need to ask them for their least expensive tiffany style setting, either 4 or 6 prong. It should be under $300. That will allow most of your money to go toward the diamond. You can tell her that she can change the setting for a future anniversary or something. But please put most of your money into the diamond now.

 

[honey22]

Ditto! Diamonds have this funny habit of shrinking once you get them home. What looked ''big'' and ''just the right size'' when you first tried it on, can look like ''hmm, is it really big enough'' in a short space of time!

 

[arjunajane]

Date: 4/5/2008 3:25:20 PM
Author: dgres
Thanks ellen for the quick reply. I could easily tell the color difference between G and H at the B&M, as well as difference between colorless (DEF) & GH
I''m not looking for a big stone, it''s not size that counts right? I would rather buy something small yet very nice, then something larger. My g/f would most likely never replace the ring (very sentimental), so I''ll do what I can w/ the money.

I''ll have to look into goodoldgold''s setting prices.

Hi dgres, I second what Ellen has told you for sure. I don''t doubt that you could see the difference between these colour grades at the B&M - most likely as they are probably inferior cut, or the cynic in me says they may also show you like an M colour to encourage to spend more $$ on the higher colour stone.
If you truely want to analyze colour diff at a B&M perhaps make your way to Tiffany or another reputable high end store..? As mentioned by Ellen though, once you have the stone mounted your girl will never be holding it next to other colour grade diamonds, and if she does compare to her friends etc, hers will outshine everytime due to the superior cut!

Its a common accepted truth around here that an ideal cut stone will "mask" lower colour grades in stones and therefore you can drop a couple grades and either save yourself money or go for a bigger stone. I also don''t believe in paying the premium for higher clarity that you or no one else will never be able to see

If you do a little research on these topics you can do extremely well buying online, just do a search on J colour diamonds on here - there are whole threads with many pics of them and they look white as can be - strange but true!

happy hunting and please keep posting if you need help.

 

[dgres]

I appreciate all the advise so far. The shop I went to was a high end retailer and they tried to sell me the H color grade diamonds because I would get more for the money. But I couldn''t see myself buying it, when they had a $2500 G color stone next to it and it was quite cleaner. The store owner was surprised that I could see the difference in color. As for the advice concerning the setting, I planned on staying on the cheaper side of things (300-500$) to get the best stone possible. The store owner is actively looking for a higher quality stone, hopefully she can find one. She tried to sell me a cut grade 2 (0-10 scale), H, SI1, .53 carats for $1800. I could see the inclusions, but she claimed that either the setting would cover them or that I was cheating by looking at the stone from the bottom (which may have been true).

David

 

[Rhea]

I believe that clarity and colour are graded with the stone face up so it''s quite possible that you could have seen the inclusion with the stone upside down.

Since you aren''t planning on spending much on the setting and getting the best stone possible I really like this one that Ellen picked out. It has a very high colour and would still leave you plenty of money left over for your simple setting.

 

[sera]

Date: 4/5/2008 3:25:20 PM
Author: dgres
Thanks ellen for the quick reply. I could easily tell the color difference between G and H at the B&M, as well as difference between colorless (DEF) & GH
I''m not looking for a big stone, it''s not size that counts right? I would rather buy something small yet very nice, then something larger. My g/f would most likely never replace the ring (very sentimental), so I''ll do what I can w/ the money.

I''ll have to look into goodoldgold''s setting prices.

Ditto what arjunajane said about the B&M stones most likely being inferior cuts, which will make the color more apparent. The apparent color may also have to do with very liberal (if not completely off) grading... what some random appraiser may call an H, may be what AGS calls a J.

You typically cannot get an accurate idea of color that an excellent stone from GOG has from the average mall diamond. If you search for J stones here, you will see the J stones from GOG and WF are going to typically face up whiter than the H stones from the mall.

Besides that, mall stones are usually not that sparkly... sure, they sparkle under the jeweler''s lights... but when you start wearing them, you would see how little life they really have. And then, if you compare it to a GOG stone?! BIG difference!

I would take a smaller but better GOG stone to a larger and poorer mall stone ANY day. Luckily, with the prices, you can get a larger and better GOG stone for a smaller and poorer mall stone!

 

[dgres]

Thanks swift.
The B&M shop I checked out, was not a mall shop, and far from it (family owned - only one store). Most people I talked with considered it overpriced compared with chains (ex: shane co). The placed the stones on a white color background, let me use a 20x microscope to view the stones as well and have gemscope and their own grading facility. I''m looking @ GOG and will most likely go with them in the .40-.55 carat range.