Need opinion... this 2ct princess w/ AGA-0

[finger25]

Hi all-

It's been a white since I started to look for a diamond. My budget is 13k and it's pretty tight for a nice princess cut with measurements larger than 7mm x 7mm (about 2ct) But I found this diamond yesterday and I'd like to hear your opinion. I know the numbers dont tell a whole story for fancy cuts but I'm really hoping this is *the one*... Please help me.

Princess cut 2.076ct
Measurements: 7.09 x 7.08 x 5.24 mm
Cut Grade: AGS Ideal 0
Color Grade: AGS 2.0 (H)
Clarity Grade: AGS 6 (SI2)
Fluorescence: Negligible
Table: 59.1%
Depth: 74.0%
Crown Angle: 33.6%
Crown Height: 12.0%
Girdle: 2.0% - 2.8%
Pavilion Angle: 40.2%
Pavilion Depth: 56.1%
Price: $12,844 (Bank wire $12,652)


I've sent a message to the vender (Bluenile) and asked about the inclusions because AGS report didnt show much sign of it and couldnt tell if it could be eye clean or not. The diamond is now on hold for me and I'm waiting for their reply with some information. Here is the copy of the report.



This report doesnt have an ASET image and I cant tell how this diamond performs. What does "Ideal cut" really mean ? Does it mean that this diamond has an ideal light performance? or ideal proportion? or... what? Also, I've heard that Bluenile's price is little higher than others. Do you think this one is overpriced? Any opinion would be greatly appreciated. Thanks,

 

[finger25]

One more thing that I was concerned about is, I used AGA cut class tool on PS, and it came up scored 1B. What does this mean? I thought AGS-0 would be scored 1A. Am I missing something?

Also I am not sure what this diamond's girdle thickness is because the report doesnt describe enough. I found this chart (https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/ags-ideal-cut-diamond) and thought 2.0%-2.8% would be *very thin to thin*. But bluenile says *slightly thick to slightly thick* and I dont know which to trust....

Also they say, *Polish-ideal, Symmetry-ieal, cut-very good*. How much should I trust this ? Where did these come from especially polish ? I really wonder because AGS doesnt say anything about polish on their repot...

 

[finger25]

One more thing that I was concerned about is, I used AGA cut class tool on PS, and it came up scored 1B. What does this mean? I thought AGS-0 would be scored 1A. Am I missing something?

I'm embarassed , I did missed *important note*... It says,

Most AGS0 Princess cuts tend to get a cut grade 2 using this tool and they are extremely beautiful stones. There are few standard cut princess cuts which would grade at a 1 grade, but those I have seen looked great to me when I examined them. However, the AGS0 is the special cut princess that has caught on with those who want a fine lab to grade a fine stone. So, don't screen out AGS0 stones based on not getting a 1 grade in this system. The AGS0 princess is a special design which work very well with light, but tends to be a bit beyond the 1 range on the AGA/NAJA automated tool.


It is with absolute certainty that the vast majority of diamonds that have been sold to consumers in the past 50 years have been primarily in the 2B to 4A category of the AGA Cut Classes. Many, even most, of them look very nice or even excellent and most owners are very happy with these diamonds. Even today, most diamonds sold in the USA are 2B to 4A in spite of all the extra and readily available knowledge that consumers can now easily access. What does that say? I think it says most people need to control their spending budget sufficiently that they will agree to take a compromise on cut quality as well as to compromise of color, clarity and weight.

 

[finger25]

This report doesnt have an ASET image and I cant tell how this diamond performs. What does "Ideal cut" really mean ? Does it mean that this diamond has an ideal light performance? or ideal proportion? or... what? Also, I've heard that Bluenile's price is little higher than others. Do you think this one is overpriced? Any opinion would be greatly appreciated. Thanks,

Is there anyone who can give me an advice? This is gonna be the only and last upgrade for me and my husband, so we dont wanna be ripped off. We want to find the nicest one we could afford within our budget...

They said "The gemmologist has confirmed that the diamond is eye clean when viewed from the table up position, but the inclusions are white/grey in colour and may be visible from the side and pavillion angles." so I'm hoping this is *the one*... Do you think this diamond has higher chance of great look? Is this price a good deal? Should I order it now ?! Or do you think I could find a better one within our budget if I wait more and do more research?

I have missed another diamond a few days ago. Some one bought it when I was waiting... I dont wanna rush but it's just difficult to make such a big decision...

 

[John P]

This report doesnt have an ASET image and I cant tell how this diamond performs. What does "Ideal cut" really mean ? Does it mean that this diamond has an ideal light performance? or ideal proportion? or... what?

This is a 2010 lab report. It's performance-based but pre-dates the ASET imprint on AGSL's current Platinum Report. Too bad, as I'd like to see the ASET. I'm familiar with a different primary angle combination so I can't speak to this one, especially not knowing the measurements of all the different tiers. It's a two-chevron configuration which, in this size and paired with that crown height, could create nice big and bold dispersion and scintillation in the performance qualities.

As a side note, you might want to verify that this isn't a "used" diamond...so to speak...that has been out since 2010 and didn't go back to the lab. I seriously doubt that would be the case, as BN doesn't do trade-ups to my knowledge (and those who do get new reports) but it's a valid question.

Also I am not sure what this diamond's girdle thickness is because the report doesnt describe enough. I found this chart (https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/ags-ideal-cut-diamond) and thought 2.0%-2.8% would be *very thin to thin*. But bluenile says *slightly thick to slightly thick* and I dont know which to trust.

No worries. Blue Nile's software converts descriptions according to GIA rules. GIA measures the thinnest places on the girdle. AGSL measures thinnest and thickest so you'll often see BN pages reporting overly thick descriptions for AGSL stones.

Also they say, *Polish-ideal, Symmetry-ieal, cut-very good*. How much should I trust this ? Where did these come from especially polish ? I really wonder because AGS doesnt say anything about polish on their report...

No idea. The overall AGSL Ideal-0 cut grade is only issued if all components are Ideal-0. In this case the lab document would trump the webpage, in my opinion. Otherwise BN can explain.

Is there anyone who can give me an advice? This is gonna be the only and last upgrade for me and my husband, so we dont wanna be ripped off. We want to find the nicest one we could afford within our budget...

I think the AGSL Ideal performance rating is a great indicator. It says more here (sight-unseen) than any grading report that doesn't include performance assessment can. It would be nice to have an ASET image but you can't get one short of getting an affordable/portable ASET viewer yourself. $93 here: http://www.datlas.com/tools.htm

BN offers a nice return period so you could do that. Or you could have BN ship the diamond to one of the reputable PS appraisers who can check out the diamond for you - for more-or-less the same as an ASET - plus you'd get a far more detailed report, insurance paperwork etc. It depends on how much confirmation you need. Opening the package and seeing a little firecracker jump out might be good enough?

Bottom line - the indicators are good. Probably as good as you'll get long-distance without an ASET image.

 

[finger25]

Thank you John, I really appreciate your comment!!

I do have an ASET viewer! I will use it when I get the diamond. Since I cant find anything that looks better than this one within our budget, I will order this diamond. Hopefully it's good enough...

Bluenile has upgrade policy, so this diamond might have been sold in the past... I will ask them. But just curious, is it a bad thing to buy a diamond that used to be someone else's ring? How can you tell if they dont tell the truth? Does it seem strange that the report is more than a year old? I have never thought about "the diamond might be used."

 

[John P]

Thank you John, I really appreciate your comment!!

I do have an ASET viewer! I will use it when I get the diamond. Since I cant find anything that looks better than this one within our budget, I will order this diamond. Hopefully it's good enough...

Bluenile has upgrade policy, so this diamond might have been sold in the past... I will ask them. But just curious, is it a bad thing to buy a diamond that used to be someone else's ring? How can you tell if they dont tell the truth? Does it seem strange that the report is more than a year old? I have never thought about "the diamond might be used."

You're welcome. I presume you know what to look for in the ASET.

Viewing the diamond live will tell you even more. Since this is an upgrade, and you already know where diamonds look best in your living spaces I'd encourage you to check it out in those areas... I have regular paths I take when checking out new diamonds in familiar places. I know exactly where certain makes should "pop" and where the best of the best will show up, despite a challenging lighting scenario. You probably know such places in your stomping grounds already.

The only issue with a diamond that's been out and about is clarity and/or potential damage at the girdle (example) that wasn't there when the grading report was issued. Diamonds stored in jewelry boxes, or worn with girdles exposed to other diamond girdles, can suffer wear such as scratches, nicks, chips, bruises and other blemishes that can influence clarity or polish downward. If a diamond has been away from the vendor it's important to have a new report issued upon its return.

I'm currently working with a client to repair a diamond he purchased as IF. We were simply planning to improve the cut quality but upon close examination we discovered two tiny surface-reaching characteristics. They were very slight but they disqualified it from IF; a huge bummer for my client. We returned the diamond to the original lab to verify this. Yes, it was the same stone they had graded IF years ago, but it now has slight damage (on the crown, not the girdle) which moved it down to VVS1. The end result is that our improve-the-cut project has become an improve-both-cut-and-clarity project if we can do-so without too much loss of weight.

Clearly the SI range has less implications when it comes to very slight issues, but it's a valid question to ask the seller.