New and quite confused! Any assistance would be appreciated!

[Dancing Fire]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

Update!


-I ended up looking at a round I1 J diamond and an oval I1 K. Both were noticeably creamy colored on the side, but not on top. I could not tell the color difference between the two. Maybe I just have bad eyes.

GIA graded stones?

Nope. They label their GIA graded ones. I didn't see a GIA notation on the boxes of these two.

You need to look at some GIA graded stones...

 

[16ocean]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3403885.htm

"cut (sparkle, fire, brilliance) and size"

Hi Pumpkins are awesome,
Short story: I would keep it simple. The above link is larger, well cut and in your price range.
Buy an AGS or GIA certified diamond from a trusted vendor. Often brick and mortars stores are going to be more pricey than on line. A nice upgrade policy is a plus as well.

You can also check out James Allen or Good Old Gold

 

[PumpkinsAreAwesome]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

Another update!

I got a change to go to Brilliant Earth's SF office today to try on settings and look at diamonds. Very nice staff!

In terms of diamonds, I got a chance to look at three diamonds, all ranging from Ideal to Super Ideal and H and I. One of these diamonds had close to 60/60 proportions. I honestly didn't see much difference between the diamonds shown to me as they all had nice sparkle, but at the same time didn't see the large, soft, colorful sparkles from yesterday's Shane Co diamond.

In terms of setting, I really fell in love with this one: http://www.brilliantearth.com/Lotus-Flower-Diamond-Ring-%281/3-ct.-tw.%29-White-Gold-BE1BD12R2-1152417/ . As stated earlier in this thread, I've been debating heavily between a plain solitaire and a halo. My only issue with this setting is that 1) I wish it had a skinnier band and 2) it forces me to buy a diamond from Brilliant Earth.

After looking at my mom's antique engagement ring, I'm pretty much sold on getting a lower colored diamond. Now in terms of narrowing down my choices to ones with maximum sparkle and fire, does this criteria work?
depth 60-62%
table 54-57%
crown angle 34-35 deg
pavilion angle 40.6-41 deg
polish and symmetry very good or better
gridles - no extremes

Thank you again! I think I'm slowly starting to figure this out...maybe!

 

[16ocean]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

but at the same time didn't see the large, soft, colorful sparkles from yesterday's Shane Co diamond.

After looking at my mom's antique engagement ring, I'm pretty much sold on getting a lower colored diamond. Now in terms of narrowing down my choices to ones with maximum sparkle and fire, does this criteria work?
depth 60-62%
table 54-57%
crown angle 34-35 deg
pavilion angle 40.6-41 deg
polish and symmetry very good or better
gridles - no extremes

options for large soft colorful sparkles could be from an antique diamond
http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/loose-diamonds

http://www.oldworlddiamonds.com/

 

[PumpkinsAreAwesome]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

but at the same time didn't see the large, soft, colorful sparkles from yesterday's Shane Co diamond.

After looking at my mom's antique engagement ring, I'm pretty much sold on getting a lower colored diamond. Now in terms of narrowing down my choices to ones with maximum sparkle and fire, does this criteria work?
depth 60-62%
table 54-57%
crown angle 34-35 deg
pavilion angle 40.6-41 deg
polish and symmetry very good or better
gridles - no extremes

options for large soft colorful sparkles could be from an antique diamond
http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/loose-diamonds

http://www.oldworlddiamonds.com/

These looks really neat! Now, something I notice is that these all have large cutlets. What are the effects of that other than what seems to be hole in the middle of the diamond? Is there significant light lost as a result?

 

[kb1gra]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

No, a culet doesn't equal leakage. It's just a preference whether seeing it bothers you or not. I have (had) an OEC in the center of my 3 stone, and after some time, the culet started to bother me and I upgraded all three stones to larger RB because I found for me the faceting didn't do it long term. Others might be different.

I saw a SWEET transitional cut on James Allen last week. I wonder if I could find it again. An antique diamond would certainly at least mostly satisfy your ethical concerns.

 

[PumpkinsAreAwesome]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

No, a culet doesn't equal leakage. It's just a preference whether seeing it bothers you or not. I have (had) an OEC in the center of my 3 stone, and after some time, the culet started to bother me and I upgraded all three stones to larger RB because I found for me the faceting didn't do it long term. Others might be different.

I saw a SWEET transitional cut on James Allen last week. I wonder if I could find it again. An antique diamond would certainly at least mostly satisfy your ethical concerns.

I've been looking at vintage diamonds all day! I love the look and uniqueness of vintage diamonds, along with the fact that getting a recycled/antique diamond does solve my ethical concerns.

With regards to antique diamonds, I'm leaning towards the transitional cut because I know the hole in the OEC would bug the heck out of me! Are there any other round diamond antique cuts that don't have that hole in the middle? Other than James Allen, what other vendors have transitional cuts (since Old World Diamonds only has OEC)?

Or maybe in the end, should I just stick with the RB? So many choices and options! When I think I'm narrowing down my choices, I end up having to widen my search!

 

[kb1gra]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

No, a culet doesn't equal leakage. It's just a preference whether seeing it bothers you or not. I have (had) an OEC in the center of my 3 stone, and after some time, the culet started to bother me and I upgraded all three stones to larger RB because I found for me the faceting didn't do it long term. Others might be different.

I saw a SWEET transitional cut on James Allen last week. I wonder if I could find it again. An antique diamond would certainly at least mostly satisfy your ethical concerns.

I've been looking at vintage diamonds all day! I love the look and uniqueness of vintage diamonds, along with the fact that getting a recycled/antique diamond does solve my ethical concerns.

With regards to antique diamonds, I'm leaning towards the transitional cut because I know the hole in the OEC would bug the heck out of me! Are there any other round diamond antique cuts that don't have that hole in the middle? Other than James Allen, what other vendors have transitional cuts (since Old World Diamonds only has OEC)?

Or maybe in the end, should I just stick with the RB? So many choices and options! When I think I'm narrowing down my choices, I end up having to widen my search!

Most transitionals do have a culet, albeit a small one. I would probably say JBG (linked above) would be your most solid source for a transitional if that's your speed.

James Allen is an interesting site in that you can often find relatively rare cuts on there if you know what to search for. Transitionals or OECs sometimes show up, and so do antique cut cushions. Here's a nice transitional on JA (I think this is the one I was referring to before) in a nice high color for an old cut:
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/0.61-carat-h-color-vs1-clarity-good-cut-sku-323129

they have a really good return policy, so you could purchase the stone and see if it rings your bell before committing to a full-out search for the perfect transitional.

Transitionals are my favorite old cuts, but old stones are very individual and you have to find the "right one."

 

[acaw2015]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

I am really just a lurker and I think there are more informed persons here, but I thought i would chime in.

If you are worried about cut but like the vintage style, you can check out the august vintage line made by Good old gold. If I have understood this correctly, the AVR line is sometimes made from not so well cut diamonds that they re-cut for a more vintage style. So, if you think it is more ethical to use second-hand than "new" but want an excellent cut, you could contact them and see if they have something for you. The AVR do not have culets, or at least not any that are visible. Of course, they may use "new" rough as well so you definitely have to ask before buying if this is your preference.

There are also other vendors who make their own avr-ish style, but I have no idea if they only use new rough or if they also use second hand sometimes.

Btw, my new diamond has a culet and I love it. I am a little disappointed that the culet "disappeared" when the diamond was set in my ring, I can only see it in certain lights now. But I realize that culets are not for everyone.

Good luck!

 

[kb1gra]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

I'm not sure about price point but there's a pretty substantial premium for the August Vintage line vs finding a nice old cut. They're worth it, I'm sure, but it would definitely take a big bite out of a smaller budget.

 

[PumpkinsAreAwesome]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

Reading up more on these lovely stones, I think I'm leaning toward a OEC round because they seem to have more sparkle/fire than a AVR based on what I've read on these forums. It looks like Old World Diamonds allows you to filter diamonds by cutlet size, so that solves my issue with that. I sent an e-mail out to them, but haven't gotten a response yet.

Are there any other vendors that sell just loose stones? I'm having trouble finding places since it looks like most of them sell diamonds set in antique rings.

 

[rubybeth]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

Reading up more on these lovely stones, I think I'm leaning toward a OEC round because they seem to have more sparkle/fire than a AVR based on what I've read on these forums. It looks like Old World Diamonds allows you to filter diamonds by cutlet size, so that solves my issue with that. I sent an e-mail out to them, but haven't gotten a response yet.

Are there any other vendors that sell just loose stones? I'm having trouble finding places since it looks like most of them sell diamonds set in antique rings.

For old diamonds, check out the following list:

Love Affair Diamonds - www.loveaffairdiamonds.com
Diamonds by Lauren - www.diamondsbylauren.com
Jewels by Grace - www.jewelsbygrace.com
Good Old Gold - www.goodoldgold.com
My Diamond Zone on eBay - http://stores.ebay.com/MyDiamondZone

And you already know about Old World Diamonds. I will say that if you are specifically looking for a small culet or NO culet, you would probably do better to reach out to these vendors by e-mail or phone and let them know what you are looking for. Erica at Love Affair and Grace at Jewels by Grace can source diamonds of a particular make, and I'm guessing the others might be able to do the same. Old diamonds are a special beast when it comes to diamond shopping--you may need to be patient to find exactly what you are looking for, in budget. I looked for literally years before I found my OEC.

Edited to add: sometimes the culet kind of 'disappears' once set. You may want to look for a stone with a smaller culet and consider settings that would de-emphasize the culet. Some of us with old stones LOVE the culet, so we want to make sure it's visible.

Also, one small thing to note: it's culet (pronounced the French way "cue-let"), not cutlet (like a piece of meat).

 

[foxinsox]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

I have a 7mm OEC with a Slightly Large culet. I have to look closely to see it in most lights and if I do see it, it just looks to me like the centre of the 'petals' in the centre of the diamond. Don't forget that all the pictures you see are super zoomed in and will make the culet look more prominent than it is in reality.

 

[PumpkinsAreAwesome]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

Reading up more on these lovely stones, I think I'm leaning toward a OEC round because they seem to have more sparkle/fire than a AVR based on what I've read on these forums. It looks like Old World Diamonds allows you to filter diamonds by cutlet size, so that solves my issue with that. I sent an e-mail out to them, but haven't gotten a response yet.

Are there any other vendors that sell just loose stones? I'm having trouble finding places since it looks like most of them sell diamonds set in antique rings.

For old diamonds, check out the following list:

Love Affair Diamonds - www.loveaffairdiamonds.com
Diamonds by Lauren - www.diamondsbylauren.com
Jewels by Grace - www.jewelsbygrace.com
Good Old Gold - www.goodoldgold.com
My Diamond Zone on eBay - http://stores.ebay.com/MyDiamondZone

And you already know about Old World Diamonds. I will say that if you are specifically looking for a small culet or NO culet, you would probably do better to reach out to these vendors by e-mail or phone and let them know what you are looking for. Erica at Love Affair and Grace at Jewels by Grace can source diamonds of a particular make, and I'm guessing the others might be able to do the same. Old diamonds are a special beast when it comes to diamond shopping--you may need to be patient to find exactly what you are looking for, in budget. I looked for literally years before I found my OEC.

Edited to add: sometimes the culet kind of 'disappears' once set. You may want to look for a stone with a smaller culet and consider settings that would de-emphasize the culet. Some of us with old stones LOVE the culet, so we want to make sure it's visible.

Also, one small thing to note: it's culet (pronounced the French way "cue-let"), not cutlet (like a piece of meat).

Thanks! Not sure why I've been seeing it as "cutlet". Maybe I'm hungry.

What kind of settings would de-empmhasize the culet? At this point, I looking at really simple settings with 2mm bands like this: http://img.bluenile.com/is/image/customerrings/969963641?$phab_360$ I find that anything thicker and more complex doesn't look good on my short fingers. I was also thinking of pave, but I work in a hospital and play drums on the side, so not sure about the durability compared to a plain white gold band.

Yesterday, I went to an antique store and looked at a rose cut, old mine cut, two transitional cuts, and one round brilliant. When they were all placed next to each other, the round brilliant had the most sparkle and fire by about a mile. It was like looking at a blinding rainbow in the rock. Is having less sparkle and fire than RBs characteristic of the older diamond cuts? I think at this point, I am definitely wanting a diamond with lots of fire and rainbows.

I'll probably try to find more antique stores or even make another trip to San Francisco to check out Lang Antiques next week. I never expected diamond shopping to be so complex, and I'm just doing my boyfriend a favor by researching our options!

 

[gr8leo87]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

Any setting which gives floor to a diamond. Which is almost every setting you see Culet because the light leaks there. When light doesn't leak from Culet it won't be apparent.
Also a large Culet is a facet and it's parallel to the table and visible up front. It's a feature of old cut and actually gives character to the diamond.

 

[Tourmaline]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

A well cut OEC will have more fire than a MRB. Stones with high crowns have more fire.

 

[Queenie60]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

Prior to looking I would suggest you educate yourself as much as you can on the 4 c's of diamonds. Take a look on Goodoldgold.com as he has many educational videos that can help you. Also take a look at beyond4c's.com as Paul Gian can give you a good education on diamond buying. Sometimes we need to take a deep breath and take a few steps back before making such a huge decision. This is a ring that you will be looking at for many years and should take your time to make a good decision and not to be seduced by pushing sales people at Shane Co. or any other retail jeweler. I find that online buying is the best way to go for price and comparison as well as return policy. Good luck to you.

 

[dontaskme]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

When I was reading your original post I was thinking OLD DIAMOND!

RB and OECs sparkle very differently, someone once described it to me as a RB as a disco ball and a OEC is like big broad flashes. I appreciate well cut RB's but I would never pick one over an old cut stone. It's is a personal choice for sure... transitional cut diamonds sometimes are not far off from MRB depending on how late they were cut. I know Erica at LAD prefers Transitional diamonds so you might start there.

 

[PumpkinsAreAwesome]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

Another update:

I went to several antique stores yesterday to check out OEC rounds. Everyone was generally very helpful, especially the gemologist at my last stop who recommended a dealer in San Francisco.

Based on looking at OECs, I've decided that I really like the faceting because it's beautiful and gives a unique look to the stone compared to the splintery look of MRB.

However, I'm increasingly concerned about the lack of fire and sparkle of OECs. I don't know if it's because these stones are poorly cut, but the best stone I saw still paled in fire (rainbows) and sparkle when compared to a RB (which looked like a rainbow fireball in multiple lighting conditions).

As I type this, I'm awaiting responses from GOG, OWD, and will probably get in touch with MyDiamondZone next. I may make one more trip to San Francisco and see more OECs and hope that they have ones with enough fire and sparkle to calm my concerns.

I've been searching youtube for comparison videos, but have only seen ones comparing MBs with AVRs. Anyone have and good comparison videos/pictures of an OEC blowing away a MRB?

Any input appreciated! Right now I feel like this:

 

[kb1gra]

Re: New and quite confused! Any assistance would be apprecia

Another update:

I went to several antique stores yesterday to check out OEC rounds. Everyone was generally very helpful, especially the gemologist at my last stop who recommended a dealer in San Francisco.

Based on looking at OECs, I've decided that I really like the faceting because it's beautiful and gives a unique look to the stone compared to the splintery look of MRB.

However, I'm increasingly concerned about the lack of fire and sparkle of OECs. I don't know if it's because these stones are poorly cut, but the best stone I saw still paled in fire (rainbows) and sparkle when compared to a RB (which looked like a rainbow fireball in multiple lighting conditions).

As I type this, I'm awaiting responses from GOG, OWD, and will probably get in touch with MyDiamondZone next. I may make one more trip to San Francisco and see more OECs and hope that they have ones with enough fire and sparkle to calm my concerns.

I've been searching youtube for comparison videos, but have only seen ones comparing MBs with AVRs. Anyone have and good comparison videos/pictures of an OEC blowing away a MRB?

Any input appreciated! Right now I feel like this:

I have a suggestion for you but, it's easier if you reach out to me directly. you can contact me using this loupetroop link: http://loupetroop.com/listings/other/kb1gra-from-ps and messaging me there.