new here and need some advice!

[pinkflamingo]

I have been doing my research for the last few days and have about a $4000 (no more than $4500) budget for a stone. It must be set in platinum as I am allergic to white gold and dislike yellow gold.

We both love the traditional Tiffany 6 prong solitaire setting..... but I know they mark everything up a lot and I would only be able to get 1/3 of a carat there.

I love Superbcert''s knockoff tiffany setting, but it is expensive, almost $1000! That seems really high! Does anyone here have experience with this setting or can recommend someplace else that has an identical replica of the Tiffany 6 prong setting for less money?

If I spend $1000 on a setting, that puts the budget for the stone at about $3000. Where should I start? I want a beautiful sparkly stone- nothing more included than VS1 and F-G grade... Ideal cut, preferrably. I like the superbcert diamonds but there are not many to choose from in my price range.

Any other sites to start looking at and opinions? Can I get a nice ring for under 5K? We have a lot of expenses and a huge rock is not the biggest priority in our lives now---- I can always trade up!!

 

[valeria101]

Did you get to see any diamonds of different color, clarity and cut grades? It is hard to tell from this side of the screen

However, it does sound to me that you have chosen your prefered colro and clarity grades based on their desciption - this is almost never good enough. These grades are more accurate as pricing factors than visual clues... I supose.

 

[BenNYC]

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On 3/25/2004 5:50:35 PM pinkflamingo wrote:

I have been doing my research for the last few days and have about a $4000 (no more than $4500) budget for a stone. It must be set in platinum as I am allergic to white gold and dislike yellow gold.

We both love the traditional Tiffany 6 prong solitaire setting..... but I know they mark everything up a lot and I would only be able to get 1/3 of a carat there.

I love Superbcert's knockoff tiffany setting, but it is expensive, almost $1000! That seems really high! Does anyone here have experience with this setting or can recommend someplace else that has an identical replica of the Tiffany 6 prong setting for less money?

If I spend $1000 on a setting, that puts the budget for the stone at about $3000. Where should I start? I want a beautiful sparkly stone- nothing more included than VS1 and F-G grade... Ideal cut, preferrably. I like the superbcert diamonds but there are not many to choose from in my price range.

Any other sites to start looking at and opinions? Can I get a nice ring for under 5K? We have a lot of expenses and a huge rock is not the biggest priority in our lives now---- I can always trade up!!

----------------

I recently bought a six prong "tiffany" ring and had a similar budget to yours. Considering your budget, may I ask why you are sticking at VS1 and F-G?

I bought a 1.08 carat I SI2 which is amazingly gorgeous and totally eye clean. One thing that I did not compromise on however was the cut. It is triple ideal cut and the difference shows. I held it next to my sister's which was not ideal cut but was VS and a better color and the stone I had bought was much brighter and appeared whiter. In neither stone could you see inclusions, so to me that was a moot point.

If size is an issue for you and you would like a bigger stone, get an ideal cut with an H or I color and SI clarity. Most people here say that you cant see that much of a difference in color from one grade to the next and until I stones are really colorless. Unless there is some cultural reason for better clarity, what does it matter what the inclusions are as long as you cant see them to the naked eye? Not many of your friends will view your ring under a loupe.

As far as the settings you will probably not find an exact replica of the Tiffany. Search the threads here and you will find that many have tried. You can however find very nice six prong platinum settings with slightly different prongs. I ended up buying one with an Ingwer platinum setting which is very nice. The real difference is that it has basket styled prongs as opposed to Tiffany's claw style.

 

[BenNYC]

Also check out www.USACerteddiamonds.com

I bought my fiancee's ring from them and they were great to work with.

 

[pinkflamingo]

Hmmm...... all very interesting. I am just worried about buying a S1 stone over the web and seeing an inclusion when I get the ring! Is that something I should worry about?
I am looking into Blue Nile's Signature collection...
what do you think about this stone?

http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?pid=LD00231590&filter_id=0&sec=&query=20&page=&sortby=size-d

 

[diamondsbylauren]

$1000 for a platinum style solitaire made to order seems very much in line.


It is possible to buy a lightweight platinum solitaire for $450- but that would be a pretty light ring- and you'd still need to have the setting, polishing , and sizing done.




As far as qualtiy of stone- BenNYC had a very sound suggestion- Look at I/SI- or even J/SI- if you get a Superbcert stone, it will look great in I-J color.




I do not reccomend trying to get a "cheap" solitaire- the ring will have a great deal of impact on how much she enjoys her diamond!

 

[dimonbob]

Since the platinum ring that you want costs almost $1000 and you only have about $3500 (max) for your diamond. You might think ahead about the trade up. If you purchase a F VS1 ideal cut today and trade up later to a 1ct + diamond, you will not be able to use the expensive ring again. If you get a lower quality, say G SI1 1ct ideal cut diamond and later trade up, you can sill use the ring. It would be a shame to toss the ring and I am sure it will not trade up. Of course the way platinum is going up, it might be worth more than your diamond in a few years. Last year it was $700/oz, today it is over $900/oz.

 

[BenNYC]

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On 3/25/2004 6:28:19 PM pinkflamingo wrote:

Hmmm...... all very interesting. I am just worried about buying a S1 stone over the web and seeing an inclusion when I get the ring! Is that something I should worry about?
I am looking into Blue Nile's Signature collection...
what do you think about this stone?

http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?pid=LD00231590&filter_id=0&sec=&query=20&page=&sortby=size-d----------------

Well I didnt buy my ring over the web exactly. Because I live in NYC, Martin at USACerted arranged for me to go visit his wholesaler in NYC so I could see it in person. I understand your concern. Many on this site who have bought online from good vendors say that if you ask the vendor for a fair critique of the stone and if it is eye clean they will tell you. You can also have rings shipped to appraisors for you to inspect before buying them from some sellers. You should also have a return policy if you buy a stone online. Pretty much make sure you are dealing with a trustworthy source and have your bases covered as far as a satisfaction guarantee and you should be fine.

As far as the stone you picked out on Blue Nile, I am not really sure of what kind of organizations AGSL and GCAL are, but I am no expert. Maybe someone else has heard of them. You should also get crown and pavillion angles on a stone to really judge its cut.