New shopper needs help!!

[dilliyo]

I have recently entered the market for a diamond ring and am not sure what to look for. I have decided on a princess cut diamond. From what I have read it seems safe to go with a G/H and SI1 with the largest stone affordable. I know that cut is the most important factor but am not sure what to look for in a cut. Blue Nile lists "Ideal" but depth, girdle, table, etc. are always different. Is there a range that you would want a princess cut to fall in for an acceptable cut? Also, how does Blue Nile compare to other diamond retailers as far as pricing? Thanks for the help.

 

[Magnum]

I really don't know a lot about the cut of princess stones, so I can't comment much there except to refer you to www.gemappraisers.com which has a cut grading chart for fancy shaped stones.

I think G/H SI1 is a great sweet spot to maximize bang for the buck without sacrificing very much on color or clarity, as long as the SI1 is "eye-clean".

I have a close friend that used Blue Nile a couple years ago and was very happy with his purchase. In my opinion, Blue Nile is a little more widely known internet site in the general public, like Mondera, but that being said, you're going to pay a little more and not get as good personal customer service as a lot of the vendors that are highly recommended and respected on this forum.

Sorry I couldn't help more on the cut question, but from what I can tell, it's a lot harder to tell if a fancy cut stone is well cut just by the numbers. Finding a vendor you trust with good info and a good independent appraiser is probably a good idea.

 

[diamondsman]

The color and clarity you have picked are nice as long as the inclusion is not visible, find out if the depth and table are around the low 70's in order for it to be withing the ideal cut proprtions.
As far as pricing is concerned it's very easy and simple,go on the web ,check out different sites , compare prices on similar stones,then make your decision.

good luck