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newbie looking for e-ring rock, Q re: color & fluorescence, etc...

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TopSecret

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 31, 2008
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okay, so I''m new to all this diamond stuff. I''ve lurked & read for a few weeks now, as I have a hunch that engagement to my girlfriend is in the somewhat near future.
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I''m trying to get a feel for how much I should budget for. I''m really drawn to Mark Morrell''s settings, but I know they don''t come cheap. So... let''s just say for now that I have an $8k budget (I don''t know yet). If I were to find a well-cut 1-1.25ct round rock to drop into a MM setting (figuring the setting would run me maybe $2-2.5k?), I''d most likely be looking at something in the H-I-J color range for $5.5-6k, correct?

Here''s a random question. If a stone has hints of yellow color, could it have a blue fluorescence that might offset the yellow?

Also, what do the specs on the rocks mean? I''m lost when it comes to Depth, Table, Crown, Star, Pavilion, Girdle. How do I know what''s good & what''s not?

Tell me what you think, oh great diamond experts.
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I *do* have some time to plan this out... thanks so much.
 
Hello, welcome and congratulations! :)

You are right that a strong or very strong blue fluorescence can help to offset any hint of colour in lower colour grade stones. Be sure to have the vendor confirm that the fluorescence is not affecting the diamond adversly, as in some cases it can make a diamond appear hazy or milky.

Opting for a really well cut stone will also help greatly to offset the colour, by maximising the return of white light.

There are some VERY beautiful J and even K colour stones on PS that look incredibly white due to great cuts and/or fluoresence (have a search in Show Me The Ring for examples).

When hunting for your diamond, simply input the specs into the Holloway Cut Advisor to reject any stones which might not perform as well as they could:

https://www.pricescope.com/cutadviser.asp

Aim for a score between 1-2 and Ex/Ex/Ex/Vg results for Light Return/Fire/Scintillation/Spread.

You can''t use the HCA to choose between good stones, but it''s great for weeding out ones you ought to reject.

x x x
 
Much appreciated Cleo.

Thanks for pointing me to the HCA. I had seen that acronym but wasn''t sure what it meant. That helps. :)

What I''m reading from you is to look for the best cut possible. Check.

I can''t wrap my mind around Js or Ks looking white, but I''ll take your word for it. I''m fairly certain my girlfriend won''t care much about color, but I don''t want it to look yellow to an untrained eye. We haven''t really talked about a ring in detail yet, but I know she''s thinking simple. I''m thinking it can certainly be simple, but it needs to blow her away as much as possible. :)

If you had a $5000 or $6000 budget for a diamond, what would you look for?
 
I was so busy hunting down coatimundi;s amazing K colour diamond to show you that Ellen beat me to posting stones for you... so I won''t bother adding to what she''s already posted. :)

Here''s a selection of gorgeous I-K stones to ogle, to show you how white and lovely they can be:

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/show-me-your-i-k-sparklies.80449/

If you like simple, then I would go for one of the amazing stones that Ellen has posted, and either one of the yummy MMs or just a classic, elegant 4 or 6 prong setting... and let the centre stone do the talking. :)

Trust me, with an amazing, well-cut centre stone, she''ll be blown away!
x x x
 
This is helpful, thanks!

As mentioned, my budget isn''t set in stone yet, but I don''t want to get too carried away. I''m just trying to get a feel for what I need to plan for, very likely sometime this year.

We''ll go ring shopping sometime; I''ll then get a better feel for what size I can get way with w/o being too gaudy. After that''s decided I might get the sleuths here to help me out.
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I''ll know more details by then, for sure...
 
I'm not worried, per se. I just want it to look white to an untrained eye.

Thanks for the links though :)

Question: on the "real diamond image" on the first one, how visible will the speck on the center arrow in the 12 o'clock position be to the naked eye? Is something like that often a deal breaker if going for "eye clean" or whatever?
 
I''m with Cleo, put all your money in the stone. She likes simple and classic so start with a classic 4 or 6 prong mounting and upgrade later on.
cwj
 
That's a thought. Neither my gf nor I know a ton about diamonds, but I know enough to say the $6k can buy something darn nice that both of us will be more than happy with. I can flex some with this, but something in the $5-6k range would be good. A special setting is important to me. We're in our 20s & lots of of our friends have gotten engaged; I just want to do something a little beyond the "norm" w/ the ring. :)
 
Date: 3/31/2008 4:04:05 PM
Author: TopSecret
I''m not worried, per se. I just want it to look white to an untrained eye.

Thanks for the links though :)

Question: on the ''real diamond image'' on the first one, how visible will the speck on the center arrow in the 12 o''clock position be to the naked eye? Is something like that often a deal breaker if going for ''eye clean'' or whatever?
If you''re buying online, simply ask the vendor to look at the stone for you and tell you if it''s eyeclean.

The most important thing is that you tell the vendor exactly what YOUR definition of eyeclean means. For example - it might be that you don''t want any inclusions to be visible from either the top, or the sides, at a distance of about 6 inches (or however close you can focus!). Or, it might be that you don''t mind inclusions being visible from the sides, as long as you can''t see them from above. Or it might be that as long as you can''t see any at arm''s length then you are happy.

As long as the vendor knows your definition of eyeclean then they can tell you if the stone will suit you or not.

x x x
 
makes sense, thanks
 
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