One out of three, opinions please!

[Nicccc]

Hi all, I have narrowed down my choices to the above three diamonds. They are very similar in terms of weight ( can be pairing into earings without telling the size difference), in the same color and clarity (IF).


One is slightly smaller than the other two and surely slightly cheaper too, all three's table diameters true to size.


I am sorry for not being able to post the full GIA report as these things goes too quickly and we have spent a fair amount of time on it and want to make a decision finally but apparently a very tough choice for us.


So if price difference isn't a consideration and We can't obtain the ASET or Ideal Scope image and for those three which one shall I pick?



Thank you very much for your reply!

 

[rockysalamander]

#2 would be my choice. Smaller table and CA close to my ideal at 34.5. But, the numbers don't guarantee it is cut well, has good symmetry and will perform well. Have you at least seen pictures? I'm not clear on why there is such time pressure---but I would not buy without vetting with a photo and video unless they have an amazing, no questions asked return policy.

 

[Nicccc]

#2 would be my choice. Smaller table and CA in my ideal at 34.5. But, the numbers don't guarantee it is cut well, has good symmetry and will perform well. Have you at least seen pictures? I'm not clear on why there is such time pressure---but I would not buy without vetting with a photo and video unless they have an amazing, no questions asked return policy.

 

[Nicccc]

#2 would be my choice. Smaller table and CA in my ideal at 34.5. But, the numbers don't guarantee it is cut well, has good symmetry and will perform well. Have you at least seen pictures? I'm not clear on why there is such time pressure---but I would not buy without vetting with a photo and video unless they have an amazing, no questions asked return policy.

thank you so much! Will try to get photos of them and compare. Will keep your advise in mind!
There are other buyers looking at the same thing atm and we found something nice but sold not long ago, making us want to make a decision quicker this time. maybe not worth to rush it though.

 

[Snowdrop13]

If these are to be paired into earrings it would be nice to see them side by side. Also, do you really need IF clarity? To me that is overkill for earrings when no one will be seeing them close up. You could easily go down to VS2, most of those will be eye clean anyway.

 

[Nicccc]

#2 would be my choice. Smaller table and CA in my ideal at 34.5. But, the numbers don't guarantee it is cut well, has good symmetry and will perform well. Have you at least seen pictures? I'm not clear on why there is such time pressure---but I would not buy without vetting with a photo and video unless they have an amazing, no questions asked return policy.

Oops, sorry the second one also has a CA at 34 but not 34.5 though. Sorry for the small print.

 

[rockysalamander]

Oops, sorry the second one also has a CA at 34 but not 34.5 though. Sorry for the small print.

thank you so much! Will try to get photos of them and compare. Will keep your advise in mind!
There are other buyers looking at the same thing atm and we found something nice but sold not long ago, making us want to make a decision quicker this time. maybe not worth to rush it though.

Your call. If you want to post your budget and wants (color, clarity, size, shape) we can have a look. At the very least, we'll walk you through why we make the choices we do.

 

[Nicccc]

If these are to be paired into earrings it would be nice to see them side by side. Also, do you really need IF clarity? To me that is overkill for earrings when no one will be seeing them close up. You could easily go down to VS2, most of those will be eye clean anyway.

Thank you for replying.

Sorry not being clear enough. It was just an example of the size, because we didn't feel like to post the full report, it's for a ring.

I guess it's a personal choice to go for IF, after comparing them in a local jewellery shop we decided to go for it. She had diamonds before and got a clue re the difference. ( ie. eye clean etc)

In fact we found it far more complicated to choose from a VVS1/2 than a IF.

 

[rockysalamander]

Thank you for replying.

Sorry not being clear enough. It was just an example of the size, because we didn't feel like to post the full report, it's for a ring.

I guess it's a personal choice to go for IF, after comparing them in a local jewellery shop we decided to go for it. She had diamonds before and got a clue re the difference. ( ie. eye clean etc)

In fact we found it far more complicated to choose from a VVS1/2 than a IF.

At VVS, if she can see flaws, she must have beyond 20/20 vision. You need 10x magnification to see anything at VVS. Heck, most can't see VS inclusions. My dad happen to have beyond 20/20 close vision and still would struggle to see GIA VVS flaws...

Edited to add...if she is seeing differnce between IF and VVS, I would bet it has to do with the cut of the diamond (different angles/precision). Do you have a super-ideal vendor in your area? (Hearts on Fire, Crafted by Infinity, Whiteflash and Brian Gavin are in Texas). If so, go there and ask them to show you VVS and VS stones. I think you might find that due to the very narrow cutting parameters (i.e., controlling for more variables), she may have not ability to tell most of them apart. I could be wrong, but given the cost difference, it may be a worthwhile test.

 

[Nicccc]

At VVS, if she can see flaws, she must have beyond 20/20 vision. You need 10x magnification to see anything at VVS. Heck, most can't see VS inclusions. My dad happen to have beyond 20/20 close vision and still would struggle to see GIA VVS flaws...

Edited to add...if she is seeing differnce between IF and VVS, I would bet it has to do with the cut of the diamond (different angles/precision). Do you have a super-ideal vendor in your area? (Hearts on Fire, Crafted by Infinity, Whiteflash and Brian Gavin are in Texas). If so, go there and ask them to show you VVS and VS stones. I think you might find that due to the very narrow cutting parameters (i.e., controlling for more variables), she may have not ability to tell most of them apart. I could be wrong, but given the cost difference, it may be a worthwhile test.

Oh, no sorry we are not talking about we can see inclusion in person. We are fully aware the class of GIA standard is under 10x magnifier.

As I said it's a person choice. Thanks a lot for the websites! It's very handy!

 

[Niel]

2

 

[MarionC]

I’ve been 10x looping my new diamond [VS1] for two days and still haven’t located a single inclusion, even with my GIA report to guide me.
I know people prefer FL for some reason, but I’m more comfortable with a stone that has an identifying inclusion...even if I can't loupe it at home.

 

[rockysalamander]

Got it! Personal choice is fine.

This would be a choice (no clue on your budget). Beautiful stone. Good IS. AGS0. This stone I could recommend without caveats.
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...arat-g-color-if-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3531277

But, I'd also recommend these with VVS1
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...at-h-color-vvs1-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3448685
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...at-g-color-vvs1-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3639896
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...at-d-color-vvs1-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3466188

 

[Nicccc]

Oh there is one more we are not sure. What do you say? Thanks a lot!

But for this one what annoying us is the Carat weight is at the margin, due to the cutting, in other words table far smaller than a 3EX diamond suppose to be.

So # 4 is as following:

Got it! Personal choice is fine.

This would be a choice (no clue on your budget). Beautiful stone. Good IS. AGS0. This stone I could recommend without caveats.
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...arat-g-color-if-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3531277

But, I'd also recommend these with VVS1
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...at-h-color-vvs1-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3448685
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...at-g-color-vvs1-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3639896
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...at-d-color-vvs1-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3466188

 

[Matthews1127]

Got it! Personal choice is fine.

This would be a choice (no clue on your budget). Beautiful stone. Good IS. AGS0. This stone I could recommend without caveats.
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...arat-g-color-if-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3531277

But, I'd also recommend these with VVS1
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...at-h-color-vvs1-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3448685
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...at-g-color-vvs1-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3639896
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...at-d-color-vvs1-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-3466188

All are beautiful choices!!!

 

[rockysalamander]

#2 and #4 would be worth considering. Photos, video and IS (you can buy your own) will really tell you if the diamond is worth the cost.

...the Carat weight is at the margin, due to the cutting, in other words table far smaller than a 3EX diamond suppose to be.

I don't understand what you mean. We routinely consider diamonds from 52-57.5 % table (up to 58 are considered by some, I just like smaller tables). Both GIA Excellent and AGSL Ideal includes tables down to 52% and AGSL table up to 62% (though not many PA/CA combos).

You can look at your diamonds against the AGSL cut chart as they are pretty easy to review and AGSL is tighter on cutting grading (https://agslab.com/docs/pbcg/AGSLProportionCharts.pdf) and the HCA tool (less than 2.0 is worth consideration; complimentaryness of angles). If the spread is small for the weight, that is usually due to a deeper than ideal (over 63.2% depth) or thicker girdle. Very high crown angles can also hide weight depending on the PA pairing.

When using the AGSL chart, keep in mind that GIA rounds the angles. So, given that we don't know how they rounded and a known weight-retention strategy is to vary pavilion angles, I look at on box to the right-left and two to the top-bottom to get a sense of how AGS would rate the stone.



Bottom line, consider any table between 52-58% (I cut off table at 57.5 due to my personal preference for firey stones).

 

[Nicccc]

#2 and #4 would be worth considering. Photos, video and IS (you can buy your own) will really tell you if the diamond is worth the cost.

...the Carat weight is at the margin, due to the cutting, in other words table far smaller than a 3EX diamond suppose to be.

I don't understand what you mean. We routinely consider diamonds from 52-57.5 % table (up to 58 are considered by some, I just like smaller tables). Both GIA Excellent and AGSL Ideal includes tables down to 52% and AGSL table up to 62% (though not many PA/CA combos).

You can look at your diamonds against the AGSL cut chart as they are pretty easy to review and AGSL is tighter on cutting grading (https://agslab.com/docs/pbcg/AGSLProportionCharts.pdf) and the HCA tool (less than 2.0 is worth consideration; complimentaryness of angles). If the spread is small for the weight, that is usually due to a deeper than ideal (over 63.2% depth) or thicker girdle. Very high crown angles can also hide weight depending on the PA pairing.

When using the AGSL chart, keep in mind that GIA rounds the angles. So, given that we don't know how they rounded and a known weight-retention strategy is to vary pavilion angles, I look at on box to the right-left and two to the top-bottom to get a sense of how AGS would rate the stone.



Bottom line, consider any table between 52-58% (I cut off table at 57.5 due to my personal preference for firey stones).

oh， thank you so much!!!

Where can I buy the IS btw?

 

[rockysalamander]

https://datlas.com/ideal-scope-store/expert-scope-light/ {no 10x loupe}
https://datlas.com/ideal-scope-store/aset-kit/ {no 10x loupe}

https://datlas.com/ideal-scope-store/beginner-scope-starter-kit/ {with 10x loupe, I like the dual LED one, but I use it a lot!

To post IS or ASET photos here, you'll want to take them through the loupe and scope.

 

[Nicccc]

https://datlas.com/ideal-scope-store/expert-scope-light/ {no 10x loupe}
https://datlas.com/ideal-scope-store/aset-kit/ {no 10x loupe}

https://datlas.com/ideal-scope-store/beginner-scope-starter-kit/ {with 10x loupe, I like the dual LED one, but I use it a lot!

To post IS or ASET photos here, you'll want to take them through the loupe and scope.

Thanks a lot!

I have the heart and arrows of #4

It doesn't look that perfect but open to any suggestion?

 

[rockysalamander]

We can make more suggestions, but you have to give us some parameters. We know IF and round, but what is your budget, size and color goal?

 

[Nicccc]

Oops, here are the photos

Thanks a lot!

I have the heart and arrows of #4

It doesn't look that perfect but open to any suggestion?

 

[Nicccc]

We can make more suggestions, but you have to give us some parameters. We know IF and round, but what is your budget, size and color goal?

Oh, I am terribly sorry. I was seeking for comments re the heart and arrow photos I posted in the second last post. I didn't mean I was looking for more choices... ( sorry will have to hide the details for some reason.)

Thank you so much for your help!

 

[rockysalamander]

The H&A shows hearts with tears and the pigeon toes vary both in size (left/right leg) distance from the bottom of the hears, and vary in size between them. Its not terrible, but not great and would not get H&A rating.


Have you looked at super-ideal diamonds? They will tick all the boxes for cut and fire and there will be no worries about H&A. You also won't be in the position of buying blind. Just some examples around 1 carat.

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3916963.htm
https://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond..._arrows-EX-GIA-D-IF-diamond-stock-14913-cert-
https://www.briangavindiamonds.com/...ils/1.020-d-if-round-diamond-ags-104078383007

 

[Karl_K]

The H&A shows hearts with tears and the pigeon toes vary both in size (left/right leg) distance from the bottom of the hears, and vary in size between them. Its not terrible, but not great and would not get H&A rating.

The defects in the "pigeon toes" are mostly due to alignment issues with the scope, diamond and camera.
The differences in the hearts are due to slight variations in the lower girdle length.
While some would argue that its not h&a, visually that small a difference in lgf is not going to be eye visible in many combinations.
In diamonds in the steep deep range it could show more leakage on the ones without the cleft in the hearts in ASET/IS.

 

[Nicccc]

Thanks a lot!!!

The H&A shows hearts with tears and the pigeon toes vary both in size (left/right leg) distance from the bottom of the hears, and vary in size between them. Its not terrible, but not great and would not get H&A rating.


Have you looked at super-ideal diamonds? They will tick all the boxes for cut and fire and there will be no worries about H&A. You also won't be in the position of buying blind. Just some examples around 1 carat.

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3916963.htm
https://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond..._arrows-EX-GIA-D-IF-diamond-stock-14913-cert-
https://www.briangavindiamonds.com/...ils/1.020-d-if-round-diamond-ags-104078383007

 

[Nicccc]

Thanks a lot for your advise! Really appreciated!

The defects in the "pigeon toes" are do to alignment issues with the scope, diamond and camera.
The differences in the hearts are due to slight variations in the lower girdle length.
While some would argue that its not h&a, visually that small a difference in lgf is not going to be eye visible in many combinations.
In diamonds in the steep deep range it could show more leakage on the ones without the cleft in the hearts in ASET/IS.

 

[Karl_K]

Thanks a lot for your advise! Really appreciated!

Your welcome.

 

[Nicccc]

Your welcome.

Thanks and I am going to post photos of those four and can you / and any other who is reading kindly give your opinion? I will post one by one.

#1
7.34-7.38*4.43mm

 

[Nicccc]

#2
#7.48-7.51*4.52mm

We can make more suggestions, but you have to give us some parameters. We know IF and round, but what is your budget, size and color goal?

 

[Nicccc]

#3 7.46-7.50*4.5mm