Oval diamond bowtie advice

[urodiamond]

Hi all,

Have purchased an oval diamond for AUD 21,000. 1.7 carat D VS2. Online expert advice was that this was a great diamond. However on the online images I was not able to appreciate the bowtie very well. Now when viewing it in person there is a bowtie which is variable on prominence depending on the lighting conditions.

Just wanted to get an opinion on whether this would be considered a very bad bowtie?

1.70-Carat Oval Cut Diamond | Blue Nile AU

www.bluenile.com

videos

IMG_0660.MOV

drive.google.com

IMG_0671.MOV

drive.google.com

Thanks!

 

[urodiamond]

Hi all,

Have purchased an oval diamond for AUD 21,000. 1.7 carat D VS2. Online expert advice was that this was a great diamond. However on the online images I was not able to appreciate the bowtie very well. Now when viewing it in person there is a bowtie which is variable on prominence depending on the lighting conditions.

Just wanted to get an opinion on whether this would be considered a very bad bowtie?

1.70-Carat Oval Cut Diamond | Blue Nile AU

www.bluenile.com

videos

IMG_0660.MOV

drive.google.com

IMG_0671.MOV

drive.google.com

Thanks!

additional video

IMG_0674.MOV

drive.google.com

 

[missy]

additional video

IMG_0674.MOV

drive.google.com

I am not an oval aficionado but I know what I don't like and I don't like the dark areas (I think it is a bowtie but not an expert) I see in the video you shared. I am going to tag a bowtie expert who will be able to help you.


@tyty333 can you help @urodiamond.

 

[tyty333]

I'm not loving it. Its a tough call to know when its a bow-tie and when its not. Bow-ties are dark and dont return light.
There are areas on some ovals that are in the shape of bow-ties but are actually nice facets that do return light.
These facets will go dark in bright light just like well-cut round brilliant goes dark in bright light.

I think maybe the best way to get around this is to buy a faceting pattern this is a 6main, 8 main straight across,
or 4 main. Yours is an 8 main with offset arrows (from the center). There are also ideal cut 10 main ovals.

Here is a 6 main...

1.70-Carat Oval Cut Diamond | Blue Nile

www.bluenile.com

Here is an 8 main straight across

1.70-Carat Oval Cut Diamond | Blue Nile

www.bluenile.com

4 main (not necessarily a great one)

1.80-Carat Oval Cut Diamond | Blue Nile

www.bluenile.com

You want to see nice facets come into view as the stone turns.
Here is your stone turned at an angle. There are no new nice light-returning facets in the red area. This area
would be considered "mushy".


Vs the 6 main I posted above. There are nice, well-defined, distinct facets that will return light
in the same area. Thats the kind of stone you want to look for. The center may go dark just like a round brilliant
in bright light but in general, you wont see as much of that bow-tie shape you are seeing in your stone.


Hope that helps some!

 

[urodiamond]

I'm not loving it. Its a tough call to know when its a bow-tie and when its not. Bow-ties are dark and dont return light.
There are areas on some ovals that are in the shape of bow-ties but are actually nice facets that do return light.
These facets will go dark in bright light just like well-cut round brilliant goes dark in bright light.

I think maybe the best way to get around this is to buy a faceting pattern this is a 6main, 8 main straight across,
or 4 main. Yours is an 8 main with offset arrows (from the center). There are also ideal cut 10 main ovals.

Here is a 6 main...

1.70-Carat Oval Cut Diamond | Blue Nile

www.bluenile.com

Here is an 8 main straight across

1.70-Carat Oval Cut Diamond | Blue Nile

www.bluenile.com

4 main (not necessarily a great one)

1.80-Carat Oval Cut Diamond | Blue Nile

www.bluenile.com

You want to see nice facets come into view as the stone turns.
Here is your stone turned at an angle. There are no new nice light-returning facets in the red area. This area
would be considered "mushy".


Vs the 6 main I posted above. There are nice, well-defined, distinct facets that will return light
in the same area. Thats the kind of stone you want to look for. The center may go dark just like a round brilliant
in bright light but in general, you wont see as much of that bow-tie shape you are seeing in your stone.


Hope that helps some!

Thank you for that - very helpful!


Just out of curiosity - apart from actually looking at the diamond in person do you have any other tips for minimising the chances of having a bowtie by looking at the online images?

Also I have noticed that the online pictures from James Allen tend to illustrate the bowtie (when it is present) quite well but the images from Blue nile tend to hide the bowtie completely.

 

[tyty333]

I dont have any pointers except to watch the stones as they turn and to look for distinct, well-defined facets come into view (vs, mushy
gray facets).

There are some ideal ovals but they do tend to be $$$. They tend to have to be cut deeper to prevent mush and inturn face up smaller.

1.50-Carat Oval Cut Diamond | Blue Nile

www.bluenile.com

ELYQUE-OVAL 2ct. G SI1 1606948

Diamond Details Measurements 9.09 x 6.35 x 5.16 Cut Grade EX Polish ID Symmetry ID Fluorescence MED Ratio 1.43 Table 43.1 Depth 66.8 Lab Report

www.distinctivegem.com

 

[aisa901]

Thank you for that - very helpful!


Just out of curiosity - apart from actually looking at the diamond in person do you have any other tips for minimising the chances of having a bowtie by looking at the online images?

Also I have noticed that the online pictures from James Allen tend to illustrate the bowtie (when it is present) quite well but the images from Blue nile tend to hide the bowtie completely.

There are recommended angles, depths and table sizes etc. that I followed, they are not a guarantee, but a good starting point. I compared the recommended criteria to the lab reports and only considered diamonds that met the criteria for excellent cut, and then analyzes images etc. When you research more, there is also suggestion that depth % can influence whether you have more fire vs. brilliance. There are lots of you tube videos as well to help.

The Oval Cut Diamond Guide

An oval cut diamond provides excellent brilliance, durability and style. We recommend an H color or better and an SI1 or SI2 for clarity for this diamond

www.diamonds.pro

Scroll down to: Oval Cut Diamond - Cut Quality Recommendations

This table is one of a few I found, but all the tables out there include pretty similar criteria.

Hope this helps.