Overwhelmed newbie - requests experts advice.

[Hum-ble]

Hello Diamond experts and enthusiasts alike!

I have been glued to this forum after coming to the internet to try and glean information about a milestone birthday ring purchase my husband made for me.

I’ve been fascinated and dazzled(!) and blinded(!!) by the sheer wealth of information posted here - yet I am left quite confused and feel the more I read the less I really know!

All I know is that my diamond scored very low (5s I believe on the HCA). I am also learning the table size is on the bigger side and pavillion angle is also on the steeper side. So now am concerned about light leakage (am showing my newbie-ness). I’m overwhemed with info on ideal and super ideals, H&A, angles, depths and a whole host of other things.

First and firemost the thing that irked me when looking at the GIA report was the number of inclusions on the diamond. This was what initially prompted me to do some digging online. Hence falling into the rabbit-hole that Pricescope can be for a beginner.

I was particularly drawn in on the thread about whether this board is doing a disservice to newbies. I certainly don’t believe so. But as a newbie - it is with great hesitation and trepidation that I post my details on the stone. I am also not sure of correct etiquette for requesting help - so I am very sorry I am posting in the wrong thread or if it simply is not ‘de rigeur’ to register and post here as a newbie expecting you wonderful experts to give 1:1 advice.


If you got this far - thanks for listening to my ramblings.

And I sincerely appreciate all and any advice/comments on these specs:

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I VS2 is not bad at all. The only problem is with the cut. A crown angle of 34 needs a pavilion angle that is closer to 40.9 or 41.0 or so. Many prefer a table smaller than 59, but that's not a total dealbreaker. Are you able to exchange the diamond?

 

[Hum-ble]

I VS2 is not bad at all. The only problem is with the cut. A crown angle of 34 needs a pavilion angle that is closer to 40.9 or 41.0 or so. Many prefer a table smaller than 59, but that's not a total dealbreaker. Are you able to exchange the diamond?

Thank you for your input!

Yes - the good thing is I can get a full refund if not satisfied with the ring.

Should I be concerned about the inclusion - even though its technically eye-clean?

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Can you see inclusions with your eye? Normally you cannot in a VS2.

If you can return and start over, that would be the best solution.

 

[Hum-ble]

I cannot see any inclusions - but my eye’s aren’t perfect anymore.

Thanks for your advice

 

[whitewave]

I’m guessing your diamond is bothering you and that is why you came to Pricescope?

If you love it and simply found out it scored over 5 on HCA then forget about it and go on loving your diamond.

Would you tell us why you came to Pricescope? I mean, is there one thing that led you here? Why did you want to learn more about your diamond?

Thanks.

 

[Hum-ble]

I’m guessing your diamond is bothering you and that is why you came to Pricescope?

If you love it and simply found out it scored over 5 on HCA then forget about it and go on loving your diamond.

Would you tell us why you came to Pricescope? I mean, is there one thing that led you here? Why did you want to learn more about your diamond?

Thanks.

Thanks Whitewave - well right off the bat the inclusions bothered me - but limited reading I had done until that point led me to believe in VS2 and higher - inclusions should be eye-clean. But knowing they are there bothers me but also wanted to know if they affect the integrity of the stone - seeing one is a ‘feather’. Hence my online research started leading me here.

Its a big ticket item bought by my husband for my 50th. A little background - we don’t do big gifts but my husband knew I have always wanted diamond ring (my only other diamond ring is a small 0.25C gifted to me by parents on my 21st). I currently don’t wear any other jewelry on a daily basis and wanted something I could really love wearing every day.

Once I got the ring - I decided to read up to see if the inclusions are something I need to worry about. One thing lead to another and I ended up here reading quite a bit over the last week. I probably need to spend much more time reading up.

What I did gather is that the important dimensions - table, pavilion etc are not optimal. I did not browse many rings IRL and the idea of sourcing a diamond online and choosing a setting - well at the time - seemed super daunting.

I do think the ring is beautiful and Iove the sentiment behind it. However, there will always be a slight nagging feeling in my head that we could have spent our money a little more wisely.

Thanks for reading!

 

[sarahb]

Congratulations on your 50th birthday, and how sweet of your husband!

Speaking of that slight nagging feeling you mentioned.

I had a diamond that also elicited the same response in my mind. (I ended up getting it recut, and it is beautiful now.) The point I wanted to make is this: if you have a slight hesitation as to your stone today, your hesitation will remain & potentially become a bigger nagging feeling in the future.

In other words, that feeling never really goes away. Some days you may feel a bit better, other days, not so.

If I were in your shoes, I'd think long & hard about perhaps searching for other options. One of which could be another purchase, or a recut. But why spend $$ on a recut? Since the ring is returnable today, I'd probably lean towards returning it & starting over.

I was anxious with my first online diamond purchase. It WAS daunting at first. But remember, PS has tons of vender reviews & members here will help steer you through your decisions & purchase, if that is what you choose to do. Good luck with your decision!

 

[Hum-ble]

Thank you Sarahb for your kind words and thoughtful insight!

I welcome all comments & viewpoints!

 

[lydial]

Please post photos - they help! The inclusions on your report are not a problem most likely. GIA usually grades clarity reliably. If you think the diamond is less than lackluster it could be the cut. If you think the diamond is pretty, it most likely is indeed pretty, and you should not obsess with the certificate. If you think the diamond is lackluster and you want to get out from under this diamond and under a new one, you can dig into some posts discussing ideal diamond angles, or look at the Whiteflash ACA diamonds or look at the reports for ANY diamond by Crafted By Infinity / High Performance Diamonds to get a better idea what is ideal for light optics. Many jewelers do not believe really in ideal diamonds and just sell GIA "triple X" as perfect when they are all over the place for cut. I actually stopped in a local store recently and was looking at the diamonds in the case and they were all gorgeous - just with some the optics were crap - still pretty though, just not something I would want to wear as a forever diamond on my finger. I am a CBI owner and can not recommend HPD enough, but you will pay more for the "ease" of slipping into a diamond that perfect with minimal effort.

 

[Hum-ble]

Thank you Lydial - definitely food for thought.

To my untrained eye - the stone is very pretty.

I will post pics later this evening.

 

[kenny]

... If you love it and simply found out it scored over 5 on HCA then forget about it and go on loving your diamond.

I respectfully, but passionately, disagree.

Diamonds vary.
Some have better light performance than others.
If someone was blissfully in love with a diamond (before learning how and why a diamond's cut determines the quality of light performance) that ignorance can no longer be bliss.

I agree, return it, put that money away, and learn tons.
Only then should you start your diamond safari.

 

[Hum-ble]

Thanks Kenny. I am very appreciative of everyone taking the time to give me their perspective.

 

[kenny]

Ignorance may be bliss.
But when ignorance is replaced by knowledge, a real bliss is achievable.

 

[new-beginning]

or perhaps the jeweler will work with you to obtain a 'better cut' stone if that would work for you.

 

[TODiamonds]

How did you feel about the stone before you discovered PS?

You should know that your stone is probably better than 90% of the stones out there.

Unless you got a very poor VS2, I don't think you should be overly concerned about the inclusions. Pics would help. You're basically going down the PS foxhole that was described in the other thread... I think you should consider it very carefully before you follow some of the advice in this thread and go even deeper. It could cost you a lot more, or you may end up with a smaller stone just to satisfy the typical PS cut "requirements". Also keep in mind your husband's feelings count too.

 

[OoohShiny]

I think you should consider it very carefully before you follow some of the advice in this thread and go even deeper. It could cost you a lot more, or you may end up with a smaller stone just to satisfy the typical PS cut "requirements".

But the current stone has a pavilion that is far steeper than ideal for the crown angle, which means the stone will be facing up smaller for its weight than it could/would be if cut to proportions that would also improve light performance?

 

[Hum-ble]

Thanks @TODiamonds and @OoohShiny. Will be back to answer in more detail later today.

I am having trouble taking good photos of the ring & diamond - will try again later after reading the photography tips thread.

 

[Mlh]

Do you mind revealing where you bought the Ring? Just curious.

 

[Rockdiamond]

Imagine you're looking for a bottle of wine- and you're no expert.
If you go to a wine connoisseur forum, it's possible you might learn that a $10 bottle of wine you like a lot is total garbage- only a heathen would drink it....but when you tasted the $100 bottle of wine, you could not taste the difference.
There are subtle differences and some not so subtle between two diamonds' cut.
Now that you've already "opened pandora's box" you're bound to continue down this road....but remember that some well-intentioned advisors may not necessarily have the same taste you do.
Added just to keep a balance to the discussion....whatever you decide, good luck and congratulations!!

 

[Hum-ble]

Thank you @Rockdiamond. Thanks for the analogy and kind wishes.

To answer @TODiamonds - I didn’t really have any insight into diamonds prior to getting the ring other than the 4C classification and seeing that the stone scored ‘excellent’ on cut, clarity and color on the GIA report - I assumed it was a good diamond. How I felt about the ring before coming to PS was that I thought it was a beautiful ring and really liked it.

Once I came here and learned more about cuts & preferred dimensions for table/crowns/pavillions, light refraction and leakage, brilliance and fire - I started to wonder about the ring.

My husband is supportive and ultimately wants me to be happy - be that keeping this ring or returning and starting over.

I was not able to read the photography tips thread yet - but tried to take some pics just now. They’re not very good....but will attach nonetheless.

Thanks again to everyone who has taken the time to give me their opinions. I really do appreciate it!

 

[Mlh]

Pretty!!

 

[lydial]

Beautiful ring setting! The diamond photographs beautifully. Do you like the way it reflects light and shines? Does it give you fire? (like rainbows and colored flashes?) Do you love it? It certainly looks very very pretty!

 

[Hum-ble]

Pretty!!

Thank you @Mlh!

Beautiful ring setting! The diamond photographs beautifully. Do you like the way it reflects light and shines? Does it give you fire? (like rainbows and colored flashes?) Do you love it? It certainly looks very very pretty!

Thank you for your sweet comments @lydial. I do love it - but again I’m not a very discerning diamond expert! I was struggling to get good pictures with my iphone. I have not worn it yet other than to try it on a few times (in case I decide to return it) so haven’t spent lot of time looking at how fire-y it is. It is very sparkly & shiny. Still very much torn as to return and rethink the process. In the meantime reading as much as I can here!

Appreciating all the comments!

 

[Emrldlvr]

It’s beautiful!

 

[TODiamonds]

Honestly, it is not for me personally.

But there are a few reasons for this 1) I'm not a big table guy. Pure personal preference. 2) The effect of the steep pavilion shows (in this high res magnified photo). Nobody will see it like this in real life.

Having been a long-time lurker here, my taste has also been PS-ified to a certain degree, so I am in no way representative of the average consumer. I would wager if you ask any "normal" person out there in real life - they'd tell you it's gorgeous. And it is.

If you don't love it and your husband doesn't mind going through the process, then get a different one. No harm no foul. Just know that once you go down that path, you'll always want more.

 

[Hum-ble]

Honestly, it is not for me personally.

But there are a few reasons for this 1) I'm not a big table guy. Pure personal preference. 2) The effect of the steep pavilion shows (in this high res magnified photo). Nobody will see it like this in real life.

Having been a long-time lurker here, my taste has also been PS-ified to a certain degree, so I am in no way representative of the average consumer. I would wager if you ask any "normal" person out there in real life - they'd tell you it's gorgeous. And it is.

If you don't love it and your husband doesn't mind going through the process, then get a different one. No harm no foul. Just know that once you go down that path, you'll always want more.

Awesome - thanks for your honest comments @TODiamonds - may I ask what the manifestations of the steep pavilllion is that you see in the pic? Thanks!

 

[TODiamonds]

Awesome - thanks for your honest comments @TODiamonds - may I ask what the manifestations of the steep pavilllion is that you see in the pic? Thanks!

Best way for me to demonstrate is to show you a picture, borrowed from our own @John Pollard - he used this in thread ages ago, which I saved because it was helpful.

1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 are indicative of steeper diamonds. Don't know the exact specs because the thread is too old and I can't find it anymore, but you'll quickly get the idea from looking at the tables on these stones.

 

[Hum-ble]

Best way for me to demonstrate is to show you a picture, borrowed from our own @John Pollard - he used this in thread ages ago, which I saved because it was helpful.

1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 are indicative of steeper diamonds. Don't know the exact specs because the thread is too old and I can't find it anymore, but you'll quickly get the idea from looking at the tables on these stones.

Thank you - yep totally get that.

 

[AV_]

If you choose to get a refund, will it be for the entire ring, or just for the center stone? [what comes to mind: this could have been a two carat solitaire]