overwhelmed newbie

[puddy]

I am so overwhelmed with all this info about diamonds. Thank goodness I found this site or else I'd be paying big bucks with little knowledge about diamonds. I'm taking a crash corse in diamondology 101!

I really need help. here's the deal, I have 4,000 dollars (give or take a few hundred) to spend. I want a nice diamond for a good price.

I want the 18k white gold tiffany's setting at whiteflash. But here are some questions:

--how low can I go in terms of clarity and [edited: color]? I want a good looking diamond but I'm not sure what the board standards are (being that you are all more experienced than myself I'd like to know your cutoff)?

--On WF there is a hearts and arrow, cut above. Is that a lot better than others?

--can you help me build a ring? and show me some decent diamonds around 1 carat?

--any other tips?

Thanks!!

 

[JulieN]

http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/a-cut-above-h-a-cut-diamond-2410915.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/a-cut-above-h-a-cut-diamond-2410916.htm

If you want a larger diamond, you can certainly go down in color and clarity, but these are the ones from WF that are above .8 ct and are in budget.

Is 4K for stone and setting or just the stone?

 

[strmrdr]

1: 18k tiffs are available all over
2: clarity si1 is as low as id go maybe a very clean AGS si2
3: cut: ideal cut h&a to near ideal cut. good angles, decent arrows at a min.
4: I dont usualy link specific round diamonds but im sure someone else will.
5: advice take your time and shop around at the various online dealers.
6: 4k is the low end for ideal cut 1ct so id hit www.jamesallen.com and look at the whiteflash ES line and the GOG near ideals. J color vs2-si1.

 

[Gypsy]

Sure honey. We''d be happy to.

Not too many folks on here right now... and I''m not a round diamond cut expert but I do know enough to answer some of your questions... and I know some posts I can refer to for other questions.

WF Hearts and Arrows are thier best cut-- these are ''superideal'' cut diamonds-- they can stand up to competition in terms of cutting from the likes of Hearts on Fire (or Wallet on Fire as a PSer once called it) and other branded diamonds.

BUT the expert selection is still a great diamond.

Another tip is to look at infinity diamonds these are also superideal cut-- and Wink www.winkjones.com has those... and you can get some fabulous deals on a fabulously cut diamonds.

WF will allow you to buy that setting (just not thier champagne setting) alone-- so you don''t necessarily have to buy a diamond form them. Goodoldgold is also a great vendor with QUALITY rounds... it just depends on who has access to what diamond-- and what diamond is right for you.

As for color and clarity-- With any of these vendors you can safely go down to SI1 or even SI2-- the reason I say WITH THESE VENDORS is because our Pricescope vendors will tell you with 100% honesty if a SI1 or SI2 is eyeclean and whether it has any inclusions you need to worry about... or whether it''s a great stone with a easily pronged inclusion. MANY MANY people on here have trusted these vendors eyes and knowledge with great results.

Finally... Color. It depends. Superideals especially face UP very white. I personally would feel comfortable going down to an I... and others on here with HUGE GORGEOUS rocks (Mara and others) have gone down to a J. If it was a high J and one of the vendor''s vouched for it... I''d go for it.

Okay. That''s all I''ve got for now... I''m going to go see if I can find some other information for you.

 

[Gypsy]

OOOHHH you got LUCKY!! Two non-industy experts on here already responded!!! Julie AND Storm are fabulous.


Here is one Blueroses posted for you earlier... the bank wire price is 3700 ish.

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/2136/

 

[Kaleigh]

I''d look at WF''s Expert Selection. Those are amazing stones, at a great value. Most of them just miss the ACA mark. Look for an eye clean SI1-Si2 stone in a H-J. Give them a call and tell them what you are looking for, they are very good about telling you if it''s eye clean or not. Also check out www.goodoldgold.com , www.winkjones.com and www.jamesallen.com I have bought from WF and GOG, but would buy in a heart beat from the other two as well. Good luck!!!
Also please read the tutorials on here, they are very helpful.

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 6/17/2006 1:01:00 AM
Author:puddy


--how low can I go in terms of clarity and cut? I want a good looking diamond but I'm not sure what the board standards are (being that you are all more experienced than myself I'd like to know your cutoff)?

Welcome

We would never advise going low in CUT!!!! That is what makes a diamond beautiful! So cut HAS to be top priority! Clarity - an SI1 or a clean SI2 will give you the most bang for the buck. As Gypsy says a J colour can face up beautifully. Also as Kaleigh says, read the tutorials, all the info you need is there and will help you. Best of luck.

 

[puddy]

Thanks SO much for the responses! I printed them out and will use them as a reference. Anyway, 4k is for the total ring. And I meant color instead of cut! oops!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Hi, Puddy!

Color is so personal. Some people here are for colorless only and look at D-F. Others want the most size possible and look for I-J. Others, like me want a good value but still high near-colorless and look at G-H. I''d advise you to study the Good Old Gold site section on the 4 C''s. They have the best color comparison of any site on the internet, as far as I am concerned.