Please help narrow down (or provide suggestions) for my engagement ring

[mackmittonz]

My goal is to find a 0.85-1.1 carat solitaire in a cathedral setting. My budget for the setting and rock is $5000. My gf is a great girl and honestly has no demands or requirements for her ring. She even said a 0.25 carat ring would be great! However since I know I like to buy myself nice things like speakers and home theater stuff, I wouldn''t feel right cheaping on things for her. The factors that I’m waffling on the most are size and color. Will the size difference between a 0.85 and 1.0 be really noticeable? I was thinking a great size for the price would be in the 0.9 area. Will the difference between an I and G really matter if there is no side to side comparison? After going through all 12 pages of posts on this forum, those are the things I’m still unsure about.

Here are some diamonds I’ve found that score in the 1-2 range on the HCA. Any thoughts or suggestions of other diamonds or settings would be greatly appreciated!

Btw, I’m also not sure which percentages I should be inputting into the HCA for the Blue Nile diamonds since they don’t give angles for some of the HCA parameters. Is it true that percentages for the crown and pavilion will not provide as accurate an HCA score as the actual angles?

http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-283291.htm
$3,045.00
. Report: AGS
. Shape: Round Ideal Cut
. Carat: 0.861
. Depth %: 61.7
. Table %: 55
. Crown Angle: 34.6
. Crown %: 15.5
. Star : 50
. Pavilion Angle: 40.7
. Pavilion %: 42.9
. Lower Girdle %: 75
. Girdle: Thin to Medium Faceted
. Measurements: 6.10-6.13X3.78
. Polish: Excellent
. Symmetry: Excellent
. Culet: Pointed
. Fluorescence: Negligible

http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-283232.htm
$3,672.00
. Report: AGS
. Shape: A Cut Above H&A
. Carat: 0.856
. Depth %: 61.4
. Table %: 56.8
. Crown Angle: 34.8
. Crown %: 15
. Star : 52
. Pavilion Angle: 40.8
. Pavilion %: 43
. Lower Girdle %: 75
. Girdle: Thin to Medium Faceted
. Measurements: 6.08-6.11X3.74
. Light Performance: 0
. Polish: Ideal
. Symmetry: Ideal
. Culet: Pointed
. Fluorescence: Negligible

http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-283306.htm
$4,380.00
. Report: GIA
. Shape: Round Ideal Cut
. Carat: 1.00
. Depth %: 61.1
. Table %: 57
. Crown Angle: 35
. Crown %: 15
. Star : 55
. Pavilion Angle: 40.8
. Pavilion %: 43
. Lower Girdle %: 75
. Girdle: Medium Faceted
. Measurements: 6.43-6.47X3.94
. Polish: Excellent
. Symmetry: Excellent
. Culet: None
. Fluorescence: None

http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?__fun_frm=i&pid=LD01061744&filter_id=1
Price: $3,689
Bank wire price: $3,634
Carat weight: 0.91
Cut: Ideal
Color: H
Clarity: SI1
Depth %: 61.5%
Table %: 55%
Symmetry: Very good
Polish: Excellent
Girdle: Thin to medium
Culet: None
Fluorescence: None
Measurements: 6.25 x 6.27 x 3.85 mm

http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?__fun_frm=b&pid=LD00998399&filter_id=1
Price: $3,867
Bank wire price: $3,809
Carat weight: 1.00
Cut: Ideal
Color: I
Clarity: SI1
Depth %: 60.5%
Table %: 57%
Symmetry: Good
Polish: Very good
Girdle: Medium to thick, faceted
Culet: None
Fluorescence: None
Measurements: 6.40 x 6.46 x 3.89 mm

http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?__fun_frm=b&pid=LD01061755&filter_id=1
Price: $3,519
Bank wire price: $3,467
Carat weight: 0.90
Cut: Ideal
Color: H
Clarity: SI1
Depth %: 61.4%
Table %: 56%
Symmetry: Very good
Polish: Very good
Girdle: Medium to slightly thick
Culet: None
Fluorescence: Medium blue
Measurements: 6.20 x 6.22 x 3.81 mm


Finally, I’ve seen cathedral settings at Blue Nile, Whiteflash, exceldiamonds and all sorts of places. What are the pros and cons of these different places? What is a reasonable price a local jeweler would charge for mounting the stone? I was thinking if I got the stone and setting done at a very reputable place such as Blue Nile or Whiteflash, I would only need to get it appraised for insurance purposes because that appraisal would also confirm that the stone I got matched the certs. I would just prefer not having to go through the hassle of receiving a loose stone, taking it to an appraiser and then having to take it to a jeweler and having them set the stone.

THANKS IN ADVANCE!

 

[neatfreak]

Some quick answers:

1. A well cut .85 diamond is going to look as big or bigger than MOST 1 carat stones out there. That's because most people have badly cut stones that are too deep. I have a .81 cushion and it is a PERFECT size for my finger, at least I think! So anywhere between .85-.95 would be a sweet spot I would say. I don't think there is a big visual difference between say a .9 and a 1.0, so if it were me, I would save my money and put it elsewhere.

2. Many people prefer to buy Whiteflash or GOG's in house stones because they also carry a lifetime upgrade policy. Bluenile does not. You also are likely to get better customer service with WF or GOG.

3. I really like some of the plain settings from WF, so that would be my personal choice. I especially like the Legato settings, they are sleek and gorgeous.

4. Short of seeing it, a stone that scores below a 2 on the HCA will be a great performer. Also check the IS for light leakage, but you're fairly safe if it's under 2. Also try for AGS0 stones and Whiteflash's ACAs too, those are almost always winners.

5. I have a G and it is WHITE WHITE. I personally can see a bit of warmth from an I from the side, but a good one, from the top down, always looks great. I don't think you could go wrong, but it just depends on your sensitivity to color.

Hope that helps!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I have bought diamonds from WhiteFlash and I chose them over BN because they have the diamonds there and can look at them for you. This is important if you are looking at SI diamonds, especially, so they can tell you how eye-clean they are. BN may have some in-house, but a lot of theirs are not. Plus, WF has a lifetime trade-up policy on the chance that someday you''d like to trade for a larger diamond.

If you go with an ACA, they will give you about a 5% discount for paying by wire and being a PrcieScope member. The discount is less for the WF non-ACA stones. So that makes the ACA''s more appealing to me since it brings the price down a little. I''d get as close to a carat as you can, and I personally like G-H color for the best value with being at the top of the near colorless range. So of the ones you posted, I''d go with the G SI1 ACA, unless you can find one closer to a carat.

 

[Regular Guy]

agree completely with my friends here.

Except to say...there''s one more, a virtual twin of the G SI 1 ACA, here. Just to confuse you further.

 

[belle]

hey mackmittonz, welcome to ps

Date: 5/11/2007 11:23:17 AM
Author:mackmittonz

My goal is to find a 0.85-1.1 carat solitaire in a cathedral setting. My budget for the setting and rock is $5000.

awesome! you have a nice budget and will be able to find a killer stone.

Date: 5/11/2007 11:23:17 AM
Author:mackmittonz

The factors that I’m waffling on the most are size and color. Will the size difference between a 0.85 and 1.0 be really noticeable?

if you aren''t comparing them side by side, no there really isn''t a great difference. truthfully, people don''t really think or see in those incremental measurements. there is big..bigger..and really big! the price jump and those carat marks is just crazy big, so i would much rather get under that pricewise because no one is going to ever look at the diamond and think ''hey, that isn''t quite a full carat''. no one ever will. especially if you focus on getting a good cut. all anyone will ever notice is sparkle! that is by far the most common compliment i get.

Date: 5/11/2007 11:23:17 AM
Author:mackmittonz

I was thinking a great size for the price would be in the 0.9 area.

true. but those are hard to find. cutters are rewarded for hitting those carat marks, so they try really, really hard to get there. it is unusual to find something closer to the upper end in that in between area. you have a better chance in the (very respectable) .8 range.

Date: 5/11/2007 11:23:17 AM
Author:mackmittonz

Will the difference between an I and G really matter if there is no side to side comparison?

to a lot of people it won''t. to some it will. i personally would not hesitate going with an ''i'' color in that size as long as the diamond is well cut...again, that sparkle really makes the difference!

Date: 5/11/2007 11:23:17 AM
Author:mackmittonz

Btw, I’m also not sure which percentages I should be inputting into the HCA for the Blue Nile diamonds since they don’t give angles for some of the HCA parameters. Is it true that percentages for the crown and pavilion will not provide as accurate an HCA score as the actual angles?

if the bn diamonds have an ags report, put in the numbers that are on the diamond diagram on the report. the crown angle is up near the top(crown) and should be 34.xx and the pavilion angle will be a number on the bottom(pavilion) and should be around 40.xx.
yes, angles are more accurate.
if you use this search http://www.pricescope.com/sift.aspx the hca numbers are already calculated for you.

Date: 5/11/2007 11:23:17 AM
Author:mackmittonz



Finally, I’ve seen cathedral settings at Blue Nile, Whiteflash, exceldiamonds and all sorts of places. What are the pros and cons of these different places?

i think bn has gone to only selling settings with diamonds bought from them. at least for many of the settings i was looking at, that was the case.

Date: 5/11/2007 11:23:17 AM
Author:mackmittonz

What is a reasonable price a local jeweler would charge for mounting the stone?

it really depends on location and the size of the diamond. it would be best to call around and ask. most jewelers are hesitant to take responsibility for a diamond not sold by them, so ideally, you would get the diamond mounted at the same place that you purchased the setting. of course, that is not always feasible, so just make sure to find out the policies of the companies that you are working with.

Date: 5/11/2007 11:23:17 AM
Author:mackmittonz

I was thinking if I got the stone and setting done at a very reputable place such as Blue Nile or Whiteflash, I would only need to get it appraised for insurance purposes because that appraisal would also confirm that the stone I got matched the certs. I would just prefer not having to go through the hassle of receiving a loose stone, taking it to an appraiser and then having to take it to a jeweler and having them set the stone.

wf sends out a letter of verification with all of their diamonds and settings, so you wouldn''t *have* to get a separate appraisal for insurance, unless you wanted to.

 

[kcoursolle]

My personal favorite would be the WF "a cut above" stone. Many of these other stones are well-cut as well, but I own WF "a cut of above" stones in my avatar and they are awesome. The specs on that diamond are beautiful and it should be a winner. You could also drop down to the H/I SI range if you wanted to go bigger. It would still be very white and clean.

If you wanted to max out on size, this stone allows enough for the budget with the bankwire price to get a simple whitegold tiffany four-prong type setting:
http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-260699.htm#

However, if you think she would like a more stylized setting, then I''d stick with the stone you picked out. Yes, the difference between a .8 and a 1.0 is visually noticeable, but a .8 is still considered a nice size outside of the pricescope community (diamonds run excessively large around here LOL). The color difference between a G and an I is barely noticeable unless comparing the I stone directly to a higher graded stone, or from the side of the stone. The side of an I stone will show a little bit of warmth, but the top will be white! For a comparison, the stones in my avatar are H''s and I''s....can you tell the difference?? It''s very very subtle.


Also, WF offers a 100% lifetime upgrade policy, and although you may never use it...it''s nice to have the option for a 10th anniversary or something (Blue nile doesn''t have this). WF also has excellent service, more images and information about the stones, and very well-crafted settings. These little differences are worth the slight price difference to me of WF over BN.

 

[cinnamon013]

I just recently got a Whiteflash ACA Hearts and arrows stone, size .831 G/SI1. I think it is the most beautiful thing I've seen! I would definitely look at their ACA stones, and I've heard from Brian the cutter that you could go down to H in color no problem with ACA stones. The cut is so terrific that it is one big beauty of a stone. It looks like a one carat because of the dimensions.

I loved dealing with WF because they took time to answer my questions, have great return policies, upgrade policies, and awesome stones.

Check out these: (Some don't have all their images yet - most of these are really new to their inventory and ones I didn't have to choose from because they weren't in stock a few weeks ago. Just ask them for the IS and H&A images.) Ask them if the are "eye-clean". My SI1 definitely is.

http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-283232.htm This one you listed
http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-283252.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-283249.htm F color!
http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-283245.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-283283.htm# F color again

Since you like cathedral settings, check out these at WF
http://www.whiteflash.com/Engagement-Rings/Styles/Diamond-Settings/Platinum-Cathedral-Pave-Ring_929.htm

I think you can definitely get an awesome ring for $5k!

 

[mackmittonz]

I want to just thank everyone on PS and Celina Vargas for the helpful advice and time spent trying to help me find the perfect ring for me. I was looking for a 1 ct stone for a while and was trying to choose between an I SI1 and a G SI2. The problem was neither was perfect to me. I was looking for a very uncolored stone (gf was able to see color between an I and a G at a B&M without comparing them side by side or knowing that they were different colors) and something completely eye-clean.

After much research and time, I realized that a 0.8 in a lot of cases were only about half a millimeter smaller in diameter compared to a 1 ct. With that new realization, Celina and I set out to find the perfect 0.8 stone and we settled on this one

http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-231197.htm#
. Report: AGS
. Shape: Round Ideal Cut
. Carat: 0.832
. Depth %: 61.4
. Table %: 56.3
. Crown Angle: 34.8
. Crown %: 15.2
. Star : 52
. Pavilion Angle: 40.7
. Pavilion %: 43
. Lower Girdle %: 75.7
. Girdle: Thin to Medium
. Measurements: 6.04-6.06X3.72
. Polish: Excellent
. Symmetry: Excellent
. Culet: Pointed
. Fluorescence: Negligible

It was actually a toss-up between this one and an ACA with similar #s which cost 600 more. Celina actually recommended I go with this one vs. the ACA because even though the ACA was eye-clean, the inclusions were in the middle of the table and could be picked out in the 10x fairly easily. It was quite a shock to have Celina recommend a cheaper stone that was not an ACA. I paired the stone with an x-prong setting which is similar in style to some settings my gf has seen in stores.

Thanks again everyone for your help. It really helped make my difficult decision a lot easier.

 

[Gypsy]

Very nice stone! Great job!

Congrats on a successful PS adventure. Please be sure to post pics when you have the ring... and handshots once she has it on her finger!

 

[cinnamon013]

Congrats! Those WF folks are awesome.

We want pictures!

 

[FireGoddess]

Congrats! I hope you will post photos of your lovely stone once you receive it!

 

[kcoursolle]

Great stone! It''s going to be lovely, please come back with pics!!!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Great choice! I''ll look forward to seeing pictures of the ring!

 

[MWG]

Great Choice....*S* I have not seen an ACA that I have not liked yet!!!!

Enjoy, because you are getting a fantastic diamond!!!!!

MWG