please help with opinion on which diamond to choose

[beaulewis]

ok.. i know there will be differences of opinions, but would like some help for which you would pick any why.

there is 2 diamonds i am looking at and they are as follows. princess type.

.81 ct G color, vs2 clarity with a good cut

.91 ct i color, s1 clarity

consider they are the same price and will be in the same setting, white gold or platinum tiffany or tulip type setting.

any help please? thanks in advance..

 

[beaulewis]

sorry on the .91 the cut is very good

 

[FacetFire]

Do you have more info on the diamonds? Are they certed? Can you give us table, depth, crown, pav #s?

 

[belle]

i wouldn''t actually pick one over the other without knowing more information
a lot more information!
at the very minimum:

who graded them?
what are the dimensions?
what are the depth and table?
where are the inclusions located?
what type of inclusions are there?

so much more would be needed to make an informed decision!

welcome to ps beaulewis!

 

[beaulewis]

wow thanks for the fast replies.. And the welcome.. Im doing research and want to know as much as i can before i buy. Im like most guys and am on a budget, but still want a nicer than average diamond if possible. The other info on them are as follows and they are cert by seller, but i am going to get an my own cert before paying. I dont know where the inclusions are located. They are best if located where hidden by setting?
thanks again..

Weight: 0.81 ct

Measurements: 4.78*4.89*3.88

Depth: 81.2%

Table Diameter: 82%

Crown Height: 9.8%

Pavilion Depth: 62.8%



Weight: 0.91 ct

Measurements: 4.97*5.22*4.08

Depth: 82.1%

Table Diameter: 75.7%

Crown Height: 13.3%

Pavilion Depth: 64%

 

[JulieN]

They both have very large tables and face up smaller than they should.

.8 cts should be larger than 5 mm
.9 larger than ...maybe 5.2? also it is slightly off square.

 

[FacetFire]

I agree with JulieN...and I wouldn''t buy either. Have you explored buying online? You can get a much better diamond and probably save some money. If you want to share your budget, the folks here love searching for diamonds to help!!

 

[beaulewis]

thanks julie.. thats some interesting info..

I understand that for spending less than 2K on a diamond, its not going to be perfect??

 

[beaulewis]

ya wantying to keep it to about 2,000 as close to 1 ct as possible and can be white gold setting. am i just way out of the range i need to be in?

thanks a lot
Beau

 

[JulieN]

!

I don't want you to see a gift given in promise of marriage as imperfect.
It should be perfect for those partaking in that promise.

Of course, what I think is perfect may be different.

The .8 faces up like a better cut .7, and the .9 is closer to a .8.

 

[beaulewis]

youre right. And thats why i am here.. I appreciate your help.

So what do you think about my budget and needs? Any suggestions online to look for loose diamonds? Ive tried a lot of them.

 

[belle]

everyone has their priorities when buying...
you said you wanted better than average and these are both very average.
average in princess cuts is definitely not a good thing being that they are mostly cut for weight at the expense of quality.

what do you truly want from your purchase?
as big as you can get?
as good as you can get?
a little of both?

wow, i am full of questions tonight!

i''m just trying to help balance finding a stone with your priorities and expectations.

 

[FacetFire]

I was recently going to purchase a princess cut stone, but then I decided to spend the money on something else. I''ll share my research with you, since my budget was about $2000 for the stone. I wanted an ideal cut princess that faced up as big as possible. I was looking for anything between an H-J color, as long as it faced up white...which the ideal cut helps with, so I felt comfortable going down to a J in an AGS certed stone. This was the one I ended up selecting: http://www.exceldiamonds.com/diamond/51603.html

I spoke with the folks at Excel about it...it faces up huge for a .86 carat princess (5.23x5.3), and they said it faced up very white, and they could only see a hint of color through the side...perfect, I thought! I was all ready to purchase it, but then I decided that I needed the money for other things. They ran a brilliancescope for me, and it scored H/VH,VH,VH. Honestly, it really seems like the best deal out there to me at this price. I really want someone else to get this beauty who can appreciate it! Anyway, I hope that helps! Good luck in your search!

 

[beaulewis]

wow, truly more help and advice than i thought i would get.. thanks guys..

to answer questions.

I personally like the clarity of emerald cuts, but she likes the princess as most woman ive known.

I want alittle of both i guess. something .75 or larger that is as good as i can get for my budget. I for sure would rather have a nicer diamond over size.

facetfire.. that does look like a nice stone.. any other opinions on it? a little out of the budget as i still need a setting, but it is a one time purchase. thanks so much.

 

[belle]

you are right on the ''one time purchase'' sentiment but it is certainly not worth over extending yourself for. if you have set a budget, the best thing you can do for yourself and your future is to stick to it.

do you have settings in mind at all?

 

[belle]

one option http://www.jamesallen.com/diamond.asp?b=16&a=12&c=77&cid=131&item=1001817 worth looking into

 

[beaulewis]

she likes the thin band, white gold, solitar of course. Maybe a tiffany or tulip style 4 prong? and your thoughts on how they look with a nice princess of .75 to 1ct size.

 

[JulieN]

My two picks:
I SI1 4.99 mm: http://www.exceldiamonds.com/diamond/51556.html
I SI2 5.10 mm: http://www.exceldiamonds.com/diamond/51602.html <--best deal if it's eye-clean.

 

[FacetFire]

How do you think your gf would like a clipped corner princess? ...because this was another one of my top picks: http://www.whiteflash.com/xfactor/X-Factor-cut-diamond-11.htm great spread for only $1760 (less if you can wire the money)

It''s one of WF''s new x-factor diamonds...and the prices on these are amazing! I love them!!!

 

[belle]

another http://www.whiteflash.com/xfactor/xfactor-cut-diamond-40.htm#

 

[beaulewis]

also she likes the square cut, i know there are a few different square types, assher etc. how do they stack up with princess in looks? Knowing my needs, are they worth looking at?

 

[belle]

Date: 1/31/2007 8:50:35 PM
Author: beaulewis
she likes the thin band, white gold, solitar of course. Maybe a tiffany or tulip style 4 prong? and your thoughts on how they look with a nice princess of .75 to 1ct size.

oh yes, you did mention that already! der! sorry.
i think the classic style solitaire would be perfect. a really nice way to show off the center!

 

[FacetFire]

In your size and budget, I wouldn't get an asscher, because they face up smaller due to their depth...and you need a very high clarity with step-cuts, which means more $$$. If she likes squares, I would go with a princess or an x-factor...

 

[ILikeBond]

Date: 1/31/2007 8:32:48 PM
Author: FacetFire
I was recently going to purchase a princess cut stone, but then I decided to spend the money on something else. I''ll share my research with you, since my budget was about $2000 for the stone. I wanted an ideal cut princess that faced up as big as possible. I was looking for anything between an H-J color, as long as it faced up white...which the ideal cut helps with, so I felt comfortable going down to a J in an AGS certed stone. This was the one I ended up selecting: http://www.exceldiamonds.com/diamond/51603.html


I spoke with the folks at Excel about it...it faces up huge for a .86 carat princess (5.23x5.3), and they said it faced up very white, and they could only see a hint of color through the side...perfect, I thought! I was all ready to purchase it, but then I decided that I needed the money for other things. They ran a brilliancescope for me, and it scored H/VH,VH,VH. Honestly, it really seems like the best deal out there to me at this price. I really want someone else to get this beauty who can appreciate it! Anyway, I hope that helps! Good luck in your search!

I don''t know princess stones so well, but the IS on this one looks like there''s some leakage (picture attached)...

This .825 I/SI2 WF X-Factor stone (5.13 x 5.13) has a different "feel" or look to it, but the IS looks better to my eye and the inclusion doesn''t bother me for some reason, even though its under the table - sort of gets lost in the cut or something. $1700 before the PS discount, leaving you some money for the setting (or if the $2k is for the stone only, and you want to go up a bit, there''s a .715 H/VS2 (5.12 x 5.09) for $2,200 before the PS discount, and a .715 G/SI1 (5.18 x 5.03) there too. All seem to have nice ASET and IS images.

 

[belle]

Date: 1/31/2007 8:54:53 PM
Author: beaulewis
also she likes the square cut, i know there are a few different square types, assher etc. how do they stack up with princess in looks? Knowing my needs, are they worth looking at?

i think the princess is the best looking out of similar ''sparkle'' cuts. the emerald and square emerald (asscher) are very nice in their own right but they are not anywhere near the same in look (other than being square). if she likes the princess, you are better off sticking with similar cuts. i do like the cut cornered princess cuts (x-factor) too.

 

[FacetFire]

Date: 1/31/2007 8:57:30 PM
Author: ILikeBond

Date: 1/31/2007 8:32:48 PM
Author: FacetFire
I was recently going to purchase a princess cut stone, but then I decided to spend the money on something else. I''ll share my research with you, since my budget was about $2000 for the stone. I wanted an ideal cut princess that faced up as big as possible. I was looking for anything between an H-J color, as long as it faced up white...which the ideal cut helps with, so I felt comfortable going down to a J in an AGS certed stone. This was the one I ended up selecting: http://www.exceldiamonds.com/diamond/51603.html


I spoke with the folks at Excel about it...it faces up huge for a .86 carat princess (5.23x5.3), and they said it faced up very white, and they could only see a hint of color through the side...perfect, I thought! I was all ready to purchase it, but then I decided that I needed the money for other things. They ran a brilliancescope for me, and it scored H/VH,VH,VH. Honestly, it really seems like the best deal out there to me at this price. I really want someone else to get this beauty who can appreciate it! Anyway, I hope that helps! Good luck in your search!

I don''t know princess stones so well, but the IS on this one looks like there''s some leakage (picture attached)...

This .825 I/SI2 WF X-Factor stone (5.13 x 5.13) has a different ''feel'' or look to it, but the IS looks better to my eye and the inclusion doesn''t bother me for some reason, even though its under the table - sort of gets lost in the cut or something. $1700 before the PS discount, leaving you some money for the setting (or if the $2k is for the stone only, and you want to go up a bit, there''s a .715 H/VS2 (5.12 x 5.09) for $2,200 before the PS discount, and a .715 G/SI1 (5.18 x 5.03) there too. All seem to have nice ASET and IS images.

You''re right, there is leakage, but I don''t mind the spots it is in...I think it provides for good contrast. Besides, the light return is great, so what more can you ask for? I like that x-factor you picked out, but it is a bit deep for my tastes, so it faces up smaller for its carat weight...

 

[beaulewis]

wow you guys are awesome.. im learning more than i did reading. Looks like the I and S1 are really good values and if cut right still look real nice, clean and white??

wow, lots to look at now.. i was stuck looking for D-H and F-VVS2/S1, but these ones are looking like im getting just as much (untrained eye) for the money??

 

[FacetFire]

You are definitely getting a lot for your money. Most stones sold in chain jewelry "maul" stores are I-J-K colors (and bad cuts to boot). TIffany even sells I color stones, so I think you can feel comfortable coming down in color and clarity to get a bigger, nicer cut stone for your gf. The increased sparkle coming off an ideal cut will make it so that no one notices anything but the sparkle!!!

ETA, make sure to pay close attention to the measurements when picking your final choice...a stone that weighs more carats can actually look smaller due to greater depth, so the measurements will give you the best idea of which stone will look biggest.

 

[beaulewis]

on this one the depth is more and it doesnt face up as much as some. how much does the depth take away from it?
http://www.whiteflash.com/xfactor/X-Factor-cut-diamond-20.htm#

as opposed to his one

http://www.whiteflash.com/xfactor/xfactor-cut-diamond-40.htm#

overall thoughts on these 2??

 

[FacetFire]

The first one seems to show up a little dark in the center in the pic...hard to tell if that's just the tilt or what. Measures 5.13x5.13, so nice and square. But, deep, so the carat weight is lost in the depth...but it's priced accordingly, so you're not really loosing $$ because of it.

The second one is not square. 5.12x 5.94. Now, that is a personal preference thing. I prefer one that is more square, but some prefer the rectangular look. It is definitely the cheapest.

I might ask if this one is eyeclean: http://www.whiteflash.com/xfactor/X-Factor-cut-diamond-13.htm# It looks nice and white, isn't too deep, has a great idealscope image, and is very square.

ETA, I agree with Julie, though. The first one is probably the best bet, it is bigger and square.