Please, need advice on diamond I am looking at

[geraldml]

Hello everyone,

Need your advice and opinions please. Looking at a diamond for an engagement ring I found at a store from one of their "road shows". I'm from Canada by the way. Diamond I am looking at is 1.58 carat round cut. The info I have is as follows:

Measurements: 7.51 x 7.39 x 4.63
Certification by Gemscan
Color: H
Clarity: SI2
Very Good Cut and Polish/Symetry

Visually the diamond looks good. I can't see anything wrong with the naked eye or the 10X loop the salesperson let me use.

Price for the diamond was around 17k CDN, they are offering it to me for around 13k CDN. Is this a good deal? Should I be looking elsewhere? Need help...

Thanks,

geraldml

 

[DelsFan]

Question: What do you want, what do you expect? Are you looking for an excellent cut (which is the most important "C"), which will give what most people think is the best look - the most "fire" and scintillation? (Several of the PS vendors here have Expert Selection or similar "grades" of superior cut that would tend to give one a superior looking diamond.) Are you looking for better than excellent cut? (Which means looking at A Cut Above diamonds, BG Select, Hearts and Arrows, etc diamonds.)

Here is what I think advice from people here will be:

1) The certification from Gemscan doesn't mean anything; if you want a certification that means anything only GIA or AGS will do. One thing you could (should) do is put the diamond's measurements (from its certification) into the HCA calculator. If the HCA is under 3 or 4 you might have a decision to make. Probably it is 5 or... much worse.

2) SI2 clarity probably means inclusions that will affect performance. No one here looking for "the" diamond for an engagement ring would accept SI2 clarity.

3) The diamond looks good. Compared to what? I would suggest somehow eyeballing a superior cut diamond for reference so you know what is "great" and then go from there. A trip to Houston or NYC or your local Tiffany's would work. Also, I don't know that anyone here recommends the DeBeers forevermark diamonds, but if one of your local jewelers carries this "quality" of diamond they are, (perhaps overpriced) at the least, better cut diamonds than almost any others in a cheap brick and mortar store.

4) Search PriceScope for diamonds in the 1.5 carat size range, maybe H and I in color, SI1 or better - but most importantly see what diamonds sell for that are GIA 3x, AGS0, and Hearts and Arrows "cuts". See what the different prices are for superior cuts and excellent cuts. Learn what an HCA is and see what diamonds cost that have an HCA less than 2. If you are then going to be over budget, maybe look at diamonds that are H or I in color and an HCA between 2 and 3 or 3.5. Others correct me if I'm wrong - even these diamonds will be far superior to most anything you will see in your local store.

5) The diamond you viewed probably sells for $13K Canadian and might be worth $11K. Or $8K. Anyone can say it "was" selling for $17K but the real question is what is this diamond worth. A quick PS search of ("in house" only) AGS0 diamonds and Hearts and Arrows diamonds would seem to put you in the range of $10K US best case, up to $15K US or more if you want the best of the best cut. But you can purchase average (not pathetic, which most B&M stores carry, but) tolerable-on-a-budget cut stones in 1.5 carat size for $8,000 to $9,000 US all day long.

6) Decide how good a diamond you want. Sight unseen, I think I'd put most any diamond you find for sale using the PS search tool that has an HCA under 3 and meets the criteria I listed in 4) against most any diamond you can find at a roadshow or a B&M store.


Anonymous people can make any blanket statement, especially on the internet; however, the fact that you came here to begin with would indicate to me you would not be happy with the diamond you mention. Assumptions are: if the diamond were any good it would have a GIA or AGS certification, and, really really nice cut stones are hard to come by at a B&M store.

PS I didn't mention IdealScope Images and ASET images, which most reputable vendors here provide. The next step would be learning how to read these at a basic level... There is plenty of posts on this forum that would explain their uses.

 

[ecf8503]

Do you have crown and pavillion angles? Table and depth %?

 

[geraldml]

Wow! Thanks for the response DelsFan. Wasn't expecting something that elaborate, but sure appreciate it. Looks like I might have more to learn before I decide to purchase... As far as what do I want and what do I expect, I want a diamond with an excellent cut, seems to be the most influential on the overall appearance of the diamond. I also want a diamond with no visible inclusions to the naked eye. This diamond looked good, but I guess I didn't really have much to compare it to. Was at Tiffany's and Tapper's in Michigan last week, and I "think" their diamonds looked brighter but said to myself it may have been lighting? The thing that scares me with this diamond is that I don't feel that I really know what I am buying... Roadshow... Gemscan certification with minimal information... I don't have the crown and pavilion angles, table or depth percentages to answer your questions ecf8503. So I don't think I have enough info to enter any information into the HCA calculator.

Not sure what to do, but maybe I should pass on this one... Seemed like a good deal, but the more I read online, the worse it seems lol.

Thanks and keep the comments and advice coming!

geraldml