Please show me your Crafted by Infinity diamond....

by antelope1 » Sep 23, 2010

Somebody move this to SMTB! How do yo do that?!

 

by Stone-cold11 » Sep 23, 2010

Just use the report concern button.

 

by antelope1 » Sep 23, 2010

No, absolutely not! But you're more likely to get a response here (in SMTB) than in RockyTalky.

 

by Fly Girl » Sep 23, 2010

Well, mine is set in a pendant, 0.70 ct F VS1 Strong Blue fluor, set in 14k white gold. It is front and center in my pendants' portrait.

From left to right- Royal Rhodolite garnet, alexandrite (both from Art Cut Gems), yellow beryl (from mineralminers), ruby (local jeweler), spinel from Art Cut Gems, the Crafted by Infinity diamond, green aquamarine from wildfishgems, moonstone and sapphire and diamond cross from local jewelers.

 

by bright ice » Sep 23, 2010

Here are mine. They are all three N color stones and I LOVE them. Just got my ring yesterday.

The center is 2.74, sides are .50 and .51

 

by bright ice » Sep 24, 2010

To me they are just warm and wonderful. I will post some new outdoor handshots when I get home tonight.

 

by bright ice » Sep 24, 2010

Here you go, a few hand shots.

 

by tyty333 » Sep 24, 2010

OMGosh...I love your N's brightice....they look so bright and creamy warm. So pretty!

 

by Lula » Sep 28, 2010

I've owned 3 Infinity diamonds (all purchased from Wink at High Performance Diamonds). Infinity has a great upgrade policy.

I started with a lovely .53 J VS2, shown here:

 

by Lula » Sep 28, 2010

Then I upgraded to a 1.0 M color, S12 clarity Infinity, shown here loose:

 

by Lula » Sep 28, 2010

The M SI2 set in a custom-designed setting by Wink:

 

by Lula » Sep 28, 2010

And my current Infinity, an I color, I1 clarity, with strong blue fluorescence:

This is by far my favorite diamond of the three because of the fluoro. And, yup, it's an I1 clarity, and I'd buy another I1 from Infinity in a heartbeat. Paul Slegers is a master artisan when it comes to diamond cutting.

 

by Lenamama » Sep 28, 2010

Thank goodness for Wink and HPDiamonds!!!!!!!!!

 

by bright ice » Sep 29, 2010

Check out this 6.03 ct N VVS1 Crafted by Infinity diamond. It's on call for someone , WOW I bet this is a gorgeous stone.

http://www.highperformancediamonds.com/index.php?page=view-id-diamond-infinity&id=758

 

by stci » Sep 29, 2010

OMG! I will never be able to wear a 6ct diamond!

 

by Lula » Sep 30, 2010

Hi, rubyprincess,
As you can see from my history with Infinity stones, I went from a VS2, to an SI2, and then to my I1, as I grew more comfortable with the Infinity brand. I also worked with Wink (and had some e-mail contact with Todd about another I1) and both Wink and Todd were very good about explaining the characteristics of the clarity plot and how the inclusions affected the face-up appearance of the stone. I also met Paul Slegers in person a year ago, in Chicago, and he explained to me how Infinity orients the rough to minimize the inclusions' impact on the appearance and performance of the brand. Without the information from Wink, Todd, and Paul, I do not think I would have ever been comfortable dropping so low in clarity.

That said, each SI2 and, even more so, each I1 stone, is unique. The primary inclusions in my current stone (the I color, I1 clarity) are many small, clear crystals, scattered over the face of the diamond. I've got to go to work now, and I'll be away from my computer, but I'll see if I can locate the link to the plot of my stone. When Wink saw the AGS report for my stone, he was doubtful that it would be eye clean, but when he had the stone shipped in to make a video for me, he said he was amazed that the stone was so clean face-up. I can't see anything with my naked eye, but I can see the crystals clearly with my 10X loupe, now that I know how to orient the stone with the plot. But if I can't see it with my eyes, I don't care if the inclusions are there. I don't know what CBI vendor you're working with, but if they can make you a video of the stone, that may be helpful to you.

Something to consider: My I1 is a one carat stone. A larger stone with the type of crystals my diamond has may or may not be eye clean. What size diamond are you looking at from CBI? Also, what are the primary inclusions in the stone you are considering?

Another thing, my diamond is set in an elaborate halo, so there's no way I can see the side of the stone. In fact, I've never seen it unmounted. I suspect that I'd see the crystals from the side of the stone if I had it mounted in a different setting. That might bother me, but I can't say for sure.

I did consider upgrading to a 1.28 I color, I1 stone earlier this year. Todd made a video of the stone for me and gave me his impressions of the inclusions. It, too, had clear crystal inclusions, but the primary inclusion was much larger than my stone's smaller scattered inclusions. Todd said he could see the primary crystal inclusion at about arm's length, but when he showed it to some people in the office next door who didn't know the type or location of the inclusion, they couldn't locate it. In the end, I decided against that stone, because I didn't want to change out my setting, and somebody else bought it. They got quite the deal! Infinity diamonds have a very crisp, tight, appearance to them. They are very "3-D" looking, not flat in appearance. I believe the "crispness" of the cut really hides a lot of boo-boos -- again, that's why the lower clarity grade in my stone does not bother me.

But you need to be comfortable with the idea of an I1 clarity diamond, because ideal cut I1's are not very common, and many people just can't get over the industry stigma toward I1 diamonds. Me, I love the lower price points that I1 stones offer, and I used the money I saved by not buying a 1 carat G VS2 stone to spend a week in Switzerland -- no, I'm not kidding. The differences in price between a 1 carat G and an I color, and a VS2 and an I1 clarity, was several thousand dollars. And the CBI cut quality (which is what makes the diamond beautiful) is the same for both stones. I believe in paying for cut quality and going as low as you can tolerate in color and clarity. But that's just me; others on PS have different standards. Ultimately it's about your own comfort level with all the C's.

Good luck to you with your decision! And if there's any way possible you can see the CBI in person, you really should. They have a distinct "look" to them that is hard to describe in words, videos, or photos. And they are lively stones in all lighting conditions.

eta: Just saw that you do have a video of the stone. If you feel comfortable doing so, you can post the link to the video and ask for comments on it. I'd like to see it. How do you plan on setting the stone?

 

by Lula » Sep 30, 2010

It's on call !!!!
Wow, I'd love to see that diamond in person. I hope if it does sell, the person posts photos of it on PS.
But 6 carats -- how would you mount it? A pendant? A tiara?!?

 

by slg47 » Sep 30, 2010

probably in a halo to give more finger coverage

 

by Wink » Oct 1, 2010

LOL! Such a dilemna!

That would be both an exciting and a nervewracking project to work on!

Wink

 

by Lula » Oct 8, 2010

rubyprincess, I'm not sure if you've made your decision yet, but I did find the link to my I color, I1 clarity Infinity that I said I'd post for you, so you could see its inclusion plot:
http://www.highperformancediamonds.com/index.php?page=view-id-diamond-infinity&id=401

 

by LALove » Oct 8, 2010

Portree your diamond and setting are spectacular!! I really can't believe it's an I1! I'd have NO problem rocking that ring no matter what the paper said! Crafted by Infinity diamonds look really gorgeous but what's the difference between those stones and BGD signature and ACAs?

 

by Andelain » Oct 8, 2010

Rubyprincess, which I-1 are you looking at? Wink just called in an I-1 on my behalf too. Portree, now I'll get to see for myself if all the good things you've been saying about CBI's are true. I've got my eyes on the .81ct F-I1. I'm on the fence about it, because it's got a big something right in the middle, but Wink is going to look at it and make some videos. I love stones that size, and I see color verrrry well. That's why the 'F'.

 

by Lula » Oct 9, 2010

Thank you, LALove! I haven't seen a BGD or ACA diamond next to a Crafted by Infinity diamond, so I can't say for sure what the differences in appearances are. They are all top-of-the-line cuts, though, and they are all what I call "broad-spectrum performers" cut to look great in all lighting conditions, so my guess is there are more similarities between them than differences in the way they look.

I have, however, owned three CBI stones, and last year when I was at Dimend Sccasi in Chicago, I saw a large number of CBI stones in varying sizes, and I can say that CBI stones have a remarkably consistent "look" to them. I don't have the technical terms for it, but to my eye, the nature of the sparkle is very crisp, a sharp on/off effect (contrast?) that is very noticeable in flat lighting, like an office. This makes them look very 3-dimensional. Other diamonds look flat by comparison.

The major difference between CBI and other top-of-the-line brands, and the reason I chose to purchase my diamond from CBI, is that CBI is a small, boutique cutting house, rather than a mass production house. This means Paul Slegers, the owner, and his business partner, Lieve Peters, have much more control over the cutting of each CBI diamond -- from selection of the rough to finished cut diamond -- than do the other brands, whose stones are cut by larger factories. I believe the control CBI has over their diamond cutting process allows them to take more "risks" with color and clarity and fluorescence than other brands. Most brands* "screen out" stones with flouro, lower clarity stones, and lower color stones because they are not cutting their own stones; they are selecting their stones from mass production cutting houses, and they need to make "safe" choices.

In contrast, Paul and Lieve are literally on site as each CBI stone is cut, and are able to assess the visual performance of each stone as it is cut -- again, more control along each step of the diamond cutting and polishing process. So they know each stone very, very well before it ever hits the market. Again, this is what swayed me toward CBI when I was looking for a diamond 18 months ago (I considered WF and GOG and JA -- I don't believe BGD was in business at that time).

A super-ideal, I color, I1 clarity (eye clean to me), 1 carat diamond with strong blue fluorescence is a very rare thing! CBI offers more choice and a wider range of color-clarity-price combinations in a super ideal cut.

To me, the I1 grade is really just the AGS paper grade and has nothing to do with how the stone performs in real life. I know this because I know that Paul and Lieve have shepherded my 1I through a multi-step process, and viewed it from all angles with a critical eye, so if it passes their standards, that's good enough for me! But if I was buying a super-ideal cut, 1I clarity stone, sight unseen, from another cutting house, I would not be as confident that I would like what I see! Quality control is everything.

*GOG is the only other vendor I can think of that offers lower color, lower clarity stones, and stones with fluoro. And I'd trust Jonathan's opinions of stones in his inventory (the ones with the GOG lifetime guarantee).

 

by Lula » Oct 9, 2010

Hi, Andlain -- I'll be interested to hear your impressions of that I1. Wink's video will help. He's got a critical eye, so he'll be straight with you. My guess is the inclusion is in the middle will blend in with the sparkle and contrast in the center of the stone. Depending on your eyesight, you *may* be able to pick it out with your eyes once you orient the stone with the clarity plot and know where to look. I think the fact that the stone is under a carat helps, too. A larger carat weight, like the 1.28 I1 I was considering (see post above) is trickier.

I, too, am starting to like higher color in diamonds! I love the whitening effect that SB fluoro gives to a stone! I'm keeping my eyes open for a @ 1 carat G or higher stone with Medium or SB fluro for a future upgrade (don't want to change my setting).

Good luck!!!
If you end up with the CBI, you'll of course be expected to do the brand comparison LALove is asking about in the post above mine!!