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PS Team... Assemble.. E-ring Help

letsmeetup

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2016
Messages
12
First of all, what an amazing community...it's so much fun to dive into this world with so many passionate people around to help. I plan on proposing in next few months and I have begun the initial education process. I honestly don't know what I would do without the internet to guide my education and to lead me here.

I would like to keep my budget around 3-4 for the diamond. She really likes cushion cut with a halo setting. As far as the cushion cut ratios I am a little confused and want to avoid getting something all out of proportion. I would like to find something 1 ct or bigger if possible. Finger coverage is important to her.

Here are some links from her pinterest to give an idea of what she likes:

http://winkcz.com/shop/custom-made-dream-collection/park-avenue-halo-engagement-ring/

http://www.ringenvy.com/?page=87

http://taytaygarcia.tumblr.com/post/27899760267
 

soxfan

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jun 20, 2013
Messages
4,814
Two of those rings have round diamonds in a cushion halo, not a cushion cut diamond. Do you think she would be ok with that? A round is going to face up larger than a cushion.
 

letsmeetup

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2016
Messages
12
soxfan, that was actually something that caught my attention last night while reading, I absolutely think that is an option. Thanks!
 

soxfan

Ideal_Rock
Premium
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Jun 20, 2013
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4,814
letsmeetup|1476193345|4085566 said:
soxfan, that was actually something that caught my attention last night while reading, I absolutely think that is an option. Thanks!

GOOD! I love a round in a cushion halo. The experts will be by shortly to recommend some stones for you, I'm sure. :love:
 

ac117

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Apr 28, 2014
Messages
4,060
A round in a cushion halo will be lovely! Rounds cost more per carat but do face up larger as soxfan mentioned. However, I don't think you'll hit the carat mark unless you go down to a J color (which I personally wouldn't recommend unless you/your intended have seen stones in that color range and been ok with them). Since you intend on putting the stone in a halo, an I color will still be plenty white.
What is your setting budget? And what is her finger size?

Here are some stones to start you off:
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/0.90-carat-f-color-si2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-2106578 - looks to be a super eye clean SI2 and you get F color but confirm with JA no transparency or durability issues (the feather between 6-7 o'clock could probably be covered by a prong)

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/0.90-carat-i-color-vs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-2136144
http://www.bluenile.com/diamond-details/LD06727611?click_id=246746048
http://diamonddealfinder.com/enquiry.php?id_field=5252056 (video/pic here: http://segoma.com/v.php?type=view&id=BDHV791Z44)

This one is just over budget but hits the carat mark - might not be eye clean, though. You'd need to ask:
http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-8603752-1.00-carat-Round-diamond-I-color-SI1-Clarity.aspx?sku=8603752&utm_source=pricescope.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=pricescope.com
 

letsmeetup

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2016
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12
wow that james allen f .90 is gorgeous. am I seeing correctly that the james allen I vs1 has a more yellow tint than the f? is that the difference as you go down the color spectrum? I am not really sure what to spend on the setting, would 1500-1800 be sufficient? I could go up to 2k if need be. Thanks so much.
 

ac117

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
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Messages
4,060
Yes, as you move down the color scale there will be more of a tint. However, diamonds are graded face down but we don't wear them like that. Face up, an I color will still be bright but against an F color you would be able to see the difference. Putting the stone in a halo hides the side of the diamond and should help with the amount of tint you see.

This is a really good thread comparing diamond colors and I've also attached a picture:
[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/diamond-color-comparisons.130468/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/diamond-color-comparisons.130468/[/URL]

Here are two nice halos that would fit your criteria from James Allen if you want to do a one stop shop and are ~$1800 in platinum:
https://www.jamesallen.com/engagement-rings/halo/platinum-cushion-outline-pave-engagement-ring-item-49998
https://www.jamesallen.com/engagement-rings/halo/platinum-cushion-outline-falling-edge-engagement-ring-item-53039

Some people question the quality of JA pave so another option would be to contact I.D. Jewelry and they can create a cushion outline halo for you. I'm pretty sure that F stone is in NY since the delivery is tomorrow so maybe they could even pull that stone for you and evaluate it. I believe they are closed today/tomorrow for the Jewish holiday but will be back on Thursday. They can also source a stone for you if the F doesn't work out!

Gypsy is one of the super experts on PS and this is what she has to say on color:
"ON COLOR:

It is important to remember is that color is graded FACE DOWN. Where there is NO light return. Not face up where there is light return and refraction. You wear diamonds set. FACE UP.

Within one color grade, even the labs can't agree on the color grades of stones and something could be a "high" H or a "low" E. So... no. Not really. Within 2 color grades it is hard. Not impossible. But very hard. And it gets harder once set. If you are talking ideal rounds, or any stone with ideal light return and no sharp corners it gets harder still because the ideal light return masks body color.

Generally we say to be conservative stay above H in a round. But MANY people have happily bought white I or even J diamonds when trying to eek out a little more size.

This is how I think of it.

Ever gotten one of those HUGE paint fan decks? Where there are literally 100s of colors of whites? And when they are RIGHT next to each other you can TOTALLY tell that one is bluer/colder and one is a bit warmer and which one is one is TOTALLY warmer. One there's one that's slightly greener. One that's slightly pinker? But really. They are all white?

Then you pick one after agonizing over this white or that white and when it's on the walls and people are like: Oh. You painted again. And it's STILL white. Great.

And you're all... BUT it's BLUE white. Or it's a WARM white now. It used to be ____ white. It's TOTALLY different.

It's like that. You are talking about shades of white. D is colder... J is warmer. But it's all white.

YES. If you have an accurately graded F and an H THAT HAVE THE SAME PERFORMANCE you are going to be able to tell them apart when you compare them side by side. Just like you would be able to tell if you painted your walls a warm white, but painted the crown molding a cold/straight white. But both are STILL white.

I want you notice all the qualifiers thought. I'm talking about stones with the SAME performance. An ideal H will out white an F that has compromised light performance from a poor cut.

NOTHING impacts the appearance of a diamond as much as cut. CUT is king.

You want the shinest whitest and brightest diamond out there: Cut is King. No other factor, not color or clarity or anything else impacts how white bright an shiny a stone is."

diamond_body_color.jpg

diamondcolorgtoj.jpg
 

letsmeetup

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2016
Messages
12
my mind is blown...great metaphor, thanks so much. What size table am I looking for with round vs cushion?
 

n64bomb

Rough_Rock
Trade
Joined
Jan 8, 2015
Messages
91
With color, size of the stone matters as well. Once you start to get near 2 carat, you would want to bump up a grade from normal with round brilliants. Great analogy with the colors. A set diamond picks up color from the setting once mounted (so a diamond color is more distinguishable as less light is through it ie as it is face down), so thats why several shades can appear the same face up as more light is being refracted through the stone. If you are looking at 0.9 carat Round, you can do G,H,I any of those as long as the cut is not poor. :) Also, when grading color it is done face down against an absolutely white background. Also, if you place stones next to each other, it is more noticeable than looking at them separately. So if you go to a store to look at stone color in person, have them show you similar carats and cuts and only the color differs, and make sure they are mounted. Also, remember, when you have your stone mounted, you won't be putting it next to other stones all day to try to catch the slight color difference.
 

Gypsy

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Aug 8, 2005
Messages
40,225
letsmeetup|1476220406|4085844 said:
my mind is blown...great metaphor, thanks so much. What size table am I looking for with round vs cushion?

You aren't looking for any measurements with cushions. It's all faceting and light performance. They are NOTHING like rounds. So just throw out all the numbers.

In general all you do is make sure the stone is not over deep (for me that's 71 or greater) and the girdle isn't very thin. Everything else is about the faceting and the light performance of the stone.


What is your budget and what do you want for it? I can look for you.
 

letsmeetup

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2016
Messages
12
Gypsy, my original budget was 3-4k for the stone but I have since increased budget to 5,000 for diamond, 5500 if I must. thanks so much for your help! her ring size is 7
 

ac117

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Apr 28, 2014
Messages
4,060
letsmeetup|1476471385|4087114 said:
Gypsy, my original budget was 3-4k for the stone but I have since increased budget to 5,000 for diamond, 5500 if I must. thanks so much for your help! her ring size is 7

Have you decided on a cushion in a cushion halo or a round in a cushion halo?
 

letsmeetup

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2016
Messages
12
ac117|1476472831|4087119 said:
letsmeetup|1476471385|4087114 said:
Gypsy, my original budget was 3-4k for the stone but I have since increased budget to 5,000 for diamond, 5500 if I must. thanks so much for your help! her ring size is 7

Have you decided on a cushion in a cushion halo or a round in a cushion halo?

i initially was thinking the cushion in a cushion halo, but after looking at her pinterest and user posts; most of the ones she liked were round in cushion setting. The common denominator was the square/rectangular look. After searching on ps, and vendors, I am really leaning more towards the round in a cushion halo. I am really starting to like the boxy look of the round in the cushion halo if that makes sense when there aren't noticeable gaps between diamond edges and the cushion setting.
 

Gypsy

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Aug 8, 2005
Messages
40,225
Go for the Anita Halo at BGD. And call them to work on a nice I color round stone for the ring.
 

letsmeetup

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2016
Messages
12
received some pretty strong hints last night that yes she likes the round in cushion but that she really is loving pear shaped in halo setting, can y'all show me some good examples of pear in 4-5500 range? thanks so much.
 

letsmeetup

Rough_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2016
Messages
12
soxfan|1476797711|4088194 said:
http://www.diamondsbylauren.com/index.php/jewelry/loose-colorless-diamond-101ct-i-si2-pear-shape-gia-stunning-stone-r5941

sox, that's very nice, what do i need to be on lookout for with the pear cut? any parameters in terms of proportions I should stay within?
 

Gypsy

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Aug 8, 2005
Messages
40,225
soxfan|1476797711|4088194 said:
http://www.diamondsbylauren.com/index.php/jewelry/loose-colorless-diamond-101ct-i-si2-pear-shape-gia-stunning-stone-r5941

That's a nice pear.
 

Gypsy

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Aug 8, 2005
Messages
40,225
soxfan|1476797494|4088192 said:
https://loupetroop.com/listings/rings-natural-diamond-center/3-piece-gia-pear-diamond-halo-wedding-set-reduced

Gypsy can comment on the cut. And I'd also haggle on price....

Pass on that one.
 
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