Questions about a stone

[mrhand]

My GF and I are stone shopping. At the moment we live in different cities, but fortunatly for me she lives in NYC so she does have some advantadges at looking around.

We''ve decided on a round brilliant cut, setting TBD. Here is where it kinda gets complicated.

My mother is friends with a family jewler who has a shop in the DD for at least 50 years. All things being equal I''d like to give him the buisness, but at the same time I don''t want to get taken in the process. I don''t want to ask my mother''s opinion because I don''t want her to know about this. In any case my GF went to his shop and he showed her the following:

2.21 F SI2 (very good) and he is quoting me 19.5 I don''t have much other information about the rock, but he said it looks close to 2.5 carats because of its circumference. Its GIA certified, (Im still trying to find a tactful way of asking for the # so I can look it up).

I tried doing a bunch of searches for given the small information I have and his quote just seems a few K higher. I''m not concerned about spending a several hundred extra because of the relationship, but beyond that.....

What I guess I''m trying to ask is for the limited specs I wrote does his quote seem reasonable? Is there something else I should ask that would help you in assisting me? He assured me its one of the most amazing diamonds in that range he has seen in years. I really want to believe him and have no reason to distrust him, but a 2nd opinion would make me feel more comfortable.

Thanks for your opinions.

 

[jaylex]

Date: 11/9/2009 5:20:16 PM
Author:mrhand
My GF and I are stone shopping. At the moment we live in different cities, but fortunatly for me she lives in NYC so she does have some advantadges at looking around.

We''ve decided on a round brilliant cut, setting TBD. Here is where it kinda gets complicated.

My mother is friends with a family jewler who has a shop in the DD for at least 50 years. All things being equal I''d like to give him the buisness, but at the same time I don''t want to get taken in the process. I don''t want to ask my mother''s opinion because I don''t want her to know about this. In any case my GF went to his shop and he showed her the following:

2.21 F SI2 (very good) and he is quoting me 19.5 I don''t have much other information about the rock, but he said it looks close to 2.5 carats because of its circumference. Its GIA certified, (Im still trying to find a tactful way of asking for the # so I can look it up).

I tried doing a bunch of searches for given the small information I have and his quote just seems a few K higher. I''m not concerned about spending a several hundred extra because of the relationship, but beyond that.....

What I guess I''m trying to ask is for the limited specs I wrote does his quote seem reasonable? Is there something else I should ask that would help you in assisting me? He assured me its one of the most amazing diamonds in that range he has seen in years. I really want to believe him and have no reason to distrust him, but a 2nd opinion would make me feel more comfortable.

Thanks for your opinions.

Hello Mrhand. welcome to pricescope. But i would suggest moving your question to "rocky talky". You''ll probably get answers there

 

[yssie]

With the limited specs, price seems on the higher end but not outrageously so.

That must be quite the shallow stone, to face up over a quarter-carat bigger. If he's telling the absolute truth (as in literally, talking about mm measurements, and comparing to an ideal-cut 2.5ct) - red flag. If he's using exaggerations to make the sale - bigger red flag: that's an underhand, sleazy technique designed to impress the unaware.

Rather a poor outlook for that poor stone, really, IMHO.


You came to PS before making the purchase, which is great! Start by reading the tutorials under "helpful threads" in Rocky Talky, and the regulars will help you find that perfect stone

ETA: Definitely get the GIA number or a copy of the report.

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 11/10/2009 3:28:17 AM
Author: yssie
With the limited specs, price seems on the higher end but not outrageously so.

That must be quite the shallow stone, to face up over a quarter-carat bigger. If he's telling the absolute truth (as in literally, talking about mm measurements, and comparing to an ideal-cut 2.5ct) - red flag. If he's using exaggerations to make the sale - bigger red flag: that's an underhand, sleazy technique designed to impress the unaware.

Rather a poor outlook for that poor stone, really, IMHO.


You came to PS before making the purchase, which is great! Start by reading the tutorials under 'helpful threads' in Rocky Talky, and the regulars will help you find that perfect stone

ETA: Definitely get the GIA number or a copy of the report.

Yssie, you are doing a really great job in RT, well done!!!

Hi mrhand

Yssie is quite right, in some cases a diamond looking much larger for the weight isn't a good thing, if you could get detailed measurements or the GIA report number, we can look these details up. Two things are important to begin with, if we could get the proportions of the diamond so we can see how well cut it is and if the diamond is eyeclean to your standards. Also what inclusions are noted on the clarity plot?

 

[mrhand]

Ok. He faxed the report #. I was probably being a bit sensitive, he is not much of a talker but thats besides the point. We originally wanted a channel setting, but she changed her mind to a pave, but the jewler thought that with this stone it might not look appropriate and suggested a 2 row pave. This stuff gets frustrating fast. Its like learning how to install a celing fan. Do it a few times and you are an expert. But how often do you really need to install a ceiling fan!

In any case, here is the 411 from the GIA.

Round Brilliant
Measurements: 8.24 - 8.30 x 5.18 mm

Carat Weight: 2.21 carat
Color Grade: F
Clarity Grade: SI2
Cut Grade: Very Good
Proportions:
Depth: 62.6%
Table: 58%
Crown Angle: 36.0°
Crown Height: 15.5%
Pavilion Angle: 41.0°
Pavilion Depth: 43.5%
Star length: 55%
Lower Half: 80%
Girdle: Medium to Slightly Thick, Faceted (4.0%)
Culet: None
Finish:
Polish: Very Good
Symmetry: Very Good
Fluorescence: Faint
Comments: Additional twinning wisps are not shown. Surface graining is not shown.

 

[jet2ks]

I'd pass on this one. It is what we refer to as a steep/deep, meaning that the crown and pavillion angles are too steep and the overall diamond too deep to reflect light in the best way possible, possibly causing dark areas. The other aspect of this type of diamond is that they face up small for their weight. A well cut 2.2ct round should have a diameter around 8.4mm. There are better cut stones out there for your budget.

Date: 11/9/2009 5:20:16 PM
Author:mrhand
2.21 F SI2 (very good) and he is quoting me 19.5 I don't have much other information about the rock, but he said it looks close to 2.5 carats because of its circumference. Its GIA certified, (Im still trying to find a tactful way of asking for the # so I can look it up).

So here is the real red flag to me. The jeweler said it faces up larger than it's weight, but in reality it is facing up smaller--a 2.5 ct should be in the 8.7-8.8mm range. That would make me question if I really wanted to work with this person. IMHO, it is usually better to avoid the "family friends" and "friend of a friend" jewelers, because if something doesn't work out, there can be a lot of hard feelings involved. Be careful and tactful about how you approach the situation, no matter what you decide.

 

[mrhand]

Here is the picture from the report. Took me a while to figure out how to get it uploaded

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 11/10/2009 3:11:46 PM
Author: jet2ks
I''d pass on this one. It is what we refer to as a steep/deep, meaning that the crown and pavillion angles are too steep and the overall diamond too deep to reflect light in the best way possible, possibly causing dark areas. The other aspect of this type of diamond is that they face up small for their weight. A well cut 2.2ct round should have a diameter around 8.4mm. There are better cut stones out there for your budget.

Date: 11/9/2009 5:20:16 PM
Author:mrhand
2.21 F SI2 (very good) and he is quoting me 19.5 I don''t have much other information about the rock, but he said it looks close to 2.5 carats because of its circumference. Its GIA certified, (Im still trying to find a tactful way of asking for the # so I can look it up).

So here is the real red flag to me. The jeweler said it faces up larger than it''s weight, but in reality it is facing up smaller--a 2.5 ct should be in the 8.7-8.8mm range. That would make me question if I really wanted to work with this person. IMHO, it is usually better to avoid the ''family friends'' and ''friend of a friend'' jewelers, because if something doesn''t work out, there can be a lot of hard feelings involved. Be careful and tactful about how you approach the situation, no matter what you decide.

Ditto Jet.

 

[stone-cold11]

ditto jet2ks.