I have a ring from my father which had a small ~1/3 carat diamond in it. I plan on passing it on to one of my children.
One day, I noticed that the diamond had gone missing??!
So, I went to a local jeweler and purchased a "nice" replacement diamond. He provided a "personal opinion" appraisal that said the diamond was .35 carat and SI3 and color H. The replacement stone cost me ~ $1K.
I subsequently had the replacement diamond appraised for insurance purposes by a local GIA appraiser. She appraised it as .38 carat, SI3 and color G.
After a hike recently, I noticed that the top of the stone was bruised looking and felt rough to my nails. I thought I had "cracked" the diamond, although I hadn't experienced any strong trauma to my finger.
I brought it to the jeweler who confirmed that the stone was "cracked" and gave me an estimate for replacement of $1200.
I submitted the estimate to my insurance company and they approved payment of that amount to me.
So, I am now considering whether to get another stone from this jeweler. I am anything but an expert, so I feel uncomfortable about buying a stone in one place and looking for someplace else to mount it.
However, I am concerned that a replacement of the same quality and size should be available for much less than this jeweler is quoting.
I see many stones quoted for much less money on the database here.
I would appreciate advice about finding a "respectable" diamond to mount in the ring "in my father's memory" and for eventually passing on to one of my children.
My wife believes that a less flawed diamond is less likely to crack and I would like a stone that at least when mounted doesn't have any obvious visible flaws to the naked eye.
Thanks in advance.
Steve
One day, I noticed that the diamond had gone missing??!
So, I went to a local jeweler and purchased a "nice" replacement diamond. He provided a "personal opinion" appraisal that said the diamond was .35 carat and SI3 and color H. The replacement stone cost me ~ $1K.
I subsequently had the replacement diamond appraised for insurance purposes by a local GIA appraiser. She appraised it as .38 carat, SI3 and color G.
After a hike recently, I noticed that the top of the stone was bruised looking and felt rough to my nails. I thought I had "cracked" the diamond, although I hadn't experienced any strong trauma to my finger.
I brought it to the jeweler who confirmed that the stone was "cracked" and gave me an estimate for replacement of $1200.
I submitted the estimate to my insurance company and they approved payment of that amount to me.
So, I am now considering whether to get another stone from this jeweler. I am anything but an expert, so I feel uncomfortable about buying a stone in one place and looking for someplace else to mount it.
However, I am concerned that a replacement of the same quality and size should be available for much less than this jeweler is quoting.
I see many stones quoted for much less money on the database here.
I would appreciate advice about finding a "respectable" diamond to mount in the ring "in my father's memory" and for eventually passing on to one of my children.
My wife believes that a less flawed diamond is less likely to crack and I would like a stone that at least when mounted doesn't have any obvious visible flaws to the naked eye.
Thanks in advance.
Steve