shape
carat
color
clarity

Round Brilliant - am I looking for the right things?

jzl723

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 22, 2015
Messages
3
Hi all,

I've been looking here and there for a diamond for an engagement ring over the past few months, and was wondering if you had any opinions or thoughts on my search so far. I have done a fair bit of reading through this site and others and also wanted to know if I was on the right track. I admit that I have been fairly busy with work and travel, so my research is not as thorough as it usually is, but here I go!

Carat - 2 ct+ (I know, but it's like the difference between scoring a 89 and a 90. One is an A, and one is a B - there have to be lines somewhere).
Clarity - VS2+, but eye clean SI1 is totally an option (who defines eye clean?)
Fluorescence - slight? I guess what I am saying is that "none" is not something I care about/for.
Color - H+
Table - 53 - 58%
Depth - 60 - 62%
Crown Angle - 34 - 35
Pavilion Angle - 41 - 40.6
Girdle - thin to med
Culet - none
HCA score - 2+

Oh right - budget - 25000 USD. A penny saved is a penny earned... or rather a penny put towards the setting.


On that note, I would like to get the stone set locally, and understand that she'd like her ring to be either a solitaire setting, or with a with some smaller stones - like pave. No halo. I have visited with a local jeweler in Chicago (highly recommended by a close friend) to discuss settings, so I'm pretty set on what's going on here.

So my questions:
* To confirm, I understand that cut quality and related light performance is fairly important with round brilliant stones. Are my geometry values on point, too narrow, or too wide?
* With my online search currently being mostly cut focused, AGS0 cut graded diamonds are really intriguing. With that, I do worry about the grade differences on color and to a lesser extent on clarity, when compared against GIA stones. I do want a brilliant and lively stone - but I also don't want to overpay just for fancy cut evaluations when geometry may be good enough. Does my reasoning make sense? Should I be working with the above geometries and with GIA grading? Are there tolerances or buffer I should give when selecting AGS? Any guidance here would be great - there aren't many sources about this on the internet.
* Jewelers far and wide have told me that I should not really focus on clarity. So as long as it is eye clean, it's all good, right? I just need some prosumer/internet stranger affirmation of this...
* I am fairly color sensitive - but also I understand that the setting, lighting, time of day, mood, etc. can all affect color perception. Generally, is H an okay floor for a round brilliant diamond?
* I am a firm proponent of sticking to your budget, yet I only plan on purchasing an engagement ring once in my life, so maybe I can splurge. With the characteristics described, is 25000 USD a reasonable budget?

Lastly, here is an example of a stone that I really liked from looking at the face up/ASET/hearts/arrows images - but is sadly out of my price range, and also no longer available.
https://enchanteddiamonds.com/diamonds/view/R207-6RR6VB

Anyways - your thoughts are greatly appreciated!
 

diamondseeker2006

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jan 11, 2006
Messages
58,547
I will try to answer in bold type within your post.

jzl723|1455061702|3989131 said:
Hi all,

I've been looking here and there for a diamond for an engagement ring over the past few months, and was wondering if you had any opinions or thoughts on my search so far. I have done a fair bit of reading through this site and others and also wanted to know if I was on the right track. I admit that I have been fairly busy with work and travel, so my research is not as thorough as it usually is, but here I go!

Carat - 2 ct+ (I know, but it's like the difference between scoring a 89 and a 90. One is an A, and one is a B - there have to be lines somewhere).
Clarity - VS2+, but eye clean SI1 is totally an option (who defines eye clean?) vendors define it differently, but I personally recommend VS2 especially when buying online.
Fluorescence - slight? I guess what I am saying is that "none" is not something I care about/for. (I am fine with up to medium or even strong, so I would be flexible on that.)
Color - H+
Table - 54 - 58%
Depth - 60 - 62.3%
Crown Angle - 34 - 35
Pavilion Angle - 40.6-41.0
Girdle - thin to med to slightly thick are all fine
Culet - none
HCA score - 2 or less

Oh right - budget - 25000 USD. A penny saved is a penny earned... or rather a penny put towards the setting.


On that note, I would like to get the stone set locally, and understand that she'd like her ring to be either a solitaire setting, or with a with some smaller stones - like pave. No halo. I have visited with a local jeweler in Chicago (highly recommended by a close friend) to discuss settings, so I'm pretty set on what's going on here.

I would always advise having the diamond set my the vendor who sells the stone. Why? Because they will insure the stone while being set. Exceptions to this are when the vendor doesn't have the setting desired, but they pretty much all have what you are wanting.

So my questions:
* To confirm, I understand that cut quality and related light performance is fairly important with round brilliant stones. Are my geometry values on point, too narrow, or too wide? ( I adjusted them a little above.)
* With my online search currently being mostly cut focused, AGS0 cut graded diamonds are really intriguing. With that, I do worry about the grade differences on color and to a lesser extent on clarity, when compared against GIA stones. I do want a brilliant and lively stone - but I also don't want to overpay just for fancy cut evaluations when geometry may be good enough. Does my reasoning make sense? Should I be working with the above geometries and with GIA grading? Are there tolerances or buffer I should give when selecting AGS? Any guidance here would be great - there aren't many sources about this on the internet.
(AGS Ideal cuts and GIA Excellent within the above parameters are all desirable. The very top cut stones are usually AGS graded. So be open to both. Not every AGS Ideal cut is as desirable as another and the same with GIA Excellent. It always helps when there are ASET or Idealscope images.)
* Jewelers far and wide have told me that I should not really focus on clarity. So as long as it is eye clean, it's all good, right? I just need some prosumer/internet stranger affirmation of this... (That is a personal choice. Some will go lower in clarity to get greater size, but I prefer good quality across the board in an engagement ring diamond, and for me, that means VS2 or VS1.)
* I am fairly color sensitive - but also I understand that the setting, lighting, time of day, mood, etc. can all affect color perception. Generally, is H an okay floor for a round brilliant diamond? (H is a very good choice. I would say G-J are popular here and there are many in the H-I range.)
* I am a firm proponent of sticking to your budget, yet I only plan on purchasing an engagement ring once in my life, so maybe I can splurge. With the characteristics described, is 25000 USD a reasonable budget? I'd have to look and see what is available with those specs, but probably will wait until tomorrow since it is midnight here. That is a very nice budget.

Lastly, here is an example of a stone that I really liked from looking at the face up/ASET/hearts/arrows images - but is sadly out of my price range, and also no longer available.
https://enchanteddiamonds.com/diamonds/view/R207-6RR6VB

That was a fairly nice one. But usually the ones that ED scores 100 are better for rounds. Try to avoid VVS clarity because that really raises the price.

Anyways - your thoughts are greatly appreciated!
 

diamondseeker2006

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jan 11, 2006
Messages
58,547
Taking a quick look....(I am listing VS and SI1 and you can ask if the stones are totally eyeclean from top and sides.) Yes, you can actually get an outstanding diamond close to your budget and desired specs! If you see one you like, I'd not wait too long to reserve it since there are plenty of lurkers around here!

Both top cut and H VS2:

http://www.goodoldgold.com/ecommerce/2.00ct-h-vs2-ascendancy-round-hearts-and-arrows-diamond.html

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3481321.htm

Top cut and H SI1:

https://www.victorcanera.com/diamonds/n15rt1-2.070-h-si1-ideal-hearts-arrows-round#cmp=prds

http://highperformancediamonds.com/shop/diamonds/HPD7021/
 

diamondseeker2006

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jan 11, 2006
Messages
58,547
Those look pretty good, but I would eliminate the first one because the feather is a crack that looks like it reaches the girdle. Would need an idealscope or ASET on the second one.
 

jzl723

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 22, 2015
Messages
3
Thanks for the replies Diamondseeker and Flyingpig - I really appreciate the affirmation, suggestions in others, and possible stones. I'll be sure to take them to heart.

Regarding the stones posted.

Good Old Gold - I saw this one the other night (after posting), and have heard a lot of great things about GOG. My impressions/thoughts as follows.
- 25000 seems like a lot for 2.00. With that said, the diamond seems well sized; doesn't seem forced from light images and geometry. I guess this is the standard premium for the amount of information I am asking/checking for, right?
- Looking at the clarity photo, I can't see the crystals on the table (so that's good) - but maybe I'm not sure what to look for. For reference, I *can* see the 8 o clock bruise (per the clarity plot) is shown in the 1 clock star facet in the clarity image. The feather can be seen just at the 2 clock girdle facet in the clarity image.
- Star length is 60, and lower girdle is 80. I read somewhere that can result in dark appearing diamonds (even without light leakage). The photos do not seem to reflect this. Should I be worried?

White Flash - I had also seen this one while perusing. Thoughts:
- The crystal inclusion can be seen just off the 12/1 o clock position in the diamond photo (just off the 9 o clock position in the clarity plot). Does this seem egregious? It is rated as eye clean, but I would have this double checked if I wanted this diamond pulled, correct?
- Bigger size is nice - but I'm not sure how much 0.10 mm is worth to me (1500 against the GOG stone).

High Performance Diamond - did not see this one diamondseeker - thanks for forwarding!
- Seem to be a lot of crystals, and some are pretty visible (albeit in a super huge blown up HD photo). Most especially the one on the star facet.

James Allen H VS1 - did not see this one, thanks flyingpig!
- I do not know anything really, so I'll be asking for IS and ASET (and hearts/arrows while at that). It seems much lower priced than the others (that said, it is not a super premium provider?) so do you think I should expect something?

I'll try to do some searching and post some of what I find for your thoughts as well.
 

flyingpig

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Nov 7, 2015
Messages
2,978
Those stones from gog, wf, hpd are the best of the best, accompanied by IS/ASET images, sarin report,in house inspection, and excellent upgrade policy. Thus higher premium. JA has its own signature line called True Heart. The stone I listed is not True Hearts; most True Hearts are graded by AGS. The stone is potentially super ideal, but without ASET and IS images and visual inspection, there is no way to confirm. If I am dropping 20k, idealscope image is absolutely required.

I find it more fun to discover a super ideal or near super ideal stone from non signature selections for better value. In the worst case, it is still top quality GIA X or AGS 0, or you can return for free. If you like added assurance and superb upgrade policy, a signature stone gog/wf/hpd is a better option.

How much assurance you need, and what upgrade policy you want, and how much premium you are willing to pay... only you can decide.

Check other PS vendors inventory, choose stones with ideal proportions, and ask for IS/ASET images and actual photo. Definitely consider ALL options
 

flyingpig

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Nov 7, 2015
Messages
2,978

jzl723

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 22, 2015
Messages
3
FYI - I ended up contacting JA about the H VS1 - unfortunately they cannot provide IS or ASET as the stone is with an overseas supplier. I'll have to continue searching.

Hi Flyingpig,
Thanks for those links. I admit, the research is fun, and you add in the fun of searching for a great stone. The AGS deck is pretty complex, I'll have to set aside some time to read through it. Interesting to see the GOG post on LGF. I'll have to rewatch in depth.

Hi Gypsy,
Thanks for that link, I hadn't found that while browsing. I can certainly understand your thoughts and points - I've had similar thoughts while searching for diamonds. I am still not sure that a super ideal stone is the best spend - but in some sense, I feel like if I am spending the money, I want to feel like I am getting the best possible? That said, no one walks around with H&A viewers or ASET scopes, and none would the be wiser. I feel like every time I search for a diamond, I change positions several times.
 
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