Safe Method of Buying Online?

[advice_283]

I am looking at Blue Nile and Engagement Rings. Regarding diamonds I am choosing only the following specs:

Carat: .9-1
Color: F-D
Cut: Ideal
Clarity: VS2-FL
Symmetry: Excellent
Polish: Excellent
Fluorescence: None
Depth %: 59.5-61.9
Table %: 55-57
Girdle: Medium to Slightly Thick
Cutlet: None

I see no significant benefit from getting a "Signature Ideal" cut other than the "map" in the GIA report and by not getting a Signature Ideal I feel like it would save around $1000.

In addition to this I use the HCA tool provided by this site to help narrow down the search.

Given these stats, a good total visual performance rating, no photos of the diamond, no map; is it reasonable to purchase the diamond or is there much risk as to getting a "bad apple"?

I am not picky other than ensuring I receive a quality diamond with good visual performance, no immediately visible imperfections, and that will last and is durable.

 

[Gypsy]

You specs are unnecessarily restrictive when it comes to the numbers. Also G will be perfectly white. So I'd expand to G.

The entire purpose of faceting a diamond is to reflect light.
How well or how poorly a diamond does this determines how beautiful it is.
How well a diamond performs is determined by the angles and cutting. This is why we say cut is king.
No other factor: not color, not clarity has as much of an impact on the appearance of a diamond as its cut. An ideal H will out white a poorly cut F. And GIA Ex is not enough.
So how to we ensure that we have the right angles and cutting to get the light performance we want?
https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/diamond-cut
Well one method is to start with a GIA Ex, and then apply the HCA to it. YOU DO NOT USE HCA for AGS0 stones.
https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/holloway-cut-advisor
The HCA is a rejection tool. Not a selection tool. It uses 4 data points to make a rudimentary call on how the diamond may perform. It's only goal is to weed out stones that have angles that do not normally result in ideal light performance.
If the diamond passes then you know that you are in the right zone in terms of angles for light performance. Under 2 is a pass. Under 2.5-2.1 is a maybe. 2.6 and over is a no. No score 2 and under is better than any other.
Is that enough? Not really.
So what you need is a way to check actual light performance of your actual stone.
That's what an idealscope image does. https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/firescope-idealscope
It shows you how and wear your diamond is reflecting light, how well it is going at it, and where you are losing light return. That is why you won't see us recommending Blue Nile, as they do not provide idealscope images for their diamonds. James Allen, BGD, GOG, ERD, HPD and WF do.

The Idealscope is the 'selection tool'. Not the HCA. The HCA is just used narrow and predict which stones will have a good idealscope image.
So yes, with a GIA stone you need the idealscope images. Or you can buy an idealscope yourself and take it in to the jeweler you are working with to check the stones yourself. Or if you have a good return policy (full refund minimum 7 days) then you can buy the idealscope, buy the stone, and do it at home.


Now if you want to skip all that... stick to AGS0 stones and then all you have to do is pick color and clarity and you know you have a great performing diamond. Because AGS has already done the checking for you. That's why they trade at a premium.

 

[Gypsy]

Signature ideal stones are the ones I'd stick to with Blue Nile. They are in house stones. Are guaranteed eyeclean. And they are the ones with the performance grading on them. That's money that is well spent.

The rest of the stones on blue nile are dropped shipped.



And personally, I think that blue nile while an better than average vendor is not the be all and end all. And that you can safely look at other vendors for a great ring. Especially the ones we commonly recommend.

 

[TC1987]

Also compare return, buyback, and upgrade policies if you haven't already. I'd probably never buy from Blue Nile, so I'm not familiar with their policies.

 

[MarionC]

Also compare return, buyback, and upgrade policies if you haven't already. I'd probably never buy from Blue Nile, so I'm not familiar with their policies.

Blue Nile is where I "started". The diamonds were fine, I guess. The company seemed disorganized-perhaps due to size- and it took a long time to get a refund. After getting on PS and dealing with the more personalized vendors I would not be interested in going back to BN.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I would only consider the Signature Ideal stones that have images. I think it is pretty crazy to buy a diamond without seeing images of it first. I would also limit clarity to VS1-VS2. VS1 is so clean that I can't see inclusions with a 10x loupe, so any higher clarity is paying for something you just cannot see unless you plan to use a microscope frequently. VS2 can vary so you'd have to be more careful about that.