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Samara James - Hearts and Arrows - Super-Ideal?

J

JackBauer

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 14, 2019
Messages
15
Hi All,

I'm in the market for a super-ideal diamond and I've noticed that Samara James offer 3 cuts; Good, Premium and Hearts and Arrows.
They seem legit and their marketing and videos would seem to indicate their Hearts and Arrows are a super-ideal cut.
Has anyone dealt with this company before? What has your experience been?
 
In my research when looking to buy a few years ago (don't know where that time has gone! lol) they were one of the few UK vendors focused on cut quality, so they are a good bet in terms of that approach.

I'm not sure they are cheaper than the PS-recommended vendors, though, I've not kept up with pricing recently.

It is worth noting that H&A does not mean a Super Ideal cut.
 
I've never heard of them, but don't like that you can't choose your diamond. All their marketing seems to suggest they have great cut stones, but I think if their stones were actually on par with super ideal vendors then they would at least let you choose your own stone based on specifics, rather than generic boxes you check.
 
Do they offer super ideals? I don't know.

Having never heard of them, I was just looking through their FAQs. Under the Diamonds section is this...

"Can I specify the details that I would like on the GIA lab report e.g. crown angle or depth percentage?

Yes, please contact us prior to your purchase and we will confirm the availability of the specific diamond you are looking for."

And...

"I want a perfect 'ideal cut' diamond. Can you offer this specification?

We specialise in perfectly cut diamonds so the answer is a definite yes. In fact, we have a range of tools including Idealscope and ASET to assess and demonstrate the light performance of our diamonds. We also use the cut grading software developed and used by AGS in their labs to assesses every aspect of light performance. We can also supply a Sarin report for any of our diamonds. Finally we have a video microscope which allows us to both video and photograph any of our diamonds at up to 300 times magnification so you can really see the details of any inclusions in the diamond before you purchase"
 
Johnbt said:
Do they offer super ideals? I don't know.

Having never heard of them, I was just looking through their FAQs. Under the Diamonds section is this...

"Can I specify the details that I would like on the GIA lab report e.g. crown angle or depth percentage?

Yes, please contact us prior to your purchase and we will confirm the availability of the specific diamond you are looking for."

And...

"I want a perfect 'ideal cut' diamond. Can you offer this specification?

We specialise in perfectly cut diamonds so the answer is a definite yes. In fact, we have a range of tools including Idealscope and ASET to assess and demonstrate the light performance of our diamonds. We also use the cut grading software developed and used by AGS in their labs to assesses every aspect of light performance. We can also supply a Sarin report for any of our diamonds. Finally we have a video microscope which allows us to both video and photograph any of our diamonds at up to 300 times magnification so you can really see the details of any inclusions in the diamond before you purchase"
Click to expand...
That's good to hear. It just annoys me that they don't have that info more readily available to customers.
 
I spoke to a lovely lady called Harriet via their website chat feature and she really knew her stuff when it came to super ideal diamonds and optimal light performance.
We discussed what I would be looking for both in terms of the diamond and the setting and was told I'd be sent over some imagery tonight of potential diamonds that fit my budget. This is to include ASETs/Idealscope etc

I've since booked an appointment too and will visit their showroom in London. Their prices are comparable to all other super-cut diamond prices when taking into account US taxes so it's definitely work having a look since they are local to me. I'm hoping this is a great find in London for us UK based folk.
 
Nice! Finally a UK based super ideal vendor
 
JackBauer said:
I spoke to a lovely lady called Harriet via their website chat feature and she really knew her stuff when it came to super ideal diamonds and optimal light performance.
We discussed what I would be looking for both in terms of the diamond and the setting and was told I'd be sent over some imagery tonight of potential diamonds that fit my budget. This is to include ASETs/Idealscope etc

I've since booked an appointment too and will visit their showroom in London. Their prices are comparable to all other super-cut diamond prices when taking into account US taxes so it's definitely work having a look since they are local to me. I'm hoping this is a great find in London for us UK based folk.
Click to expand...
That's great news! I really hope they are a solid vendor for all of the PSers who are in the UK
 
Yes will be following this with interest. It's a shame their website doesnt allow you to pick yourself but it's the style of many UK based b&b stores unfortunately.
 
Quick Update, the imagery of potential diamonds that fit my budget didn't arrive by the end of the day yesterday so not off to the best of starts. I sent a chasing email so let's see if they respond today.
 
I've just received some details on a diamond. Below is an ASET and IDEAL scope image of one of their 'Hearts and Arrows' cut diamonds. What do you think? Super-Ideal?
I'm not sure how to interpret these but I think I read that green indicates low light return. This one seems to have a bit too much green?
Any experts on how this diamond would be? It is priced roughly the same as a Crafted by Infinity diamond btw.

Asetscope.png Idealscope.png
 
JackBauer said:
I've just received some details on a diamond. Below is an ASET and IDEAL scope image of one of their 'Hearts and Arrows' cut diamonds. What do you think? Super-Ideal?
I'm not sure how to interpret these but I think I read that green indicates low light return. This one seems to have a bit too much green?
Any experts on how this diamond would be? It is priced roughly the same as a Crafted by Infinity diamond btw.

Asetscope.png Idealscope.png
Click to expand...
Not entirely sure how to interpret the ASET bc the colors are different than what I'm used to. But the IS image looks like there's leakage between 8-9 o'clock. For the money, I would go with a CBI, bit that's just IMHO.
 
Durham Rose sells Crafted by infinity
 
I've already reached out to Durham Rose for CBI diamonds.

I'm hoping though someone can shed some light on the ASET and IDEAL scope images above. I'm curious how these stack up.
 
JackBauer said:
I've just received some details on a diamond. Below is an ASET and IDEAL scope image of one of their 'Hearts and Arrows' cut diamonds. What do you think? Super-Ideal?
I'm not sure how to interpret these but I think I read that green indicates low light return. This one seems to have a bit too much green?
Any experts on how this diamond would be? It is priced roughly the same as a Crafted by Infinity diamond btw.

Asetscope.png Idealscope.png
Click to expand...

@Karl_K , these look like computer generated ASETs to my eyes for some reason. Any thoughts?

@JackBauer , leakage present just below the arrow shaft at 9 o’clock. It’s dead easy to see the correlation between Idealscope and ASET images (white in Idealscope and black in ASET). There is a lot of red present which is a good thing but way too much green for a stone which is supposedly super ideal H&A.

If you want to compare what a super ideal IS and ASET image looks at, just go see examples of those scope images for any ACA diamond at Whiteflash and any Black or Signature H&A stone at Brian Gavin Diamonds.
 
JackBauer said:
I'm not sure how to interpret these but I think I read that green indicates low light return. This one seems to have a bit too much green?
Click to expand...
Red is light returned from around the viewer's head.
Green is light returned from the wider environment.

Neither is weaker, just collected from different places.

Blue is obstruction from the viewer, which creates the darker areas of contrast that are desirable to create visual interest and make the reflecting facets look brighter.

https://ideal-scope.com/using-aset-scopes/
ASET-Light-Setup1[1].jpg
 
JackBauer said:
I've just received some details on a diamond. Below is an ASET and IDEAL scope image of one of their 'Hearts and Arrows' cut diamonds. What do you think? Super-Ideal?
I'm not sure how to interpret these but I think I read that green indicates low light return. This one seems to have a bit too much green?
Any experts on how this diamond would be? It is priced roughly the same as a Crafted by Infinity diamond btw.

Asetscope.png Idealscope.png
Click to expand...

I know you have already made up your mind about CBI, which is excellent, but just wanted to say I suspect there has been some sort of girdle digging or painting (don't know how to differentiate between them) on that stone in more than one place. (I am by no means an expert and not necessarily correct, but there's something interesting about the 2 and 8 positions. My idea is potentially thwarted if these are computer generated.)

Reassuringly, it's not something I would ever expect to see on a CBI. I wonder whether that would make it more equivalent to Whiteflash's expert selection (cheaper!) rather than their ACA line but I'm just hypothesising here. :geek2: Certainly would mean CBI is better value if they're priced about the same.

Having said that, interesting company, good find!
 
Looks like Dibox images.
Lots of digging most likely wide pavilion angle variation.
 
I am confused there is no way those images are of a CBI diamond.
Is someone claiming they are? Am I just reading something wrong?
 
Karl_K said:
I am confused there is no way those images are of a CBI diamond.
Is someone claiming they are? Am I just reading something wrong?
Click to expand...

I think those images are from a stone from a different vendor who considers it a H&A stone. Not CBI.
 
Karl_K said:
I am confused there is no way those images are of a CBI diamond.
Is someone claiming they are? Am I just reading something wrong?
Click to expand...

There are images I received today from a UK based company called Samara James. It is of a diamond with their most highest cut grade called 'Hearts and Arrows' and I'm trying to ascertain if these are 'super-ideal' diamonds. Their website would seem to suggest they might be.
Their prices are comparable to CBI diamonds but based on the ASET/IDEAL scope images, seem to be inferior in quality?
 
JackBauer said:
There are images I received today from a UK based company called Samara James. It is of a diamond with their most highest cut grade called 'Hearts and Arrows' and I'm trying to ascertain if these are 'super-ideal' diamonds. Their website would seem to suggest they might be.
Their prices are comparable to CBI diamonds but based on the ASET/IDEAL scope images, seem to be inferior in quality?
Click to expand...
I don't think so. Based on the pic the heart is off size at 8:00. You will not see that on CBI stones.
 
JackBauer said:
There are images I received today from a UK based company called Samara James. It is of a diamond with their most highest cut grade called 'Hearts and Arrows' and I'm trying to ascertain if these are 'super-ideal' diamonds. Their website would seem to suggest they might be.
Their prices are comparable to CBI diamonds but based on the ASET/IDEAL scope images, seem to be inferior in quality?
Click to expand...
If they are priced similarly to CBI, it's a no-brainer - CBI all the way ;) :))
 
JackBauer said:
based on the ASET/IDEAL scope images, seem to be inferior in quality?
Click to expand...
I can say that those images are not a sign of a top end super-ideal diamond.
I can not comment directly on CBI in this context due to forum rules.
 
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