.:. seeking advice - diamond, grading report, cost , hmm...

[berri]

howdy,

new to all this, so sound advice would be much appreciated!

i''m in the process of having a ring designed with asscher cuts, which i absolutely love. the reputable SF jeweler has brought in several stones for me to see & is very helpful.

my question is: i''ve been quoted about $2700 for a center stone, .62 cts, VS G, no certification.

after researching online, it just seems overpriced, and it doesn''t include a grading report. although i really appreciate the person helping me from the store, (very patient and is working within my budget overall), i am just uncomfortable with possibly overpaying.

so then, should i buy the diamonds online? i feel weird about buying diamonds online, but if it''ll save me a bundle, and if there is no real risk, i guess i''d do it. the cost difference could mean a larger center stone or platinum vs white gold for me.

i do prefer to buy them in person here in san francisco, if possible. in either case, do i then just have the store set them in my designed setting? even though i''ve already had the store bring in stones & we''ve gone back once to obtain a larger stone? am i just being too polite? or a worry wart?

i''ve never purchased a diamond anything before so this is new ground for me...

thank you very much for any advice!

 

[strmrdr]

I wouldn''t buy an uncerted stone from anyone over a few hundred bucks unless it was used and at a steep discount.



www.goodoldgold.com if the PS top asscher vendor.

www.whiteflash.com is next up.

Contact one or the other, tell them what you want and have them hunt it down then post photos here for us to help with the final selection.

Thats my 2c :}

 

[Rod]

Welcome to PS

You won''t find many on this forum who have reservations about purchasing their stones online. Only you can make that decision for yourself. That said, I would be somewhat concerned about getting a stone that is not graded. And......Asshers are not the easiest stones to purchase.

Storm is the resident Assher guy on PS. If you can provide him pictures, sarin, idealscope, etc., he always helps people find the best cut Asshers.

I would take some time and become better educated (see the tutorials above) and get stones that are graded.

Best of luck to you..........

 

[Kaleigh]

It could be lovely but I wouldn't buy an asscher that wasn't graded. They are so tough. I'd want to buy one that came with a cert from a respected lab like AGS or GIA.
ETA: I bought my asscher from GOG and it's gorgeous.

 

[berri]

thanks for the advice so far...

and what about bringing in diamonds bought elsewhere to this jeweler, even though i''ve had them bring in some for me to look at?

 

[diamondseeker2006]

No, you won''t have diamonds from elsewhere brought in to that jeweler. If you go with Good Old Gold, they will find you the asscher, and if you want to look at it before having it set, it can be sent to you with full refund within 30 days. Or, you can have it sent to certain independent appraisers who will send it back if you don''t want it. If you decide on the stone, then you decide who you want to make the ring. We''d have recommendations on that as well.

I also considered having a custom ring made locally, but they were not as nice once I said I wasn''t buying the diamond from them. You will probably encounter that as well.

After spending about 6 months here, I wouldn''t buy a diamond anywhere else than at one of these vendors. If you want top quality at a lower price, then you will have to buy online.