should I go for better color instead of bigger?

[san diego searcher]

I almost ordered some earrings from Whiteflash - 70 pts each ear, J and K color SI with excellent and very good cut. Had started looking at 1ctw and then wanted bigger. Several local jewelers had told me they thought color was most important...they would not go lower than I. Today I went into a pricey store to try to determine what size I really want. Without paying attention much to color or clarity, I tried on a 50 point stone in one ear and a 75 in the other. The 50 pointer was set with 4 prongs and the larger one with 3. I was surprised the half carat looked as big as the 75 pointer. The smaller one was E color, VVS2; the larger one was SI1-2 H color.

Does this make sense? Should I change my strategy and go back to 1ctw and go higher in color. Whiteflash has some ACA H&A in that size that would be in the ballpark pricecwise of the 75 pt J-K color ones I almost got.

Also the SA in the jewelry store thought the 4 prong setting made the earrings look bigger on me. Any thoughts on that?

 

[Skippy123]

A well cut stone ACA''s or ES won''t show color like a very good, good cut stone. Cut is the most important and then color is preference.
This maybe helpful http://www.goodoldgold.com/4Cs/Color/NearColorless/

 

[Sparkalicious]

I think color really boils down to personal preference ... that being said, my preference would be a compromise between size and color. I would want to go as large as possible, however, agree that somewhere around I would likely be my cutoff. I feel ridiculous since so many PSer''s have gorgeous J and K stones, however, since the diamonds would be in my ears, and whenever I actually see diamonds in person I am really conscious of color, I just couldn''t do it. If color is not something you readily notice, go bigger! If you are color sensitive, pick your color cutoff and pick the size that fits in your budget!

You''re almost there, San Diego Searcher ... soon you will have a fab new pair of diamond earrings regardless of the size and color!

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 1/12/2008 9:08:29 PM
Author: Skippy123
A well cut stone ACA''s or ES won''t show color like a very good, good cut stone. Cut is the most important and then color is preference.
This maybe helpful http://www.goodoldgold.com/4Cs/Color/NearColorless/

Ditto. You still need to concentrate on cut for beautiful studs, I am dubious about the cut quality of the ones you saw in the jewellers, as you say you were surprised that the .5 ct and .75 ct looked similar in size, there should be a visible difference at least. I would try to get out again and concentrate on colour this time, so you know exactly what your preference is. WF do have a good return policy should you decide to order from them.

 

[Ellen]

Date: 1/13/2008 6:57:16 AM
Author: Lorelei

Date: 1/12/2008 9:08:29 PM
Author: Skippy123
A well cut stone ACA''s or ES won''t show color like a very good, good cut stone. Cut is the most important and then color is preference.
This maybe helpful http://www.goodoldgold.com/4Cs/Color/NearColorless/

Ditto. You still need to concentrate on cut for beautiful studs, I am dubious about the cut quality of the ones you saw in the jewellers, as you say you were surprised that the .5 ct and .75 ct looked similar in size, there should be a visible difference at least. I would try to get out again and concentrate on colour this time, so you know exactly what your preference is. WF do have a good return policy should you decide to order from them.

Agree to above comments. Here''s a comparison shot, of a .45 and a .74, close enough to get the picture. There should definitely be a difference.

 

[Lorelei]

Nice work El !!

 

[Ellen]

Date: 1/13/2008 12:06:37 PM
Author: Lorelei
Nice work El !!

Thankies.

But props should really go to Miss Lynn, I believe that''s her ear doing the modeling.

 

[aljdewey]

I think the J/K earrings would be fine.

Keep in mind that body color is noticed more from the sides than from face-up view. Most studs on the ear won''t be seen from the side; they''ll be seen face on. Because of this, I think color is less important in studs than in e-rings (where the stone is readily viewable in profile).

 

[iheartscience]

I''d go for the bigger ones for sure. I really doubt you''d notice/mind the color...and if you did, that''s what return policies are for! The size difference will be noticeable, though, and I think that''s more important in earrings, personally.

 

[orangemonster]

I''d go for the bigger as well. My ering has a J princess stone with very SLIGHT fluorescence and it faces up SO WHITE it is incredible!

 

[Jenn5504]

As long as the J and K stones have a great cut then I''d go for bigger for sure!

 

[DIF]

The one with lower weight looking bigger probably had more to do with cut than color or clarity.

The heavier one probably was deep so it didn't look as wide as it could have; this is called low spread.
Also if the lower-weight one was cut better it returned more light, making it seem larger.

 

[san diego searcher]

Thank you all for your kind replies. I decided to take Lorelei''s advice and go look again. I went to a local store today who had well cut stones and they had some in J-K color as well as some whiter ones. I almost bought the 80 point J-K stones but told him I''d sleep on it. I actually wasn''t able to try them on as they weren''t mounted. But he was adamant that they would look substantially larger mounted than the 62 pointers (each) that he had (e color). So now I''m still a bit confused as the 62 pointers looked pretty nice (of course it was a beautiful store with the jewelry lights). So 70 points each would probably be fine. But coming home and doing a Pricescope search I found that although his price wasn''t bad for a lovely retail store, online I could get 80 pts each ear for maybe $500 or so more than the 70 pointers. And maybe it would give me the peace of mind of knowing I was close to a carat...more than I was even considering. So think I''ll work on this tomorrow. Hopefully as you said, I''m getting close.

Thanks all!

 

[Lorelei]

Glad I could help, and please let us know how you get on!

 

[san diego searcher]

Thank you...I will

Date: 1/14/2008 4:32:50 AM
Author: Lorelei
Glad I could help, and please let us know how you get on!

Thank you...I will

 

[san diego searcher]

I ordered the earrings from WF...80 and 83 pts, K color, martini settings....hope I''m doing the right thing...a bit anxious...supposed to be delivered next week...I was expecting they would ship a day or so after placing order but I guess it takes a bit longer. thanks for all your help

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 1/19/2008 10:41:25 AM
Author: san diego searcher
I ordered the earrings from WF...80 and 83 pts, K color, martini settings....hope I''m doing the right thing...a bit anxious...supposed to be delivered next week...I was expecting they would ship a day or so after placing order but I guess it takes a bit longer. thanks for all your help

Great news, if you are not happy in anyway, then it is no problem to return them, but I will anxiously await your verdict!!!

 

[bee*]

Date: 1/19/2008 10:41:25 AM
Author: san diego searcher
I ordered the earrings from WF...80 and 83 pts, K color, martini settings....hope I''m doing the right thing...a bit anxious...supposed to be delivered next week...I was expecting they would ship a day or so after placing order but I guess it takes a bit longer. thanks for all your help

I would have done this as well-I think that you''re doing the right thing in ordering the K. Looking forward to seeing pics.

 

[marcy]

Good choice. I can''t wait to see them.

 

[Sparkalicious]

Date: 1/19/2008 10:41:25 AM
Author: san diego searcher
I ordered the earrings from WF...80 and 83 pts, K color, martini settings....hope I''m doing the right thing...a bit anxious...supposed to be delivered next week...I was expecting they would ship a day or so after placing order but I guess it takes a bit longer. thanks for all your help

Excellent! Thanks for the update ... How exciting!! They should be fabulous.
I know that you were concerned about the martini settings affecting your ear ... I hope that they work out for you!

Just curious ... what ultimately made you decide to go with the martini vs the basket? I''m sorry if you already stated and I missed it somewhere.

 

[HeartingDiamonds]

Great size! Cant wait to see yor photos!

Oh, and I wouldn''t stress about the K color - unless you are super color sensitive, I think its the sparkle that you will see most!

 

[san diego searcher]

Date: 1/19/2008 12:42:59 PM
Author: Sparkalicious

Date: 1/19/2008 10:41:25 AM
Author: san diego searcher
I ordered the earrings from WF...80 and 83 pts, K color, martini settings....hope I''m doing the right thing...a bit anxious...supposed to be delivered next week...I was expecting they would ship a day or so after placing order but I guess it takes a bit longer. thanks for all your help

Excellent! Thanks for the update ... How exciting!! They should be fabulous.
I know that you were concerned about the martini settings affecting your ear ... I hope that they work out for you!

Just curious ... what ultimately made you decide to go with the martini vs the basket? I''m sorry if you already stated and I missed it somewhere.

I was having a hard time right up to the last minute deciding between 4-prong basket and martinis. I went to the mall the night before I was going to be placing my order and tried on two earrings of the approx size I''m getting--one basket and one martini. I don''t really see a huge difference between them but I did have a preference for the martinis and looking at the setting they had at Helzberg Diamonds, I don''t think that point on the back of the earring is small enough to go into your hole to make it stretch...unless you have large holes to begin with. the following morning when I called WF to talk to Bob about my diamonds he suggested strongly in favor of the martinis...he says the baskets droop. So I went for the martinis. Hope I made the right decision. I''m hoping my piercings will heal sufficiently with the platinum that I can take my earrings out at night and not have to worry about my holes closing. I think sleeping with the earrings is unfomfortable and can irritate. That''s my story....just waiting to hear now when they will be delivered!

 

[san diego searcher]

Thank you all for your kind support!

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 1/19/2008 8:17:00 PM
Author: san diego searcher
Thank you all for your kind support!

Most welcome and I am eager to see these babies!!