SI2 - what type of inclusions are these?

[dinamit]

Hello everyone,

I am still very much a newbie on this gorgeous website - I just love, love, love Pricescope and think that my knowledge is improving, however spending time here is becoming a bit of an obsession

. Well, at least now I have one that''s comparable to my b-friend''s ones for golf and chess, so he can''t really say anything!

Here is a pic of an SI2 stone that has pretty good numbers and is a GIA very good cut, symmetry and polish, however I can''t tell how bad these inclusions might look in real life. Can someone please explain what type of incusions they are? They appear to be quite close to the surface of the stone. Also, the GIA certificate doesn''t have a diagram with the inclusions, which worries me a little. Is this a sort of more basic report? It''s from 2008.

Thanks!

 

[Ellen]

If there's nothing on the report, you'll need the vendor to tell you what they are, and to look it over and tell you if it's eyeclean, by your definition. There's no way for us to know what they might be, it would purely be guessing.

ETA Forgot to address the cert. GIA does an abbreviated version called a dossier, usually this is for smaller stones. It costs to have a full report done, so with stones that bring in less, they use the less expensiver grading report, which doesn't have the plot.

 

[stone-cold11]

Date: 6/18/2009 11:30:15 AM
Author: Ellen
If there''s nothing on the report, you''ll need the vendor to tell you what they are, and to look it over and tell you if it''s eyeclean, by your definition. There''s no way for us to know what they might be, it would purely be guessing.

ETA Forgot to address the cert. GIA does an abbreviated version called a dossier, usually this is for smaller stones. It costs to have a full report done, so with stones that bring in less, they use the less expensiver grading report, which doesn''t have the plot.

Ditto, but they should have listed the clarity characteristic of that stone there. No?

 

[dinamit]

Dear Ellen and Stone-Cold,

Thanks for your replies, and especially for the certificate explanation. It states that it''s an SI2 stone, with ''crystal'' clarity characteristics. I don''t really have an opinion on this as I don''t know what it means. The vendor says it''s eye clean, but I am not sure whether that''s accurate and I am being careful as I would be buying from abroad.

The HCA score is 1.

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 6/18/2009 11:30:15 AM
Author: Ellen
If there''s nothing on the report, you''ll need the vendor to tell you what they are, and to look it over and tell you if it''s eyeclean, by your definition. There''s no way for us to know what they might be, it would purely be guessing.

ETA Forgot to address the cert. GIA does an abbreviated version called a dossier, usually this is for smaller stones. It costs to have a full report done, so with stones that bring in less, they use the less expensiver grading report, which doesn''t have the plot.

Indeed! A crystal/s is a type of inclusion, who is the seller of this diamond?

 

[stone-cold11]

That means that the inclusions are other crystals, diamonds or otherwise. No way to tell if it is eye-clean from an image. Only the vendor looking at the stone physically can say for sure.

 

[Lorelei]

Also what are the proportions of this diamond please? It looks dark in the photo.

 

[Ellen]

Date: 6/18/2009 11:56:26 AM
Author: dinamit
Dear Ellen and Stone-Cold,

Thanks for your replies, and especially for the certificate explanation. It states that it''s an SI2 stone, with ''crystal'' clarity characteristics. I don''t really have an opinion on this as I don''t know what it means. The vendor says it''s eye clean, but I am not sure whether that''s accurate and I am being careful as I would be buying from abroad.

The HCA score is 1.

Can you tell me what the stats are that gave you this score?

As the others pointed out, you have "part" of your answer, the inclusions are crystals. That tells us a little, but not the whole story. The vendor can tell you more about them and their chracteristics.

What is the vendors definition of eyeclean? Is it yours? For instance, if you don''t want to see anything from any distance and angle, you need to tell them that and see if it still passses.

 

[dinamit]

Hello all,

Thanks so much for your responses. I did, in fact, post the stats of this stone previously and realise I should have probably continued there but it''s quite an old thread.

Here is the link for the report, sorry for making you look it again:

http://www2.gia.edu/reportcheck/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.showReportVerification&reportno=17345766&weight=0.95

I entered those stats on the HCA and got a score of 1, despite it being graded ''very good''.

Yes, my idea of ''eye clean'' is no visible inclusions under any conditions, but I guess that''s too much to expect from an SI2.

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 6/18/2009 3:23:13 PM
Author: dinamit
Hello all,

Thanks so much for your responses. I did, in fact, post the stats of this stone previously and realise I should have probably continued there but it''s quite an old thread.

Here is the link for the report, sorry for making you look it again:

http://www2.gia.edu/reportcheck/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.showReportVerification&reportno=17345766&weight=0.95

I entered those stats on the HCA and got a score of 1, despite it being graded ''very good''.

Yes, my idea of ''eye clean'' is no visible inclusions under any conditions, but I guess that''s too much to expect from an SI2.

Numbers look ok, your idea of eyeclean being no visible inclusions under any circumstances is fine, but it might take a bit of searching with SI grades to find one which measures up. They are out there but SI clarities are not created equal. If you don''t have much time to look then I would suggest SI1 or higher for clarity to narrow the field for finding a totally eyeclean diamond.

 

[stone-cold11]

So is this stone in your possession now and you can see the inclusions or is it just from the vendor''s photo that you think you are seeing something?

 

[dinamit]

Lorelei - thanks for your feedback on the numbers.

Stone-cold11, I don''t have the stone yet but it''s on its way and the photo worried me a little. Still, there''s a good return policy I suppose. I''ll post pictures when I receive it.

 

[stone-cold11]

Ok, don''t worry too much. One thing to note about eye-clean stone is that for some inclusions once you know what and where to look for the inclusions, it will be easily seen again. So best is to look at the stone without comparing it to the photo and try and find it. If you can''t find it then it is eye-clean.

 

[ILoveDiamondsToo]

I have a beautiful eyeclean SI2 from Brian Gavin. It''s inclusions are twinning wisps that I find hard to see even with my loupe. They are out there, you just have to persevere.

 

[Richard Sherwood]

It''s tough to tell from a photo, but it looks like it''s probably a pretty nice SI2, with the possibility of being eyeclean.

I''d be curious as to your impression when viewing it.

 

[dinamit]

The stone arrived today (talk about timing) and OK, it''s not an ideal cut or H&A, but I think it''s really very beautiful. As with regard to the inclusions, it''s pretty much as Stone-Cold11 said, I can see them if I go up very closely, having just looked at the photo. Otherwise I can''t see them, and my soon-to-be fi can''t see them at all. Since we only have a GIA dossier, we might have it appraised independently and get an inclusions diagram anyway.

I have tried to take a few pics to post but had no luck with this

. I read the guide to taking photos of diamonds but we have a bog standard digital point and shoot. All I get are blurry, fiery shots. Any suggestions?

Now the setting search can commence...I have an idea of what I want but not sure where to find it. I like contemporary rings, simple in design, and yet with a bit of a feature. I quite like Etienne Perret, however we are in the UK. Any suggestions?

Btw, any tips on how to ''handle'' loose diamonds without the professional tweezery thing? I think I might have already left fingerprints all over it, even though I''ve tried to pick it up by the sides.

All input greatly appreciated!

 

[Ellen]

Date: 6/19/2009 9:12:46 AM
Author: dinamit
The stone arrived today (talk about timing) and OK, it''s not an ideal cut or H&A, but I think it''s really very beautiful. As with regard to the inclusions, it''s pretty much as Stone-Cold11 said, I can see them if I go up very closely, having just looked at the photo. Otherwise I can''t see them, and my soon-to-be fi can''t see them at all. Since we only have a GIA dossier, we might have it appraised independently and get an inclusions diagram anyway.

I have tried to take a few pics to post but had no luck with this

. I read the guide to taking photos of diamonds but we have a bog standard digital point and shoot. All I get are blurry, fiery shots. Any suggestions?

Now the setting search can commence...I have an idea of what I want but not sure where to find it. I like contemporary rings, simple in design, and yet with a bit of a feature. I quite like Etienne Perret, however we are in the UK. Any suggestions?

Btw, any tips on how to ''handle'' loose diamonds without the professional tweezery thing? I think I might have already left fingerprints all over it, even though I''ve tried to pick it up by the sides.

All input greatly appreciated!

Does your camera have macro mode? If so and that''s turned on, holding really still is of utmost importance.

Are you thinking of going custom with your setting?

Outside of tweezers, a clean, lint free cloth is another way to handle it and keep it clean.

And congrats!!

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 6/19/2009 9:12:46 AM
Author: dinamit
The stone arrived today (talk about timing) and OK, it''s not an ideal cut or H&A, but I think it''s really very beautiful. As with regard to the inclusions, it''s pretty much as Stone-Cold11 said, I can see them if I go up very closely, having just looked at the photo. Otherwise I can''t see them, and my soon-to-be fi can''t see them at all. Since we only have a GIA dossier, we might have it appraised independently and get an inclusions diagram anyway.

This is always what happens, its normal. Glad the inclusions are ok with you!

 

[stone-cold11]

Congrats on the stone.

yap, macro mode. Best if you have a tripod, if not, try setting it on a firm surface and use the timer setting to prevent trigger shake.

Shouldn''t the stone comes with a lint free cloth?

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Date: 6/18/2009 5:48:01 PM
Author: Stone-cold11
Ok, don''t worry too much. One thing to note about eye-clean stone is that for some inclusions once you know what and where to look for the inclusions, it will be easily seen again. So best is to look at the stone without comparing it to the photo and try and find it. If you can''t find it then it is eye-clean.

Ditto, and sometimes the stone might look clean when it''s clean, but the inclusions show when it''s dirty.

 

[dinamit]

Hi All,

Yes, I have a cloth which I have been using to handle the diamond.

Ellen, I am seriously thinking of getting a custom made ring but have to research this as I don''t know many jewellers (in the UK) that match my taste/style. Perhaps Lorelei might be able to suggest some reputable jewellery makers?

Still trying to get a decent pic of the stone, hopefully I will be able to post one soon.

Can hardly wait to get the stone set now!

 

[WinkHPD]

Date: 6/18/2009 11:15:50 AM
Author:dinamit
Hello everyone,

I am still very much a newbie on this gorgeous website - I just love, love, love Pricescope and think that my knowledge is improving, however spending time here is becoming a bit of an obsession

. Well, at least now I have one that's comparable to my b-friend's ones for golf and chess, so he can't really say anything!

Here is a pic of an SI2 stone that has pretty good numbers and is a GIA very good cut, symmetry and polish, however I can't tell how bad these inclusions might look in real life. Can someone please explain what type of incusions they are? They appear to be quite close to the surface of the stone. Also, the GIA certificate doesn't have a diagram with the inclusions, which worries me a little. Is this a sort of more basic report? It's from 2008.

Thanks!

LOL! When I first saw this post I thought it was one of my pictures with my old camera. Show too much and hide the beauty.

I am going to guess first then go read the thread, I know my friends John and Paul tell me not to do this, but the fun is to reply then see what happened in the bunch of posts already made.

My take of this stone, having taken many hundreds of photos like it, and also basing it on the HCA of 1 is that the diamond is going to be beautiful. The crystals are colorless and they will not be magnified in your eyes the way they are in the photo. Thus the likely hood of this diamond being eye clean or extremely eye-cleanish are VERY high.

With no diagram of your inclusions I am going to guess that you have the Dossier type report and no, this is not something that you need worry about.

One thing for sure, you will need to see the diamond to see how YOUR EYES perceive the look of the diamond and the visibility/non visibility of the diamond.

Good luck.

Wink

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 6/21/2009 6:12:43 AM
Author: dinamit
Hi All,

Yes, I have a cloth which I have been using to handle the diamond.

Ellen, I am seriously thinking of getting a custom made ring but have to research this as I don''t know many jewellers (in the UK) that match my taste/style. Perhaps Lorelei might be able to suggest some reputable jewellery makers?

Still trying to get a decent pic of the stone, hopefully I will be able to post one soon.

Can hardly wait to get the stone set now!

You could try Dr Indira Marchant at www.bestdiamonds.co.uk she might be able to do custom or suggest someone who can.

 

[dinamit]

Wink, thanks so much for contributing, you sure know how to make a girl happy!

I had a strange experience today. I went to Hatton Garden, London''s jewellery quarter, to look at settings for inspiration and since I was there I popped into EGL. I am very well aware of EGL''s reputation, especially EGL Europe, but thought I''d get a quick verbal appraisal just to make sure the cert matches the stone etc (call me paranoid). To my (unpleasant) surprise, I was told that my stone is a ''G'' and ''just'' an SI2, in their opinion, however the stone is definitely the one I have the GIA cert for. Having examined their master stones, my stone has a bit more colour than their ''F'' but is a lot whiter than their ''G''. I find this diamond beautiful anyway, but was surprised by this as I have repeatedly read that EGL often grades up, not down. Anyone else had this experience?

Anyhow, I later visited quite a few jewellers who remarked how beautiful and perfectly proportioned the diamond is, so it''s not too much of a problem. She''s a beauty despite those crystals.

Over and out.