Size or Sparkle? Ladies, this man needs your help!

[diamondsareaboysbestfriendtoo]

So here I am. I''ve spent weeks doing the research, weeks looking at rocks, and have narrowed it down to two. Both are beautiful Princess diamonds and both she will love. But I can''t decide. And so I turn to you and ask, form a woman''s pespective, would you rather have a rock with a slightly better sparkle, or one with a slightly better size and a smidge of color? Here are the specs:

Contestant # 1 - 1.08ct, VS-2, G Color, Very Good cut. This one has stood out form the beginning because it is a beautifully cut diamond. I''ve compared it to all kinds of rocks and it always has that slightest of edge because of its angles.

Contgestant # 2 - 1.20ct, VS-2, F colour, Very Good cut. The biggest one I''ve looked at, it''sa beautiful rock with a slightly more noticeable size advantage on # 1, and a very small smidge of color superiority. Although my guy says it''s a middle F and # 1 is a very strong G, almost an F, so perhaps color is not a factor.

I wish I had pics but I don''t. On paper, you go with #2, but when you look at them side by side (as I have ad nauseum), one is simple "bigger" and one has more "sparkle," both advantages by a smidge.

Not sure if this makes a difference but the setting I''m going with is a Tiffany''s Lucida-style setting, and I''m told it''s harder to notice the size difference once a rock is set.

As for price, the bigger rock is more, not by much, but I''m not concerned with dollars. I simply want to know, as a woman, would you rather have a rock that sparkles slightly more or one that has a bit more size?

You may all be instrumental in a future proposal.

Thanks in advance.

PS - guys, feel free to weigh in as well if your women have commented on the above dilema.

 

[Ellen]

More sparkle!!

 

[jaz464]

Could you give us the dimensions of the diamonds? Carat weight is not the best way to judge size. If I knew the real size difference, I could give you a more informed choice.

ETA: I thought I was losing it. So there ARE 2 threads. I responded to both of your threads with the same answer.

 

[the other Jake]

You backed yourself into a tough quandry my friend. It''s your own fault for finding two amazing stones...being the only one who has looked at them side by side so you are probably most informed to make the decision. Is their one you are more inclined towards purchasing? I''m guessing price is not a factor. All other things being equal, when someone is looking at the ring they will probably be more likely to see sparkle than .12 ct size with nothing to compare it to. How close are the table measurements? Is one cut deeper than the other?

 

[poptart]

Sparkle. LOTS of sparkle.

*M*

 

[orbaya]

I''m all about the SPARKLE!

 

[diamondlove]

Sparkle! a SPARKLY diamond can look bigger than a less sparkly diamond that''s actually larger in size and it''d be prettier.

 

[stebbo]

'#1 stood out from the beginning' - I think this alone makes it the winner.

If you didn't compare them side by side, would #1 by itself feel like a smaller stone? Assuming equal proportions, 10% difference in weight is not noticeable (even when compared side by side as can be seen from the diagram below). Your proportions might make #2 feel larger when it's on it's own, but it might not.

Knowing table sizes, depth %'s etc won't tell you much more because you've already seen the physical result of these, and it's simply going overboard to compare them optically - for example:

1. Will #1 sparkle noticeably more (or even less) than #2 when mounted, when under typical lighting, and when dirty?

2. Will #2 appear noticeably bigger (or even smaller) than #1 when mounted, when under typical lighting and when dirty?

Simply ask yourself "which is the more ATTRACTIVE stone?", and you'll subconciously take sparkle and size into account.

You can safely ignore the color difference by the way, more sparkle could make #1 appear 'whiter' than #2 anyway.


Stebbo

 

[flower12]

I would go for Sparkle one!

 

[diamondsareaboysbestfriendtoo]

Many many thanks for your .02 - I will need to make a final decision today so I''m going to take one more peek at the two and make the call. It seems like a majority opinion here, and yes, that''s the way I''m leaning also.

Stebbo - thank you very muvh for that detailed response and pics. They were very helpful. I guess I am stuck by the ego thing, thinking "my girl could have a 1.2 rock on her finger" and completely ignoring the fact that a 12 point difference is so subtle yet a slightly better cut isn''t.

Will post measurements if I can and of course, pics when it''s all done.

One more thing - as stated, I''d like to go with the classic Lucida style solitaire setting and if the gf wants someone flashier later, we can always do it. Is there another setting that would show off a single diamond better, or others on here have really liked?

Thanks!

 

[nejarb]

could you do a sort of single-blind test with them? you look at both of them together, and then, not knowing which is which, just choose the one that looks the best to you without trying to identify which is which?

i was going to say that if both are well cut and sparkley, i would go for size. but if one sparkles like crazy and the other doesn''t, then the slight increase in size is not justified.

i don''t subscribe to the argument that a slight difference in size is not noticable. (wait, first let me qualify that when i say size, the stone''s dimensions are more important than carat weight.) if you lines up 21 princess cut stones that grew in size between 5.0mm to 6.0mm in .05 increments, each one would be very close to the one next to it, but they would still all be different sizes! bigger is bigger. it''s more about how much the difference in size is justified compared to another stone that has other qualities you want.

definitely look at the demensions. you may find that the 1.08 is the same size as the 1.20 . or you may find that there is a considerable difference in size. this info should make the decision easier.

by the way, i think g or f vs2 is an excellent choice!

 

[pyramid]

Well as they both sparkle and are both well cut I would go for the larger stone. So for me in this case it is size over sparkle. Size is important.

 

[diamondsareaboysbestfriendtoo]

Here are the dimensions:

#1) 1.08ct VS2 G color Very Good cut: 5.58x5.50x4.05

#2) 1.20ct VS2 F color Very Good cut: 6.00x5.80x4.22


BTW, my guy had two women look at the stones and took a naked eye poll. Both said the bigger stone without hesitation.

I''m making the final decision tonight.

Your continued help is always appreciated.

 

[JulieN]

yeoww

Something very wrong with those numbers.

#1 6.58x6.50x4.05
#2) 7.00x6.80x4.22

?

 

[firebirdgold]

Sparkle Sparkle!

I love getting compliments on my ring which happens fairly frequently, and it ain''t because of it''s size!!

I admire my own ring all the time. Wiggling my finger and watching the sparkles brings a smile to my face every time!

I''d far rather have this ring than something twice as big but not as sparkly!

 

[pyramid]

Princess cuts are smaller in diameter than rounds of the same carat weight. The numbers look right to me.

 

[JulieN]

ignore my ramblings..