So after those two, you''d THINK I''d be done, right? ......

[aljdewey]

uh........um...............but NO!

While on the hunting expedition for Tina''s stone, I (OF COURSE) ....HAD to just look around to see what else
was in. (Big mistake ladies........costly too!

)
Well, what do I see? This .741 J, SI2 ACA stone that''s just unbelieeeeeeeeeeeevably priced, and nearly
screaming out to me! So, of course, only the sickest of minds can do (hello, LYNN? MARA??? heheheh), my
wheels start humming like a hamster wheel.

Many of you may remember that I brought home a .56 J, SI2 pendant from WF resulting from my whirlwind ride
on the "Mara upgrade" tour. At the time, I figured that getting a solitaire would give me the option to wear something
a bit more plain and change it up every now and then. I wore it for the whole two months I had my halo out on loaner
(for reproduction purposes). When I got my halo back, though, the solitaire went into the box, and I find I never wear
it. I''m too attached to the halo and all that it means for me (it was MY 40th birthday piece).
Not only is it damn near CRIMINAL to have something that beautiful sitting in a box.....but for me, I hate to spend that
kind of money on something that doesn''t get enough use to warrant it. So, what to do? (Now I know those of you who DO
share the psychosis are already way ahead of me in surmising the conclusion here......lol)....
So I began thinking how to parlay that .56 into something I''d get more wear from. I''ve had leverback dangle earrings on my
wishlist for at least 2 years now. However, since my studs are .55 each, I really wanted something a bit "more", especially since
these will hang below the ear. VOILA....problem solved! I traded the .56 J for the .741 J, with the plan to set it now into the
pendant setting (so I could choose to wear it if I wanted to) and find a mate for it in the spring to make my long-coveted leverback
earrings.

This shot looks SO clean......

compared to what I expected from looking at the grading report.....

 

[Tacori E-ring]

ah, I cannot see the pics!

 

[aljdewey]

.............and now for the rest of the story.....

I had a "diamondseeker" moment after I bought this stone. While I loved it, I'd had my eye on two H, SI2 ES stones in that range.
H, SI2 (eyeclean) is my absolutely nirvana.....it's what my e-ring is.

I lovvvvvvvvvvve my J stones in my studs, and even in my halo......but for something that will be dangling, I'd really LOVE to get
into H stones........they will be at eye-level (to most of the women I know - we're all midgets), and they're more likely to show the
profile a bit more when they are swinging.

My chief concern with the H stones? One looked like it might not be eyeclean, so I didn't even bother asking. Also, I wasn't really
prepared to spend for the second stone until the spring. I talked myself out of even asking about the H stones and went with this J instead.

And then the "diamondseeker" moment arrived.....I couldn't get the H stones out of my head. Especially when I stopped to consider
that they were only $200 more each than the .74 J......for jumping up two steps in color! They are EACH about $600 less than a
comparable H, SI2 H&A stone, so HUGE savings.

On top of that, I watch things like a HAWK, so I can tell you that .7x stones in the H-J, SI1-2 range aren't abundant, and I worried about being able to come up with a match in the spring.

(A friend of mine is getting married in October 2007, and the plan is for her to borrow these, so I don't have unlimited months
to sit around waiting for a match to appear.)

So, I consulted with my "personal diamond fanatic shoppers" (you know who you are! heeeeeeee) and decided to suck it up and
take the birds in the hand now. I'm buying the Hs!!!!!!

Sooooooooooo.............this screamingly lovely J is going back to the mecca within the next few days and will be up for grabs, ladies!
It's a gorgeous stone........which you'd expect from an ACA. When they get it, they'll send me the H stones....one of which will go into
the pendant until I come up with a leverback dangle design (hopefully with a little help here). Maybe Irina will even get in on the act....
which I hope, because she's just AMAZINGLY talented.

Can't wait to see if someone from PS adopts this one!

 

[Ellen]

Very pretty Alj! I like that style pendant.

Guess I don''t need to say, be sure and post the set when you get them...

 

[Ellen]

Date: 1/5/2007 10:48:15 PM
Author: Ellen
Very pretty Alj! I like that style pendant.

Guess I don''t need to say, be sure and post the set when you get them...

Nevermind.

Congrats!

 

[diamondfan]

Can never see the pics but trust you it is a lovely stone, and congrats, what a smart way to go!

 

[Kaleigh]

Crap all I see are those red X''s. I blame belle!!!!!

 

[aljdewey]

Ladies, it's probably because I dragged/dropped them in, and it will take a bit to catch up.

Sorry.....I'm sure they'll show up soon.

ETA - Ok, I'm asking about it now with moderators to see why they won't show. I dropped them in from ofoto.com (kodak)

 

[kcoursolle]

You''ve been busy!!! Congratulations, I love all of your purchases. This pendant is very stunning, I''d love to see some more pics if you''ve got em. Santa brought you some very nice bligies!

 

[aljdewey]

Ok - gonna put them up the old-fashioned way - hosting thing isn''t doing it for me. LOL

Here goes....

 

[aljdewey]

...

 

[aljdewey]

/......

 

[aljdewey]

...

 

[aljdewey]

I was amazed at how clear the above shots were, considering what the plot made me expect

Just goes to show, you can''t rely solely on the plot.....

 

[aljdewey]

last one for now....

 

[sevens one]

Boy, all these new
stones.
You lucky Gal.

This one is another winner.
Enjoy

 

[Sundial]

It is beautiful Al. You are my kind of shopper - buy something for a friend and buy something for yourself at the same time!!!

 

[Kaleigh]

It''s such a thoughtful gift, one that your friend will remember always. Makes turning the BIG 40 not so bad after all. Kudo''s to you!!!!

 

[Skippy123]

gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous!

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

It just gets better and better!!

cheers--Sharon

 

[CrownJewel]

Alj, all these beautiful new diamonds! You''re surrounded! If you turn on the shower do diamonds flow out? If only...

Anyway, your new pendant stone is beautiful! So CLEAN looking!!

 

[FireGoddess]

Beauty! Can''t wait to see the future leverbacks this puppy is going back to the farm in order to get!!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

It''s just great to have a "diamondseeker moment" when you have a return or upgrade policy, isn''t it?! That''s why I wouldn''t even consider buying diamonds for the rest of my life without those options!

I think you made a great choice! And you are very right about H stones being hard to get in the .7-.8 range. It took me soooo long to find mine. Thank goodness we were looking for slightly different specs! However, I do envy your being able to find ES stones. I would have bought AGS0 ES stones if I could have found them. Of course, I didn''t have an ACA and sort of wanted to have at least one, so I guess it worked out good in the end! I''ll try to get some better pictures today! And I''ll look forward to seeing your new project completed!!!