Store Display Question

[Adrienne2006]

Hey everyone,
I just returned from a fancy jewelry store in my area they sell Rolex, David yurman, etc. A brick and mortar is so frustrating after you've been on PS for awhile. I knew prices were going to be higher but they ended up being laughable, insane. I wanted my finger sized to 1/8th inches, she had no clue what I was talking about and told me there were only half sizes I wanted to see which version of pave I preferred, apperently there are only 2 kinds micro and pave Whatever I expected it but I wish they were better trained.

Moving on. This store had CZ in the settings and the loose stones in lil boxes. I grabbed what I thought looked like a 1 ct ring, loved it, and she said its CZ but its representative of a 2.0 carat size. We both knew carat is a weight but it looked tiny. Ive tried on real 1ct before at Tiffanys and it looked huge. So...

1) do I have a PS case of DSS
2) I've been seeing too many vendor glamour shots
3) can CZ even represent a diamond size? Factors like cut, refraction, idk any reason you can't go off a CZ.

Loose stones looked small too but I read that's because it's unset.

I'm little over a size 6 ring so the ring was a tad tight, perhaps sausage finger effect shrunk it

Hoping its not DSS, DSS on a ring I don't even own yet. Wow new low lol.

 

[chrono]

Yup, it could be DSS but I think it is the case of seeing too many diamond pictures on PS that are hugely magnified. A CZ should face up the same size as an ideal cut diamond.

 

[Adrienne2006]

Ahh

 

[kenny]

A CZ should face up the same size as an ideal cut diamond.

To clarify...
CZ is 60% more dense than diamond so a 1 ct CZ cut to the same proportions as a 1 ct diamond will be smaller than the diamond.
That said, the CZ market sells what they call 1 ct CZs that are actually 1.6 ct in weight but fact up like a 1 ct diamond.

Sources:
http://www.zirconias.com/support/zirconia.asp
Because the cubic zirconia stone is so dense and solid, it outweighs a diamond of the same millimeter size, weighing 1.7 times more than a diamond of the same millimeter diameter. When we talk about carat weight to describe a CZ, we use the diamond equivalent weight or the diameter of the stone in milimeters.


From Wikipedia on cubic zirconia:
CZ is a dense substance, with a specific gravity between 5.6 and 6.0 — at least 1.6 times that of diamond.
Specific gravity: cubic zirconia is about 1.7 times denser than diamond.

 

[chrono]

Kenny,
I should clarify what I meant. I did not say that 1 ct CZ is going to face up the same size as a 1 ct diamond. When stores use CZs in their display cases, they use standard calibrated sizes so they are going to face up the same as a 1 ct or 2 ct diamond or whatever size it is supposed to look like. The settings in the displays are in standard sizes meant to fit a 1 ct or 2 ct diamond.

 

[MustangGal]

It's also completely possible the salesperson got the size wrong when quoting what size CZ was in the setting. Most I've seen in display cases tend to be 1ct size.

 

[rubybeth]

You could also have them measure the stone, or bring your own measuring device (there are phone apps that do this). A 1 carat equivalent will be about 6.4mm. Also, if you have a ring that you wear that you know the width of, you can eyeball it to estimate. I wear 3 2mm rings stacked, so if I see a stone that is slightly wider than my rings, I know it's about a carat.