Thoughts and Suggestions

[Apoch]

Hello all,

Been reading PS for months as I started shopping for an engagement diamond but am finally posting for the first time to get some thoughts from some educated minds.

I''m not looking for anything big as my lady is on the smaller size. She is also a conductor and therefore can''t have anything that will take away from her performance. She is also a very simple lady but I still want quality over quantity for the diamond I give her.

I''m a bit picky and feel that this is an okay thing as I''m looking for a diamond that shows beauty and a vendor that will offer me the great diamond and ongoing service.

Some basic qualities I''m looking for are:
Carat: .40 - .55 range but mostly looking toward the .41- .43 range
Color: D-F range
Clarity: IF - VVS2 range
Cut: AGS0 ideal, I''ve found that this is my biggest need is the best cut I can get for the color and size I desire while fulfilling clarity requirements within a flexible range.
Polish and Sym: Ideal
Table and Pav must have good proportions to eachother.

Some examples of what I''ve been looking at:

http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/Whiteflash-ACA-cut-diamond-2213235.htmhttp://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/Whiteflash-ACA-cut-diamond-2175399.htmhttp://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/F-IF-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1218739.asphttp://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/F-IF-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1195026.asphttp://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/E-VVS2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1247444.asphttp://www.bluenile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-or-less-ideal-cut-d-color-vvs1-clarity_LD01557732
http://www.bluenile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-or-less-ideal-cut-d-color-vvs1-clarity_LD01625358

I really like the fact that WF offers ASET and IS and also like what I''ve seen at GOG with these extras. As for JA I don''t have anything to go from other than what I''ve read on here. Any thoughts on JA service and product? My father has used Blue Nile and loves them. Any thoughts on what I need to ask or should expect from BN?

Any thoughts or recommendations are welcome.

Thanks!

 

[stone-cold11]

Date: 1/7/2010 2:53:10 PM
Author:Apoch
Hello all,

Been reading PS for months as I started shopping for an engagement diamond but am finally posting for the first time to get some thoughts from some educated minds.

I''m not looking for anything big as my lady is on the smaller size. She is also a conductor and therefore can''t have anything that will take away from her performance. She is also a very simple lady but I still want quality over quantity for the diamond I give her.

I''m a bit picky and feel that this is an okay thing as I''m looking for a diamond that shows beauty and a vendor that will offer me the great diamond and ongoing service.

Some basic qualities I''m looking for are:
Carat: .40 - .55 range but mostly looking toward the .41- .43 range
Color: D-F range
Clarity: IF - VVS2 range
Cut: AGS0 ideal, I''ve found that this is my biggest need is the best cut I can get for the color and size I desire while fulfilling clarity requirements within a flexible range.
Polish and Sym: Ideal
Table and Pav must have good proportions to eachother.

Some examples of what I''ve been looking at:

http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/Whiteflash-ACA-cut-diamond-2213235.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/Whiteflash-ACA-cut-diamond-2175399.htm
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/F-IF-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1218739.asp
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/F-IF-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1195026.asp
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/E-VVS2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1247444.asp
http://www.bluenile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-or-less-ideal-cut-d-color-vvs1-clarity_LD01557732
http://www.bluenile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-or-less-ideal-cut-d-color-vvs1-clarity_LD01625358

I really like the fact that WF offers ASET and IS and also like what I''ve seen at GOG with these extras. As for JA I don''t have anything to go from other than what I''ve read on here. Any thoughts on JA service and product? My father has used Blue Nile and loves them. Any thoughts on what I need to ask or should expect from BN?

Any thoughts or recommendations are welcome.

Thanks!

What do you mean by JA statement? Their True Hearts comes with Heart image and Idealscope image. The last one do not have the idealscope image uploaded yet. Request for it if you are interested in it. The WF and JA stones all look good to me so far.

BN will not be able to provide any images even if you request for it. Also they do not have any upgrade/buy back policy which GOG, WF, JA has although differs in exact terms.

 

[tonyc2387]

Date: 1/7/2010 2:53:10 PM
Author:Apoch
but I still want quality over quantity for the diamond I give her.



Clarity: IF - VVS2 range

Keep in mind that anything at and over VS2, no matter the size of the diamond, will be invisible to the unaided eye. I for sure understand being picky, but I also want a tangible return for my money, kwim? Definitely be picky about the cut though, as that will have an infinitely greater impact on performance than sliding along IF-VS1.

If pressed further, though, I''d also recommend to stick on the other side of the .50ct mark. Don''t quite know what your budget is, but this one caught my eye:
http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/Whiteflash-ACA-cut-diamond-2231115.htm#

 

[marcy]

The WF diamond tonyc2387 looks very pretty. You can easily drop to VS2 or eye clean Si''s and have a beautiful diamond.

 

[Apoch]

Thanks Stone-cold11, Tonyc2387 and Marcyc for your input.

Stone-cold11, I guess to clarify the JA question that I asked in my post is that I hear a lot of posters on PS that have great experiences with WF and GOG. However, I haven''t heard as many posters talk about James Allen and Blue Nile. I like that JA does offer a look at the diamond and an IS. I was wondering how they match up with WF and GOG.

Tonyc2387 and Marcyc, that is a beautiful stone. I have thought about dropping the clarity as this is the most variable factor in my choice. I do still feel that and eye clean SI or VS stone would be in my buying picture but if the price is within a couple hundred and I can get a higher clarity I might as well.

Again, thanks for your input and ongoing support.