thoughts for a newbie on these 4 diamonds?

[digrox]

Hi all--

I''m looking for a round brilliant diamond around 0.75 carats and have a budget of about $3000 for the diamond plus the ring. (My girlfriend likes the plain ol'' Tiffany-style solitaire settings in white gold, which look to run about $200, at WF at least, so I''m looking at about $2800 max for the diamond.) I''m a grad student, so spending a bit less is a very good thing, but I also don''t want to sacrifice on quality. SI1 or even SI2 should be fine for clarity; we''re both geologists and thus have some tolerance for inclusions. I''ve finally taken a stab at narrowing down the candidates and am thinking about the following:

http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-SI2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-936509.asp?b=16&a=12&c=77&cid=131

http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-471576.htm

http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-471575.htm

http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-471537.htm

Thoughts or suggestions? Thanks for any help. The education I''ve received thus far from this website and its forums is fabulous.

Cheers,
digrox

 

[digrox]

Oops-- here are those URLs as *links*...

http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-SI2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-936509.asp?b=16&a=12&c=77&cid=131

http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-471576.htm

http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-471575.htm

http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/A-Cut-Above-H-A-cut-diamond-471537.htm

 

[Sparkalicious]

Hi Digrox!

Of your 4 choices, I like this one the best!

I love the G color and it appears to look a little cleaner, inclusion wise than the other choices.

My second favorite is this one as it is an A Cut Above diamond

I do prefer the G color to the H in this one though.

Just my 2 cents!

 

[Lorelei]

Hi Digrocks!

Well, you have certainly done your homework and picked some fabulously cut diamonds!!! They are all excellent, so I think base your choices on whether you want the ' pedigree' of the branded ACA, or any of the others depending on your other preferences and eyecleanliness according to the vendor's descriptions. Good job!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I''d choose the .78 G SI1 if it is eyeclean. Ask about that.

http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/Round-Ideal-Cut-cut-diamond-471575.htm

 

[Ellen]

They''re all nice looking as far as numbers and IS pics. In stones under 1 ct., small size differences are more noticable, so if you want the biggest, obviously you''d go for the .78. And of course, eyecleanliness needs to be determined in any of them.

If it''s in budget, I''d shoot for the .78.

 

[digrox]

Thanks very much for your feedback, all. The 0.78 is barely-but-definitely within budget. Checked with the good folks at WF and it''s eye-clean as well. Looks like that one''s the choice. For me, a diamond purchase initially seemed big and daunting and bewildering, thanks again to Pricescope and its users for steering me in the right direction!

 

[Sparkalicious]

You''re welcome! Congrats on finding a lovely diamond!