Thoughts on this diamond?

[RockyAMC]

Hello all,

I have the following diamond on hold until Monday. Curious to know everyone's thoughts on the specs. It's priced at $4000 (budget is $5000). Is this a good price or should I keep looking? She wants a halo setting. Saw the hearts and arrows and was eye clean. Thank you!


Measurements
6.41 - 6.43 x 3.97 mm
Carat Weight
1.00 carat
Color Grade
I
Clarity Grade
SI2
Cut Grade
Excellent

Depth
61.8 %
Table
55 %
Crown Angle
34.5°
Crown Height
15.5%
Pavilion Angle
40.8°
Pavilion Depth
43.0%
Star Length
50%
Lower Half
80%
Girdle
Medium, Faceted, 3.5%
Culet
None
Polish
Excellent
Symmetry
Excellent

Fluorescence
Strong Blue

 

[RockyAMC]

cleaning up the specs a bit to make it easier to read...

Measurements: 6.41 - 6.43 x 3.97 mm
Carat Weight: 1.00 carat
Color Grade: I
Clarity Grade: SI2
Cut Grade: Excellent
Depth: 61.8 %
Table: 55 %
Crown Angle: 34.5°
Crown Height: 15.5%
Pavilion Angle: 40.8°
Pavilion Depth: 43.0%
Star Length: 50%
Lower Half: 80%
Girdle: Medium, Faceted, 3.5%
Culet: None
Polish: Excellent
Symmetry: Excellent
Fluorescence: Strong Blue

 

[Gypsy]

Are they eyeclean?

And are they over blue from the Strong Blue?

Get an image.

 

[RockyAMC]

Thank you for replying! Eye clean, yes. Sorry can you explain, "And are they over blue from the Strong Blue? "
I'm a newbie so I'm clueless. This is from a jeweler I saw today in the Diamond District.

 

[Gypsy]

Oh boy.

Okay. So read this: https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/diamond-flourescence Over-blue means: In a small number of cases, usually in the strong and very strong categories, fluorescence can cause a loss of transparency giving the diamond a hazy, milky or oily appearance when exposed to UV light of sufficient intensity.

So you have to see if the stone if over-blue. Of course since this is probably the first time you've even paid attention to a diamond, you won't know. And if your vendor is reputable, they would be able to tell you. If not, then they may lie. So look at it carefully instead in direct sunlight.

Round Diamonds 101:

The entire purpose of faceting a diamond is to reflect light.
How well or how poorly a diamond does this determines how beautiful it is.
How well a diamond performs is determined by the angles and cutting. This is why we say cut is king.
No other factor: not color, not clarity has as much of an impact on the appearance of a diamond as its cut. An ideal H will out white a poorly cut F. With round diamonds even a GIA triple Excellent is not enough. And you must stick to GIA and AGS only (HPD in Europe is good as well). EGL is a bad option: [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/egl-certification-are-any-of-them-ok.142863/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/egl-certification-are-any-of-them-ok.142863/[/URL]
So how to we ensure that we have the right angles and cutting to get the light performance we want?
https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/diamond-cut
Well one method is to start with a GIA Ex, and then apply the HCA to it. YOU DO NOT USE HCA for AGS0 stones generally, though you can. In general, AGS0 trumps HCA though as one examines the actual stone and the other does not.
https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/holloway-cut-advisor
The HCA is a rejection tool. Not a selection tool. It uses 4 data points to make a rudimentary call on how the diamond may perform.
If the diamond passes then you know that you are in the right zone in terms of angles for light performance. Under 2 is a pass. Under 2.5-2.1 is a maybe. 2.6 and over is a no. No score 2 and under is better than any other.
Is that enough? Not really.

So what you need is a way to check actual light performance of your actual stone.
That's what an idealscope image does. https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/firescope-idealscope
It shows you how and wear your diamond is reflecting light, how well it is going at it, and where you are losing light return. That is why you won't see us recommending Blue Nile, as they do not provide idealscope images for their diamonds. BGD,BE, James Allen, GOG, HPD, ERD and WF do.

The Idealscope is the 'selection tool'. Not the HCA.
So yes, with a GIA stone you need the idealscope images. Or you can buy an idealscope yourself and take it in to the jeweler you are working with to check the stones yourself. Or if you have a good return policy (full refund minimum 7 days) then you can buy the idealscope, buy the stone, and do it at home.

Now if you want to skip all that... stick to AGS0 stones and then all you have to do is pick color and clarity and you know you have a great performing diamond. Because AGS has already done the checking for you. That's why they trade at a premium. Some AGS0's are better than others though, so pay attention to any ASET or IS provided.

In general with rounds, you will want a table 60% or less. A depth between 59 and 62.4. Crown angle 33.5-36. Pavilion Angle: 40.6-41 (there is a little give on this). And the crown and pavilion angles must be complimentary which is what the HCA checks for you.

ON COLOR:

It is important to remember is that color is graded FACE DOWN. Where there is NO light return. Not face up where there is light return and refraction. You wear diamonds set. FACE UP.

Within one color grade, even the labs can't agree on the color grades of stones and something could be a "high" H or a "low" E. So... no. Not really. Within 2 color grades it is hard. Not impossible. But very hard. And it gets harder once set. If you are talking ideal rounds, or any stone with ideal light return and no sharp corners it gets harder still because the ideal light return masks body color.

Generally we say to be conservative stay above H in a round. But MANY people have happily bought white I or even J diamonds when trying to eek out a little more size.

This is how I think of it.

Ever gotten one of those HUGE paint fan decks? Where there are literally 100s of colors of whites? And when they are RIGHT next to each other you can TOTALLY tell that one is bluer/colder and one is a bit warmer and which one is one is TOTALLY warmer. One there's one that's slightly greener. One that's slightly pinker? But really. They are all white?

Then you pick one after agonizing over this white or that white and when it's on the walls and people are like: Oh. You painted again. And it's STILL white. Great.

And you're all... BUT it's BLUE white. Or it's a WARM white now. It used to be ____ white. It's TOTALLY different.

It's like that. You are talking about shades of white. D is colder... J is warmer. But it's all white.

YES. If you have an accurately graded F and an H THAT HAVE THE SAME PERFORMANCE you are going to be able to tell them apart when you compare them. Just like you would be able to tell if you painted your walls a warm white, but painted the crown molding a cold/straight white. But both are STILL white.


I want you notice all the qualifiers thought. I'm talking about stones with the SAME performance. An ideal H will out white an F that has compromised light performance from a poor cut.

NOTHING impacts the appearance of a diamond as much as cut. CUT is king.

You want the shinest whitest and brightest diamond out there: Cut is King. No other factor, not color or clarity or anything else impacts how white bright an shiny a stone is.

ON CLARITY:
http://www.goodoldgold.com/4Cs/Clarity/SI/ and http://www.goodoldgold.com/4Cs/Clarity/VS/ Generally we say that eyeclean SI1 and VS2 are as high as you need to go with round brilliants, have your vendor check the diamond for this. VS1 will always be eyeclean, but they do cost more and an eyeclean SI1 and a VS1 will look the same to the unaided eye.

 

[RockyAMC]

Thank you Gypsy!

I read most of what you posted on a previous thread before I went to see this one at ID Jewelry (went there based on numerous reviews from here). I kept most of it (proportions, cut, color, hearts and arrows, looking through an idealscope, etc) all top of mind when I went in to view. I just didn't think florescence was one to pay super close attention to. I'm gathering its one I should pass on? For my budget do you think something better will come along?

 

[ADN]

Thank you Gypsy!

I read most of what you posted on a previous thread before I went to see this one at ID Jewelry (went there based on numerous reviews from here). I kept most of it (proportions, cut, color, hearts and arrows, looking through an idealscope, etc) all top of mind when I went in to view. I just didn't think florescence was one to pay super close attention to. I'm gathering its one I should pass on? For my budget do you think something better will come along?

Hey mate - I'm in the trade so I can't comment on this stone specifically, but fluorescence and any effect it might have simply depends on the individual stone - and if you can see (or are told by a trusted dealer) that the fluoro in any stone you're looking at is fine, I wouldn't put too much more thought into it. And because of normal discounting, fluorescence might also be an excellent way to get a beautiful diamond that might normally be a little bit out of your price range without it. So if you find a stone with strong or very strong fluoro and there is no effect outside of direct UV, you might want to consider it as your cost price can come way down. Many people happily own diamonds for their entire lifetimes without ever being aware of the presence or absence of fluorescence in their stones.
Hope this helps

 

[Gypsy]

OK. If it's at IDJ just make sure it's not overblue.

That's all I said. Make sure it's nor overblue and you are good to go.