Thoughts on this radiant - Updated with video!

[NachosForTwo]

Earlier this week I asked about a radiant I was looking at in this thread: [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/thoughts-on-this-radiant-cut.174038/#p3167650']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/thoughts-on-this-radiant-cut.174038/#p3167650[/URL]

Many of you asked for pictures, but I've done better, I have a video to share! (sorry about the camera quality)

**edited by moderator. please read our policies on videos to protect personal privacy**

Here are the diamonds specs again:

1.11 carat
Clarity: VVS2
Color: H
Measurements: 6.24x5.7x3.48 (ratio 1.09)
Depth: 61.1%
Table: 69%
Crown Height: 11.8%
Polish: Excellent
Symmetry: Very Good
Girdle: Medium
Fluorescence: Slight blue
Cert: EGL USA
Price: $2700 (this admittedly is the part I like the best)

Again, your thoughts and advice are much appreciated.

 

[NachosForTwo]

My personal thoughts are that it looks like a nice diamond and seems to have quite a bit of fire. One thing I'm concerned about though is how from certain angles one of the quadrants looks dark. Skip to 0:50 in the video to see what I'm talking about. Is this normal?

 

[Laila619]

From some angles, it looks really pretty and sparkly!

However, at other angles, it looks like the edges (the outer borders) of the stone are leaky...you can almost see the black background through them.

 

[NachosForTwo]

From some angles, it looks really pretty and sparkly!

However, at other angles, it looks like the edges (the outer borders) of the stone are leaky...you can almost see the black background through them.

Okay, I think I can see what you're talking about. Is light leakage also responsible for a quadrant of the diamond looking dark when it's tilted?

 

[Laila619]

From some angles, it looks really pretty and sparkly!

However, at other angles, it looks like the edges (the outer borders) of the stone are leaky...you can almost see the black background through them.

Okay, I think I can see what you're talking about. Is light leakage also responsible for a quadrant of the diamond looking dark when it's tilted?

I'm really not sure what causes that, sorry. I did see the dark area you were referring to in the video though. We need a fancy cut expert to come along and give his/her thoughts.

I don't blame you for liking the stone though. At that price, I'd be really tempted too!

By the way, every time I see your screen name I want nachos.

 

[NachosForTwo]

From some angles, it looks really pretty and sparkly!

However, at other angles, it looks like the edges (the outer borders) of the stone are leaky...you can almost see the black background through them.

Okay, I think I can see what you're talking about. Is light leakage also responsible for a quadrant of the diamond looking dark when it's tilted?

I'm really not sure what causes that, sorry. I did see the dark area you were referring to in the video though. We need a fancy cut expert to come along and give his/her thoughts.

I don't blame you for liking the stone though. At that price, I'd be really tempted too!

By the way, every time I see your screen name I want nachos.

Ha, Nachos For Two is actually the name of a song, but I think it makes a nice username too! I've always thought it has a quirky romanticism to it.

And yeah, I'm hoping someone can help out on the "lights going out" in the quadrant issue. Now that I've seen it, I can't unsee it.

 

[onedrop]

From a layperson's perspective: there is definitely a lot of fire in that stone, but there are dark areas at the 3, 6, and 9 positions that would concern me. I also see the dark quadrants you mentioned, when the stone is turned at different angles. We never know what those dark areas will look like when the stone is set or in other types of lighting, so personally I wouldn't buy based on that video alone. I think maybe you need to see some other stones for comparison's sake?

ETA: You might want to look at this informational video that compares 4 radiants: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTBNo3Qq75E&feature=relmfu. The video may give you a better idea of what kind of optics to look for in a well cut radiant.

 

[ariel144]

From a layperson's perspective: there is definitely a lot of fire in that stone, but there are dark areas at the 3, 6, and 9 positions that would concern me. I also see the dark quadrants you mentioned, when the stone is turned at different angles. We never know what those dark areas will look like when the stone is set or in other types of lighting, so personally I wouldn't buy based on that video alone. I think maybe you need to see some other stones for comparison's sake?

ETA: You might want to look at this informational video that compares 4 radiants: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTBNo3Qq75E&feature=relmfu. The video may give you a better idea of what kind of optics to look for in a well cut radiant.

Great advice above. Also as a person who purchased a radiant 6 years ago and went to sell it this year, the appraiser told me if my diamond had been a round brilliant or cushion cut he could have offered me over 3 times what he offered me for my radiant which was a 2.1c. The most popular cuts are RB and cushion right now...so for investment purpose and for a diamond holding it's value I suggest you find a squarish cushion. The only difference is rounded corners instead of cut cornered which are under the prongs anyway.

Here is another comparison between a radiant and a cushion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtASEx9Whpg&feature=relmfu

I did not care for the radiant that you posted above. Is there a particular reason you want a radiant over a cushion? 6 years ago I was actually looking for a cushion cut diamond but my 2 c radiant faced up very large and was a nice make so I went with it, but it did not have that crushed ice look but was more of a brilliant cut radiant. Just watch out for the bow tie effect if it is rectangular, if you do get a radiant.

Will try and post other suggestions. So hard to tell how the diamond you choose is a good performing stone unless the vendor has tested it for performance. GOG will out source and test radiants for you.

Hope this helps.

 

[ariel144]

All the radiants on GOG are cut so deep that their face up is not very large for their carat weight.


But here is one:
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/9139/

Here are some modern cut cushions that face up nicely for their weight.
mod. cushion
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/8992/

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/9317/
AVC
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/9024/

 

[NachosForTwo]

From a layperson's perspective: there is definitely a lot of fire in that stone, but there are dark areas at the 3, 6, and 9 positions that would concern me. I also see the dark quadrants you mentioned, when the stone is turned at different angles. We never know what those dark areas will look like when the stone is set or in other types of lighting, so personally I wouldn't buy based on that video alone. I think maybe you need to see some other stones for comparison's sake?

ETA: You might want to look at this informational video that compares 4 radiants: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTBNo3Qq75E&feature=relmfu. The video may give you a better idea of what kind of optics to look for in a well cut radiant.

Great advice above. Also as a person who purchased a radiant 6 years ago and went to sell it this year, the appraiser told me if my diamond had been a round brilliant or cushion cut he could have offered me over 3 times what he offered me for my radiant which was a 2.1c. The most popular cuts are RB and cushion right now...so for investment purpose and for a diamond holding it's value I suggest you find a squarish cushion. The only difference is rounded corners instead of cut cornered which are under the prongs anyway.

Here is another comparison between a radiant and a cushion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtASEx9Whpg&feature=relmfu

I did not care for the radiant that you posted above. Is there a particular reason you want a radiant over a cushion? 6 years ago I was actually looking for a cushion cut diamond but my 2 c radiant faced up very large and was a nice make so I went with it, but it did not have that crushed ice look but was more of a brilliant cut radiant. Just watch out for the bow tie effect if it is rectangular, if you do get a radiant.

Will try and post other suggestions. So hard to tell how the diamond you choose is a good performing stone unless the vendor has tested it for performance. GOG will out source and test radiants for you.

Hope this helps.

Sorry it's taken me a couple of days to reply. I haven't really looked at cushions to be honest, but I suppose I could start. The diamonds you linked to on GOG are out of my price range though. I need to stay in the $3k range for the diamond. Is there anything in particular I should look for in a cushion? I know there is the modern cut cushion which is supposed to be more brilliant than the traditional cushion, but that's really all I know about them.

 

[webdiva]

Sorry it's taken me a couple of days to reply. I haven't really looked at cushions to be honest, but I suppose I could start. The diamonds you linked to on GOG are out of my price range though. I need to stay in the $3k range for the diamond. Is there anything in particular I should look for in a cushion? I know there is the modern cut cushion which is supposed to be more brilliant than the traditional cushion, but that's really all I know about them.

Keeping in mind that Pricescopers will always try to find you best possible optics for your desired size or price range - you now have to make some trade-offs - which I recently did, too! You have the 4 Cs plus price - and need to figure out where your sweet spot is. Some of those factors will need to give. I went up a bit in price to get cut and color, but gave up some clarity to do that (actually A LOT of clarity, mine's an I1!).

Here's a video Jon at GOG made of a radiant I was interested in (about $3200 - around your price range). There's a cushette for slightly less, which is also in your price range. I bought the POH. http://youtu.be/O74CmwVZfiA

And keep in mind that pretty much everything at GOG is many times better than your local jewelers, even if it's not Jon's fave optics. I think that 1 ct Radiant is a pretty good price if you're will to give on cut. As Ariel said, it's pretty deep so doesn't face up as large as most would like (5.88 x 5.24 is still a nice size). Or keep looking on James Allen until you find something, but I can tell you from personal experience that you need to go above $4k to get into a larger diameter than that.

Edit: Wanted to add that since you said on the last thread that your gf wants a radiant (and is expecting 1 ct from your example?) but doesn't know much about them...buying one is kind of a risky move on a budget. Since you don't know what trade offs she would choose, and since it's going to be on her hand for a loooong time - a good alternative is to propose with a temp ring (cz/silver) and pick one out together. Honestly, I was that girl and I had to learn a lot to get to where I am today. I'm happy I went through that journey myself and don't have to "make do" with a diamond/ring that wasn't 100% my choice. My hubby may not have chosen the trade offs that I made.

 

[Rockdiamond]

Hi Nachos- I guess you can get an appreciation for the difficulty in making diamond vidoes

One thing that again comes into play: how is a video shot
If we place the diamonds into a tray, we're going to get a very limited perspective- and one that clearly favors the H&A type of facet pattern/Optical performance.
The video you posted ( since removed) showed the diamond sitting on a black velvet box ( IIRC)- which isn't a method that would show the diamond's usage of light in a manner closer to how it will perform in a ring.

Tilt plays a huge role as well.
When we view a radiant cut from an angle we can see some of the facets ont he bottom.
Of course this is true with any shape/cut.
But with a radiant, if you're looking for a very even distribution of flashes, it's better to find a stone that can be looked at from a greater angle without being able to see the dark areas- which are the facets on the bottom of the diamond showing through the top


Although there are many deeper stones, it's also possible to find a Radiant cut that's more shallow, giving greater visual size- while also producing a very sparkly appearance.