Thoughts on this stone?

[vices]

Future wife and I have been doing lots (and lots and lots) of research as well as viewing many diamonds in our local area, and as a result, we came up with a very specific set of parameters we're seeking in a diamond. One thing that's made this process even trickier is that we want to see it in person before we buy.

We went to Chicago this past weekend, having emailed some jewelers on Jeweler's Row with our preferred specs. A few of them had diamonds sent in for us to see, and we spent a day hopping around from store to store and viewed 15 or so stones. One stood out above the rest in terms of its light performance to both of us... it really grabbed us more than any of the others we have seen. We put a 100% refundable deposit on it, but we were also planning to go to Houston in a few weeks to see some of the stones we're considering from Whiteflash and Brian Gavin.

Now we're torn between jumping on this one and forgetting about going to Houston (gut instinct), or holding out until we see the stones we're considering there (tempering impulsivity and exhausting all our choices).

Any thoughts? Here are the specs on the Chicago stone we love:

(Round, btw.)

GIA certified
1.52 carats
F color
VS2 clarity
Cut/Sym/Polish: XXX
Diameter: 7.36-7.40mm
Depth: 61.8%
Table: 56%
Crown: 35.0 degrees
Pavilion: 40.6 degrees
Girdle: 3.5%
Lower halves: 75%
Star: 55%
No fluorescence
HCA: 0.9 EX EX EX VG

Also had a Sarin report run on it, so here are the specs from that:
Diameter: 7.37-7.43mm
Depth: 61.6%
Table: 55.6% (range: 55.6-55.9%)
Crown: 35.1 (range: 35.0-35.2)
Pavilion: 40.7 (range: 40.4-40.
Girdle: 3.37% (range: 3.1-3.5%)
Lower halves: 76.5%
Star: 53.7%
HCA: 1.3 EX EX EX VG

We looked at it through our idealscope, a hearts&arrows viewer, and a microscope. Looked perfect through the idealscope and its H&As were ideal as well. We actually took lots of idealscope and H&A pictures, but tragically, future wife left her camera in a cab, so I can't share those here.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

 

[AprilBaby]

Can you hold the stone till after Houston?

 

[vices]

Yes, with slight complications:

1. Engagement date is (hopefully) 8/1. Houston visit would be 6/21. Chicago place needs a few weeks to custom-design the setting, so deciding now and getting started on that would make things easier.

2. Houston trip will be a hassle.

If the Chicago stone is our stone, we'd rather get the custom-design started and not have to go to Houston. We want to do that, but considering how thorough we've been throughout this entire process, we're hesitant to make a final move before exhausting all options.

 

[c-k]

just my 2 cents here.....I think the specs look great, it is a GIA xxx stone, but the most important this is that you and her have seen it in person....you did your homework, idealscope, h&a viewer, microscope, etc,...it looked the best of all you looked at and you like it.

If it were me, I would save the trip money to Texas and use it elsewhere.

 

[tyty333]

The numbers look good ...do you have any images you can post? Idealscope?

 

[vices]

The numbers look good ...do you have any images you can post? Idealscope?

We spent over an hour looking at it through an idealscope and a hearts&arrows viewer and took many pictures of the idealscope/h&a views... but unfortunately, my future wife left the camera in the cab on the way from the shop back to our hotel. (I think she was too excited to keep track of her belongings.)

 

[Christina...]

Is a true HA stone important to you? If so then I would want assurances that the stone in Chicago was in fact a true HA..by that I mean I'd want to see images that could be compared side by side with a known true HA. If they can't provide that and a HA is important to you then I would wait for Houston to see what WF and BGD can offer you.

Have you had a chance to compare pricing between the Chicago dealer and what you might expect to pay if you chose to work with one of the other vendors? Have you compared upgrade, buy back and trade in policies? Otherwise the numbers of the Chicago stone looks really promising, but without additional photos it's difficult to give a recommendation.

 

[vices]

Is a true HA stone important to you? If so then I would want assurances that the stone in Chicago was in fact a true HA..by that I mean I'd want to see images that could be compared side by side with a known true HA. If they can't provide that and a HA is important to you then I would wait for Houston to see what WF and BGD can offer you.

Have you had a chance to compare pricing between the Chicago dealer and what you might expect to pay if you chose to work with one of the other vendors? Have you compared upgrade, buy back and trade in policies? Otherwise the numbers of the Chicago stone looks really promising, but without additional photos it's difficult to give a recommendation.

Thanks, Christina. You make great points.

True H&A is important. One thing that really grabbed us about this one was how striking the arrows were upon first glance.

I wish we had the photos, but they were lost as a result of her cab mishap. Prior to the Chicago visit, we'd spend extensive time studying H&A images of true H&A stones, and as best as I can tell you, this one appeared truly ideal. We could ask them to retake the H&A photos, but future wife is embarrassed about losing the camera after we spent so long taking pics in the shop.

Chicago dealer's price is 16.5. Diamonds under consideration at WF/BGD range from 19-25. (We're cool to pay 25 and were shocked by the 16.5 quote. We wouldn't compromise performance for a better price, but hey, if the best performer is almost 10 less than we expected to pay, sweet!) Policies are the same.

 

[Lula]

You've seen the diamond, and you both loved it -- that trumps any images, H&A or otherwise, in my view. The price is good, it's a GIA XXX with "safe" numbers, the color and clarity are great, and, most important, you did your research and your due diligence, so you're not buying on impulse. Your wife won't be wearing the Idealscope or H&A images -- she'll be wearing the diamond. A diamond that you both fell in love with. The trip to Houston just seems unnecessary at this point. Go with your gut. And count your blessings that you found a stone that you love that you could both see in person instead of having to hassle with long-distance diamond shopping.

 

[vices]

You've seen the diamond, and you both loved it -- that trumps any images, H&A or otherwise, in my view. The price is good, it's a GIA XXX with "safe" numbers, the color and clarity are great, and, most important, you did your research and your due diligence, so you're not buying on impulse. Your wife won't be wearing the Idealscope or H&A images -- she'll be wearing the diamond. A diamond that you both fell in love with. The trip to Houston just seems unnecessary at this point. Go with your gut. And count your blessings that you found a stone that you love that you could both see in person instead of having to hassle with long-distance diamond shopping.

Lula, I think you're absolutely right.

In addition to agreeing with your sentiment, my future wife is a scientist and "perfect numbers" are almost as tantalizing to her as "beautiful diamond." She just ran statistical analyses to compare the Sarin reports of this Chicago stone to the WF/BGD stones we were considering, and the Chicago stone won. No amount of "gut" could make her feel confident about this until she saw a tangible reason.

We're going with it, and we're thrilled.

Thanks to everyone, for your help now, and for all this forum has provided us on the way to making this informed decision.

 

[astar11]

May I know which chicago store that you were working with?

 

[Dancing Fire]

Very nice specs!