Too good to be true?

[Fayethful]

I am definitely an AMATEUR when it comes to rings, so please be kind, but my boyfriend and I were out browsing at a store, not really in the market for engagement rings and I tried one on and fell in love with it! I've tried on rings before but something about the setting of this ring just seemed different. Out of curiosity I looked at the price and that's when I really fell in love with it!

Specs:
Canadian Diamond Solitaire Ring
Band: 14 K white gold
Shape: Round/Brilliant
Carat: 1.50
Colour: G-H
Clarity: I1
Cut: Good

They had an identical ring that was 1.52 carats, same colour and clarity but with a Very Good cut but it seemed "cloudy" compared to this one. There was an accompanying report from European Gemological Laboratory USA stating the replacement value at $15,575.00. I have no idea how accurate this is but the ring in the store is "ON SALE" for $6,999. I know, I1 diamonds aren't "eye-clean" but the only inclusion I could find is a small black fleck only seen from the side and I can live with that. As well, I know you should inspect and buy a loose diamond to have it set in a ring, but that route likely will not yield the size, clarity, colour, and cut I would be seeking for a pricy like this. Also, I've heard that one should be cautious of sales on diamonds. My boyfriend doesn't have a lot of money and I have a tendency to like expensive things and I thought this ring seemed like the perfect compromise. I guess I'm just wondering...

1) Are I1 diamonds really all that bad?
2) How reputable is a report coming from the jewellry store and not an independent appraiser?
3) How important is cut vs clarity? I couldn't seem to find a difference in cut by looking at them but I could see a visible difference in clarity even though they were both rated I1.
4) If this is just too good to be true and I'm overlooking some serious flaws with this "sale"?

Any help that anyone could offer would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Amys Bling]

Ultimately- if you live it that is all that matters!

In regards to pricing- EGL is softer in grading compared to GIA so use the PS search tool and search for stones about 2 grades lower in color and clarity to see I you got good pricing. Personally I would only consider ideal/excellent cut or even very goo cut depending on price and other variables...

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I agree with Amy. EGL is known for being inaccurate, so it is likely 2-4 color grades lower and good cut is really not desirable considering very good and excellent are much better. And cut is the key to the stone looking beautiful in the most lighting environments. Plus the clarity is very low. The main thing to keep in mind is that the "sale" price is the retail price. The $15k figure is totally imaginary. In fact, since they put that, I really am not sure I would want to buy from them as I think it is deceitful.

But, if your goal is to get the largest size possible and you don't really care about cut, color, or clarity, then this stone might be what you are looking for. But it is not a great deal.

 

[06pvc]

Here is a GIA 1.38 J/VS2 EX cut, for 6900.
http://www.solomonbrothers.com/DiamondDetail.aspx?sku=58749874&affiliate=9318613A-AD0C-4530-A456-0409DFEFB8DE%20&utm_source=PriceScope

Or a GIA 1.51 J/SI2 Ex cut for 6800.
http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-2788469-1.51-carat-Round-diamond-J-color-SI2-clarity.aspx

The 14K solitare setting wouldn't cost more than a few 100.

i don't think a good deal. Although if you love it goo for it. Thats #1

 

[jrich]

You can do so much better in the same price range. I was in the exact same position as you- but you will have to be willing to do the work and research. I ended up with a 1.43 K Gia excellent cut, eye clean to me SI2 for less. They are out there!

 

[Dancing Fire]

if i had a $7k budget i'll be looking at this stone..

http://www.briangavindiamonds.com/diamonds/diamond-details/0.923-g-si1-round-diamond-ags-104055448002#!prettyPhoto[gallery2]/2/

 

[Frenchcut]

The I1 clarity would bother me for an e-ring, especially when it's graded by EGL...you should stick to SI1-SI2 to avoid any second thoughts and preferably from GIA/AGS.

 

[Imdanny]

The I1 clarity would bother me for an e-ring, especially when it's
graded by EGL...you should stick to SI1-SI2 to avoid any second thoughts and preferably from GIA/AGS.

Yes, it's like so called "mystery meat" in a cafeteria. What do we know about this diamond? We don't know how good the cut is, we don't know its clarity, we don't know its color. How could we possibly say its a good deal.

 

[Amys Bling]

I think better option have been offered. I don't really think you are getting the deal you may think you are.

 

[AprilBaby]

I'm betting you are sacrificing cut for the price.

 

[Fayethful]

Thanks so much for all your help! I definitely feel they tried to screw me over with this non-existant sale. I don't think I'll ever even look at anything in this store again. I've been looking into a lot of different diamonds and I think we're going to up our budget a bit and go for the same size diamond with an SI1 or better clarity and at least an Ideal cut. I'm thinking of ordering from either Brilliance or Brilliant Earth loose Canadian diamonds, does anyone know if they are reputable? I've found some nice diamonds on there and I can narrow my search to include only GIA approved diamonds, which is all I will be looking at from now on. Thanks again, I'm sure I'll be asking for advice before I make my final purchase in the future.

 

[06pvc]

I would recommend using the pricescope search engine, rather then the diamond vendor specific search engine. you'll have access to a lot more diamonds that way.

https://www.pricescope.com/diamond-search-results/

Edit:
Going through the pricescope search engine will also expose you to discounts a lot of vendors offer to PSers

 

[heather2012]

Hey- if you are okay with a non-GIA certified diamond, I recommend Anna from diamonddirectbuy.com

She is AMAZING and responds within like minutes of emailing her. She has some very reasonably priced diamonds and will tell you what the color grade of each stone is compared to a GIA certified equivalent, if it is not certified GIA.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Hey- if you are okay with a non-GIA certified diamond, I recommend Anna from diamonddirectbuy.com

She is AMAZING and responds within like minutes of emailing her. She has some very reasonably priced diamonds and will tell you what the color grade of each stone is compared to a GIA certified equivalent, if it is not certified GIA.

how about the cut quality?..

 

[heather2012]

yep- everything. She has a lot of triple X cuts and hearts and arrows cuts on her site- she will even take videos for you. We ended up purchasing preowned but if we hadn't we would have definitely purchased through her!

 

[Fayethful]

Thanks for the advice, I'll definitely go have a look at that site. I've been looking around and I have found whiteflash to have some of the best prices so I'll definitely check it out to compare. Do I have to call and ask to talk to Anna or is she just the owner of the site?

 

[maplefemme]

In my experience, Canada has higher prices than the US. I'd (as a Canadian myself) recommend looking at some of the US vendors on here, I have always typically found them more competitive with their pricing and quality.