Well Cut Marquise Search - Advise?

[PBrown]

HELLO,
THIS IS MY FIRST POST TO THE FORUM. I HAVE BEEN EDUCATING MYSELF WITH ALL OF YOUR POSTS AND NOW I COULD USE SOME ADVISE. IT SEEM AS THOUGH FANCY SHAPES ARE DIFFICULT TO REALLY PIN DOWN WHAT IS THE PERFECT CUT. I AM LOOKING FOR A MARQUISE IN PARTICULAR. I USED PRICESCOPE TO FIND SOME STONES THAT WERE IN MY BALLPARK (WITH A LITTLE EXTRA SAVINGS). I REALLY WISH YOU COULD SEE THESE THINGS ON THE INTERNET INSTEAD OF TRYING TO RELY ON NUMBERS FROM A LAB.
IS THERE ANY ADVISE ON HOW TO GO ABOUT THIS SEARCH. I WANT THE MARQUISE THAT I CHOOSE TO BE AS FIREY AND SPARKLY AS POSSIBLE. AFTER GOING FROM JEWELRY STORE TO JEWELRY STORE I JUST CAN'T HELP FROM MYSELF FROM GOING BACK TO THE INTERNET AND LOOKING AT WHAT APPEARS TO BE MUCH BETTER QUALITY FOR THE PRICE FROM THE ONLINE STORES. I FOUND A PRICESCOPE PRICE FROM USA CERTED DIAMONDS FOR THE FOLLOWING:

MARQUISE - 1.01 - E - VVS1 - 62.4%D - 59%T - SYM:G - POL:G - GRD:TH/M - CULET SM - NO FLOUR - AND DIMENSIONS OF 10.5 X 5.19 X 3.24

FROM WHAT I'VE READ ON ALL THE WEBSITES I'VE USED TO EDUCATE MYSELF, IT LOOKS GOOD ON PAPER.

ANY ADVISE WOULD BE APPRECIATED IN TRYING TO NAIL THIS!

 

[Rhino]

Greetings PBrown,

Finding the best cut marquises can be a little more difficult than you think. As it is with rounds you not only have to find the best crown/pavilion relationships but you also have the length/width ratio to consider as well. The *shape* as well as overall brilliancy are important to the look of the stone. We have the tools to help locate what you want and can call in just about any of the diamonds on the pricescope search engine (as long as it's available), if you'd like to choose that route.

If you'd like to familiarize yourself with the way we go about picking our stones you may want to browse our website and the diamonds there for sale.

Hope to be of help.

Peace,
Jonathan

 

[PBrown]

I was wondering if anyone else could offer any advise in my search. It seems like everywhere I look for hints on finding excellent cuts, they seems to really revolve around non-fancy shaped diamonds.
The person I have recently been working with in my search has the opinion that a little extra depth is ok on a marquise and can help out on bow tie, and that symmetry seems to be a big factor in a Marquise's appearance regarding brilliance. I've been shown this but am worried about the Depth. Should I be???

Marquise Brilliant
9.91 x 5.2 x 3.39
1.02 carot
Depth 65.2
Table 59
Girdle Thick, Faceted
Culet None
Polish Very Good
Symmetry Very Good
Clarity VS2
Color F
Flour Med Blue
Comments - Surface Graining is not shown

 

[geo10000]

Hello PB, the depth is right at the lower point of the international fine trade cut specifications (2B). OK...in English...this stone is good. You already realize that proportions in fancy cuts do differ from the over stated round brilliant cut proportions. Since the length to width ratios vary the proportions will as well. The best you can do is visually submerge yourself into looking at as many marquises as you can. That is the true test. If if looks good then it's good for you. I have seen marquises with a depth of 65.5% (class 3A) look better than a 63.0%(2A)...it is the exception but it does happen.
As I suggest to everyone, make sure you have the diamond evaluated by an independant appraiser...I would be more concerned if you have more fluoresence, a G or lower color or very thick girdle as these factors can be exaggerated by some diamond grading labs.
Good Luck

 

[Rhino]

Hi Pbrown,

The magic lies in the relationship between the crown/pavilion angles and that is 100x more important than the table/total depth relationship. If you really want to ensure the most brilliant marquise for the $$ perhaps you may want to hire the professional services of one of the fine appraisers who frequent these boards such as Dave Atlas or Rock Doc. If you are working with a jeweler who cannot provide you with that data you may want to research each of their sites (www.consumersgemlab.com & www.gemappraisers.com) and have your jeweler send them a couple of diamonds to analyse for you to ensure you are really getting the best.

Peace,
Rhino

 

[barry]

PBrown;

Fancies are indeed difficult to interpret just from the
measurements found on the certs.

Here are some guidelines you should keep in mind for
great looking Marquises:
Length to Width ratio: at least 1.8/1 (2:1 is optimal).
Table Range: 57% to 68%
Depth: 62% " 75%
Crown height:11% " 15.6%
Girdles: Medium to slightly thick
Be cautious with extremely thin to very thin girdles
as this may exacerbate chipping and fracturing.

"Bow-ties" are bad." You may have heard or will hear about this as you shop. This isn't necessarily so.
A Bow-Tie" look is formed and found right around the culet area in fancies that are cut with 6 main pavilion facets
and result in a 'dark' look as you view the stone
face-up. Attempts to mitigate the Bow-Tie were
done by cutting a "French Culet"; reducing the pavilion mains from 6 to 4 and meeting at the culet in a
diagonal. This does not totally solve the problem
as there are plenty of "French Culet" cut marquises on
the market today that are yech. The trick is in
the proper combination of table, crown height and pavilion depth. In the right combinations, bow-tie's are not seen
and you get a great looking marquise!

My advice to you is get sarin or megaScope reports
on Marquises that "look" good on the certs and see
if they adhere to the guidelines above. If they do, the
next step is to arrange to 'see' them and determine
how the numbers stack up to your eye.

Best of Luck.

Barry
www.superbcert.com
"When Good Isn't Good Enough"

 

[PBrown]

Thank you all very much for your information. I will definitely put it to good use in my purchasing process.

 

[PBrown]

George and Rhino,
Thanks for the info. I was wondering if you or anyone else have any comments on possibly paying particular attention to a symmetry grading of very good when trying to look for marquise in the ideal range when searching online. Is this a good factor to key in on if all you can see is the information on the GIA lab cert? Of course that GIA lab cert won't tell you the Crown Height unfortunately, which may be more important.

Thank you all,

Patrick

 

[barry]

Symmetry grades in Fancies is not as important or critical
as it is in rounds.

You can have a stone with "Good" symmetry that will
look alot better to you than a stone with Very Good symmetry..

Key elements are the relationship between the Table,
crown,and depth. For this you'll need either a Sarin or MegaScope report.
Even with these reports in hand, keep in mind that two diamonds with
identical specs may look very different.

Barry
www.superbcert.com
"When Good Isn't Good Enough"