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What Cs really matter for diamond studs?

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skypie

Brilliant_Rock
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Jan 2, 2018
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Contemplating getting my fiancee some 1.0 TCW diamond studs in the future....

I would guess cut is still king. Color/clarity don't seem to be as important in studs since they are small and you don't see them up close. So is it really just about cut?

If so, should I still shoot for super ideal? Or is GIA excellent sufficient?
 
I am by no means an expert, but I still prioritized cut over the other Cs when I was shopping for studs. And honestly? Carat was next, followed by color, and then clarity. Because the stones are smaller for studs vs a solitaire, I knew lower colors would face up whiter and inclusions would be hard to discern.
 
Right. Carat is set since I want them to look nice on her earlobes. Color and clarity seems much less important in studs than for an e-ring.
 
Color and clarity were important to me. I got a CBI and an ACA on the secondary market and had them set. Both D VVS1. For the price of mall junk, I have some heirlooms.
 
I just upgraded to 1.01 ctw and will receive them tomorrow! I used a trusted jeweler (have used him for almost 29 years now!). I just told him I wanted eye clean from about 2 feet, lol. Body bumper zone!

But my point is that I knew I was getting triple ex stones, so I told him my color range and carat weight target—and that I didn’t care so much about clarity. Those are my preferences!
 
KristinTech said:
I just upgraded to 1.01 ctw and will receive them tomorrow! I used a trusted jeweler (have used him for almost 29 years now!). I just told him I wanted eye clean from about 2 feet, lol. Body bumper zone!

But my point is that I knew I was getting triple ex stones, so I told him my color range and carat weight target—and that I didn’t care so much about clarity. Those are my preferences!
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Skypie, I would tell them your price range and specifications in order. I also wanted cut as a priority and a pair that I could upgrade in the future. I then knew I had to sacrifice carat and did not mind going to a J in color. Good luck! That is very sweet of you to purchase a pair for your fiancé. My DH is not that thoughtful even after almost 20 years.

KristenTech, I think we have Stud Fever! I cannot wait to see yours!
 
Staceyjan said:
Skypie, I would tell them your price range and specifications in order. I also wanted cut as a priority and a pair that I could upgrade in the future. I then knew I had to sacrifice carat and did not mind going to a J in color. Good luck! That is very sweet of you to purchase a pair for your fiancé. My DH is not that thoughtful even after almost 20 years.

KristenTech, I think we have Stud Fever! I cannot wait to see yours!
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@Staceyjan - Definitely stud fever! And I had a typo in my previous post! Jeweler for almost 20 years, not 29– typing too fast! He bought the ring in 1999 and we were married in 2000! Like an old friend, though. ;)2
 
KristinTech said:
I just upgraded to 1.01 ctw and will receive them tomorrow! I used a trusted jeweler (have used him for almost 29 years now!). I just told him I wanted eye clean from about 2 feet, lol. Body bumper zone!

But my point is that I knew I was getting triple ex stones, so I told him my color range and carat weight target—and that I didn’t care so much about clarity. Those are my preferences!
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can’t wait to see yours, and crazy I am getting mine this week too. And I completely trust my jeweler as well. What setting are you getting? Mine will be about 40pts each in bezel set
 
Rubybrick said:
can’t wait to see yours, and crazy I am getting mine this week too. And I completely trust my jeweler as well. What setting are you getting? Mine will be about 40pts each in bezel set
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I love bezel set anything! But these will be 4-prong basket for now. That’s what I’ve been used to, and I hope that I still like that setting for the larger carat weight! I’m moving on to research jackets now. :whistle:
 
What C's really matter, is that what matter to you to know your diamond is, or what matters to outside bystanders to think what your diamond is? I prefer what I like not some strangers.
 
susan498 said:
Color and clarity were important to me. I got a CBI and an ACA on the secondary market and had them set. Both D VVS1. For the price of mall junk, I have some heirlooms.
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Awesome scoop. I am jeali.
 
When my wife and I went to GIA for our Graduate Gemologist degrees in 1975, she was color over anything else. I just kept chugging along looking for the best cut diamonds I could find and over many years, finally found the ones I love the most. After I bought her a pair of well cut diamonds a few years ago for her studs, she has become completely sold on Cut first.

She loves it when people come up to her in restaurants and ask to see them.

I vote CUT.

Wink
 
Wink said:
When my wife and I went to GIA for our Graduate Gemologist degrees in 1975, she was color over anything else. I just kept chugging along looking for the best cut diamonds I could find and over many years, finally found the ones I love the most. After I bought her a pair of well cut diamonds a few years ago for her studs, she has become completely sold on Cut first.

She loves it when people come up to her in restaurants and ask to see them.

I vote CUT.

Wink
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Wink ,can you plz share your wisdom : )regarding studs ! Do you think the table size and so on stays the same as for rings ? I mean 54-56 table size ? The way light hit them /angle is different than for rings .i hope it makes sense what I mean
 
Golden_bird said:
Wink ,can you plz share your wisdom : )regarding studs ! Do you think the table size and so on stays the same as for rings ?
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Golden Bird,

I see people saying that they need to be different, but I disagree. I used the same high quality cut diamonds for my wife's earrings that I recently used for my personal ring. I am now also enjoying the pleasure of people in restaurants stopping by the table to comment on my ring. Some of them are even people that I know...

Wink
 
After having a 2.9ct WF ACA in an "I" color and not minding the slight slight tint I can only see like 5% of the time, I decided I wanted some ACA studs.

I decided to try J's, since they're in my ears and who the heck is going to see any tint from the side if they're attached to my head. I prioritized cut, then size (I could only afford .66ctw for now, but will upgrade when I can afford to), then color/clarity didn't matter as much. Since I love how my VS2 e-ring looks, I decided to do J/VS2 for my earrings. Can't wait for them to get here!
 
Wink said:
Golden Bird,

I see people saying that they need to be different, but I disagree. I used the same high quality cut diamonds for my wife's earrings that I recently used for my personal ring. I am now also enjoying the pleasure of people in restaurants stopping by the table to comment on my ring. Some of them are even people that I know...

Wink
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Thabk you ! That’s exacly what I thought! If the stones are great ,you can use them also for the tons of projects later on =)2
 
I aimed for Cut, Color, then clarity. Decided on SI for .50 ctw since they were smaller. They are little fireballs for sure
 
I wanted the same quality for my earrings as I would want for my rings. So I got Whiteflash ACAs and upgraded until I reached the pair I have now. But I've had H VS2 pretty much the whole time. I think I color is totally fine, too.
 
Cut, Carat, Colour, Clarity (provided SI1 or eye clean, although depending on the size of the studs - this may or may not be a deal breaker). I don't think once worn, a well cut diamond will be easily distinguishable in a stud setting from a colourless to near colourless. It'll just sparkle.

We went with the largest VS2 ACA's we could afford (which wasn't much at the time) with our studs.

Everybody has different preferences!
 
For me, I would still say Cut, Color/Clarity, and then carat. My reasoning is this:
  • Cut is a given. I'll always select the best cut, AGS 000 or GIA triple Ex with angles and percentages within the accepted standards and an HCA <2.
  • Next, I set a lower limit of what I'm willing to go for clarity and color. The only differences is that the lower limits for clarity and color in studs would be lower than they are for say, an E-ring. For example, I would put my lower limit for an E-ring at G/H and VS2 (mind clean for me), but for something that no-one is going to look at up close like studs, I'd probably say H/I and SI1 are perfectly fine even if set in Platinum.
  • Carat always comes last for me. I see what I can get within my price range and the criteria I've selected for the other 3 C's.

Also for studs, keep in mind that these rules can be broken, as your options will depend on availability of well-matched stones at the time of your search. Sometimes, especially in smaller stones, VS or VVS clarity won't be much more expensive than SI stones, and it may be that you can only find a matching set that you like when one or both of the diamonds are in a higher clarity grade. Don't be insistent on a lower clarity grade just because the PriceScoper's would judge you for choosing clarity at the expense of a bit of carat weight. :bigsmile:
 
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