What do you think of Jareds? How do I know specs are accurate?

[Stevesanders808]

I also went to Jareds, priced a round diamond at $2200. Here are the specs:
.71 karat
SI2
I
VG, VG
IGI certification.

Sales reps were very nice and shopping experience was much nicer than the wholesale jeweler I had just come from. I liked the fact that the serial number was "laser etched" on the diamond matching it''s certification card. Who''s to say they don''t just print up cards with matching specs? How do I know what quality I''m buying or if the thing is actually real or not? (short of getting it appraised). All the diamonds I looked at were very shiny and impressive, even at the wholesale place. It seems like a crapshoot to the layperson like myself.

Your thoughts?

 

[AprilBaby]

Read up here on IGI certs, or look at the Peerless diamonds at Jared''s to be sure you get what you are paying for.

 

[MissGotRocks]

I doubt that they print up cards to match the laser inscription but IGI grading is not the most stringent or reliable. Jareds does sell their Peerless line and they are AGS certified. Get some prices from them and then compare to what you can get from the online vendors advertising here.

 

[Lorelei]

Ditto the ladies.

 

[tyty333]

Steve,
Are you open to buying on line? The diamonds that we mostly recommend on-line are AGS or GIA certified (independent 3rd
parties with though guidellines). They also give the important angle measurements of the stone (depth, table %, crown and
pavilion) so we can roughly tell whether the diamond will be a very good performer or whether it might be losing light out the bottom.
Several of the vendors also have ASET images and Ideal Scope images that help to evaluate the diamonds. Its like going another
level deeper of evaluating then just viewing a diamond in the store. I have to say that to most new diamond shoppers that diamonds
in stores usually look very pretty (especailly in the store lighting). Its when you've had it a while and view it in all different lighting
conditions that you realize it may not be as sparkly as you had first thought. The diamonds that we recommend will usually/should
outperform your usual mall store diamond in all lighting conditions (because we know its not leaking light).

And to echo what all the other ladies have said, IGI is not very stringent. An I color stone may be up to 2 grades lower (J/K) compared
to an AGS/GIA certified stone. Same with clarity.

I'm going to link you up with a couple of stones that you might consider
http://www.whiteflash.com/round/Round-cut-diamond-2113977.htm (this one is about $2300 G/SI1) click on the different reports
(double click on the diamond to enlarge the view)
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/6520/ ($2300 H/SI1)
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/5345/ ($2068 J/SI1 .80)

I couldnt find any good I colored stones with your specs.
Let us know if you would like more help,
tyty

 

[tonyc2387]

Date: 11/25/2009 9:20:03 PM
Author:Stevesanders808
All the diamonds I looked at were very shiny and impressive, even at the wholesale place. It seems like a crapshoot to the layperson like myself.


Your thoughts?

haha, hi again steve. yes, first few times looking around B&M''s seem like an absolute crapshoot; yes, it *seems* like an absolutely hopeless situation... that you''re going to pay thousands of dollars for a shiny little rock, and there are all these different numbers that seem to have no bearing on the shininess of one stone to the next.

stop. breathe. relax. you''ve arrived at PS, and we''re here to tell you it''s not hopeless in the least.

B&M''s thrive on the overwhelming feeling you get your first few times around. The salespeople know exactly how inexperienced you are; they see it hundreds of times per day. They know exactly what they need to say to get you excited about the diamond, and how to make the sale. There are thousands of watts of light beaming down on every diamond, and they all look fantastic. Heck, you could put a piece of plexiglass in one of those cases and it''d shine like a miniature star. There''s no doubt about it... you''re in a vulnerable position, and the salespeople do the best they can to make it seem like they''re in a powerful position. They do a pretty good job, too... after all, they have to make money somehow.

The key, though, is that they''re really in an incredibly weak position. *You* hold the single most important card... $$. Now that you''re at PS, you also have the collective knowledge of many diamond prosumers and experts available to you... knowledge that can make almost any B&M SA beg for mercy. Once you realize this, shopping at a B&M becomes much less stressful because you''ll start to understand the difference between bad diamonds and good diamonds... and then you''ll notice that they have almost nothing worth buying. (It can also become somewhat entertaining, but that''s a bit of a sick joke for another time

)

So no, it''s not a crapshoot at all, but it does take some effort to learn exactly what goes into a diamond. Start here. Read all you can. tyty makes a great point, the vendors that participate here go out of their way to make sure you know what you''re getting, because they have to put up with some, ahem... very picky people. For that matter, they tend to actually care about *really* educating you about diamonds, much more so than the 5-min 4-c''s speech that you get at a B&M, so you have a much, much better chance at getting a diamond worth your $$.

Also... there *is* a shortcut. Just tell us general budget range, desired carat weight, color, and clarity, and people will be more than happy to hunt a few down for you... though this involves trusting us just like you''d walk into a B&M and ''trust'' the SA''s

(but the advice given here will be rock-solid and verifiable, and we encourage you to verify... much unlike SA''s advice, which you could normally drive a truck through)