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Which diamond would you choose? Is there a massive difference between an I and J?

Alicer2014

Rough_Rock
Joined
Jul 14, 2020
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23
*edited as one of the diamonds is now sold

Hi everyone, thank you to everyone who helped us yesterday. We are now deciding between three diamonds and could really use your help!

The setting is to be yellow gold with six white prongs. Likely in a knife edge 'Tiffany' style. Diamond in a solitaire, round style with plain band. My hand size is 5 1/4.

These are the options (all GIA):

Diamond 1:
2.04 carat, VS2, triple excellent, J colour. £9500. Scored 1.2 on HCA. Medium blue fluorescence.

Diamond 2:
1.72 carat, VS1, triple excellent cut, I colour. £9700. Scored 1.8 on HCA. Faint fluorescence.

To be honest the most important thing to me is cut, carat, clarity/colour (in that order).

I'm not super colour sensitive but I definitely don't want it to look yellow and I wanted to get your thoughts on whether there will be a massive visible difference between an I and J.

Would really appreciate your help!
 
Last edited:

mwilliamanderson

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Aug 13, 2013
Messages
1,221
Do you have the Table, Depth, CA and PA numbers or can you link the certificates so we can comment on the cut quality and potential light performance?
 

Alicer2014

Rough_Rock
Joined
Jul 14, 2020
Messages
23
Do you have the Table, Depth, CA and PA numbers or can you link the certificates so we can comment on the cut quality and potential light performance?

I will try to find it tomorrow! They all have decent HCA scores and at this point I was trying to find out more about colours but I will try and find full specs if that's more helpful!

Thank uou
 

nala

Ideal_Rock
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Joined
Oct 23, 2011
Messages
7,045
Definitely a massive difference between an H and a J.
H and I, a noticeable difference.
 

mwilliamanderson

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Aug 13, 2013
Messages
1,221
I will try to find it tomorrow! They all have decent HCA scores and at this point I was trying to find out more about colours but I will try and find full specs if that's more helpful!

Thank uou

You mentioned cut was your first priority so I wanted to be sure we were addressing it thoroughly. HCA is a good place to start for eliminating bad stones but you need more info to pick a winner. As for color...I have an I colored stone and I’m looking to upgrade as the tint does bother me. I’ve enjoyed it for many years but I’m ready to go up to E, F or G.
 
H

Horsegirl76

Guest
I’m far from an expert, but this video was helpful to me as I’m dropping from an H to an I in order to gain some size.


FWIW, I’m not color sensitive and I thought my one carat H was really white. I’d get the very best cut you can. Good luck!
 

Alicer2014

Rough_Rock
Joined
Jul 14, 2020
Messages
23
I’m far from an expert, but this video was helpful to me as I’m dropping from an H to an I in order to gain some size.


FWIW, I’m not color sensitive and I thought my one carat H was really white. I’d get the very best cut you can. Good luck!

I've seen so many of his videos and have found them really reassuring because in 'every day life', it seems that the j and even k face up well.

I almost wondered if he owned a shop with just j/k diamonds because of the vids or if they're totally impartial

I'm definitely sticking to triple excellent cut for sure!
 

Mekp

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 15, 2016
Messages
405
I'm definitely sticking to triple excellent cut for sure!

Just keep in mind that GIA triple excellent has a broad range and includes some diamonds that are super ideal and some that are pretty mediocre. So if cut is king for you then it's important to make sure your diamond is truly excellent, not just on a piece of paper.
 

Kaycee2018

Brilliant_Rock
Premium
Joined
May 14, 2018
Messages
994
I can definitely see the tint of the I diamond in that video. I’m of the opinion that “facing up” whiter means little since the profile is what the wearer sees more than the face up view when wearing the ring. Unless of course it’s set in a bezel or halo, and if it’s set in a halo you may want the halo melee to be a lower color to avoid contrast (unless you like that look). I really think you need to be comfortable with the color For what it is from all angles, including the profile. Granted some people don’t notice the tint of lower colors, others don’t mind it and some prefer it. The best way to know is to see the various colors as graded by GIA or AGS IRL (ideally close to the carat size you are considering).
 
Joined
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My 2 cents on color - it’s so personal and subjective but also dependent on the exact stones you’re considering: are you comparing a “high I” with a “low J”? That’s equivalent to a difference in 2 color grades and you might be able to see more tint especially in a direct comparison. Or a “low I” with a “high J”? Those are probably indistinguishable to the eye. If you’re comparing an “average I” to an “average J”, this is going to come down to how color sensitive you are, personally I’m not color sensitive enough probably to notice and definitely to care. I would say that setting the stone in a YG setting generally means you can get away with a more tinted stone, in my experience. I’m not sure of the impact of flourescence but I think in some cases it can make a stone look whiter, so FWIW you might get a benefit there from the med flouro (happy for someone with more knowledge to correct me on this). I do think there’s enough of a difference in size for you to be just able to see a visible difference (not just in comparison, but when viewed separately), but that is more a question of face up spread which the mm measurements could help you estimate.
 

Gemly

Shiny_Rock
Joined
May 29, 2020
Messages
293
I was deciding between and H and an I recently and I ended up going with the I. The color was MUCH more noticeable but for that downgrade in color I was able to get a much bigger stone. Also, I liked the cut a bit better. When I’m not holding it up comparing it to a lighter stone it looks nice and clear. I really went back and forth with my decision because I will have a platinum setting but the decision would have been very easy for me If I had been going for yellow gold.
 

headlight

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Nov 2, 2003
Messages
3,293
Without knowing anything else about the stones, I would go for the larger one. The medium blue fluorescence will give that J a boost, so I think the color perception playing field is evened out. I think VS2 is good enough. 2.04 is a lot more than 1.72. And it got a better HCA (which is potentially splitting hairs). We need to see more data if you really want to get “into the weeds”, but for the limited info provided the first stone gets my vote.
 

monipod

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jun 25, 2019
Messages
1,041
Well technically I and J are both in the 'near colourless' range so only the super colour sensitive will be able to see any difference I feel. Hard to say without seeing the stones.
If you're setting it in yellow gold though, I would happily choose the bigger J. My M stone looks pretty white in some lighting in yellow gold. It would look yellow in white metal though.
 

barbie86

Shiny_Rock
Joined
May 23, 2020
Messages
150
I've seen some really white looking Js, even Ks, especially when they are set in YG. So the bigger one would likely be my choice provided they are both as sparkly as each other, as I think there would be a noticeable difference in size.
 
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