Which to choose?

[raquelw]

0.81 carat/ F color/ SI1
0.83 carat/ I color/ VS2
0.89 carat/ H color/ SI1

 

[Christina...]

we need way more information than that. do you have report #s?

 

[raquelw]

Unfortunately i don't have any more info as they were stones we looked at in store. All three are round cut and have GIA certification but I don't have that info right now. The 0.83 looked a lot larger than it should have apparently because it was shorter and wider? It also was visibly more yellow than the other 2. From the three the 0.81 was the most expensive and the 0.83 the cheapest.

Just based on this information which do you think is the best pick?

 

[Christina...]

To be absolutely honest, I wouldn't spend any money on any of these stones without more information. It's sort of like asking which car I would recommend a white chevy, a blue ford, or a red toyota, without more information on each I would have no idea. Is there a reason that you're in such a hurry? Is it possible to go back to the jewelers tomorrow and ask for the report #'s?

If you wanted to share your budget, I could do a search online for you and find you an amazing diamond with all the information that you would need to make an informed decision. If your in a particular hurry, you may even be able to purchase tonight based on what information is immediately available.

I think it's a good idea to take a deep breath and really think about this purchase. It's a lot of money to spend and it's a very important purchase that you will be wearing for a very long time. Let me know if you would like us to give you some options.

 

[Christina...]

Here are a few beautiful choices. These are all A Cut Above diamonds and are all AGS ideal cut stones, meaning that they will have ideal light performance, and hearts and arrows precision. This would be considered a super ideal cut diamond. It's unlikely that you would find anything of this quality in any mall store. Because the cut is so amazing, the I color will look whiter than it would in a diamond with an inferior cut. There are many many options based on your budget, so if any of these don't appeal to you, I can keep looking.

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2794536.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2763510.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2794537.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2794540.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2794548.htm

 

[Gypsy]

I agree with Christina. We need more information. And so do you. You are spending thousands. Call the Jeweler and get the GIA certificate numbers. Then we can help you pull them up and tell you what we think.

 

[Christina...]

These first two would need more information, but they are fantastic to work with and would be happy to get you all the information you wanted and could even do a video of the stones for you.

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/8511/
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/9251/
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/9329/

http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/I-VS2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1486187.asp
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/J-VS1-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1493076.asp
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-SI2-Excellent-Cut-Round-Diamond-1433474.asp
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/J-SI2-Excellent-Cut-Round-Diamond-1452035.asp

 

[raquelw]

Thank you both, I will call them up and get the GI cert no.s asap. FI is not comfortable with buying a diamond online hence the reason for going in store!

 

[Gypsy]

What metro area are you in? We might know of a great jeweler near you.

 

[Christina...]

Yep, I agree with Gypsy, we may be able to help you locate a great jeweler local to you as well, and if not we can still help you make the best decision from wherever you choose to shop. I can completely appreciate your FI concerns about shopping online. Last year I made my first diamond purchase online and I was a nervous wreck! I kept thinking that sane people don't do this! We did absolutely everything we could think of the protect ourselves, from reading hundreds of ivouch pages, reading BBB details, paying by credit card, joining PS. I didn't breathe a sigh of relief until after I received the package and had it appraised to assure us that it was indeed a real diamond and that it matched the report. It did and we finally were able to relax and enjoy our new purchase and the money that we saved. It isn't for everybody, but we've had very positive experiences from the vendors that we have used, and we have purchased two diamonds, a wedding band and a pendant, plus we have changed settings three times. I'm not going to try to convince you that you should purchase your diamond online, because it's something that YOU need to be comfortable doing, but if you have some free time, you may want to read through some of the forum experiences and look at some of the PS vendors (there is a list of vendors under the gallery tab above) and see if they may have something unique to offer you that perhaps your local jeweler can't. You may also want to compare what your paying at BM to what a comparable stone would cost online. Even if you decide to buy local you can use the information that you've found here to negotiate a better deal with your jeweler. ie I can get a GIA G VS2 at James Allen for x dollars plus have a lifetime upgrade policy, 2 year buyback policy, free sizing, rhodium plating, polishing for life and a 60 day return period, what can YOU do for me? So, no matter what you decide to do, the more knowledge you have the more powerful you will be as a negotiator.

 

[raquelw]

The GIA certificate for the 0.89ct diamond is 2145627253. What do you think?

 

[marymm]

The GIA certificate for the 0.89ct diamond is 2145627253. What do you think?

here's a link to the GIA report - https://myapps.gia.edu/ReportCheckPortal/getReportData.do?&reportno=2145627253&weight=0.89

if you plug the numbers into the HCA tool - https://www.pricescope.com/tools/hca - you get a total score of 4.5 "Good - Only if price is your main objective" - the HCA is an elimination tool and is used to reject likely bad performing stones to help narrow down your search. The HCA uses rounded-off numbers in its calculations, so in-person examinations and ASET/IdealScope images will trump an HCA score. But for stones you cannot examine in person, look for stones with an HCA score under 2.0.

if you plug the numbers into the AGA Cut Class tool - https://www.pricescope.com/tools/AGA_NAJA_Cut_Class_Grader - you get a total grade of 2A. I tend to stay with 1A and sometimes 1B stones, but that is not to say a 2A could not perform beautifully if you are able to see ASET/IdealScope images and examine it in person.

For me, considering the GIA report and the HCA & AGA scores on the 0.89ct H-SI, I'd keep looking for a better performing stone. I like to see Ideal (AGSL) or Excellent (GIA) in Symmetry, but am okay with Excellent (AGSL) or Very Good (GIA) in Polish, and I usually don't go over 62.3% in Total Depth.

But if you've seen the stone in different lighting and if you have access to ASET/IdealScope images for the stone that indicate it is a lively, well-performing stone, then you should go with what pleases your eyes.

Good luck with your search.