Whiteflash-fluorescence situation

[Richard Sherwood]

Hah hah hah... Nailed you, eh?

I lived in Alaska as a kid, and my dad was the editor of a magazine called "Bush Pilot". He used to fly me into the wilderness with him on hunting excursions. I was only 5-7 years old, but the memory was vivid. It spurred me on to getting my pilot's license when I got older.

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

Wow What a coincidence. Not to try to top you but I think it's funny that you lived here once and now you live in Florida, being that I was born in Jacksonville, FloridA. Both parents were in the Navy. Traveled quite frequently...

-Josh Rioux
Sitka, Alaska

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Sheeesh! We're practically brothers. I'm an Army brat...

 

[LesleyH]

Pricescopers:

I have purposely stayed out of this thread as it was started by SS who agreed that Whiteflash had given him excellent service and that he just did not care for the diamond as much as the one he saw in the jewelry store - this is a free country and we all have the right to our own choices. Knowing the stone that SS bought I still find it hard to believe that it didn't "perform" as well as the one he saw in the jewelry store, especially since none of the posters here have asked SS for the specs on the stone he selected. I think this is most likely a case of the following as quoted by Robin and Todd of niceice.com:

"Historically speaking, they (jewelry store sales people) will do everything in their power to shake your confidence and convince you to return the item for a refund in hopes of selling you one of their stones... The simplest tactic is to smudge the surface of the diamond with a fingerprint or wipe it with an oil laden selvyt cloth to dampen the visual performance of the stone... If you want an honest evaluation of the diamond you buy, take it to an independent gemologist who does not sell jewelry and does not work for a jewelry store... If the gemologist even suggests that they can help you find a better stone or that they "know somebody" it is a pretty good indicator that they have lost their objectivity..."

We always tell our customers to select an INDEPENDENT appraiser and in many cases when a customer has taken a stone to a jewlery store to "appraise" they have experienced the same situation as SS.

I have posted an actual picture of the stone involved so you can all see it for yourself. SS, I would love to see the specs of the stone you selected, just so we can understand exactly what we are up against. You didn't mention anything about what side stones the jewelry store sold you. I can't imagine what could compete with our new smaller A CUT ABOVE's under .20 carat?

I truly hope, for your sake, that you were not short changed here by an eager sales person...

As is Whiteflash's policy, we will gladly issue you with return instructions as well as refund your money.

LesleyH
www.whiteflash.com

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

INTERESTING LESLEY. UNDER .2 HUH. GREAT IDEA. I AM ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE WHO WANTED TO FILL UP A CHANNEL SET MENS BAND WITH TRUE HEARTS & ARROWS SMALLER STONES. .15 RANGE. DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY PUT OUT ON YOUR SITE YET...

-JOSH

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Pretty serious looking stone, Lesley.

 

[LesleyH]

Now, I'd like to address Jetcaptain.

Jetcaptain, I have looked into your file and have taken another look at the GIA certificate of the diamond you selected. It was evident from the specs that it was not the "best cut" diamond but that it was extemely reasonably priced for the size. The stone you selected was not representative of the usual fare that Whiteflash sends out. However, we do have customers who request these types of diamonds as they have a particular price point and size in mind.

You told me to go ahead and send it out which we did. When you called in and told me that you were unhappy and wanted to return it, I believe you were treated very well. You spoke with Brian the cutter and told him that you had taken the stone to be appraised at a "jewelry store" and that despite the fact that it was certified by the GIA as a "G" color, you were told that it was an "M" color!! Brian then offered to have the diamond sent to a TRUE independent appraiser, of your choice, to be checked out at our expense, even if you still wanted to return the stone, just to prove that the stone was definitely NOT an "M". You declined, you were issued return instructions and were refunded your money promptly. I am sorry that you felt the need to unload your previously unpublished feelings 5 months after this event.

I am sure that there are thousands of Whiteflash satisfied customers out there
who will gladly tell you of their postitive experiences with Whiteflash. I am sorry that you did not like the stone you selected, but I trust that you walked away from the experience knowing that you were treated professionally by Whiteflash.

LesleyH
www.whiteflash.com

 

[LesleyH]

Josh:

Yes, we have a whole new production of A CUT ABOVE's under .20! They all display the signature true H and A pattern that all ACA's display and they are even laser inscribed on the girdle with the ACA logo! They are not certified as the major labs do not certify stones this size. They are mainly between .10 - .15 with a few reaching to the .18 range. They are not yet listed on the site as we are still deciding how to list them - they have been manufactured specifically as accent or side stones, and would look great in a wedding band. They really are a sight to behold.

LesleyH
www.whiteflash.com

 

[Giangi]

Hey Lesley,

sorry if it's off topic, but do you have melee size spring cuts?

 

[Iceman]

Not Pointed at anybody, just to clear things up.


TRUE ~ I didn't see the diamond , statements I have made are from Years of knowledge from limited information received
from this post. Yes, all I can go off of is a Lab cert. and past knowledge. Like RockDoc has said, you need to see a diamond
to make a judgment call. So, all you can get is guidance from us here without seeing the diamond.

YES ~ I am a competitor with White Flash and have "set" some of their loose diamonds in my mountings in the past, I have
"set" Superb cut diamonds also and they are great too. So yes I have seen them.

Do, I mind setting other vendors diamonds ???? He// no! I make more money on the settings then I will ever do selling
diamonds.

So, what is true and what is false can only be left up to our imaginations since we can not examine the diamond. All I can go
off of is past knowledge and quality of the cutter.


Is it so hard for people to believe that if they are my competitor that I should jump on a band wagon and bash them ? Or odd that I dont and stick to the truth? Im new
over here , what you will learn from me is that you will always give you the truth and what I think about something ~with no punches being pulled.

Look at all of their reviews , the few diamonds that have been brought to me in the past to set were gorgeous. So, I can only go
off limited samples. How many Eight stars to you have to look at ?


Please try to understand the experts problem with limiting conditions trying to answer your questions.

Would you rather get a short , go see an appraiser answer ?

Nuff said

 

[jetcaptain]

----------------
On 3/17/2003 1:17

5 AM LesleyH wrote:

Now, I'd like to address Jetcaptain.

Jetcaptain, I have looked into your file and have taken another look at the GIA certificate of the diamond you selected. It was evident from the specs that it was not the "best cut" diamond but that it was extemely reasonably priced for the size. The stone you selected was not representative of the usual fare that Whiteflash sends out. However, we do have customers who request these types of diamonds as they have a particular price point and size in mind.

You told me to go ahead and send it out which we did. When you called in and told me that you were unhappy and wanted to return it, I believe you were treated very well. You spoke with Brian the cutter and told him that you had taken the stone to be appraised at a "jewelry store" and that despite the fact that it was certified by the GIA as a "G" color, you were told that it was an "M" color!! Brian then offered to have the diamond sent to a TRUE independent appraiser, of your choice, to be checked out at our expense, even if you still wanted to return the stone, just to prove that the stone was definitely NOT an "M". You declined, you were issued return instructions and were refunded your money promptly. I am sorry that you felt the need to unload your previously unpublished feelings 5 months after this event.

I am sure that there are thousands of Whiteflash satisfied customers out there
who will gladly tell you of their postitive experiences with Whiteflash. I am sorry that you did not like the stone you selected, but I trust that you walked away from the experience knowing that you were treated professionally by Whiteflash.

LesleyH
www.whiteflash.com
----------------

Here are the actual specs from the GIA cert.

Oval brilliant
8.67 x 5.99 x 3.96
1.51 carat
Depth 66.1%
Table 55%
Girdle Medium to extremely thick, faceted
Culet None
Polish Good
Symmetry Good
Clarity SI1
Color G
Fluorescense None

When I inquired about this diamond, you sent me an e-mail on October 30th in which you described this stone as "beautiful." If you would like for me to cut-and-paste it from my e-mail archives for all to see, I am more than willing to do so. Since the diamond was in New York at the time and you were in Houston, I assume that you had not seen it and were evaluating the stone based on its specs. Now you seem to be saying that I should have known it was not the "best cut" based upon its specs. Well Lesley, which is it? And by the way, doesn't your web site claim that Brian the cutter will never sell a diamond that he would be ashamed of? If this diamond was so obviously not the "best cut" based on its specs, why were you willing to broker it?

Now, I need to clarify something in your post. Brian only offered to pay for an independent evaluation if it turned out that the evaluation didn't match the GIA cert.
Since I had already determined that I was going to return the diamond anyway, I had nothing to gain by accepting this offer and the price of an evaluation to lose. I would have been foolish to have accepted.

Another item that needs to be clarified is the color issue. I took the whiteflash diamond to five different stores. Although there were consistent concerns about the color, nobody ever suggested that it was anywhere nearly as bad as an M. Either we had a misunderstanding about that, or you have me confused with someone else. If the GIA says it's a G color, then who am I to argue with the GIA? On the other hand, the whiteflash diamond did not look like any of the other GIA-certified G-color diamonds that I compared it with side-by-side, and I did that with several other diamonds. We all know that cut can have an affect on our perception of diamond color under real-world conditions. I am willing to accept that the real problem with this diamond was with its cut and not its color. But why should a consumer spend the money for a GIA-certified G color when the cut makes it appear as something less? Obviously, that wouldn't be too smart, which is why you got this diamond back.

And Lesley, do you remember what you said when I called asking to return the diamond? You said "...well, we knew it wasn't the best diamond in the world." I don't think that you were surprised at all that I wanted to return the diamond.

Ironically enough Lesley, it was your assertion on the telephone that internet vendors can't sell poor-quality diamonds for fear that their customers will trash them on Diamond Talk that inspired me to seek out Rocky Talk (I wasn't too impressed with DT). I was going to immediately relay my experience with whiteflash to the forum, but realized that there are always two sides to every story. And I read many good things about whiteflash from some of your other customers, so I decided to keep my story to myself. But I have grown weary of the notion that whiteflash only sells premium-cut diamonds, and iceman's comment inspired me to tell about my experience.

As far as being treated professionally by whiteflash, I would have felt that way if I had been warned that the diamond I was interested in was not well-cut. Some of your competitors do that for their customers, either by grouping their offerings into ideal/premium cut classes and ordinary cuts, or by providing pictures, sarin reports, brilliance scopes, etc. Instead, you told me that the diamond was beautiful, and now you're claiming that I should have known that it wasn't based on the specs. Blaming the customer--that isn't very professional as far as I'm concerned. You're entitled to your own opinion, of course. I've had my say, and I'm willing to drop it. Are you?

 

[StoneSeeker]

Just to let everyone know about the good service at Whiteflash-
they were courteous and gave me a RAN no.

They also explained that it was indeed a data-entry error regarding
the fluorescence, that it should have been listed as inert,
and agreed to give me a full refund and cover my shipping cost back.

The diamond is back on its way in registered, insured mail.

Thank you Whiteflash.

 

[Heyjud]

What a long and tedious thread
Makes me crazy in the head

So much to read and analyze
I know a saying old and wise....

You can't please - em all, all of the time
Do the best that you can
And hope for a rhyme!

 

[jetcaptain]

----------------
On 3/17/2003 10

2:30 PM Heyjud wrote:

What a long and tedious thread
Makes me crazy in the head

So much to read and analyze
I know a saying old and wise....

You can't please - em all, all of the time
Do the best that you can
And hope for a rhyme!

----------------

If my posts show a lack of decorum,
You can always feel free to ignore 'em.
But I've tried to be fair,
'Cause I really do care,
What happens to those on this forum.

Rhyming is just not my style,
It's annoying after awhile.
If I want to convey it,
I come right out and say it,
Even if it won't make you smile.

We deserve to know both good and bad,
About experiences others have had.
If you leave out the dirt,
They'll blow smoke up your skirt,
And you'll end up both poorer and sad!

 

[billyb]

Thanks for sharing your experiences, Stoneseeker and jetcaptain. I've read a lot of positive comments about many of the internet vendors on pricescope and am glad to see that you guys have shared your not-so-great experiences with the forum. Other consumers, like me, want to know the good AND the bad. And I think both of you have communicated this very well without turning it into an argument.

 

[pyramid]

Stoneseeker says above that Whiteflash told him the stone should have been listed as 'inert' which I have read means negligible. However, StoneSeeker seemed to see a problem with the flurescence in the stone so according to his dialogue it could not have been 'inert' either. I was feeling so comfortable about buying my stone someday from Whiteflash but this is turning the warning signals on and I don't want them to be on. I don't know but maybe it is a lab mistake rather than Whiteflash's mistake or is StoneSeeker seeing it differently from everyone else, or is the jeweler he used to appraise his diamond pulling a fast one. It is so difficult trying to find out the truth about buying diamonds.

Inert does mean negligible doesn't it, meaning the fluorescence should not hurt the appearance of the stone?

 

[ociopia]

One thing that is rarely discussed in our forum and was just "mentioned" in this thread is the widely varying diamond performance, depending on the light. The same diamond (and I've looked obsessively at two of them) varies so incredily from light source to light source that it is a cause of constant wonder - really very interesting.

Oddly, I fear it can be sabotaging for vendors to rave on and on about "shards of gorgeous rainbows," blah blah blah. It really does set up incredible expectations, especially if you have purchasers who have really never looked much at diamonds.

When I opened my little box inside my house, my diamond did not just knock my socks off. Nor did it when I walked outdoors in the sunlight. But it is absolutely incredible in the shade of the sunlight (as mentioned earlier in this thread), as well as by candlelight, indirect light, overhead lights in every store I've been in, as well as restaurant, library, etc.

My diamond has medium fluoresence and is an I. The only time I have seen the fluoresence is at night walking by street lights with a particular yellow shade - all of a sudden it had a blue glow! I have been unable to tell, other than at that time.