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Who should I trust?

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Rough_Rock
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Nov 2, 2006
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I need help, my girlfriend & I are looking for diamonds. She has found a setting here this site is asking about $1,095 for setting only, local retailer is asking $1,395 and free if I purchase diamond from them. We think the setting would look best with a round diamond. Before finding this setting we were looking at princess cut. I''ve been meeting with a local wholesaler who has quoted me about 1/2 the price on princess cut diamonds then what retail sells for, however when I asked him about a round diamond his price seemed to have been the same as retail. I''m looking for 1.5ct H VS1 Round. Been quoted around $13k. I''ve been reading to purchase from a manufacturers that deal with VirtCert.com. Problem is I haven''t been able to find any or not sure I''m looking in the right place. Can someone suggest on whom to purchase from? We''ve been looking for the past 2 months for rings/diamonds. She stated she wants the linked setting above, now we just need a diamond. Most of our free time is spent looking in stores for diamonds. It''s draining us both.

Also the wholesaler I''ve been talking to showed me princess cut diamonds. When I first saw them I said to him they look like they have grooves in stone. He stated no, it''s just how it was cut. I''ve been reading how some diamonds have been drilled into and replaced with wax. Never seen one - could the grooves I''m seeing be diamonds that are filled with wax?
 
Well, lucky for you to have found this site before buying!! What you found out was that the "wholesale" guy really wasn''t! I stayed on this forum for several months before finding my 1.6 H VS1 diamond. What you''ll find here is that people recommend ideal cut diamonds because they are the most beautiful. I wouldn''t look at less than the best cut.

I love both Good Old Gold and WhiteFlash, but neither has a 1.5 H VS1 at the moment. If you called Good Old Gold, they have access to several ideal cut hearts and arrows suppliers, so they could possibly find you one. WhiteFlash gets new stones in about every 6 weeks which they have cut for their own inventory. Both companies have excellent reputations and very fine stones.

At this moment, the best one I see available on the search tool is from James Allen, also a reliable vendor with a good return policy, and the stone is a 1.59 H VS1 AGS0 (ideal cut) in the $12,000 range:

http://www.jamesallen.com/diamond.asp?b=16&a=12&c=77&cid=131&item=860739
 
Welcome!

Hmmm....I have several thoughts...first of all, I''m really leery of guys that call themselves ''wholesalers''. If they want to sell YOU a diamond, and presumably they are making some kind of profit, then they''re retailers!

I think your first concern should be finding a fine diamond. Pricescope is a great place to learn about them....you and your GF should hang out for a while.
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With the help of a trustworthy vendor (there are quite a few here), and input from members, you could get a magnificent stone for a very very fair price...usually for quite a bit less than you''d get at a B&B.

I''m a little confused and concerned about the mounting you posted. It''s listed as having a sale price of about $4500, and you say you can get it for$1100?? What''s that about? Has your GF seen it in real life? I''d wonder about the quality of the ring, and the diamonds in it.

Just some thoughts. Stick around, read up, have fun, and (IMO) limit your search to stones with either GIA or AGS certs.

Good luck!
widget
 
Date: 11/2/2006 7:05:57 PM
Author: widget
Welcome!

I''m a little confused and concerned about the mounting you posted. It''s listed as having a sale price of about $4500, and you say you can get it for$1100?? What''s that about? Has your GF seen it in real life? I''d wonder about the quality of the ring, and the diamonds in it.
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With a very questionable 3/4 carat in it
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Yeah, the $4400 is including a center stone. It is $1100 for the setting only, he said.
 
thanks for all the replys so far! yup, the setting is a lot cheaper without the diamond. I''ve been searching the pricescope and found several diamonds that are pretty close to what we want. I watched the video the "hearts on fire" diamond guy and he states you should look at the color (fire) and put everything else aside. We did look at hearts on fire and I was shocked on how much fire they had! I was also shocked to hear the price. H, Round, but it was a SI2, 1.25ct @ $12,000 with the setting for a $1! The diamond was beautiful, but we both noticed inclusions. We both also thought it should have been rated at a I1. Our sales guy was upset stating everyone rates diamonds differently. I was upset because I put trust into him and felt like he''d been taking us for a ride. We are both very new to this. I just don''t want to get a bad deal. I''ve heard from so many others friends/family how they got a bad diamond..etc. Are we being obnoxious with being so picky? I sometimes feel like I should just go get a stone and call it quits! Also the diamond we were looking at yesterday was rated EGL, not sure if it was USA or not. Seems like a lot of you don''t like EGL ratings. Stick with GIA only? tia
 
Hearts on Fire carry AGS reports. In the Pricescope study, AGS was found to be stricter on clarity than GIA. GIA and AGS are the safe bets.

You are not obnoxious by being picky; you should get exactly what you want. But maybe VS stones are for you.
 
No, you''re not too picky! I prefer VS stones, too! Many of the PriceScope vendors sell hearts and arrows diamonds that are totally equal in quality to the Hearts on Fire. Good Old Gold has many and WhiteFlash carries their own "A Cut Above" brand of H&A stones. The James Allen stone appears to be H&A from the magnified photo, but you''d have to call and ask if it is a true H&A. But regardless, it is AGS0, ideal cut, and meets your specifications.
 
Welcome to PS
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It can take a while to find the diamond you really want. Just sit back and learn all you can about diamonds. Ususally one buys the diamond first and then the setting. You don''t want to buy a setting and then find out your dream diamond won''t fit in it!

Check out that JA diamond.
 
Date: 11/2/2006 9:33:36 PM
Author: Stone Hunter
Welcome to PS
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It can take a while to find the diamond you really want. Just sit back and learn all you can about diamonds. Ususally one buys the diamond first and then the setting. You don''t want to buy a setting and then find out your dream diamond won''t fit in it!

Check out that JA diamond.
Click to expand...

thanks! I think the head on the setting she wants can be manipulated to fit a 1.5ct or so I was told.
 
Date: 11/2/2006 9:34:22 PM
Author: diamondseeker2006
Found two more good ones for you if you'll consider H VS2:

http://www.whiteflash.com/round_ideal_cut/round-ideal-cut-cut-diamond-140218.htm#

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/2349/

The first one is a little smaller in diameter, but the price is lower, too.
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Thanks for all your searches. The diamonds look real nice. One question, isn't a feather near the top bad? Not sure if the feather is on the 2nd link you've provided. I definetly like cheaper $$ :) Also Fluorescence: Negligible is this better then none? or does it mean there is a hint of blue?
 
Negligible means about the same as none. Faint is fine, too, and will not have any negative effect on the appearance of the diamond. (Some people actually love flourescence and look for medium to strong blue floro!).

As far as feathers go, VS2 inclusions are usually very minor. And my understanding is that you mainly have to worry if a feather breaks the surface. Once reason I prefer dealing with vendors with the stones in-house is that you can call them and they can pull the diamond and look at inclusions for you and confirm things like this for you. You can certainly call Tim or Jon at GOG and ask if the little feather is a problem at all, but I doubt it is.
 
You have a very nice budget to work with. I suggest you and your girlfriend look at the posts in the Show Me the Ring Forum. You will see a big variety of settings with different sized stones. The setting you picked is very ornate and shown with a smaller stone than what you are looking for. Take your time in finding a beautiful stone and the perfect setting by looking at the posts here without a salesman breathing over your shoulder.

The vendors mentioned on PS will give you a very honest assesment of the stones they have. And you will make the final decision with your own eyes. Most of the time you have the vendor visually assess the stone and give you details, photos, Ideascope images, etc. Then you decide based on the input which you like. You buy it, they send it to you (or to an appraiser of your choice). You get a certain amount of time to return it if you choose.
 
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