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would love help with 1.2ct OEC!

M

MelSyd1302

Rough_Rock
Joined
Jan 16, 2012
Messages
16
Hi everyone!

I've just recently fallen in LOVE with OEC's and as a complete newbie to the world of antique diamonds would love your help!

Grace has this stone on hold for me:

http://jewelsbyericagrace.smugmug.com/Jewelry/Loose-Diamonds/120ct-Loose-OEC/20294220_6gHd27#!i=1604643469&k=KcDzbrL

this is the EGL:

http://www.eglusa.com/oresults/SearchPage.php?st_num=904211802D

My criteria are:

- symmetrical (symmetry is very important, a bit OCD over here)
- flowery faceting pattern, but leaner looking/not toooo chunky
- crown not too high
- table not too small, not overwhelmed by crown
- eye clean from all angles
- on the whiter side of the antique spectrim, not too warm

Any advice/thoughts on this stone would be great :)
 
Pretty stone! Just a couple of things...It's EGL graded, so it's likely lower on the color spectrum than a J. Maybe an L? It's hard to tell from pictures. If you're okay with that, I would make sure to ask if it's eye clean to your standards. I like the facet pattern, but those types of things are so individual that it really comes down to personal opinion. Do you like it? It's a later OEC...so the table looks a bit larger than you would normally see in OEC's. Sounds like this could be a great stone for you! OEC's are so hard to judge from pictures and video. You really have to meet it in person to know for sure.
 
A lot of antique stones are sent to EGL for grading. If Erica says that its a J, I would trust her assessment.
 
I really like this one plus the girdle is thin to medium (which will give you more setting choices). They have a good return policy so if you really, really want to *try this one on*, you should be able to return it if you don't like it IRL. Another suggestion I would make is to have Erica or Grace send the diamond to Dave Atlas for a *look see* and get his opinion on the stone. If you explain to him about the return period, I'm sure he'll be happy to appraise it within that time frame. As someone else mentioned, be prepared for the color to be lower statistically, but it will face up whiter (another reason to see it IRL first).

eta: keep in mind that the pics are magnified and you will have to see the stone before you can tell if it gives you the look you want.
 
From the images it looks lovely. I think the main issue for you (and one that I'm considering) is how low in color I'm willing to go for a vintage stone. I just got some JBEG OEC earrings which I adore and in my non-expert opinion they were graded very accurately in terms of color at G/H and clarity. I don't know how I feel about going below an H since I haven't seen a J or lower in person. So I guess that is really the only thing I would wonder given your criteria.

I had a great experience with JBEG myself and wow I just love my OEC earrings. I was having lunch with one of my few friends who I feel comfortable telling about my jewelry purchases and she very much preferred the OEC cut to my modern round engagement ring. She also loved the french cuts on my earrings. Jewelry is not her thing but even she could see a difference. I don't know if you've seen old cuts in person - I hadn't before I took the plunge and ordered so I thought I'd let you know my experience.
 
thanks for your input guys :)

Sparkly OEC, I never even thought to have it sent to be appraised, thanks for the tip! Is it commonplace to return a stone solely based on unfavourable appraisal results?

winternight, You are correct - a lot of warmth would really bother me as I normally like white stones, but Grace tells me this faces up quite white so I will trust her, especially if they have a great refund policy!
I also have never seen an antique stone in person but I know I absolutely will LOVE mine, my heart just flutters everytime I see one! As beautiful as modern rounds are, I just don't think they tell the same story...
 
For what you are looking for, that seems like a good option. Though, I wonder based on your desired specs, why you don't go with a modern stone?
 
I think this is a nice choice for you, going by your criteria!
 
MelSyd1302|1328672514|3121406 said:
thanks for your input guys :)

Sparkly OEC, I never even thought to have it sent to be appraised, thanks for the tip! Is it commonplace to return a stone solely based on unfavourable appraisal results?

winternight, You are correct - a lot of warmth would really bother me as I normally like white stones, but Grace tells me this faces up quite white so I will trust her, especially if they have a great refund policy!
I also have never seen an antique stone in person but I know I absolutely will LOVE mine, my heart just flutters everytime I see one! As beautiful as modern rounds are, I just don't think they tell the same story...
Click to expand...

Hmmm...that's a good question. I don't really know the answer to that, but my guess is that diamonds have been returned on less than that. ha ha What I can tell you is that old cuts really should be seen in person because each one is different with their own unique facet patterns and sparkle or chunky flashes. The appraisal is for your own peace of mind about the logistics of the stone. Old cuts also look wonderful in lower colors (it adds to their charm, but they usually face up whiter as Grace told you, IMHO). It's still a personal preference though.
 
I want to comment on body color and face up color in OECs.

As you may know, I have owned a wide variety of diamond colors in RBs and two OECs.

My experience is that at the same body tint, OECs do not have quite the same chameleon effect of their RB counterparts. A J-K RB will really change dramatically in its appearance based on ambient lighting and environmental colors. For example, my K RB would turn brown in my car, and would look very darkly tinted in my bathroom and bedroom. My Js and Ks looked very vanilla tinted in a certain jewelery store I frequent. My OEC, which is an EGL I color, and I suspect somewhere in the I-K range by GIA standards (though I can't tell), behaves quite differently. It looks more like my G color diamonds in my car, turning grey, and in the jewelery store it also does not look yellow! But in my bathroom it turns very very creamy, vanilla, and looks markedly different than my G color RBs.

So my point of all of this is to say, in my experience, Yes, OECs handle light differently than RBs and face up differently. But accross all different environments, a tinted OEC will still look tinted in some. My diamod looks very warm at times. So do not fool yourself. If you do not want a warm stone, then do not buy a warm diamond, no matter its cut ;))
 
Dreamer_D|1328673244|3121413 said:
For what you are looking for, that seems like a good option. Though, I wonder based on your desired specs, why you don't go with a modern stone?
Click to expand...

Dreamer_D, I know from my criteria it seems like I really want a modern stone, but I have realised that the only real concern I have is with the colour... everything else about this OEC is perfect (faceting, small culet, very firey). Admittedly I don't know alot about antique stones so am wondering if it is completely unrealistic to want an OEC on the whiter end of the spectrum?
 
so I decided that colour really is important to me, and that this J was just a little too warm for my tastes...

Grace has offered up this stone as being lovely and white, very symmetrical etc (it looks great in the photo where it is set into a ring):
http://jewelsbyericagrace.smugmug.com/Jewelry/Loose-Diamonds/143-ct-Loose-Old-European-Cut/19915077_744Rnx#!i=1567398589&k=3sFtWbS

here is the EGL:
http://www.eglusa.com/oresults/SearchPage.php?st_num=904074101D

I'm worried about the 'very thin to thin' girdle - any advice on this stone?
 
You only really need to worry about an extremely thin girdle, so v.thin to thin is ok.

The diamond looks lovely. Worth consideration for sure.

My OEC is an EGL I color for whatever that is worth :twirl: I find it is quite white generally speaking, but as I described above, in some lighting there is an obvious warmth too. It is not the same as a GIA G by any means. You need to see it in person to decide.

You can buy colorless OECs. You just pay for it ;)) OWD has some.
 
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