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Buying an engagement ring, please help

L

loverboy28

Rough_Rock
Joined
May 6, 2014
Messages
4
Hello,

I am sure this forum received many similar requests as mine, but I would be extremely grateful for any advice or guidance from members of this forum on which diamond ring to purchase for an engagement ring.

(1) Colour D, Cut is excellent, Clarity is VS2, 1.2 Carats, No fluorescence and platinum setting (EGL certified) - $8,000.

(2) Colour E, Cut is Very Good, Clarity is SI1, 1.01 Carats, No fluorescence and platinum setting (GIA certified) - $9,500

(3) Colour E, Cut is Good, Clarity is SI1, 1.01 Carats, No florescence and platinum setting - $8,900

(4) Colour D, Cut is Fair, Clarity is VS2, 1.01 Carats, No florescence and platinum setting - $9,300.

All my girlfriend wants is something with brilliance, she does not mind if the diamond has inclusions that cannot be seen with the naked eye.

Thank you very much for any help! Please let me know if you need any more information. Prices are in Australian dollars.
 
Through out anything by EGL.

Then follow this:

The entire purpose of faceting a diamond is to reflect light.
How well or how poorly a diamond does this determines how beautiful it is.
How well a diamond performs is determined by the angles and cutting. This is why we say cut is king.
No other factor: not color, not clarity has as much of an impact on the appearance of a diamond as its cut. An ideal H will out white a poorly cut F. And GIA Ex is not enough. And do not consider anything except GIA Ex or AGS 0 or 1 stones. EGL is a bad value and should not even be considered.
So how to we ensure that we have the right angles and cutting to get the light performance we want?
https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/diamond-cut
Well one method is to start with a GIA Ex get the angles and table and depth from the certificate (you can just get the lab report number and look up the angles on the GIA website with report check), and then apply the HCA to it. YOU DO NOT USE HCA for AGS0 stones.
https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/holloway-cut-advisor
The HCA is a rejection tool. Not a selection tool. It uses 4 data points to make a rudimentary call on how the diamond may perform.
If the diamond passes then you know that you are in the right zone in terms of angles for light performance. 2 and under is a pass. Under 2.5-2.1 is a maybe. 2.6 and over is a no. No score under 2 is better than any other.
Is that enough? Not really.
So what you need is a way to check actual light performance of your actual stone.
That's what an idealscope image does. https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/firescope-idealscope
It shows you how and wear your diamond is reflecting light, how well it is going at it, and where you are losing light return. That is why you won't see us recommending Blue Nile, as they do not provide idealscope images for their diamonds. Brian Gavin, White Flash, High Performance Diamonds, James Allen, Good Old Gold and Engagement Rings Direct.

The Idealscope is the 'selection tool'. Not the HCA.
So yes, with a GIA stone you need the idealscope images. Or you can buy an idealscope yourself and take it in to the jeweler you are working with to check the stones yourself. Or if you have a good return policy (full refund minimum 7 days) then you can buy the idealscope, buy the stone, and do it at home.


Now if you want to skip all that... stick to AGS0 stones and then all you have to do is pick color and clarity and you know you have a great performing diamond. Because AGS has already done the checking for you. That's why they trade at a premium.
 
Also, you did not provide enough information. But ALL the stones are frankly crap except for the GIA Ex.

Frankly you'd be better off shopping in the US. You do not need D-E-F. Color does not determine brilliance. You will be fine with a very nice G color. And Si1 clarity.

You obviously have NO idea what you are doing. And you need to either get more knowledge or let us chose stones for you.

And your jeweler... ANY jeweler that is offering those stones as viable options is a crappy one. Especially since they clearly did not educate you at all, and instead are taking advantage of your ignorance.
 
On color.

It is important to remember is that color is graded FACE DOWN. Where there is NO light return. Not face up where there is light return and refraction. You wear diamonds set. FACE UP.

Within one color grade, even the labs can't agree on the color grades of stones and something could be a "high" H or a "low" E. So... no. Not really. Within 2 color grades it is hard. Not impossible. But very hard. And it gets harder once set. If you are talking ideal rounds, or any stone with ideal light return and no sharp corners it gets harder still because the ideal light return masks body color.

Generally we say to be conservative stay above H. You really don't start seeing tint till I color face up as long as the stone is ideal cut.
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If you are talking fancy shapes without ideal light return (because there is no 'ideal' for EC's Radiant, etc) it's a bit different.

This is how I think of it.

Ever gotten one of those HUGE paint fan decks? Where there are literally 100s of colors of whites? And when they are RIGHT next to each other you can TOTALLY tell that one is bluer/colder and one is a bit warmer and which one is one is TOTALLY warmer. One there's one that's slightly greener. One that's slightly pinker? But really. They are all white?

Then you pick one after agonizing over this white or that white and when it's on the walls and people are like: Oh. You painted again. And it's STILL white. Great.

And you're all... BUT it's BLUE white. Or it's a WARM white now. It used to be ____ white. It's TOTALLY different.

It's like that. You are talking about shades of white. D is colder... J is warmer. But it's all white.

YES. If you have an accurately graded F and an H THAT HAVE THE SAME PERFORMANCE you are going to be able to tell them apart when you compare them from the side or face down. Just like you would be able to tell if you painted your walls a warm white, but painted the crown molding a cold/straight white. But both are STILL white. You only see the difference because they are right next to each other. Which is not how you would wear a diamond.


I want you notice all the qualifiers thought. I'm talking about stones with the SAME performance. An ideal H will out white an F that has compromised light performance from a poor cut.

NOTHING impacts the appearance of a diamond as much as cut. CUT is king.

You want the shiniest whitest and brightest diamond out there: Cut is King. No other factor, not color or clarity or anything else impacts how white bright an shiny a stone is.
 
Thank you all so very much for your help. You are correct, I have no idea what I am doing.

Would something like this be better: http://www.gia.edu/cs/Satellite?reportno=5176143574&childpagename=GIA%2FPage%2FReportCheck&pagename=GIA%2FDispatcher&c=Page&cid=1355954554547

Does fluorescence matter, symmetry and polish matter much?

I am going for a F or a G colour, SI1 clarity but ideal or excellent cut and GIA certified. Is that the way to go?

Thank you once again - you saved me from making a big mistake!
 
Yes, posting the lab report like that is much better.

That particular diamond doesn't have a good crown/pavilion angle combo. You can run the diamonds you are considering though the HCA: https://www.pricescope.com/tools/hca My post above tells you what you need to look for in an HCA score.


On Fluorescence, just avoid overblue stones. A good vendor will tell you what they see. Read this [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/calling-all-florescence-experts.198989/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/calling-all-florescence-experts.198989/[/URL] and this https://www.pricescope.com/wiki/diamonds/diamond-flourescence

Polish and Symmetry should be at least very good.

My post above sums the rest up. Read the links I posted and you'll be fine.
 
a 1 ct round should be about 6.5, at least 6.4 usually. that one is only 6.25mm.

If you give us a budget, it is usually easier for someone to help you find something rather than you posting stones that are going to get dinged.
 
Thank you very much.

That is a great idea. My budget, including the platinum ring, is $9,000 (Australian). That would be wonderful if you can help me find some gems. Thanks again.
 
Buy one of these:
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3063802.htm
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.05-carat-g-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-273561
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/10986/


Platinum Solitaire that ANY of those vendors can order for you, that is gorgeous and extremely cost effective (will be under 750):
http://www.stuller.com/products/121855/3233131/?groupId=110433 It's elegant, allows a flush fit wedding band. Comes in platinum.
 
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