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Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciated

talko

Rough_Rock
Joined
May 27, 2014
Messages
9
Hello everyone, recently started looking for an engagement diamond and have found this forum very helpful in making a knowledgeable decision. My budget is 10-12k. Of course, bigger is always better, but I don't want to sacrifice too much quality just for a bigger diamond. I'd rather not go below 1.4 cts though. My budget can be extended to roughly $14k if I can find a bigger diamond at a better value than something in the 10-12k range. Looking for something in the G-H range and SI1+ quality, or really anything that is easily eye clean. I've looked through most popular diamond sites but I guess I'm not really experienced enough to spot a good value. This one kind of stood out to me for its price and HCA score. Is this a good option?

http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.49-carat-h-color-si1-clarity-sku-314468

The HCA score is 1.9 which is good, but is the crown angle a little high? Also, are those measurements within reason for basically a 1.5 ct diamond? I believe I remember reading 1.5 cts should have a diameter of 7.4mm.

Thanks to anyone for any advice!
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

36 crown height is fine with that pavillion angle. That is one STUNNING stone you picked!

Here are some others:
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.63-carat-h-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-313224
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.62-carat-i-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-216506

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/12119/


I know you said H or better. But I did expand you to I just so you could see what else is out there.
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

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. But I's can be great values.

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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 side by side. 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 contrast because of the proximity. But it's very slight, you could set an F center with G sides and never tell the difference. And even H sides depending on the setting and the size of the sidestones... especially with round brilliants.


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 shinest whitest and brightest diamond out there: Cut is King. No other factor, not color or clarity or anything else.
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

I'm no diamond grader, but that looks like a low H to me, I can find a few Is that are the same color, and even a few Is that I think are whiter.
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

Gypsy|1401227473|3681213 said:
36 crown height is fine with that pavillion angle. That is one STUNNING stone you picked!

Here are some others:
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.63-carat-h-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-313224
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.62-carat-i-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-216506

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/12119/


I know you said H or better. But I did expand you to I just so you could see what else is out there.

Thanks for the input. Would the 1.62 i color diamond still be eye clean? That is where I'm having most trouble from just looking at pictures online. Also, if I were go down to an I, would it potentially be better to look for one with slight or medium fluorescence to make it look a little whiter?
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

I love fluorescence. So if you ask me you should ALWAYS go for fluorescence if you can. It's beautiful and fun, and why go for slight...strong, baby!! But that can make it hard to find a diamond, if you are only looking at stones with fluorescence. So keep that in mind. And all you have to do is make sure the stone you are interested in (which has Fluorescence) is not 'over blue". And the vast majority aren't. Plus, it saves you money!

As for the 1.62 being eyeclean, there is a chance it could be, which is why I posted it for you. But the gemologist on staff would be the person who would pull it for you and tell you that for sure. And JA's gemologists are very honest about eyeclean issues.
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

talko|1401228893|3681225 said:
Gypsy|1401227473|3681213 said:
36 crown height is fine with that pavillion angle. That is one STUNNING stone you picked!

Here are some others:
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.63-carat-h-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-313224
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.62-carat-i-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-216506

http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/12119/


I know you said H or better. But I did expand you to I just so you could see what else is out there.

Thanks for the input. Would the 1.62 i color diamond still be eye clean? That is where I'm having most trouble from just looking at pictures online. Also, if I were go down to an I, would it potentially be better to look for one with slight or medium fluorescence to make it look a little whiter?

The BGD stone I had linked above has fluorescence and it is already confirmed that there are no negative effects from fluor.
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

JulieN|1401228244|3681220 said:
I'm no diamond grader, but that looks like a low H to me, I can find a few Is that are the same color, and even a few Is that I think are whiter.

I don't think you can tell nuances of diamond color from a computer screen and video.

I would just ask JA their opinion on the color. Is it a true H or not. And they'll tell you.
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

RockyRacoon|1401229836|3681241 said:
The BGD stone I had linked above has fluorescence and it is already confirmed that there are no negative effects from fluor.

Thank you, I have added that to my list. Are BGD blue diamonds really good?

Just found this one as well since I adjusted my search to add I color. What do you guys think of this one?

http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.57-carat-i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-295668
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

Gypsy|1401230797|3681255 said:
JulieN|1401228244|3681220 said:
I'm no diamond grader, but that looks like a low H to me, I can find a few Is that are the same color, and even a few Is that I think are whiter.

I don't think you can tell nuances of diamond color from a computer screen and video.

I would just ask JA their opinion on the color. Is it a true H or not. And they'll tell you.
Absolutely, checking with JA gemologist about color grade is the best way.

JA gemologist confirmed first I is higher color than second I. On my monitor, I can see the difference in colors.
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.25-carat-i-color-si2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-283870
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.17-carat-i-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-314682
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

JulieN|1401233447|3681278 said:
Gypsy|1401230797|3681255 said:
JulieN|1401228244|3681220 said:
I'm no diamond grader, but that looks like a low H to me, I can find a few Is that are the same color, and even a few Is that I think are whiter.

I don't think you can tell nuances of diamond color from a computer screen and video.

I would just ask JA their opinion on the color. Is it a true H or not. And they'll tell you.
Absolutely, checking with JA gemologist about color grade is the best way.

JA gemologist confirmed first I is higher color than second I. On my monitor, I can see the difference in colors.
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.25-carat-i-color-si2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-283870
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.17-carat-i-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-314682

Do you call in to talk to a gemologist or just using their customer service chat?
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

Wait until you narrow down 3. Then you can chat with Customer Service, they will hold your 3 choices, and email you the Ideal scopes and gemologist review in a few days.

Two suggestions, sorry if they are repeats someone else already posted:
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.51-carat-i-color-vvs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-280089
http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.61-carat-i-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-244314
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

Someone put the 1.62 on hold. I hope it was you.

And you just ping them on the chat and ask if the stone is eyeclean.

If it is, put it on hold and get an idealscope.

But I always check eyeclean first, before getting an idealscope. No sense in wasting your idealscopes on stones that aren't clean.
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

Gypsy|1401236657|3681307 said:
Someone put the 1.62 on hold. I hope it was you.

And you just ping them on the chat and ask if the stone is eyeclean.

If it is, put it on hold and get an idealscope.

But I always check eyeclean first, before getting an idealscope. No sense in wasting your idealscopes on stones that aren't clean.

Yes that was me.

Quick question, can anyone tell me why there is a $1400 price difference between these 2?

http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.55-carat-i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-286908

http://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.55-carat-i-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-110630

The first one has better clarity with a 1.3 HCA yet costs $1400 less? Are there other aspects of comparing diamonds that I'm missing?
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

the cheaper one has very good symmetry.
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

JulieN|1401299692|3681816 said:
the cheaper one has very good symmetry.

Yeah i noticed that, does that justify a $1400 decrease despite higher clarity?
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

It could be a lot of things. I wouldn't buy either of those diamonds, so if I were you, I wouldn't worry about their prices. :saint:
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

Whats wrong with 286908? Is it the inclusion on the face of the diamond?
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

too much darkness in the picture, plus the VG symmetry.

Why are you not considering the two I posted above?
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

JulieN|1401302674|3681857 said:
too much darkness in the picture, plus the VG symmetry.

Why are you not considering the two I posted above?

Gotcha, darkness is not something I've paid attention to. Would that equal less shine?

And I am highly considering the 1.51 ct one you suggested. I have it in my top 4. Do you think that one is better than the 1.49 ct I posted in the first post? Price on that one is $11,590.
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

I think it is better than the one with VG symmetry. When you asked why there was a price difference, and I saw the picture, I guessed symmetry before I knew it was VG. It will look darker in certain lighting, especially if you look at it closely, and the contrast pattern is not very clean.

The 1.49 H SI1 is fine, very nice stone. it and the I VVS2 look somewhat similar.
 
Re: Buying engagement diamond, any advice would be appreciat

JulieN|1401304258|3681875 said:
I think it is better than the one with VG symmetry. When you asked why there was a price difference, and I saw the picture, I guessed symmetry before I knew it was VG. It will look darker in certain lighting, especially if you look at it closely, and the contrast pattern is not very clean.

The 1.49 H SI1 is fine, very nice stone. it and the I VVS2 look somewhat similar.

Thanks for the info. I believe I've narrowed it down to the 1.49 and 1.51. The 1.51 even kind of looks a little less yellow than the 1.49 despite being a lower color grade. I'll request IS images for these 2 and go from there.
 
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