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Diamond studs - help requested

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moniii

Rough_Rock
Joined
Dec 24, 2012
Messages
10
I got an unexpected bonus at work and decided to get myself a pair of diamond studs. I do not own any diamonds (I always preferred to spend the extra money on traveling), so this is a big thing for me. I've decided to get 3/4 ct total weight pair by looking at some earrings at Zales. Originally I was hoping to get something for no more than $1500. Can you take a look at my initial selection and criteria, and tell me if my choice seems reasonable to you?

Earring setting:
The main thing that I didn't like about Zales studs (or all other studs that I saw in person) was the setting - which was typical 4 prong martini. I found James Allen setting that I really like (6 Prong Scalloped Basket), but I am not sure if it is worth spending extra money ($485) on it for a 0.37 diamonds.Will the scalloped detail be noticeable with such a small diamond?:
Setting: http://www.jamesallen.com/create-your-diamond-studs/earring/item_180-2451.asp

The other stetting I am considering is the three prong martini ($195).

Stones:
I am considering:
- 0.37 G VS2 http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/G-VS2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1542021.asp?b=16&a=12&c=77&cid=131
- 0.37 H VVS2 http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-VVS2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1542018.asp

If I get these stones and scalloped settings, the price of earrings goes above $2000. Is it reasonable?
The Zales stones had visible inclusions, but they sparkled nicely. I always believed that I wanted diamonds with good quality, but based on what I saw, I am wondering if I should go lower on clarity to save $ or get a little bigger stones for this price. What would you do?

Thank you in advance!
 
Never buy jewelry at Zales or any other Mall store....Search through Price scope to find reputable on line merchants or mom and pop stores. You are paying for their brick and mortar store along with paying their employees advertising et al. If you have a limited budget it is better to either buy on line or at a local store to work with them family stores more intimately.
 
Me again I think the larger James Allen's are beautiful they will always stand by their product and if you ever want to upgrade them you can. I see nothing but great reviews about James allen's stones and they are all certified. Happy Holidays enjoy your bonus and your new studs
 
diamondseeker2006|1356372584|3339169 said:
I'd absolutely go with the lowest priced settings in this size stone. You won't see anything but the diamonds on your ears!

Also, I vastly prefer the stones to match in color and also VVS is overkill for studs. Here is a great matched pair (one you had already chosen):

http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/G-VS2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1542019.asp

http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/G-VS2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1542021.asp

Call and reserve right away. Lurkers do get ideas from posts here!
Click to expand...


I agree that I would do the cheaper 3 prong martini setting! I like the pair that DS picked out for you. Alternatively you could call IDJ and see what pricing theyw ould give you on a matched pair of diamonds studs. It seems several PSers have studs from them that are very nice. I would give them your budget and diamond specs and see what they come up with. I like having options...
 
Yikes, watch out for mall jewelry lighting. They use special lights that will many any diamond sparkle. For your budget, you should easily be able to get diamonds without visable inclusions that are ideal cut.

I would use basic settings since you're on a tight budget and put the money toward the diamonds. If you had a more flexible amount, it would be fun to have upgraded settings... but, you can always reset the stones later on down the road if you choose to.
 
One short comment, we focus on the diamond and the setting, please think about the back, I recommend the LaPousette backs, they don't fall off.
Good luck
 
Thank you all for your advice. Based on your comments I will definitely go for the martini settings. Now that I saved a little bit of $ I am thinking of getting a slightly larger stones, but I am discouraged by all of the inclusions that I see on the online pictures of those larger diamonds. Unfortunately most of them have GIA cert, and I would love to see the exact positioning of inclusions as AGS cert provides me for the initially selected 0.37ct ones. Should I stay with 0.37 ones that seem to have better quality? Or will the stones below sparkle as nicely?

- 0.41ct H-SI1 http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-SI1-Excellent-Cut-Round-Diamond-1536365.asp
- 0.41ct H-SI1 http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-SI1-Excellent-Cut-Round-Diamond-1526682.asp

Regarding buying diamonds at Zales - I did not intend to make a purchase there, but more to get a size/clarity idea that internet does not provide that well. The diamonds that I saw there had visible inclusions,but sparkled nicely. For comparison I have also seen $4000 0.75ct hearts on fire studs in another store, the sparkle was amazing and I would love to have something similar.

diamondseeker2006 - thank you for researching the stones for me. I've seen this other stone, but I didn't like the amount and positioning of inclusions... I think that I do not mind the color difference.

Bosie - I like screwbacks, and was planning to order those
 
moniii|1356397659|3339352 said:
Thank you all for your advice. Based on your comments I will definitely go for the martini settings. Now that I saved a little bit of $ I am thinking of getting a slightly larger stones, but I am discouraged by all of the inclusions that I see on the online pictures of those larger diamonds. Unfortunately most of them have GIA cert, and I would love to see the exact positioning of inclusions as AGS cert provides me for the initially selected 0.37ct ones. Should I stay with 0.37 ones that seem to have better quality? Or will the stones below sparkle as nicely?

- 0.41ct H-SI1 http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-SI1-Excellent-Cut-Round-Diamond-1536365.asp
- 0.41ct H-SI1 http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-SI1-Excellent-Cut-Round-Diamond-1526682.asp

Regarding buying diamonds at Zales - I did not intend to make a purchase there, but more to get a size/clarity idea that internet does not provide that well. The diamonds that I saw there had visible inclusions,but sparkled nicely. For comparison I have also seen $4000 0.75ct hearts on fire studs in another store, the sparkle was amazing and I would love to have something similar.

diamondseeker2006 - thank you for researching the stones for me. I've seen this other stone, but I didn't like the amount and positioning of inclusions... I think that I do not mind the color difference.

Bosie - I like screwbacks, and was planning to order those
Click to expand...

You don't need to worry about VS2 inclusions in a .30-40 stone. You won't be able to see them! SI1 is fine, too, but if you are concerned about clarity, you should probably stick with VS2. The H pair is not as great a match as the G stones, but I will look a little and see if there are any other options.
 
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-VS2-Excellent-Cut-Round-Diamond-1490056.asp

http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-VS2-Excellent-Cut-Round-Diamond-1518048.asp

These are over your budget at $867 each, but I like them better than the H SI's available. One of the ones you posted doesn't have the diamond image, so there is no way to know if that one is any good.

If you plan for these to be permanent studs, then I would want to go up into the .40's. If you want to later upgrade, you probably need to use a vendor with a better upgrade policy.
 
Thank you diamondseeker2006. I've increased my budget and kept looking at larger and larger stones and I found two really nice ones - 0.47ct J-VS1 each. They are about $1860, vs. $1510 for 0.37ct ones. I spent couple hours looking at J colored diamonds thread and I think I got addicted. Now I need to think it through...
 
Have you looked at Brian Gavin? I just got a pair of .60 tcw studs from them. Both certed diamonds AGS ideal cut, three prong martini settings in wg. The stones are J VS2. I can attest to the fact that not only do they look very white and the sparkle is off the charts.
Due to the end to end sparkle they also look larger than their actual size. Have you gone thru the show-me -your -studs thread? Many pairs in there from BGD. Very popular vendor on PS. James Allen is great as well, I purchased my ering diamond from them, just seems a bit easier to go with BGD because they have matched pairs.
Link: http://www.briangavindiamonds.com/brians-matched-pairs/
 
The choice of backs up to you, it is my understanding that the screw back posts are thicker and may (?) hurt your ear over long period of time. Also over time it is said that you will strip the threads of the screw backs and have to have them re-threaded.
Best of luck.
 
Hi, I have just received the earrings from James Allen that you have helped me select. I am very happy that I've decided to order the J color stones - I see no yellow in them at all - they just are a bit warmer comparing to an icy white diamonds, but I love this effect. However, I am not satisfied with how these earrings have been set. I think that somebody has done a poor job - an I need an advice what to do with this.

There are two things that bother me:

- the backs of the earrings are mounted under an angle. One of the earrings is angled more than the other... and settings picture on the website shows no angle. I've drawn white lines in the picture to help you see the issue.
- the claws have different sizes/lengths. You may not see this well on the picture though...

Are my concerns valid? Are my expectations set to high? The earrings are not huge, so nobody would probably notice these issues while earrings are on my ears... or would they? Is it worth it send it back to have it re-set? Or should I request a refund for the settings and have them reset by other jeweler?

img_6171_1.jpg
img_6174_2.jpg
img_6189_3.jpg
 
Those issues would definitely bother me too. Do the bent posts make the diamonds angle when they are in your ear? Is there anyway it's on purpose to somehow better position them when they're on? I can't imagine this is the case but just thought I'd check.

If it were me, I'd ask them to remake them for me after very clearly describing what I want fixed. It stinks that you'll have to wait another few weeks for your earrings! Boo. So sorry they're not perfect!

ETA: mom2boys is right. Those are totally unacceptable!
 
Excuse me for being ignorant but maybe they are done on an angle so sit up in your ears . I am constantly moving my studs around in my ears because the back is straight and they don't lay right. Maybe james allen puts a slant to make them sit in your ear flush
 
Thank you for your replies.

I have also initially considered the angle to be done on purpose, but then the angles do not match between the earrings. Also, even if it was done on purpose, I would like somebody from JA to consult this with me upfront, since the settings picture on the website shows no angle and this is what I have ordered.

Also, I have just noticed another issue on the picture with the crooked back prongs - the basket of the earring on the right is cropped comparing to the one on the left - or to put it in other words, the prongs that hold the stone do not come together the bottom to create a triangle...

I have talked to the JA customer service representative and showed him the same pictures, and he agrees that this is the quality issue. They will try to fix the issue and I will have to wait additional 2 weeks before I can wear these :(. Oh well, I've waited over a week to get them this first time, I guess I can survive additional 2 weeks.
 
I am soooo upset with JA right now. I have received fixed earrings in mail about an hour ago, and they are somewhat OK. The croocked prongs were fixed, and claws are closer to matching in size, though they are still not the same size. Anyway, this is something I can live with. However, I have just noticed, that one of the stones got chipped! Please see the attached picture.

Should I return these? I really wanted to keep them :(... and don't feel like searching for a new set of stones :(...

img_6300_1_0.jpg
 
Oh, I am so sorry you have had so many problems!

We need to see the lab reports for the stones to see if that was there originally. Since they changed the site, I don't think we can pull up your stones. Can you scan and post both reports? I doubt it since they are VS1. Are you sure it is a chip? Can you feel it?
 
You should not have to settle, if not 100% satisfied send them back for full refund.
I bought studs for my daughter from BGD and they never looked like that.
 
I have saved the AGS picture from the website, as the documents that I have received didn't show the inclusions that well, and I liked online version more (printer issue I think). Now I am happy I did that :). Please - see attached:

j-vs1-ideal-cut-0.jpg
j-vs1-ideal-cut-0_0.jpg
 
Sorry, I just noticed that these got resized. I'll try again - just the top part this time:

1_98.jpg
2_71.jpg
 
I still can't see the reports clearly, but you're completely sure it wasn't there before - it's not a natural or something?

Have you talked to JA? If they chipped your stone I'm 100% sure they won't try to weasel out of addressing it or anything like that!
 
I am pretty positive that it hasn't been there before, but I am not sure. Today is the first time that I have checked them under the magnifying glass, but I can see it with a naked eye too, and I am sure I would have spotted it the first time I got them. I couldn't stop admiring the stones before - I think I've over-analyzed each single facet back then.

JA is supposed to reach out to me with options soon.

How does a chip like that change the value of this stone? I believe I've paid $920 for each of them. I am considering to keep the stone if I am fairly reimbursed for the loss - meaning I receive the refund for the difference between what I paid for and the value of the chipped stone. It seems like a fair offer for both parties involved, though I am guessing that it will involve shipping it to JA again for inspection, and I'd just hate to wait another 2 weeks before I can wear these :angryfire: .
 
moniii|1358537921|3358906 said:
I am pretty positive that it hasn't been there before, but I am not sure. Today is the first time that I have checked them under the magnifying glass, but I can see it with a naked eye too, and I am sure I would have spotted it the first time I got them. I couldn't stop admiring the stones before - I think I've over-analyzed each single facet back then.

JA is supposed to reach out to me with options soon.

How does a chip like that change the value of this stone? I believe I've paid $920 for each of them. I am considering to keep the stone if I am fairly reimbursed for the loss - meaning I receive the refund for the difference between what I paid for and the value of the chipped stone. It seems like a fair offer for both parties involved, though I am guessing that it will involve shipping it to JA again for inspection, and I'd just hate to wait another 2 weeks before I can wear these :angryfire: .
Click to expand...

Don't settle. It is a pain in the neck, I know, but you don't want a VS1 stone with a chip. If you ever decided to sell them to get a larger pair, you would have trouble selling it. Let them replace it, but I think they really should do something like make your setting complimentary considering all the trouble you have had. I do not see how those earrings were even sent out the first time in the condition they were in.
 
JA wants to inspect these and offers repolishing, if it is possible. These are True Hearts stones though, and I am worried that they will loose their ideal cut grading after fix. The only compensation that they want to offer me at this point is free shipping :lol: .
 
Are you sure it is chipped, I cant see very clearly from your picture. I am anyway sorry for your experience, shopping for first diamond studs is supposed to be fun..if it turnes out that the stone is actually chipped, I would just take the full refund and start from scratch with BGD or WF. Their benchwork and stones are amazing! You already gave JA two times to make it right...you need to be happy with your studs, I think.
 
The two diamonds are VS1 clarity. I find it hard to believe an VS1 diamond has inclusions this size and nature at the edge. I would return the earrings for full refund and start over.
 
If I were you, I'd ask for a refund and take your business elsewhere (as I stated before).
 
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