expert selection earrings?

[rainbowtrout]

I''m looking at the Expert Selection WF studs, and I''m a little confused. I think says a pair of studs, .25 ctw, in white gold, is 340.00 dollars. Is that right? How can that be when buying similar quality diamonds from their inventory costs so much more?

Also, forgive the naivite of this question, but I have this niggling instict in my head that says "SI is bad! A J SI 2 is a bad diamond!"


Why do PSers consider about a H-J SI2 as the best diamond value? Is it because it looks and sparkles the same as a D IF so why bother, or does it look worse but is a better value for the money?

Thanks!

 

[belle]

Date: 3/27/2006 1:58:53 PM
Author:rainbowtrout
I''m looking at the Expert Selection WF studs, and I''m a little confused. I think says a pair of studs, .25 ctw, in white gold, is 340.00 dollars. Is that right? How can that be when buying similar quality diamonds from their inventory costs so much more?

i don''t think they sell any single stones under .25 (maybe even .30) so it would be hard to make a comparison for .25ctw. (roughly .12ct each) also, all individual stones come with a grading report, which inherently increases the price.

Date: 3/27/2006 1:58:53 PM
Author:rainbowtrout

Also, forgive the naivite of this question, but I have this niggling instict in my head that says ''SI is bad! A J SI 2 is a bad diamond!''

that is what we have been conditioned to think! not all j/si2 diamond are bad! if they are well cut and graded by a reputable lab, they can be awesome.

Date: 3/27/2006 1:58:53 PM
Author:rainbowtrout

Why do PSers consider about a H-J SI2 as the best diamond value? Is it because it looks and sparkles the same as a D IF so why bother, or does it look worse but is a better value for the money?

because it is! especially for pendant and earring settings where the stone will only be seen face up from a sociable distance. with a well cut stone, no one would ever be able to guess the color/clarity of the diamond(s).


after seeing how amazing well cut lower color/clarity stones look, i don''t want to pay for the high color/clarity combinations. no one can tell the difference.

 

[rainbowtrout]

So, if you took a D-F IF-VS2 stone and cut it the same as a G-J stone SI-1 S1-2, could the naked eye tell the differance?


Thanks! These will be my first diamonds ever...

 

[belle]

Date: 3/27/2006 2:15:06 PM
Author: rainbowtrout
So, if you took a D-F IF-VS2 stone and cut it the same as a G-J stone SI-1 S1-2, could the naked eye tell the differance?


Thanks! These will be my first diamonds ever...

it depends on sooo many other things including the size of the diamonds and the perception of the viewer. there is not just one answer to that question.

 

[aljdewey]

Date: 3/27/2006 1:58:53 PM
Author:rainbowtrout
I''m looking at the Expert Selection WF studs, and I''m a little confused. I think says a pair of studs, .25 ctw, in white gold, is 340.00 dollars. Is that right? How can that be when buying similar quality diamonds from their inventory costs so much more?

Also, forgive the naivite of this question, but I have this niggling instict in my head that says ''SI is bad! A J SI 2 is a bad diamond!''


Why do PSers consider about a H-J SI2 as the best diamond value? Is it because it looks and sparkles the same as a D IF so why bother, or does it look worse but is a better value for the money?

Thanks!

The cost of a grading report on smaller goods can really drive up the cost of smaller stones. The RSG stones offer a significant savings because they aren''t run through the grading lab.

SI1 and SI2 aren''t bad.

The reason you have that niggling: the only experience most people have with SI stones are those in the chain stores which are graded by MUCH softer labs. Hence, in those types of SI stones, you may see inclusions.

Not so when you''re dealing in well-cut goods by a reputable vendor.

Also, keep in mind that the smaller an object gets, the harder it is to see imperfections. Most folks get nervous about SI on e-ring stones, but pendant/earring stones are seldom viewed nearly as intensely or nearly as physically close. SI for earrings and pendants especially represents a way to get more bang for the buck.

 

[Mara]

Date: 3/27/2006 2:15:06 PM
Author: rainbowtrout
So, if you took a D-F IF-VS2 stone and cut it the same as a G-J stone SI-1 S1-2, could the naked eye tell the differance?


Thanks! These will be my first diamonds ever...

you should check out the color vs size thread .... it''s such a personal thing.

for EARRINGS i think people have more leeway on color/clarity because they go on your head, separated by the head, and it''s harder to see any color or clarity issues, even with hawk eyes. on the hand people view their diamond close-up alot more oftne, whereas on the ears people typically don''t get as close to inspect your earrings, also having had badly cut G VS/SI stones and now having ideal cut I/SI stones, the I stones look 3000% better on the ears than the G because of the cut...and i get more compliments on them and they are smaller stones.

 

[Jelly]

Are you aware that .25ctw means that it''s .25 carats total? That means each earring is only .125ct each.

 

[rainbowtrout]

yes; it''s still quite a bit more to buy the diamonds seperately. For example I put together a 1,000 set that was .5ctw, this was 640-ish with Expert Selection.


What I am not liking is that they have no option to go up in quality as you go up in size--I would pay the extra money to go up a grade or two in the ES studs, but the color and clarity grades go down as the ctw goes up. Can''t figure out why the .25 ctw ones are G VS and the .5 are H SI-1...

 

[Gonzodogg]

Date: 3/27/2006 8:10:03 PM
Author: rainbowtrout
yes; it''s still quite a bit more to buy the diamonds seperately. For example I put together a 1,000 set that was .5ctw, this was 640-ish with Expert Selection.


What I am not liking is that they have no option to go up in quality as you go up in size--I would pay the extra money to go up a grade or two in the ES studs, but the color and clarity grades go down as the ctw goes up. Can''t figure out why the .25 ctw ones are G VS and the .5 are H SI-1...

The main reason for the price difference is that the ES pairs are not lab-graded stones.

 

[bookworm21]

Date: 3/27/2006 10:06:46 PM
Author: Gonzodogg

Date: 3/27/2006 8:10:03 PM


The main reason for the price difference is that the ES pairs are not lab-graded stones.

Yep. That was the main reason I decided to get the stones separately. If I had gone with the Ready Set Go, which I wanted to do initially, I couldn''t upgrade to a bigger size in the future, as WF only accepts GIA and AGS diamonds for upgrades. I thought it was worth paying the extra couple hundred in order to have the option to upgrade in the future.

 

[Mara]

smaller stones in general from WF are E/F/G..aka their ACA melee. they also tend to have less in inventory from what i can recall in the small sizes loose in the near colorless, more seemingly in E/F and some G/H smaller stones, it''s cheaper and you can still go colorless for not too much more than a near colorless if you want.

i''d build my own if i ever intended on upgrading them, since the ES are not upgradable. but if i didn''t care about that, i''d save the $$ and get ES in a smaller size. but the larger the ctw, the more i''d build my own since the cost savings is not significant in the difference then.