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Help! Need unbiased opinion on 1.5-1.7 diamond purchase

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ben55454

Rough_Rock
Joined
Jan 15, 2013
Messages
2
Hey all,

Doing some late-night googling and I found your fine forum. I'm looking for an unbiased opinion on buying a stone for an engagement ring. I'm looking to spend about $17,000 and am looking for something in the 1.5-1.7 range. My budget is somewhat flexible. I don't know where to prioritize my budget, and find the nearly infinite possibilities overwhelming. I've been convinced I need a "triple ex," and shouldn't go too low on the color scale. But that's all I really know. Here's three stones I think I like:

1. The Canadian option. I am left of center politically, and am not thrilled about buying an African diamond. I've read up on the Kimberly Process and don't want to start a political conversation, but I'm willing to pay a (slight) premium for a Canadian diamond.

Stock number: LD02454656
Price: $18,015
Bank wire price: $17,745
Price per carat: $11,25
Carat weight: 1.60
Cut: Ideal
Color: G
Clarity: VS2
Depth %: 62.3%
Table %: 55%
Polish: Excellent
Symmetry: Excellent
Girdle: Medium, Faceted
Culet: None
Fluorescence: None
Measurements: 7.51 x 7.49 x 4.67 mm

http://www.bluenile.com/canadian-diamonds?track=NavDiaCan#diamonds_pid=LD02454656

2. The big option. I mean, isn't that what she probably really wants?

Stock number: LD03054775
Price: $17,054
Bank wire price: $16,799
Price per carat: $9,745
Carat weight: 1.75
Cut: Ideal
Color: G
Clarity: SI1
Depth %: 61.3%
Table %: 58%
Polish: Excellent
Symmetry: Excellent
Girdle: Medium to Slightly Thick
Culet: None
Fluorescence: None
Measurements: 7.77 x 7.74 x 4.75 mm

http://www.bluenile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-ideal-cut-g-color-si1-clarity_LD03054775?keyword_search_value=LD03054775

3. The quality option. I'm generally a quality over quantity guy, and I'm somewhat inclined to get a smaller, "nicer," stone. But maybe that's a bad idea, maybe I'm paying for figures on a piece of paper, not something visible from a few feet away....

Stock number: LD03015363
Price: $17,984
Bank wire price: $17,715
Price per carat: $11,910
Carat weight: 1.51
Cut: Ideal
Color: F
Clarity: VS1
Depth %: 60.4%
Table %: 61%
Polish: Excellent
Symmetry: Excellent
Girdle: Medium to Slightly Thick, Faceted
Culet: None
Fluorescence: None
Measurements: 7.42 x 7.40 x 4.48 mm

http://www.bluenile.com/build-your-own-diamond-ring?first_step=diamond&forceStep=DIAMONDS_STEP&track=btn1#diamonds_forceStep=DIAMONDS_STEP|builder=BYOR|pid=LD03015363

Thank you so much in advance! If anyone has any totally different stones I should be looking at, I'd really (really) appreciate your advice. Thanks again!

-Ben
 
Well, the 1.6 might be a nice compromise. It scored a 1.6 on the HCA. I'd make sure it's eye clean but the numbers suggest that it's a good option. Are you open to others?
 
ben55454|1358243989|3355869 said:
My budget is somewhat flexible. I don't know where to prioritize my budget, and find the nearly infinite possibilities overwhelming. I've been convinced I need a "triple ex," and shouldn't go too low on the color scale. But that's all I really know.
Click to expand...

Do you know what her priorities are? Color, size, clarity? You don't want to compromise on cut, but she may care more about color vs. clarity, for example. That should help you narrow down your search.
 
I'm sure there are going to be a bunch of very informed and helpful technical posts from highly knowledgeable PS'ers over the next 12 hours, they may offer alternative stones, so be prepared for some serious comparison shopping! :cheeky:

You mentioned premium vs wasted money on statistics on paper: My personal 'sweet spot' would be F/G colour, SI clarity, the premium associated with VS clarity is all but lost in the enjoyment of the stone if it is eyeclean.

Some (many) people would be comfortable doing down further in colour again, at least to H/I. But F/G is where I would stay. My ring is SI2 and COMPLETELY EYECLEAN. It is quite common for SI2 to be completely eyeclean, especially face up.

All three of your stones are a decent size, but yes size DOES matter (when it comes to diamonds).

Giving her a larger stone may be a cost-saving in the future as she will be more likely to wish to retain the stone, even after years and years of day-in-day-out wear.

Size does help to counter the natural boredom that does creep in after daily wear over many years.

My priorities, in order, would be: cut (I've seen you've started with 'Ideal' love the way you think!) / size / colour/ clarity.

Can't wait to see what 'the gurus' have to suggest! :))
All the best with your purchase!
 
Congrats on your upcoming engagement! The numbers look good on paper, but I would have to see the stones in person. I like that you are going for quality because that is so important. I would have the stones sent to me before purchasing. Good luck!
 
liaerfbv|1358257933|3355928 said:
ben55454|1358243989|3355869 said:
My budget is somewhat flexible. I don't know where to prioritize my budget, and find the nearly infinite possibilities overwhelming. I've been convinced I need a "triple ex," and shouldn't go too low on the color scale. But that's all I really know.
Click to expand...

Do you know what her priorities are? Color, size, clarity? You don't want to compromise on cut, but she may care more about color vs. clarity, for example. That should help you narrow down your search.
Click to expand...

I think she wants sparkle... That would imply sacrificing color correct? I might go with a pave ring, and that goes the other way though (color matters). You tell me! What should be my priority, because she always says, I trust you'll get something beautiful. Which is cute but unhelpful.
 
 
vishke8|1358414141|3357610 said:
Check these out...

http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-3353311-1.70-carat-Round-diamond-G-color-VS2-clarity.aspx?cid=DiamPS&utm_source=pricescope.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=pricescope.com

On the deep side, crown/pavilion angle bordering on the steep-deep side

http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-3353359-1.70-carat-Round-diamond-G-color-VS2-clarity.aspx?cid=DiamPS&utm_source=pricescope.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=pricescope.com

On the deep side, but crown and pavilion angles look okay

http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-3433200-1.70-carat-Round-diamond-F-color-SI1-clarity.aspx?cid=DiamPS&utm_source=pricescope.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=pricescope.com

Very deep at 63%, and report not available

http://www.briangavindiamonds.com/diamonds/diamond-details/1.610-g-vs1-round-diamond-gia-37483633
No report available -- not enough information to make even a guess on this one

http://www.briangavindiamonds.com/diamonds/diamond-details/1.600-d-si1-round-diamond-gia-41606604
No report available -- not enough information to make even a guess on this one


I liked them all..
Why? I'm just curious. Price? Proportions? Vendor? Size?
Click to expand...
 
ben55454|1358402165|3357569 said:
liaerfbv|1358257933|3355928 said:
ben55454|1358243989|3355869 said:
My budget is somewhat flexible. I don't know where to prioritize my budget, and find the nearly infinite possibilities overwhelming. I've been convinced I need a "triple ex," and shouldn't go too low on the color scale. But that's all I really know.
Click to expand...

Do you know what her priorities are? Color, size, clarity? You don't want to compromise on cut, but she may care more about color vs. clarity, for example. That should help you narrow down your search.
Click to expand...

I think she wants sparkle... That would imply sacrificing color correct? I might go with a pave ring, and that goes the other way though (color matters). You tell me! What should be my priority, because she always says, I trust you'll get something beautiful. Which is cute but unhelpful.
Click to expand...

Of the three diamonds you posted, I like the 1.75 diamond the best -- just from the numbers. I agree with Lara that you should get the largest diamond possible (without sacrificing cut quality).

The 1.60 has a nice high crown and small table, but it also has 45% stars (number on the crown) and that is an oddball number. Stars are usually in the 55 range with an 80% lower girdle facet number. That could be nothing -- GIA rounds its numbers -- but it's just something I'd want to check out in person.

The third diamond has a 61% table, which is quite large, and will give the diamond a very different appearance. It's likely to look a bit "glassy" at certain angles. So it's my least favorite. But there are no red flags on the report -- the numbers look good, so it could be a pretty diamond in person.

So, without Idealscope images or ASET images or photos of the diamonds, there's not much more information we can give you.


As for settings, pave is nice -- and very sparkly -- but make sure that you have at least some idea of her personal preferences in terms of setting designs before you sink a lot of money into a setting. Settings are expensive and many guys tend to choose bulkier and bigger settings than most women would prefer. You also want to make sure you choose a high-quality pave setting, because if poorly made, they are a nightmare to maintain (losing stones, breaking, etc.).
 
vishke8|1358834072|3361530 said:
I donno why the earlier ones are called too deep, they fall on the border.

How about this one..http://www.b2cjewels.com/dd-3391062-1.73-carat-Round-diamond-G-color-VS2-clarity.aspx
Click to expand...

Because anything over a 62% is on the deeper side. I have seen that 62.4% is the deepest that's considered on here. Plus, we don't like recommending places where you can't see anything about the stone. And the place you keep posting stones from has terrible service and doesn't have any stones in house. You wouldn't buy a car without seeing it, so why would you with a diamond?!?
 
Out of these three, I'd pick the first (Canadian) one. It gets a 1.6 on the HCA, and I think it's a good balance of size, color, and clarity. And then there are the ethical concerns, which could certainly sway your opinion.

HCA results for the first:
Light Return-Excellent
Fire-Excellent
Scintillation-Excellent
Spread-Very Good

The next best imo is the second, but it will have less fire and I'm a fan of fire in a diamond. Without a certain (high) amount of fire, diamonds just don't look sparkly to me. I like that color light show! I didn't bother running the HCA score because my personal preference would not be for that angle/table combo. I would not consider the third.
 
I would choose #1 of those three, although I will not buy from a vendor who doesn't provide photos or idealscope images since not all excellent cut stones are equal in precision cutting.

#3 is overkill, I would not go to F VS1. G VS2 is a nice middle ground.
 
get the biggest rock you can afford.
 
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