Shappy
Rough_Rock
- Joined
- Jan 21, 2004
- Messages
- 48
My quest for diamond began Thanksgiving when my daughter looked at my hand and shouted, "Mom, where''s your diamond?" It had fallen out of my ring. Oh well, I guess just fate telling me it''s time to upgrade.
We first went to a local jeweler who tried to sell me a 1 carat yellow uncertified stone ("Why would you want a certificate, it''ll just add $300 to your bill?) Of course she swore this stone was an H or I. Good-bye!
Next to a local jewelry mart-disgusting experience-like shopping for a diamond at a bus terminal-- complete with screaming kids in tow and changing diapers on the sink in the restroom. My only thought was these people look like these should be buying groceries, not diamonds and where do they get this kind of money--oh, bingo--CREDIT.
Next to downtown Los Angeles on Hill St--one huckster tried to sell me an EGL-"H" 1.26 SI2 for $2900--unfortunately claw-like inclusions visable at arm''s length--PASS
Finally I tried the internet. Now unlike most people I''m not naturally skeptical-I even bought my dog over the internet and he''s the best animal I''ve ever had. I tried one of this forum''s sponsor and had really made my mind up I''d buy from them because they promised so much-like if I lived in LA they could send the stone to one of their contacts and I could see it before I paid. When I called and tried to get this service--it took awhile to admit that this really couldn''t be done. When I inquired about 5+ stones, they weren''t available.
I had spoken to Mike McGivern of McGivern diamonds several times and was impressed--he gave me his opinion of the stones and would look at some--unlike many who are just brokers- I finally ordered- a stone not technically "ideal" cut (close to though)but he assured me was beautiful. I was very nervous to open the package when it came but as he said the stone was beautiful. I did however, limit my choices to a GIA certified stone since after shopping around everyone seemed to have EGL stones but the GIAs were really at a premium. I guess why would someone bother to send a really crummy stone to GIA-
I immediately took the stone (J-SI1 1.15) to an appraiser who would look at the stone (not measure) for no charge. He said the stone looked great but his only criticism was the color which he said was only a "G or H". Guess that kind of sheds some light on what kind of stones are out there passing as Gs and Hs!
Anyway since I live only an hour''s drive away from Carlsbad I decided to take my diamond to the GIA and for $89 they would issue me a certificate determinging if the stone matched the GIA certificate. Now the GIA building is absolutely breathtakingly beautiful-futuristic- set on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The security was like entering Fort Knox--speaking to people inside glass booths and locked dooors. At the end of the day I retrieved my stone and had the satisfaction that my stone was the same one I had the GIA certificate for and that there were no further inclusions or deviations from that report.
In short Michael McGivern did everything he promised to and was most pleasant to work with. The stones is white, beautiful and 100% eye-clean.
After reading through these forums I think one can get a bit intimidated and feel that if the diamond doesn''t pass every number test perfectly it just won''t do. While it wouldn''t work for everyone- I figure I got a gorgeous stone well within my budget and didn''t compromise on the look I want and figure that a year from now I won''t be fretting over my diamond''s less than perfect numbers but will be happy it is the size I wantded and looks great. I did get considerable information from these forums and other web sites and I thank all that contribute. Now I just need some luck in getting the stone set!
Oh-and the GIA does do tours--you must register beforehand (I think you can do this on their web site) I am very anxious to take the tour.
We first went to a local jeweler who tried to sell me a 1 carat yellow uncertified stone ("Why would you want a certificate, it''ll just add $300 to your bill?) Of course she swore this stone was an H or I. Good-bye!
Next to a local jewelry mart-disgusting experience-like shopping for a diamond at a bus terminal-- complete with screaming kids in tow and changing diapers on the sink in the restroom. My only thought was these people look like these should be buying groceries, not diamonds and where do they get this kind of money--oh, bingo--CREDIT.
Next to downtown Los Angeles on Hill St--one huckster tried to sell me an EGL-"H" 1.26 SI2 for $2900--unfortunately claw-like inclusions visable at arm''s length--PASS
Finally I tried the internet. Now unlike most people I''m not naturally skeptical-I even bought my dog over the internet and he''s the best animal I''ve ever had. I tried one of this forum''s sponsor and had really made my mind up I''d buy from them because they promised so much-like if I lived in LA they could send the stone to one of their contacts and I could see it before I paid. When I called and tried to get this service--it took awhile to admit that this really couldn''t be done. When I inquired about 5+ stones, they weren''t available.
I had spoken to Mike McGivern of McGivern diamonds several times and was impressed--he gave me his opinion of the stones and would look at some--unlike many who are just brokers- I finally ordered- a stone not technically "ideal" cut (close to though)but he assured me was beautiful. I was very nervous to open the package when it came but as he said the stone was beautiful. I did however, limit my choices to a GIA certified stone since after shopping around everyone seemed to have EGL stones but the GIAs were really at a premium. I guess why would someone bother to send a really crummy stone to GIA-
I immediately took the stone (J-SI1 1.15) to an appraiser who would look at the stone (not measure) for no charge. He said the stone looked great but his only criticism was the color which he said was only a "G or H". Guess that kind of sheds some light on what kind of stones are out there passing as Gs and Hs!
Anyway since I live only an hour''s drive away from Carlsbad I decided to take my diamond to the GIA and for $89 they would issue me a certificate determinging if the stone matched the GIA certificate. Now the GIA building is absolutely breathtakingly beautiful-futuristic- set on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The security was like entering Fort Knox--speaking to people inside glass booths and locked dooors. At the end of the day I retrieved my stone and had the satisfaction that my stone was the same one I had the GIA certificate for and that there were no further inclusions or deviations from that report.
In short Michael McGivern did everything he promised to and was most pleasant to work with. The stones is white, beautiful and 100% eye-clean.
After reading through these forums I think one can get a bit intimidated and feel that if the diamond doesn''t pass every number test perfectly it just won''t do. While it wouldn''t work for everyone- I figure I got a gorgeous stone well within my budget and didn''t compromise on the look I want and figure that a year from now I won''t be fretting over my diamond''s less than perfect numbers but will be happy it is the size I wantded and looks great. I did get considerable information from these forums and other web sites and I thank all that contribute. Now I just need some luck in getting the stone set!
Oh-and the GIA does do tours--you must register beforehand (I think you can do this on their web site) I am very anxious to take the tour.
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