what would you pick? 1.5ct D SI2 vs. I VS1 - same price

[diamondseeker2006]

Okay, I found two. This one shows them on my finger: 1.0 ct. 1.37, 1.63

 

[diamondseeker2006]

One more, 7.6mm, 7.25mm

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I''d have to vote for the 1.31 G VS2 http://goodoldgold.com/diamond/3843/ of the ones Ellen listed. But I might call James Allen and ask about the inclusion on the 1.4 F VS2 just in case.

 

[HEPennypacker]

Date: 12/8/2007 3:56:08 PM
Author: kennyg
All -


An update. I got the 1.5ct I VS1 stone as shown above. But it looks yellow to me. Granted it isn''t mounted and it looks white indoors, but anytime there is sunlight outside I see the yellow tint pretty easily. It is a GIA cert and I got it appraised at ''the low end of I, almost J'' by a well known appraiser, so it is the stone it is supposed to be. I think I am just very color sensitive.


I''ve decided not to go below G in color, and VS2 in clarity, and $10,500 via credit card. How big a stone can I get given those parameters? I am looking to maximize the size as much as possible, preferably a diameter > 7.x.


Also Many heartfelt thanks to all who have been helping, (i.e. sparkalicious, diamondseeker2006, deelight, ellen, aljdewey, etc.), I really appreciate the support, it makes shopping easier and less stressful

Haha...we seem to be on the same ring-purchasing trajectory. I also returned my BN diamond and am currently working with whiteflash to find the one. You might want to give SI stones a chance, but make sure they''re eye clean. I''ve decided to go down to either G OR SI1 (e.g., F/SI1 or G/VS2). That keeps it mind clean for me. Good luck!

 

[kennyg]

Thanks all - I talked to JA about the 1.4ct F VS2, the inclusion in the center table is black and visible under 8x mag quite clearly. It''s a good deal except I can''t live with that black inclusion. . .

Diamondseeker2006 - thanks for the pictures! Extremely helpful. You are also lucky to have such nice rings I''m now dropping down to the 1.3xct range, so my diameter is smaller, around 7.0x * 7.0x. It will be noticeably smaller than the 1.4+ct diameter, however now that I''ve seen an I color in person I can''t go below a G and can''t go up in cost.

Ellen - great finds, I like the 1.3ct G from GOG. My problem is I am buying a house shortly and need to conserve liquid funds, thus the need for a credit card purchase. Plus I do like the added protection. I am getting the same quality stone at BlueNile, but because of the 5% cash back promotion, I get a CC purchase at the same rate as PS vendor bankwire prices. This is probably only true during this winter holiday promotion, but it is a significant difference on the purchase price.

HEPennyPacker - good luck with WF. I worked with them a bit and they are excellent at customer service. I found they really tried to promote J colored stones to me and I was trying to stay away from them, but they were very nice and offered a lot of service. If not for the price break at BlueNile I would probably still be shopping with WF. WF also offers so much data on their site which is admirable, but I''ve grown comfortable with evaluating stones based on the certificate grading, the cert plot, the cert measurements, the HCA, Dave Atlas'' criteria for good cuts, and a good return policy.

 

[HEPennypacker]

kennyg--I'm not sure if you can combine the offers, but you can get 10k frequent flyer miles if you use google checkout to make your purchase. Since that's coming from google and not bluenile, I don't see why you can't have both that and the 5% cash back (which I think has a purchase cap of $12500). But you might want to call and find out. I agree that the offer makes BN very tempting...if I put a value on the 10k frequent flyer miles, I could save almost $900 total by going through bluenile. That said, I think it might be worth it for me for the upgrade policy, but I'm still thinking through that.

 

[kennyg]

Thanks for the info - but they block google checkout for certain purchases, and I think it''s blocked for loose diamonds or for some deals. . .BlueNile is smart about not letting people double up on offers, but no worries. Also good luck with your searching. The return policy is more important to me because I am 90% confident my fiance would keep this stone for sentimental reasons if she decides she wants a bigger one, so I need the return policy to help me get it right in the beginning before I give it to her. If I knew she was as into the stones and PriceScope as I''m becoming, the upgrade policy would be more important for me. Don''t think you can go wrong with WhiteFlash - I appreciate the way they provide as much info as possible online. I also like GOG, but I think he provides SO much information that his stones are more expensive. But on the flipside I''d probably be the most comfortable in the quality from GOG. But here is wishing you luck!

 

[kennyg]

All - an update. I returned the 1.55ct I VS1 stone and got a 1.30ct G VS1 colored stone yesterday. Specs:

1.30ct RB G VS1 (GIA)
Ex cut, Ex polish, Ex symm
7.00 x 7.05 x 4.31mm
No Fluor
Depth%: 61.4
Table%: 56
Crown Angle: 34.5
Crown Height: 15
Pav Angle: 40.8
Pav Height: 43
Girdle: Medium
Culet: None

HCA - 1.2 TIC (ex/ex/ex/vg)
AGA DIY Grader - 1A in all categories


This stone is beautiful. Very white. It looks just as big as the 1.5ct I had before, even though there is a 20% difference in diameters (this one has 7.00 x 7.05, the other one had 7.47 x 7.51).

The stone always looks white in the center and never dark! I started a previous thread were the very first stone I purchased from a B&M had odd proportions even with an HCA of < 2 and was dark in the center. Cut really does make a huge difference!

I''m getting the ring set on Saturday and will surprise her early next week. She doesn''t know it yet but my whole family is flying in and it''ll be a big party next week. I want to give her the ring privately before the party, and then she can show it off to everyone afterwards.

Many thanks again to everyone for their help, I love the ring and hope she does too.

 

[HEPennypacker]

Congrats! Glad you're happy with your new choice. Any pics?

 

[codex57]

Date: 12/3/2007 6:29:14 AM
Author: kennyg

I am Asian and there is a lot of feeling around family and friends (many who have relatives who are jewlers etc.) who advise never going lower than G in color. And no matter what stone I bring up, they *always* say they can get me a better deal (big families are fun that way ) But what isn''t clear is whether their *deals* are of the same cut quality, some of them they show me don''t score well on HCA.

Haha, reminds me of when I was looking for a ring. My wife''s culture values color above all it seems. It was D or nothing. Clarity was really important too, but there didn''t seem to be any hard minimum specification. Cut was the last thing on their minds. And yeah, I got the "we can get you a better deal" all the time too. That was fun.

 

[cara]

Date: 12/14/2007 12:14:43 PM
Author: kennyg
All - an update. I returned the 1.55ct I VS1 stone and got a 1.30ct G VS1 colored stone yesterday. Specs:


1.30ct RB G VS1 (GIA)

Ex cut, Ex polish, Ex symm

7.00 x 7.05 x 4.31mm

No Fluor

Depth%: 61.4

Table%: 56

Crown Angle: 34.5

Crown Height: 15

Pav Angle: 40.8

Pav Height: 43

Girdle: Medium

Culet: None


HCA - 1.2 TIC (ex/ex/ex/vg)

AGA DIY Grader - 1A in all categories



This stone is beautiful. Very white. It looks just as big as the 1.5ct I had before, even though there is a 20% difference in diameters (this one has 7.00 x 7.05, the other one had 7.47 x 7.51).


The stone always looks white in the center and never dark! I started a previous thread were the very first stone I purchased from a B&M had odd proportions even with an HCA of

I''m getting the ring set on Saturday and will surprise her early next week. She doesn''t know it yet but my whole family is flying in and it''ll be a big party next week. I want to give her the ring privately before the party, and then she can show it off to everyone afterwards.


Many thanks again to everyone for their help, I love the ring and hope she does too.

They are more like 6.5% different in diameter and 12-14% different in face up area, if you''ve quoted accurate numbers. Not huge. Especially not for a mind-clean stone! Congrats, I look forward to pictures....

 

[kennyg]

Cara - you''re right! Not sure where my brain was when I calculated that. I''ve been playing with so many numbers etc. I''m getting mixed up. But that explains why it looks similar in size to me.

All - I''ll try to get pictures once it is all set. Another wrinkle entering the picture - the appraiser believes the prongs on the setting I have aren''t big enough to hold a stone of my size and will look "splayed" or strange if forced. I have no time to fix the setting before the proposal (people are flying in etc. so I can''t delay anymore) - it was a special order that took 6-8 weeks to get in! So I am nervous, but I''ve already talked to the store and will speak directly to the setter and/or manager today to warn them ahead of time. I think in the worst case the jeweler/setter would have to replace the prongs, which my appraiser said is possible - I just hope we can do something and not compromise the look. . .

Crossing fingers. . .

 

[kennyg]

All - a one month update and closure to the ring search - pictures.

These were just taken with a regular digital camera, manual focus. I didn''t line the arrows up or clean the ring beforehand, so it may be hard to see the detail in stone or the setting''s work, but overall it gives a good sense for how the ring looks. I also included one hand shot with the ring on her finger.

The stone is from Blue Nile, 1.3ct RB G VS1 ideal cut ex/ex sym/polish HCA 1.2 (ex/ex/ex/vg).

The setting is from Natalie K, platinum 950 with 0.18ct G/H RB side stones.

She gets a lot of compliments on the ring and is having fun with it. People usually remark on how large, white, and sparkly it is. She really loves the setting design and thought it was the perfect ring for her. Thanks again to everyone and PS for making ring shopping fun for me too

 

[kennyg]

 

[kennyg]

 

[kennyg]

 

[kennyg]

Last one. Thanks again everyone!

 

[Angel7]

Congrats Kenny! The ring is BEAUTIFUL and yes, that stone looks very white!

 

[Dreamer_D]

Awesome Kennyg! What a saga, and what a happy ending!

DD

 

[Sparkalicious]

Congrats Kenny! It''s beautiful!