This thread was invaluable. The bit about color not being important but cut and carat was spot on. Purchased a 1.2 carat I color signature cut from Blue Nile. They put it together and delivered within 24 hours after I ordered it on a Friday. I paid $25 for Saturday delivery.
Total cost was a little over $6k - about $5k for the diamond and the rest for the ring (petite trellis).
Fiance is not super into jewelry and not very materialistic but - she was completely blown away by the ring. She "couldn't believe it was real" and stared at the ring like a cat at catnip for about an hour. So I've been very happy with the experience so far.
Two other bits.
Of course the size was wrong - this means I need to send back to Blue Nile for free resizing - however, the caveats are the resizing takes up to 14 business days and can only be done once for free! Not a big deal in my case but I wish I knew that bit ahead of time. I think the general rule is the size you think it is is always too big - but - it is easier to go down than to go up so order big.
I definitely need to get insurance. Jeweler's mutual has given me a $100/year quote for insurance which seems reasonable enough to me. "Replacement value" is higher than what I paid, which is always a bit annoying but what can you do. They share info with Blue Nile so they just pulled up my order information directly.
Anyone else use Jeweler's Mutual? Any claim experiences?
EDIT: One other thing - I purchased with my AMEX hoping to get some good purchase protection - however - the purchase protection is only to $1k - therefore would recommend getting insurance from the beginning!
EDIT2: Also purchased a ring from Costco as a backup - was not as nice a ring for the same price and would have paid more for 'color' and 'clarity' which she seems not to have cared about. Went to return it and ring return procedure is annoying - it takes them 10 days to verify the ring is what they sold you - and then you need to return in order to have them refund your card. Wish they could just do that part on their own!
I just placed a purchase on a diamond, and as said by many others already, just wanted to thank Geo for making this thread and providing his expertise. I was able to lower my budget significantly, while keeping the look of the diamond the same (and actually getting something much larger too). I sent him a PM about a diamond I was looking at, and eventually bought anyway, but I didn't get a response since he's probably busy. I was wondering if I could get some comments on it from those that have recently shopped?
It's a round ideal cut, AGS000 cert (excellent polish/symmetry), HCA score of 0.7, G color, VS1, 1.2 carat (6.8mm diameter) for $7.9k. It's a premium cut "A Cut Above" from Whiteflash, so I know I paid a premium for that.
I could have searched harder for an SI1/2 that was eye clean, but I just wanted the VS1 grading for psychological reasons.
I have read this discussion and learned a lot.... THANKS for the efforts. As I have started looking for a stone in the one carat and slightly larger size class, I ended up on Pricescope and then it linked to James Allen... Where there is a virtual Image... many of these seem to have black facets in patterns ...is this an indication of a flaw or perhaps a characteristic of a diamond that produces more fire from an angle
try looking in pawn shops or in outlet or warehouse jewelry stores... perhaps you can save your money and maybe not buy something now but in a year from now... or maybe do a payment planDiscount code= 10OFF2 will give you 10% off.
I have read this discussion and learned a lot.... THANKS for the efforts. As I have started looking for a stone in the one carat and slightly larger size class, I ended up on Pricescope and then it linked to James Allen... Where there is a virtual Image... many of these seem to have black facets in patterns ...is this an indication of a flaw or perhaps a characteristic of a diamond that produces more fire from an angle
AMEN to PriceScope. I posted the scope images of stones I was looking at (from WhiteFlash.com) and the PS'ers were very helpful in choosing a stone. Saved a lot of money and got a better product to boot.
My fiancée wanted a unique engagement ring, so I designed my own in Rhinoceros (a 3D modeling program) and had it cast by a local Dallas casting house, who also set the loose stone and polished it. Also, we decided to go with palladium (check it out if you haven't heard of it) instead of platinum. I ended up saving about 70% over comparable rings that we borrowed ideas from and have the advantage of having something unique that I designed.
I wrote the article on Guide on how to buy loose diamonds at wholesale prices a looong time ago. Some info was edited out by the mod but if anyone want the original post you are welcome to PM me with your email address.
Hi, First post here but monitored this forum for a year. Could Geo and other pros give me their opinion about this diamond ... how good is it? is it priced well? I did pretty extensive search for couple days and could not find anything close to this one. Similar once were more then 1k,2k or 3k more (at Blue Nile,whiteflash sites). http://www.BlueNile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-ideal-cut-h-color-vs1-clarity_LD01623926
Some background about my search
First when i started to read this discussion i was looking at I and S1 Ideal Cut 1.46-1.6 carats on Blue Nile diamond search, then at mid point reading through this forum i realized that majority people (even Geo) lean towards H to be safe instead of I. So i switched my search to H color S1. Majority of diamonds 1.45 to 1.55k with good HCA score and grading report with not that many inclusions (didn't want diamond with bunch of them like some reports have) were $9500 and above. Just for the heck of it i widen my search to H VS2.. nothing with good HCA and price .. then i searched for H and VS1 and notice this diamond which was priced ( to my opinion ) better and had great HCA as well as measurements (beat some 1.60,1.63 diamonds) then some H/SI1 and H/VS2 with similar carat range 1.52-1.6. Maybe i missed something and its not that good of a diamond.. please let me know within 30 days
Pretty good deal almost at the lower 25% price range base on the average price for the this diamond .......however it says on the website this diamond is no longer for sale.
jaonet said: Hi, First post here but monitored this forum for a year. Could Geo and other pros give me their opinion about this diamond ... how good is it? is it priced well? I did pretty extensive search for couple days and could not find anything close to this one. Similar once were more then 1k,2k or 3k more (at Blue Nile,whiteflash sites). http://www.BlueNile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-ideal-cut-h-color-...
Some background about my search
First when i started to read this discussion i was looking at I and S1 Ideal Cut 1.46-1.6 carats on Blue Nile diamond search, then at mid point reading through this forum i realized that majority people (even Geo) lean towards H to be safe instead of I. So i switched my search to H color S1. Majority of diamonds 1.45 to 1.55k with good HCA score and grading report with not that many inclusions (didn't want diamond with bunch of them like some reports have) were $9500 and above. Just for the heck of it i widen my search to H VS2.. nothing with good HCA and price .. then i searched for H and VS1 and notice this diamond which was priced ( to my opinion ) better and had great HCA as well as measurements (beat some 1.60,1.63 diamonds) then some H/SI1 and H/VS2 with similar carat range 1.52-1.6. Maybe i missed something and its not that good of a diamond.. please let me know within 30 days
yes.. now, i have to learn to figure out this diamond by its plot . I think i was able to see a needle (2 times of of 5 looking for it) on the table with X10 loupe but on clean eye .. its sparkles so much... don't know who its possible to see any inclusion.
Forget to mention.. through pricescope search this diamond was available only through Blue Nile.... or maybe because ASG graded it only dec 16.
hustla said: good deal......did you received the diamond already?
jaonet said: thats because i got it wanted to hear opinion of the group
VS1 is pretty hard to see with a x10 loupe......I had to use a lab microscope at 40X to see my wifes VS1 diamond.
jaonet said: yes.. now, i have to learn to figure out this diamond by its plot . I think i was able to see a needle (2 times of of 5 looking for it) on the table with X10 loupe but on clean eye .. its sparkles so much... don't know who its possible to see any inclusion.
Forget to mention.. through pricescope search this diamond was available only through Blue Nile.... or maybe because ASG graded it only dec 16.
hustla said: good deal......did you received the diamond already?
I'd appreciate any learned opinions on the following stone from BlueNile:
1.01 carat Very Good cut (princess) VS2 clarity E color 1.01 l/w ratio ~$4100
Is this a good value? It's an eye-clean stone with excellent color rating for the price. Everything else I looked at in the price range was rated G or H.
_Avarice_ said: Great info in this thread, Geo. Much obliged.
I'd appreciate any learned opinions on the following stone from BlueNile:
1.01 carat Very Good cut (princess) VS2 clarity E color 1.01 l/w ratio ~$4100
Is this a good value? It's an eye-clean stone with excellent color rating for the price. Everything else I looked at in the price range was rated G or H.
Thoughts? Suggestions?
The best way is to get a recommendation of a local jeweler and ask them to show you stones like that and get a price. You'll feel more comfortable making the trade-offs between color/clarity etc and will have a sense of how good a deal BlueNile is.
I found that local dealers were overpricing before I shopped for a engagement ring stone at Blue Nile. After I got a BlueNile quote though and told jewelers that I could get xyz stone from "another jeweler" for $X, the quotes got competitive and one place ended up beating the Blue Nile price in the end (but most places didn't).
Thx for the reply and that's precisely what I just did on my lunch break. Ugh, mall stores are terrible. Not that I expected anything to the contrary, but the stones they were pitching in the same price range were dull and poorly cut (in my not-so-expert opinion).
Hi Experts - This is a valuable thread to learn about Diamonds. Based on this - I did make a small purchase of 1/2 carat ring a couple of years back from union Diamonds and I was happy. However, Now I am looking for another ring - a little bigger and wanted to see if somebody can provide insight into buying used Tiffany's Diamond Ring. I looked up a posting on my local craigslist and saw somebody offering 0.74 Carat Tiffany's ring. The seller has all the Tiffany certificate , original purchase receipt and record of sale ( all dated 4 years back).As per the Seller , the Ring has been Polished, Cleaned and rebuffed recently at Tiffany's. The seller is willing to meet at a Tiffany's store to prove the Authenticity of Ring.
As per the Certificate - The Diamond is Round,Brilliant Cut with following Specs: Clarity :VS2 Color : G 5.83*5.88*3.58MM 0.74 Carat Depth %age :61.1 Table Diameter %age :56 Crown Angle : 35 Cutlet : None Pavilion Depth Percentage : 43 Symmetry : V good Polish : V good
I am personally not a Diamond fan and always believe that they do not hold any value but just give you Satisfaction. Having said that,If I take this - It would be at at least 60% of what I would pay for new. Do you think it is okay to buy such a ring - ANy Pitfalls ? Any other things that I need to consider ? If it matters, it looks like it was purchased for $7k and I am hoping to get a 45-50% discount.
Great info thanks!! I recently found a site jamesallen.com and it seems to have great reviews, they post pictures of the actual diamonds, and a nice variety of settings too. Good luck
I just did Princess 1.23 carat I color and VS1 calrity
price was $4960 but i used Shop Discover link from discover card to save 10% but mine was Very Good cut not Ideal.
Not sure if i got a good deal or not
......................
HERE ARE THE SPECS
Stock number: LD01924070 Price: $4,960 Bank wire price: $4,886 Price per carat: $4,033 Carat weight: 1.23 Cut: Very Good Color: I Clarity: VS1 Depth %: 74.1% Table %: 75% Polish: Very Good Symmetry: Very Good Girdle: Very Thin to Very Thick Culet: None Fluorescence: None Measurements: 5.88 x 5.80 x 4.30 mm Length/width ratio: 1.01
First, I just wanted to say that this board have been invaluable in my hunt for an engagement ring. As a clueless guy I had no idea what to look for in a diamond. Now I feel more confident in my search. I've read through the entire post and read everyone's input. Geo's opinion for other diamond seekers have seem to gather excellent results. I even bookmarked this board so that when I'm ready I can use this forum as a resource. I am now getting ready to make my purchase and finally propose to my fiance. It seems that Geo have not commented in awhile. So Geo if you are still out there please comment on my selection.
These are two diamonds recommended to me by a jeweler friend. Yet, the HCA score came out 5 and 4 respectively. I'm kind of confused why the friend would recommend these diamonds. Are there better options out there? My budget is $15,000 or less. I'm trying to get the most bang for the buck. Any help would be appreciated. Getting ready to purchase the diamond soon!
I bought my wife a ring more than I could afford at the time and it was well worth it. She cherishes it, as does everyone who sees it. The money will come and go, but the ring will last a lifetime (and generations).
This forum has been great for me too. I proposed to my fiancee last month and I did a lot of research online at Wikipedia and forums to figure out what to get. My budget was about 3K so I didnt' have millions of options. And I didn't know jack about diamonds or engagement rings.
I ended up buying the ring online at JamesAllen.com. Its a White Gold Pave Cathedralv ring with a 0.70 Carat I SI1 diamond and my fiancee loves it and I know I made the right choice. I looked at a few sites. James Allen had the best bang for my buck and free shipping and free returns. Even though I only spent about 3K the ring looks like a much more expensive ring.
I think that it is important to have a certificate. I bought my wife her ring from cutcarat.com, they carry EGL certified diamonds. The ring came free with the diamond, and she loves it. I would buy from there again.
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