Q&A: Choosing a Round Diamond for a Platinum Ring with Sidestones for Under $2,500 In Total

I understand your concerns about buying online. We have found that far more people end up getting taken advantage of by going in to a store than purchasing online. Diamond buying is confusing and, deep down, you realize that you will never know as much as the professionals selling the diamonds.

When you purchase online, you have the advantage of going at your own pace, cross-referencing (with a site like ours) and checking off all the boxes. I am also able to help with somewhat unbiased opinions. While we usually get paid by the online vendors we recommend, we have no reason to recommend one diamond over the other unless it’s the better choice for you. When you walk into a store, the less desirable the diamond, the more incentive the owner of the diamond has to sell it.

There have been countless readers who we started the process with and partway through send us a message ‘we went to this store and found this diamond that was such a great deal, so we snapped it up.’ We then feel like garbage when we have to point out the things they missed which turn it from a good deal to a terrible deal (improper certification inflating the quality, strong fluorescence, yellow fluorescence, even artificial treatment). Unfortunately, most stores make it very difficult to return a diamond ring.

It’s possible you can find a good deal at a store (by good deal, I mean not much more expensive than an online retailer), but you are far more likely to fall into a sales trap. I’m not saying that you should unequivocally stick with online purchasing, but we only recommend companies we trust and I think it’s worth at least to consider it.

We usually recommend purchasing a stone with either GIA or AGS certification (these are legit labs). They serve as a proof that you get what you pay for.
https://www.diamonds.pro/education/diamond-certification/#gia-certification
https://www.diamonds.pro/education/diamond-certification/#ags-certification

As for the cleaning, the companies we recommend purchasing from offer free polishing and cleaning.

If you also tell me what style of setting (solitaire, halo, pave or other), metal (platinum/white or yellow gold), shape of diamond you’re looking for and what your approximate budget is, I’ll be happy to send you my suggestion.

Thank you for the information.

The issue with the stone you found is its strong fluorescence on a high color. It can cause a hazy look.
https://www.diamonds.pro/education/fluorescence/

It’s also important to see a real image of a stone with clarity grade below VS. I need to make sure that the inclusions are not eye-noticeable or that they can be covered by a prong.

If you’re willing to go slightly down with the color, here’s a stone with the quality I’d recommend:
Blue Nile LD08616590

It’s very well cut, eye-clean and going to look colorless.
https://www.diamonds.pro/education/color/

What do you think?

I am pleased to hear that you like the diamond I sent so much.

You can start placing an order using the same email address you use for the communication with us. Or you can also contact them directly and mention that we were in contact. They will gladly help you finalize the order.

Keep me posted.

Yes, the email address is the only thing we need to know in order to get credit. Thank you that you care so much.