Hello,
I’m comparing two round cut diamonds on Blue Nile:
and
Could you help me assess if these diamonds are eye clean? Are there any inclusions in conspicuous locations that I might have missed? Should I be concerned about the strong fluorescence making them appear hazier? Which diamond would you assess as a better purchase overall?
If there’s anything egregious that I’m missing about these diamonds, I’d appreciate your opinion.
Thank you so much! Your website has been extremely helpful and informative.
Unfortunately, strong fluorescence is a BIG problem on I+ diamonds. It usually causes haziness and negatively impacts resale value. I wouldn’t go with either of them.
I’m happy to help you pick out a better option if you like. What style setting are you going to put the diamond into?
This is the setting for the diamond:
Petite Vintage Pavé Leaf Diamond Engagement Ring
I have been looking at these parameters using GIA standards, but am open to suggestions and modifying them to find the right balance:
Price range: ~$6500-7000, with some flexibility. Can also modify parameters below to get lower price, which would be very helpful.
Carat: ~1-1.2 carat (Overall, emphasis more on quality vs size. >1.2 c ok too, but I don’t want to compromise too much on quality for size.)
Cut: Round, excellent/ideal
Clarity: VS2 or higher
Color: H or I or higher ? (whatever is not visibly yellow)
Table: 54-59%? (not sure about this)
Depth: 59-62.3%? (not sure about this)
The setting you picked is beautiful. You can easily go with an I-color center stone as the melee diamonds are also Is.
Regarding the cut parameters, we use the following specs to maximize brilliance: depth % close to 61.5 (never higher than 62.8%) and table % between 55-58.
Here’s my recommendation:
Blue Nile LD11984677
They are fantastically cut and all of them are going to be very bright and brilliant.
Thank you for these recommendations and info on the cut parameters! It’s also really helpful to see a range of carats and prices. Is there much visible difference between the 1.14 c and the 1.2 c (~0.1mm) in terms of size?
I like the look of slightly bigger than 1c, and if the 1.14c is visibly comparable to a 1.2, then I think the cost savings is worthwhile. Would love to hear your thoughts. Thanks!
The difference in actual size is negligible. The 1.14ct diamond is an excellent option value-wise. If you are deciding between those two, then I’d go with the 1.14ct one. It’s a beautiful diamond.
Great, thank you! I think this diamond strikes the right balance between what I’m looking for and our budget. I’ve put a 48-hour hold on the diamond (waiting for new credit card to come in mail) and will let you know when I purchase it using this email address.
Fingers crossed that we’ll be able to get it. Will keep you posted. Thanks for your all your help!
Fingers crossed! Let me know how it goes, I’ll be awaiting your email.
I wanted to update you on my diamond purchase! Long story short… we delayed in buying the 1.14c diamond because we were waiting for a new credit card to arrive. I had put the diamond on hold, but after I attempted to purchase it today, I was notified that it was no longer available. Alas, you snooze you lose! I purchased another diamond (rather hastily, unfortunately) using this email address. Here is the diamond I purchased:
Blue Nile LD12030752
It’s a tad smaller and more expensive than the one I originally wanted, but it looked to be of overall decent quality.
What do you think of this diamond? Is there anything faulty that you would recommend against? If you think I can get a significantly better diamond for around that price or lower, I can exchange it for another diamond within 30 days of shipment. I’ll wait to see what your thoughts are on this diamond and how I like it when I see it!
Thank you for updating me on everything.
The diamond you ended up with is a superb option. I love its cut and I’m positive it will have a lot of brilliance and fire. Great find!
What we love about them:
- No questions asked returns within 30 days of shipment. James Allen will send you a paid shipping label to return the ring.
- Lifetime Warranty
- Free International Shipping
- Free prong tightening, repolishing, rhodium plating and cleaning every 6 months
- Provide insurance appraisals
- One free resizing within 60 days of purchase
- Free ring inscriptions
- Best-in-class high quality imagery of all diamonds in stock
- 24/7 Customer Service
- Best-in-class packaging
What we love about them:
- No questions asked returns within 30 days of shipment. Blue Nile will send you a paid shipping label to return the ring.
- Lifetime Warranty
- Free Shipping
- Free prong tightening, repolishing, rhodium plating and cleaning every 6 months
- Provide insurance appraisal
- One free resizing within the first year of purchase
- High quality images of about half of their diamonds
- 24/7 Customer Service
- 100% credit towards future upgrades (must be at least double in value)
- Best in class fulfillment
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