Q&A: Finding the Largest Possible Princess Cut Diamond for $8 to 9k Budget

 I can’t thank you enough for the wealth of information that that you’ve made available online with regard to the purchasing of diamonds during that very special period in one’s life when you feel you’ve found that right someone and are ready for a long term commitment. While you’ve helped me to become a great deal wiser than when I began this process, I’m still far from an expert and was hoping to call upon your assistance in selecting the ideal diamond for the setting I had in mind.

I figured I’d likely purchase through James Allen for various reasons and wanted to find the best princess cut diamond to be placed in the platinum setting below:

https://www.jamesallen.com/engagement-rings/side-stones/-platinum-tapered-baguette-diamond-engagement-ring-item-1206

Ideally I’d like to keep my total budget no higher than $8 – 9,000, but having browsed through James Allen’s selection of available diamonds using the helpful criteria that you laid out for Princess cut stones, I wasn’t able to find all that large a sample size to select from. And those that I did find, seemed to have fairly visible defects assuming my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me. Is this just an off time with regard to their inventory of princess cut diamonds? I suppose if necessary, I could up my budget slightly if you feel it’s worth it.

Any help you can provide when you get a chance would be greatly appreciated, as would any comments you have on the setting/stone combination and whether there are any red flags from your point of view.

I hugely appreciate your time and advice. 

 The budget I mentioned ideally would include both the setting as well as the diamond. As far as size, I assume you are referring to ring size, which would be a 6. If on the other hand you’re referring to diamond size, the largest stone that is visibly clean and the best combination of the other criteria would be preferred.

Given what sounds like significantly reduced inventory, would you recommend delaying the purchase until a later date when availability is improved?

Please let me know if you have any other questions. Thanks for your help!

 I’m prepared to make a purchase as soon as possible, limited I guess only by the available inventory of quality diamonds. How long do you figure before the supply returns to normal? 

I just wanted to get back to you as requested regarding my hunt for the ideal ring. I recently searched through JA’s inventory as best I could and spotted a couple of options, but again most seemed to have blemishes as far as I could tell. I was hoping to call upon your expert opinion though whenever you get a chance.

Please let me know if you have any questions. I appreciate all your assistance. 

 To my untrained eye both look fantastic to me and if you feel that they are the best of the bunch, that certainly gives me even greater comfort.

It sounds like your recommendation would be to opt for the 1.33 carat as it is a better value and the size difference would be negligible, which is advice I certainly appreciate. I just had two quick questions I was hoping to get your expert opinion on.

Do you think either option will pair well with the original setting below that I had in mind? From your helpful website I know that the color of the accessory stones has an impact upon the color of the center stone that should be specified along with the size of the band and mounting, I would imagine. I just wanted to make sure that you felt the final ring as a whole would be at least as good as the sum of its parts. https://www.jamesallen.com/engagement-rings/side-stones/-platinum-tapered-baguette-diamond-engagement-ring-item-1206?a_aid=dmnd1357
Also, as your experience and knowledge are far greater than mine, do you feel that the two stones are excellent in their own right or are they the best of a still diminished inventory? Do you think I stand to gain anything by perhaps giving it a couple more days, or is this as good a time as any to take the plunge?
I can’t thank you enough for all of your kind assistance. It is immensely appreciated.