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Q&A: Looking for a Round or Pear or Oval Diamond for a Pave Setting With a $4,000 Budget

By Mike Fried,

There are two main rules when choosing a pear diamond:
1) The depth shouldn’t exceed 74%.
2) The bowtie should be as minimal as possible.
In case of pears, we usually recommend sticking with H+ color with none, faint or medium fluorescence (medium and strong fluorescence on D-G colored diamonds can cause a hazy/milky look in daylight – https://www.diamonds.pro/education/fluorescence/). Check out our article about pear-shaped diamonds: https://www.diamonds.pro/education/pear-shaped/. We recommend getting diamonds with GIA/AGS certificated as these are the most consistent labs. Also, when comparing two (or more) stones, I always suggest checking the actual measurements, not the carat weight.

www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.13-carat-j-color-vs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-9272540?a_aid=dmnd1357– I’d suggest sticking with I+ colored diamonds for pave settings to avoid any yellowish hue.
www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.01-carat-i-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-10398659?a_aid=dmnd1357 – I would recommend sticking with GIA/AGS certified diamonds. We don’t recommend IGI certified stones unless they are lab-created. They are looser in grading than GIA or AGS (https://www.diamonds.pro/education/igi/). GIA and AGS are the most consistent and reliable labs.
www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/pear-shaped/1.02-carat-h-color-vs1-clarity-sku-8628714?a_aid=dmnd1357 – Nice diamond.
www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/pear-shaped/1.01-carat-g-color-vs2-clarity-sku-10429883?a_aid=dmnd1357 – Also perfect stone. It has a little bit of a “side bowtie” but I don’t think it would be visible to the naked eye.
www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/pear-shaped/1.00-carat-h-color-vs1-clarity-sku-10189675?a_aid=dmnd1357 – Nice but I like the two pears above more.
www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.01-carat-g-color-si2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-10265858?a_aid=dmnd1357 – This diamond is superbly cut. I think it’s an eye-clean diamond and perfect specs. The feather might be theoretically covered with a prong. I’d suggest asking JA if they can inspect the stone. But even if you order it and you won’t like it in person, you can easily return it. But I would give it a try since I don’t see any red flags.

WOW! Thank you so much for all of the information and feedback. I am looking to buy a ring in the next few days, so this is very helpful. Now my girlfriend has shown interest in oval diamonds. Do you have any feedback on finding one?

I really like this one below though that you sent. Though it has medium blue fluorescence. Do you think that is an issue for a white gold pave setting?

www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/oval-cut/1.00-carat-h-color-vvs2-clarity-sku-10360169

H colored diamonds look colorless in any setting. The medium fluorescence helps H-K colored diamonds look a tad whiter.

I just purchased the oval diamond you recommended.

Thanks so much for your help! I really appreciate it.

That’s wonderful news!

James Allen James Allen is the leader in online diamond sales. Their imaging technology is the same as inspecting a diamond with a jeweler's loupe. They have the largest exclusive loose diamond inventory online and fantastic prices. They also have the nicest collection of lab-created diamonds online.
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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
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