Q&A: Looking for a Princess or Cushion Cut Center Diamond for a White Gold Halo Ring of Total 1.22 Carats

Hello,

I’m trying to find a princess cut, 1.22 carat diamond, since my girlfriend and I met on Jan 22. The size though falls at the end of my budget, making color and clarity tricky for me to figure out. I’ve found a few, each with their drawbacks.

The 2 most expensive are Blue Nile, and I know I can’t actually see what they look like:
Blue Nile LD06727285
Blue Nile LD07087484

I also found this one but it’s graded color is K, and I’m worried the yellowish color will be very noticeable on a white gold ring: www.exceldiamonds.com/Diamonds-1/GIA-Graded-Princess-Diamond-1-22-Carat-K-Color-VS1-Clarity-1395658.html

Then there was this one, but it’s not GIA certified, it’s IGI: www.exceldiamonds.com/Diamonds-1/IGI-Graded-Princess-Diamond-1-22-Carat-H-Color-SI2-Clarity-1390086.html

I would appreciate your thoughts or recommendations on where else to look and/or when to look for this specific carat diamond.

Thanks!

Thanks for the response, your insights on color are especially helpful. Luckily I have some time before I *have* to buy this ring, so I can afford to keep looking at least for another couple months.

I now have additional information for the time of ring I’m looking for. In addition white gold and a princess cut, I’m also looking for a halo setting so will definitely focus on H or better color. I’m also considering, since these settings are a bit pricier, maybe going with a 1.22 total carat weight, rather than 1.22 for center diamond. How much do you think that would knock off the size of the center piece?

Also, do you know if most of these online retailers participate in Cyber Monday etc. or do you think prices would be similar throughout the year?

Thank you again for the advice, it’s been very helpful as I continue to search for the right diamond ring for my girlfriend. I haven’t made a purchase yet, I still have some time left.

In the meantime, I was wondering if you could advise on the different kinds of square-cut diamonds? My girlfriend once told me that she wanted a princess cut diamond, but she also shared this photo she took a few years back of the kind of ring she wants and this to me appears to be more squarish than a princess would be, maybe a cushion cut?

Is there a significant difference in price between princess, cushion, radiant and asscher? Does one tend to offer a better overall value than the others? If I can definitely settle on the cut, then I can try to pair a smaller diamond with the TCW of a ring, and make the whole package total up to 1.22 ct, which would be great.

Finally able to narrow down what I’m looking for. I’m going to go with this setting from James Allen:
www.jamesallen.com/engagement-rings/halo/14k-white-gold-cushion-outline-pave-engagement-ring-item-49493?a_aid=dmnd1357

And I’d like to add a 0.84 carat diamond as the center stone. I don’t know that the shape – round or cushion – is really all that important to me. I just want to get a decent quality diamond of .84 carats. My price point is ideally $2960 or below for the diamond itself, but I could probably go up a little if I absolutely have to.

I was eyeing this one:
www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/cushion-cut/0.84-carat-h-color-vs2-clarity-sku-1936035?a_aid=dmnd1357

but that was mainly because from what I could tell all the round ones at this price point weren’t eye clean. But I may not have the properly trained eye to judge. I would appreciate your recommendations and will likely go with one of them. Thank you so much for all your help, I’ll be sure to recommend Diamonds.pro to anyone and everyone I can.

I went with the diamond I mentioned:
www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/cushion-cut/0.84-carat-h-color-vs2-clarity-sku-1936035?a_aid=dmnd1357
.
Almost went with this one:
www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/cushion-modified-cut/0.84-carat-e-color-vs2-clarity-sku-1981519?a_aid=dmnd1357

but it was stretching my budget and I don’t know that it would have been a noticeable improvement.

Thank you again for all your help, I was only able to pick that one because of the education I received from you and your site.

Ring just arrived this morning and I am extremely pleased. The ring is gorgeous and I got it for a great price. The H color is very very slightly noticeable, I think possibly because the halo and pavé diamonds are F color and also incredibly sparkly.

Thank you so much for your help and advice. You and your website made this experience so much better than it otherwise would have been.

All my best.

Sorry it took so long but I wrote a review and also I’ve attached a photo of the ring here.

[LINK TO REVIEW ON IVOUCH].

Thanks again for everything, my fiancee loved the ring! In fact, her married/engaged family were extremely jealous of it.