Diamonds - Color, Clarity & Cut

[Yzzim]

I'm looking at getting engaged within the next couple months and am looking for a diamond for my woman. I don't have too many jewelers in this small town (only 1 actually) so I'm looking online to get an idea of what I want. I'm looking at getting something between .25 - .40 carat, they seem to be in my price range. However, the color, clarity, and cut specs are driving me insane.

How many people can really tell the difference between H-J color graded diamonds? Same thing goes for the clarity and the cut. Which spec should I spend the most money on? I can get a .4 carat diamond with Color rated a J, Clarity rated SI2, and Cut between Excellent/Ideal. The Color is the lowest "near colorless" they have, and the Clarity is one of the lowest...but is it really that bad to the naked eye?

Most of my buddies are going to Wal-Mart/Sam's Club or JCPenny to pick out their diamonds. They don't seem to care about the color, clarity, or cut but they come back with beautiful diamonds for a pretty reasonable price. If I get the .4 carat stated above, is my woman's diamond going to look yellow and dull next to those other rings from Wal-Mart?

 

[ElFenix]

if you look at it really hard and can't tell the difference get the cheaper one


yellows are more expensive than clears

 

[Yzzim]

Originally posted by: ElFenix
if you look at it really hard and can't tell the difference get the cheaper one


yellows are more expensive than clears

Yellows? I thought colorless was the l33t of diamonds (except maybe pinks?)

 

[KingNothing]

There's some things I won't buy online, and an engagement ring is one of them. Take a woman with you when you buy it for a second opinion. Go out of town if you need to.

 

[TechnoKid]

As long as the diamond is certified by either the GIA or AGSL, pick out the [biggest you want to spend] one that has the least visible inclusions (usually a VS2 and up), and sparkles the most. The better the cut and polish/symetry, the better it will sparkle.

White gold/platinum will not give off a yellow cast to the diamond.

edit: also, yes, you can tell the difference in color on diamonds. hold up an F(colorless) to an I (slightly yellow) and you'll be able to tell the difference. I'd go for D-H, with D, E, F being colorless, and G, H very slightly.

 

[tami]

Originally posted by: ElFenix

yellows are more expensive than clears

are you talking out or your a$$? the colorless diamonds (D) are by far more expensive than H-J diamonds.

i just got engaged. we went shopping for the diamond and ring together.

here's a recent thread about engagement rings

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: tami

Originally posted by: ElFenix

yellows are more expensive than clears

are you talking out or your a$$? the colorless diamonds (D) are by far more expensive than H-J diamonds.

i just got engaged. we went shopping for the diamond and ring together.

here's a recent thread about engagement rings

why don't you do some research before talking out your ass.

here is a hint, since you're clueluess: look for 'fancy yellow diamonds' on bluenile

 

[hysperion]

the advice I heard about shopping thru a store was the worst I've ever heard....go to blue nile....they are way cheaper and are all graded diamonds so you know what you're getting.

If I were looking to get married I would look for the largest Diamond I could afford with the following characteristics:

F color: which is the lowest end colorless diamond and is colorless without magnification. Personally I don't see why they use a 10x magnifier as standard for checking for seclusions and such when noone can see that far anyways. And even a flawless diamond under 30x probably isn't flawless under 45x-60x-90x etc so to me the standard should be what an expert gemologist can see with 20/20 vision.

Very Good or Excellent Cut

VS1.....Very rare you can see the seclusions without magnification

Size...buy the biggest you can afford on blue nile with the above specs.....You can always take her to a regular jewelery store, find what cut she likes, then go to bluenile and save 25% and get a graded diamond.

Just my .02

A 1 carat diamond on blue nile using these parameters will run you from $6500-8000......remember this is an investment, the problem with women is if you don't get them something good right away- they will see their friends later on and you'll end up having to buy another ring. It happened to my grandpa, it happened to my dad, I won't let it happen to me

1 carat 7g's
.9 carat 5300
.85 carat 4500

Don't even think about getting anything smaller if you want her to say yes

I was trying to be serious but funny with this post based on him wanting to buy a .25-.4 carat diamond at Walmart, I guess noone got it

 

[Klandestine]

1 carat is a definite yes, go for the debt!

 

[Colt45]

get one of those russian machine diamonds. Or do they not sell those yet?

 

[hysperion]

Originally posted by: ElFenix

Originally posted by: tami

Originally posted by: ElFenix

yellows are more expensive than clears

are you talking out or your a$$? the colorless diamonds (D) are by far more expensive than H-J diamonds.

i just got engaged. we went shopping for the diamond and ring together.

here's a recent thread about engagement rings

why don't you do some research before talking out your ass.

here is a hint, since you're clueluess: look for 'fancy yellow diamonds' on bluenile

Lets put it in the context of this post. He's not looking for fancy yellow diamonds at bluenile....he's looking at Walmart. And they don't carry fancy yellow diamonds at walmart or any of the stores he listed....so yes the colorless diamonds will be better......

And to the OP, If I was considering getting married the girl would be getting at least a carat. In fact I can't imagine anyone getting a girl they want to be married to less then 3/4 of a carat. If you do something- do it right or don't do it at all. If you're gonna get her an embarassing ring you might as well get a few boxes of crackerjacks and you'll turn one up eventually. You'll save alot of money.

 

[gopunk]

Originally posted by: hysperion
And to the OP, If I was considering getting married the girl would be getting at least a carat. In fact I can't imagine anyone getting a girl they want to be married to less then 3/4 of a carat. If you do something- do it right or don't do it at all. If you're gonna get her an embarassing ring you might as well get a few boxes of crackerjacks and you'll turn one up eventually. You'll save alot of money.

not that i'd get less than a carat either, but some people might not be able to afford that... so i can imagine people getting smaller rings.

 

[Yzzim]

Thanks for the reply, hysperion. However, I'm not going to buy anything over $800 as my girlfriend already stated I would be crazy if I paid over $500 on a ring anyway.

Also, I'm not looking to buy the ring at Wal-Mart, I was just wondering what the quality @ Blue Nile is compared to the quality at Wal-Mart. Would a .4 carat diamond with Color rated a J, Clarity rated SI2, and Cut between Excellent/Ideal @ Blue Nile be similar to the same size diamond at Wal-Mart? How about JCPenny?

Seems like Wal-Mart and JC Penny don't have very high quality diamonds online, so I'm assuming it's that way in stores as well.

 

[Yzzim]

Originally posted by: hysperion

Originally posted by: ElFenix

Originally posted by: tami

Originally posted by: ElFenix

yellows are more expensive than clears

are you talking out or your a$$? the colorless diamonds (D) are by far more expensive than H-J diamonds.

i just got engaged. we went shopping for the diamond and ring together.

here's a recent thread about engagement rings

why don't you do some research before talking out your ass.

here is a hint, since you're clueluess: look for 'fancy yellow diamonds' on bluenile

Lets put it in the context of this post. He's not looking for fancy yellow diamonds at bluenile....he's looking at Walmart. And they don't carry fancy yellow diamonds at walmart or any of the stores he listed....so yes the colorless diamonds will be better......

And to the OP, If I was considering getting married the girl would be getting at least a carat. In fact I can't imagine anyone getting a girl they want to be married to less then 3/4 of a carat. If you do something- do it right or don't do it at all. If you're gonna get her an embarassing ring you might as well get a few boxes of crackerjacks and you'll turn one up eventually. You'll save alot of money.

Guess my girlfriend is different from most. She stated she doesn't need a diamond at all. She would be happy with a nice watch (it's something useful) instead of a diamond.

edit: btw, could we please keep on track about color clarity & cut?? Size isn't negotiable

 

[hysperion]

I would guess you'd get a much better quality ring at BlueNile then wal-mart for the same money and you wouldn't have a stigma attached to it. Who wants to say they got their engagement ring from Wal-Mart.

If she's cool about you only spending $500 more power to you and maybe that's why your marrying her. On the same hand remember she's a woman and women want a nice ring. Remember, there's what they say- and what they mean

I see your stepping towards that by talking about 800 instead of 5...If you're thinking of spending 800 you can get .5 carat diamonds with good/very good cuts that are SI1 for around 1100....blue nile even lets you call on the S diamonds to make sure the seclusions aren't visible and they have a 30 day return policy. If the seclusions aren't visible then who cares about em.

With a white gold setting you'd be looking about about 1350 shipped and you'd have something that would blow her away compared to what she's expecting IMO....There's a point where cheap is cheap and with diamonds I think 800 is below that point unfortunately.....Just trying to help....

I priced the following on bluenile as an example:
Good cut, G-Color (near colorless and very hard to tell even when held next to a colorless diamond), SI1 clarity diamond, no flouresence, good symmetry and polish in a white gold setting for $1329 shipped.....

Since you said size isn't negotiable (it should be) a .4 carat with the same spec run from 750-850 and with the setting you'd be looking from 950-1050 and have a nice looking diamond but you may have to squint to see it I can pretty much guarantee that's eons above the crap w-mart has though....

 

[TechnoKid]

Originally posted by: Yzzim
Thanks for the reply, hysperion. However, I'm not going to buy anything over $800 as my girlfriend already stated I would be crazy if I paid over $500 on a ring anyway.

Also, I'm not looking to buy the ring at Wal-Mart, I was just wondering what the quality @ Blue Nile is compared to the quality at Wal-Mart. Would a .4 carat diamond with Color rated a J, Clarity rated SI2, and Cut between Excellent/Ideal @ Blue Nile be similar to the same size diamond at Wal-Mart? How about JCPenny?

Seems like Wal-Mart and JC Penny don't have very high quality diamonds online, so I'm assuming it's that way in stores as well.

Don't get a J, really, you'll be able to see the color. Get an H at the very least, imo.

Go for a verygood/ideal cut, H color, VS2 and then go from there as far as size. With an Ideal/verygood cut, the diamond will sparkle well, and especially at your budget, I think this will be rather important. I think sparkle is what can set apart a diamond from others; you don't just want it to look pretty, you want to be able to see the sparkle from across the room, no matter the size of the diamond. On blue nile, .30 carats using this parameters start at about $525.

As far as buying a diamond from walmart/jcpenny versus bluenile, what you said would be about the same as some of the diamonds in those stores. If you go into the stores, make sure the diamond is clear to the visible eye (you'll know an incluision/defect when you see one, it is sorta described as a cloudy diamond), not colored, and sparkels well. JCPenny sells certified diamonds i think, but they are not certified by the GIA or AGSL; top notch companies. Other graders have rather loose standards.

 

[LordSnailz]

Many good suggestions on this thread, I would agree with some, go with an H color and not the J, sometimes you can see the color with a J. I would go with an SI1, since inclusions in that range are still no visible through the naked eye. Between the C's I would pick Cut as the top priority then clarity then color ... you can fit carat in there to fit your budget.

Bluenile is good, there's always a 10% coupon floating around and there's no tax! Good luck!

 

[Yzzim]

thanks for the info guys, that's what I'm looking for

As much as I would love to be able to afford a .5 carat diamond, I'm gonna have to settle for what TechnoKid stated in his thread and go with ~.30 carat diamond. I also forgot about Blue Nile's return policy, so that's nice to take into account.

 

[shopbruin]

my bf got me a ring from walmart. it was an i, but the clarity i think was the second to lowest rung. upon closer inspecition (with the naked eye) i found a spot. you really need to analyze their rocks. i'd buy it from blue nile to get the best quality diamond at the best price. you won't get that with walmart. (we wound up returning the ring btw, which was a PITA. don't ever buy diamonds from walmart.)

as long as the specs listed online match your minimum reqs, the diamond should be fine. blue nile diamonds at that range would be a lot nicer than anything at walmart and jcpenney.

.25 is on the small side. you might want to look at the sizes of these diamonds before settling on the carat weight.

 

[Yzzim]

Originally posted by: LordSnailz
Many good suggestions on this thread, I would agree with some, go with an H color and not the J, sometimes you can see the color with a J. I would go with an SI1, since inclusions in that range are still no visible through the naked eye. Between the C's I would pick Cut as the top priority then clarity then color ... you can fit carat in there to fit your budget.

Bluenile is good, there's always a 10% coupon floating around and there's no tax! Good luck!

Great, so definitely stay away from J.

SI1-VS2

Cut is Ideal-Very Good

Excellent information guys! Thank you so much.

BTW, where is that 10% coupon? I've been looking all night but haven't found anything except free shipping.

 

[OffTopic1]

Sound like your gf is a sensible person. Maybe she would be happy with a Moissanite.

Moissanite and diamond brilliance/fire comparison.

[Edit] Might as well not get a diamond if you can only afford a 0.30 carat (this size generally use as accent, multi settings, or earrings)

Carat Weight

Width:
0.25 ct = 4.1 mm
0.50 ct = 5.2 mm
1.00 ct = 6.5 mm

 

[Yzzim]

Originally posted by: freesia39
my bf got me a ring from walmart. it was an i, but the clarity i think was the second to lowest rung. upon closer inspecition (with the naked eye) i found a spot. you really need to analyze their rocks. i'd buy it from blue nile to get the best quality diamond at the best price. you won't get that with walmart. (we wound up returning the ring btw, which was a PITA. don't ever buy diamonds from walmart.)

as long as the specs listed online match your minimum reqs, the diamond should be fine. blue nile diamonds at that range would be a lot nicer than anything at walmart and jcpenney.

.25 is on the small side. you might want to look at the sizes of these diamonds before settling on the carat weight.

I'm thinking of 1/3 carat is being my minimum now and with these specs everyone has talked about it's probably my max as well :laugh:

 

[Yzzim]

Originally posted by: OffTopic

Sound like your gf is a sensible person. Maybe she would be happy with a Moissanite.

Moissanite and diamond brilliance/fire comparison.

She's suggested that many times and the prices can't be beat. I don't feel comfortable buying her one. Just knowing that it's a fake diamond seems weird to me. She said she wouldn't tell people, but that seems a little decieving, and I don't like that at all.

 

[OffTopic1]

Originally posted by: Yzzim

Originally posted by: OffTopic

Sound like your gf is a sensible person. Maybe she would be happy with a Moissanite.

Moissanite and diamond brilliance/fire comparison.

She's suggested that many times and the prices can't be beat. I don't feel comfortable buying her one. Just knowing that it's a fake diamond seems weird to me. She said she wouldn't tell people, but that seems a little decieving, and I don't like that at all.

Diamond is not a symbol of love, unless you own Debeer's stocks. Moissanite is a man make stone, not a fake diamond like Zirconia. You should learn to listen to the gf now (especially on clothing & jewelry), because they are always right (if you have to share the same bed).

[edit]A bout a year ago my boss showed me her $900 Moissanite ring that she purchased for herself and it is much more beautiful than her $5000 diamond that she got from her husband.

PS. Calling Moissanite a fake is like saying a Lexus/Jappanese is crapy Bling Bling compare to a Euro Bling Bling. It doesn't matter what type of engine you get as long as you get to the finish line first.

 

[TechnoKid]

Originally posted by: Yzzim

Originally posted by: OffTopic

Sound like your gf is a sensible person. Maybe she would be happy with a Moissanite.

Moissanite and diamond brilliance/fire comparison.

She's suggested that many times and the prices can't be beat. I don't feel comfortable buying her one. Just knowing that it's a fake diamond seems weird to me. She said she wouldn't tell people, but that seems a little decieving, and I don't like that at all.

Moisenite is very nice. I've seen it myself at JCPenny, only thing is the hardness isn't as good as diamonds, but boy, doesn it sure sparkle. But like you said, I dunno if I'd be comfortable buying my fiance a moisenite ring, unless perhaps to just show off as a rediculously large diamond. Maybe get her moisenite earings...heh, and a diamond ring, or vice versa.