Proposal Ring - Part 2

[tootyful]

Can anyone kindly advise if $8,500 is a reasonable price for the below 'super ideal' diamond (without ring setting)?

GIA diamond dossier
Carat weight : 0.78
Color grade : F
Clarity grade : VS2
Cut grade : Excellent
Clarity characteristic : crystal
Finish
Polish : Excellent
Symmetry : Excellent
Fluorescence : None
HCA rating 1.1

Thanks in advance!

 

[Des126]

Can anyone kindly advise if $8,500 is a reasonable price for the below 'super ideal' diamond (without ring setting)?

GIA diamond dossier
Carat weight : 0.78
Color grade : F
Clarity grade : VS2
Cut grade : Excellent
Clarity characteristic : crystal
Finish
Polish : Excellent
Symmetry : Excellent
Fluorescence : None
HCA rating 1.1

Thanks in advance!

The price is steep.

Comparing to a 0.81 F VS2 from Brian Gavin - USD5143

AGS 0.810 carat Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows Round Cut Diamond[gallery2]/3/

0.81 F VS2 - USD5143

USD5143 x 1.25 (Exchange rate) x1.07 (GST) + wire fee SGD50 = SGD7k

 

[cktoh78]

Hi,

I am getting a 1 Carat Ring for my GF, Went to Mayson today and was offer 14K+ for this specification

1.01 Carats, Color F, VS2, Triple Ex, perfect cut .

Is it over price?

 

[jhchoo85]

Hi all,

Thanks for all your previous contribution here and the wealth of information on proposal ring. After reviewing all the data here for months, i decided to bring my lady down today to jannpaul as a surprise, Kanna complain not romantic enough hahaha Anyway we walked into JP and was given a 2 hour lecture on diamonds by David, which we find informative and enlightening. For me Personally, i felt HCA formula makes sense (angle of cut = angular light reflection = grade of diamond). In addition, having the ability to see the sparkle of the rock, color distribution and cut from the scope put us at ease. Thus, We finally settled on a rock from JP

(GIA diamond dossier)
Measurements : 6.18 - 6.20 x 3.83mm
Carat weight : 0.90
Color grade : D
Clarity grade : VS2
Cut grade : excellent
Clarity characteristic : feather , crystal
Finish
Polish : excellent
Symmetry : excellent
Fluorescence : none
HCA rating 1.3

Thank you all again for the wealth of information.

Yeap, that's JP's super ideal standard, like other forumers who mentioned, your scope images look similar to nexer8's
It'd be a good purchase with such premium carat size and specs at D VS2.

 

[jhchoo85]

Hi,

I am getting a 1 Carat Ring for my GF, Went to Mayson today and was offer 14K+ for this specification

1.01 Carats, Color F, VS2, Triple Ex, perfect cut .

Is it over price?

Is it GIA certified, cause from my knowledge Mayson do carry IGI and SIG cert and you would want to avoid them cause their grading standard wouldn't be as stringent as GIA.
And what do you mean by "perfect cut"?

 

[Berjaya_080]

i1290.photobucket.com/albums/b527/Berjaya_080/photo1_zpsb7ea7f64.jpg

will this hide the diamond??

 

[jhchoo85]

will this hide the diamond??

Help you with the picture posting. Currently I think it looks just fine. Got other angle shots?

 

[Des126]

Hi,

I am getting a 1 Carat Ring for my GF, Went to Mayson today and was offer 14K+ for this specification

1.01 Carats, Color F, VS2, Triple Ex, perfect cut .

Is it over price?

Is this the Meyson Starrs H&A Perfect Cut?

Without the Aset scope image we cant really know if it is a true Perfect Cut as claimed by them. I believe they only show you the H&A pattern with H&A scope.

Why dont you check the price from other private jewellers for comparison? i guess you are able to get the same spec for below 12k.

If you dont mind paying for premium price, do consider the Super Ideal from JannPaul. All their Super Ideal have excellent HCA score, superior optical image, perfect Ideal scope & Aset scope image which will perform at peak levels with regard to brightness, scintillation and dispersion. I would estimate the price of the same spec to be 16k plus.

 

[TurkMan]

Is it GIA certified, cause from my knowledge Mayson do carry IGI and SIG cert and you would want to avoid them cause their grading standard wouldn't be as stringent as GIA.
And what do you mean by "perfect cut"?

I would stay away from IGI.. They are inferior certificate with looser standards. Alot of shops will try to cheat you and insist its the same.. But its not the case.. I find it funny how shops carry a few certificates like GIA, IGI, etc...

When I was shopping for a diamond back then, I was shown IGI diamonds quite often.. All insisting that is good as GIA, the same.. Just different company doing the same thing.. After doing my homework, then I realize its a crap cert. Don't be cheated. IGI certs are for them to cheat newbie out there thinking they got a good deal but a useless paper.

 

[markasong1]

Hi Gorgeous, jhchoo85 and Des126,

Thanks for taking your time and effort to review the specs!! I feel more relief now after hearing your comments. Don't want to make a mistake on this once in a life time moment Des, I know the email below sounds a bit different from what i have mentioned earlier on the forum. JP team was on a call with me during a busy period of my job, I guess I was not really listening. So here is their response.

Respond from JP on Flat Count 0.9 - 0.99
(Truncated personal data leaving only subject specific details.)

0.9 carat sizes diamond are a rare find in the market. The reason is because when diamond cutters plot their cutting from a rough, they tend to retain the traditional mentality of minimizing wastage, which often "forces" the cutters to cut a diamond which maximize final carat weight instead of a well cut diamond. For example, if the rough was mined out and given options of cutting 0.95 Triple Very good, or 1 carat Good-Good-Very Good, or 0.90 Triple Excellent, they tend to sway towards the 1 carat, to minimize weight loss.

Thus, they would rather cut a lower quality diamond and hit the 1ct mark than a 0.9Xct diamond as it can fetch them a higher price. This is why there are many 1.00ct diamonds in the market. In JannPaul, we do not carry 0.30, 0.40, 0.50, 0.70, 1.00 carat. 0.90 has always been part of our JannPaul Super Ideal Criteria. 0.90 - 0.99 carat diamonds are always considered good purchases as when it hits the 1 carat mark, diamond prices would take a jump exponentially. Also, just to clarify, the 0.90 D VS2 which you purchased is a JannPaul Super Ideal.

 

[cktoh78]

Hi Des
It is their heart and arrow perfect cut. Come with GIA certificate.

the actual spec is 1.03 ct, F color VS2.

Triple Ex.

total price plus changing the ring setting is arond 14200.

Will be heading down to JP later

 

[shawnlau]

Can anyone kindly advise if $8,500 is a reasonable price for the below 'super ideal' diamond (without ring setting)?

GIA diamond dossier
Carat weight : 0.78
Color grade : F
Clarity grade : VS2
Cut grade : Excellent
Clarity characteristic : crystal
Finish
Polish : Excellent
Symmetry : Excellent
Fluorescence : None
HCA rating 1.1

Thanks in advance!

Just the diamond?

 

[jhchoo85]

I would stay away from IGI.. They are inferior certificate with looser standards. Alot of shops will try to cheat you and insist its the same.. But its not the case.. I find it funny how shops carry a few certificates like GIA, IGI, etc...

When I was shopping for a diamond back then, I was shown IGI diamonds quite often.. All insisting that is good as GIA, the same.. Just different company doing the same thing.. After doing my homework, then I realize its a crap cert. Don't be cheated. IGI certs are for them to cheat newbie out there thinking they got a good deal but a useless paper.

Yup.. I've got a colleague who bought an IGI diamond at a cheap price and thought he got a good deal... after checking more about IGI and comparing his diamonds with others, he regretted it.. he tried selling it to me and his friends.. quite poor thing

 

[Cotton1]

Adding one more shop experience to my list..

White Dwarf (Ubi)

Sorry but I would not recommend that place to anyone. Their shop is extremely hard to find... When I first tried going there, their office unit no. led me to a door with no signs at all.. wasn't even sure if that was the correct place and no one was there. First trip was wasted. I made an appointment for my second trip and was served by Kelvin. It was the same place.. Their "shop" is a barely furnished small room... There were no company signs or anything indicating that they are from white dwarf. Was quite unsure if this is a proper company..

Was explained that this is just their part time jobs. They have their own full time jobs by day and sell diamonds by night. They will only open the office to you by appointment as they can only meet you after their job's work hours..

He educated me briefly about diamonds... although I found some of the knowledge shared was definitely wrong.. The diamonds that I was presented were taken out from pieces of papers. Most of their diamonds have fluorescence which I didn't want... He told me fluorescence was actually a good thing because it gives the diamond more color and is good for the diamond? This raised my alarm bells... He tried selling me IGI certificate diamonds and told me it was good.. Which is a complete opposite of what I've been reading here on the forums.

I would never risk a few hundred dollars on such a company.. even more so a few thousand dollars.. I won't expect their full commitment on your ring as this is just a side job and not a proper jewelry company.
This also raises questions about ring after sales services in the future. What if this makeshift company disappears? They can easily do so since they don't have a proper office.. It is known that some jewelry shops operates for 1-2 years and switch your diamonds when you re-size the ring and stuff.. By the time you discover this, the company is not there.

 

[Des126]

Hi Gorgeous, jhchoo85 and Des126,

Thanks for taking your time and effort to review the specs!! I feel more relief now after hearing your comments. Don't want to make a mistake on this once in a life time moment Des, I know the email below sounds a bit different from what i have mentioned earlier on the forum. JP team was on a call with me during a busy period of my job, I guess I was not really listening. So here is their response.

Respond from JP on Flat Count 0.9 - 0.99
(Truncated personal data leaving only subject specific details.)

0.9 carat sizes diamond are a rare find in the market. The reason is because when diamond cutters plot their cutting from a rough, they tend to retain the traditional mentality of minimizing wastage, which often "forces" the cutters to cut a diamond which maximize final carat weight instead of a well cut diamond. For example, if the rough was mined out and given options of cutting 0.95 Triple Very good, or 1 carat Good-Good-Very Good, or 0.90 Triple Excellent, they tend to sway towards the 1 carat, to minimize weight loss.

Thus, they would rather cut a lower quality diamond and hit the 1ct mark than a 0.9Xct diamond as it can fetch them a higher price. This is why there are many 1.00ct diamonds in the market. In JannPaul, we do not carry 0.30, 0.40, 0.50, 0.70, 1.00 carat. 0.90 has always been part of our JannPaul Super Ideal Criteria. 0.90 - 0.99 carat diamonds are always considered good purchases as when it hits the 1 carat mark, diamond prices would take a jump exponentially. Also, just to clarify, the 0.90 D VS2 which you purchased is a JannPaul Super Ideal.

As i mentioned before, you shouldnt need to worry about the diamond quality if this is a Super Ideal from JannPaul.

Congrats for getting your pecfect diamond

 

[Des126]

Can anyone kindly advise if $8,500 is a reasonable price for the below 'super ideal' diamond (without ring setting)?

GIA diamond dossier
Carat weight : 0.78
Color grade : F
Clarity grade : VS2
Cut grade : Excellent
Clarity characteristic : crystal
Finish
Polish : Excellent
Symmetry : Excellent
Fluorescence : None
HCA rating 1.1

Thanks in advance!

May i know where is this 0.78ct F VS2 Super Ideal from? I believe the price of Jann Paul Super Ideal should not be high as this.

 

[[GorgeouS]]

Adding one more shop experience to my list..

White Dwarf (Ubi)

Sorry but I would not recommend that place to anyone. Their shop is extremely hard to find... When I first tried going there, their office unit no. led me to a door with no signs at all.. wasn't even sure if that was the correct place and no one was there. First trip was wasted. I made an appointment for my second trip and was served by Kelvin. It was the same place.. Their "shop" is a barely furnished small room... There were no company signs or anything indicating that they are from white dwarf. Was quite unsure if this is a proper company..

Was explained that this is just their part time jobs. They have their own full time jobs by day and sell diamonds by night. They will only open the office to you by appointment as they can only meet you after their job's work hours..

He educated me briefly about diamonds... although I found some of the knowledge shared was definitely wrong.. The diamonds that I was presented were taken out from pieces of papers. Most of their diamonds have fluorescence which I didn't want... He told me fluorescence was actually a good thing because it gives the diamond more color and is good for the diamond? This raised my alarm bells... He tried selling me IGI certificate diamonds and told me it was good.. Which is a complete opposite of what I've been reading here on the forums.

I would never risk a few hundred dollars on such a company.. even more so a few thousand dollars.. I won't expect their full commitment on your ring as this is just a side job and not a proper jewelry company.
This also raises questions about ring after sales services in the future. What if this makeshift company disappears? They can easily do so since they don't have a proper office.. It is known that some jewelry shops operates for 1-2 years and switch your diamonds when you re-size the ring and stuff.. By the time you discover this, the company is not there.

Woa.. Thanks for the warning.

 

[Des126]

Yup.. I've got a colleague who bought an IGI diamond at a cheap price and thought he got a good deal... after checking more about IGI and comparing his diamonds with others, he regretted it.. he tried selling it to me and his friends.. quite poor thing

Love & Co is one of the retail in Singapore that carry IGI Ideal H&A diamonds. The LOVE brand from HK Chow Sang Sang also carry the same IGI H&A report.

Most of the lower grade diamond are from IGI Diamond Report and a lot of retail shops selling these IGI report diamond with much lower price compared to GIA.

I found some useful statement about IGI Ideal H&A in pricescope. There are 2 type of report from IGI - Diamond Report & Ideal H&A Report.

See below the comment about IGI Ideal H&A from John Pollard.

Diamonds in Hong Kong : RockyTalky • Diamond Jewelry Forum - Compare Diamond Prices, Discussions & Diamond Information


John Pollard, BME BA AS (WSU) AJP (GIA)
US Executive, Infinity Diamonds

Actually the loose diamond grading results at IGI's HK lab are widely considered on par with GIA. The "Hearts & Arrows" grading report from the HK lab is seen in much the same way that an AGS Ideal report is in the US.

The Love brand examples I saw were high in quality, and while it's impossible to judge a large production from a handful of samples there are authorities I respect who hold that brand in high regard.

Be wary of the term "H&A" which is used a lot like "ideal" in the US. The term has an association-with-quality but usage encompasses a wide range of quality and performance, depending on who is using it. IGI Hong Kong produces H&A grading reports and the top format includes actual H&A images taken in a standardized laboratory environment. For buyers specifically seeking "H&A" diamonds it's a well regarded document. The Love brand uses a version of this report, customized to maintain a slightly stricter set of proportions and precision requirements.

 

[babyjyo]

Love & Co is one of the retail in Singapore that carry IGI Ideal H&A diamonds. The LOVE brand from HK Chow Sang Sang also carry the same IGI H&A report.

Most of the lower grade diamond are from IGI Diamond Report and a lot of retail shops selling these IGI report diamond with much lower price compared to GIA.

I found some useful statement about IGI Ideal H&A in pricescope. There are 2 type of report from IGI - Diamond Report & Ideal H&A Report.

See below the comment about IGI Ideal H&A from John Pollard.

Diamonds in Hong Kong : RockyTalky • Diamond Jewelry Forum - Compare Diamond Prices, Discussions & Diamond Information


John Pollard, BME BA AS (WSU) AJP (GIA)
US Executive, Infinity Diamonds

Actually the loose diamond grading results at IGI's HK lab are widely considered on par with GIA. The "Hearts & Arrows" grading report from the HK lab is seen in much the same way that an AGS Ideal report is in the US.

The Love brand examples I saw were high in quality, and while it's impossible to judge a large production from a handful of samples there are authorities I respect who hold that brand in high regard.

Be wary of the term "H&A" which is used a lot like "ideal" in the US. The term has an association-with-quality but usage encompasses a wide range of quality and performance, depending on who is using it. IGI Hong Kong produces H&A grading reports and the top format includes actual H&A images taken in a standardized laboratory environment. For buyers specifically seeking "H&A" diamonds it's a well regarded document. The Love brand uses a version of this report, customized to maintain a slightly stricter set of proportions and precision requirements.

I would be wary of other grading labs. According to some other research studies, non GIA & AGS certs actually may cost more. They are not cheaper.

1) Non-GIA & AGS certs tend to be graded of a higher grade. But when re-graded by GIA / AGS, very often, they have lower grades assigned.
2) Although, it would be cheaper when compared to diamonds of the same grade as GIA/AGS, if we use the actual GIA/AGS grade, one may actually be paying more for their stones.

My word of advice. Non GIA/AGS certs may not mean a better deal.

 

[[GorgeouS]]

IGI is not the same standard as GIA for sure. It is cheaper for a reason

Is IGI reliable? : RockyTalky • Diamond Jewelry Forum - Compare Diamond Prices, Discussions & Diamond Information.