$5000 for a quality 1 carat diamond?

[elliesaurus]

The diamond district is a great place, but also a great place for people with egos to get ripped off. Most people who know something (but not enough) about diamonds assume that... Say, a GIA 1 ct G SI1 Triple Ex cut round diamond... is the same as any other GIA 1 ct G SI1 Triple Ex round, and they compare prices by certificates. That is just so insane. I work in diamond wholesale and I wouldn't ever consider doing that. Two diamonds with exactly the same specs will be traded (internally) and sold (externally) for different prices. Because every diamond is unique, and when one is better it costs more.

Honestly, for most people without a friend in the industry, independent retail stores are the way to go. Shop around. Ask for a discount, and negotiate. And make sure you look at the diamonds, not the certificates. There are great deals to be had but ultimately if you go out on your own I would recommend to anyone to be humble about it and be willing to spend a little more to get a better diamond (of any grade).

+1. Always good to have insider input! When my DH bought my ering, he looked at the stones first, price second and certificates last. That's one thing we liked about our jeweler - he didn't want us to be swayed by the specs and we recommended him to our friend for the same reason.

 

[Camaro Chic]

The price of diamonds has skyrocketed IMO. It astonishes me sometimes to think that I got my VS1 ideal cut 1ct F color solitaire pendant which is so beautiful for half of what people are paying now, less than 10 years ago.

 

[ame]

The price of diamonds has skyrocketed IMO. It astonishes me sometimes to think that I got my VS1 ideal cut 1ct F color solitaire pendant which is so beautiful for half of what people are paying now, less than 10 years ago.

I hope you've stayed on top of appraisals for replacement value.

The prices have gone up significantly, though a few years back it was more like a "market correction" than just a "skyrocket." Lately, though, the demand in other parts of the world is driving prices.

I bought my last stone literally four months before things went WAY up, and I haven't been looking for any changes because of that.

 

[ame]

That's good to hear. But, is color one of those things that can deeply affect the look of a diamond?

It can, yes, but you need to see them in person to see what your color threshold is and see what colors you like with your eyes. Cut quality is king. THAT is what makes a stone sparkle. That's what makes it beautiful. Cut quality determines sparkle factor, not the diamond's color. But the way fire and color light return looks to some people has a little to do with color sometimes. Stones with a little warmth sometimes are livelier in the color light return than the D-E-F range, even if both are identical cut quality. Some folks really like lower colors, like Ls and Ms and they lend themselves well to antique style settings and yellow and rose gold settings as well. Some prefer slight off-white in some Js (that's usually only visible from the side, well cut J's are pretty white face up). Others cannot handle lower than an F, either because of their eyes or their mind-cleanliness. But for those that like the lower range, you can get a great stone for a lower price.

Also: any brick and mortar vendor that immediately shoots down the idea that there are good quality stones available through an internet-based or internet-friendly vendor is not accepting the reality of the market. Sure there are some less than great online vendors, but there are some exceptional ones as well. There are also some customers that don't want to work through an online vendor, and those customers can be serviced by those b&m only jewelers, but a LOT of people buy stones online now, and the online friendly vendors are competitive with pricing, and offer extensive data--often and usually more than a brick and mortar (ask if they have an ASET, most online vendors will)--and a lot of photos for review.

There's a lot of great online vendors too, just to name a few: good old gold (in new york which is also a brick and mortar) and brian gavin diamonds (in houston, has offices for appointments but isn't a brick and mortar) and high performance diamonds (in idaho, though he doesn't have a showroom anymore), though you have to have a feel for your color preference sometimes before just jumping in on that. Blue Nile is also reputable but doesn't offer the data or the photos that most others will as they're a drop-shipper.

 

[Camaro Chic]

Color is definitely something you should study as the above poster indicated! Very good post Btw. I have several H-I-J color diamonds which have a warmth that lends to their sparkly cut rather than distracting from it. Also setting a diamond in yellow gold as opposed to wg or plat can make it look more yellow than it is.