Cushion Cut Diamond on Blue Nile?

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C

coconut32

O.G.
Jul 26, 2009
143
0
#1
Hi everyone,

I have always wanted a Tiffany's engagement ring. There are several styles that I like, but the one that has always stood out to me and made my heart sing is the Novo. However, I really want 1 carat and Tiffany's is just not in our price range for that size (I would need to get smaller). Lately, I have been wondering if I should go elsewhere. I don't know any jewelers in town that I trust and I'm wondering about purchasing an engagement ring from Blue Nile. I've always said that I don't want a knock off Tiffany's ring, but I looked through all their styles and of course the one I like the best is the "Noveau" (clearly a knock off of the Novo).

The Tiffany Novo has a cushion cut diamond. On Blue Nile you can choose the cut you want. I was thinking cushion cut OR round brilliant. My reasons for round brilliant are it is more sparkly and then won't be a complete knock off of the Novo. However, the cushion does look very nice in this setting. My main question is - why is the highest cut for cushion cut on Blue Nile just "very good" whereas the round brilliant goes up to "ideal" or even "signature ideal"? I've noticed a 1 carat cushion cut is significantly cheaper (like $2000) with even better colour and clarity than the round brilliant, but that is "very good" versus "ideal".
 
#2
Well, there really isn't a way to grade a cushion or any fancy cut such as that as "ideal" because they dont really have parameters--no grading house, no one. Cushions are VERY hard to buy sight unseen, so if you go with bluenile go with a round. And we can help you with that selection too. Rounds have specific parameters for what a true ideal cut would be.

What I honestly would do, if you want a cushion, is go through a site like GoodoldGold.com. They can make a Novo style ring just as well, and you can get actual gemologist input (jonathan is THE MAN), and photos, etc. on a cushion (and a round), that you cannot get from Blue Nile, since they don't usually have their diamonds in house.

I know EngagementRingsDirect.com is also really good for cushions.

The Novo is kind of a proprietary cut, but you can get a square Hearts and arrows that is similar, and would give you that look.

If you want to share your budget we can help you find some stones also.

I would trust Jon (gog) and Mark (erd) to select a winner, but both sites you can give input on. Thats the next best thing to being in person. Both are in NY if you live near there you can go in person.
 
#3
Like Ame said, there aren't any grading guidelines for fancy shapes, just rounds. You will usually notice a price difference between a round and any fancy shaped stone. Wholesale pricing charts deduct 40% of wholesale value for all fancy shaped stones. So basically you will always pay a premium for a round stone. I have never found a jeweler that discounts a fancy shape by 40% however i have never found one that doesn't charge more for round. The closest priced fancy shape to a round I have seen is Ascher. They tend to be priced pretty close to round diamonds. You can receive the best value on a princess shaped diamond. Because there are just as many princesses as rounds due to their popularity, but they are wholesaled at 40% less. But I think that will change and they will close the gap in pricing between princess and round down the road.
 
#4
Thank you so much! That is exactly the kind of information I needed. I am in Canada, so I need a website that deals with Canada. I know Blue Nile does...does Good Old Gold or Engagement Rings Direct? Budget will probably be in the $5000-8000 range. I am still considering going through a jeweller, but I just don't know where to go (would need to find someone to give me a referral I guess) and I think it wouldn't end up as inexpensive as buying online. The round brilliant will definitely push the limits of our budget to get a carat, however, I don't want to be disappointed with the cushion. Blue Nile does have a 30 day money back guarantee if I didn't like it in person.
 
#6
Stone and setting. Originally I thought more like 10000-15000, but it's looking like that won't happen unless I want to wait forever! On Blue Nile, the "Noveau" with a 1 carat cushion cut was around 5500. The stone was "very good" cut, H colour, VS1 clarity. For the same thing with a round brilliant it was more in the 8000 range for 1 carat that is ideal cut, I colour, VS2 clarity. I was searching with a minimum I colour and VS2 clarity.
 
#7
Ok here's a few stones from GOG. I did G-J, VS1-SI1 cushions and rounds and up to 6,000.
http://goodoldgold.com/diamond/7742/
http://goodoldgold.com/diamond/4907/
http://goodoldgold.com/diamond/8494/
only one good round in stock, they can get more, this is over 6K though:
http://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond/8341/


And a few from ERD.
http://engagementringsdirect.com/DiamondDetails.aspx?Item=183028832
http://engagementringsdirect.com/DiamondDetails.aspx?Item=184169392
http://engagementringsdirect.com/DiamondDetails.aspx?Item=182620482

rounds...not loving the first
http://engagementringsdirect.com/DiamondDetails.aspx?Item=184742489
http://engagementringsdirect.com/DiamondDetails.aspx?Item=185138400
http://engagementringsdirect.com/DiamondDetails.aspx?Item=183168796
http://engagementringsdirect.com/DiamondDetails.aspx?Item=183168796

I stopped the diamond budget at 6K, and allow for 2K for a setting.
 
#8
With blue nile their classification of Ideal/Signature Ideal is not always actually ideal. That's going to come down more to numbers and what sucks is that most of their stones aren't in house where someone can really look it over.
 
#11
Thanks so much. This really helps. I'm definitely questioning whether we should purchase online now, especially a cushion cut. I don't even know about a round brilliant through Blue Nile, although the fact that you can return it is comforting. May I ask why you included J colour and SI clarity in your search. I thought the lowest I should go with is I colour and VS2 since that is the lowest Tiffanys does. Wish I could just get the Tiffanys ring! I would need to get a much smaller size diamond though. I don't know what to do!
 
#12
You'll open a can of my worms if you get into the whole Tiffany is better thing with me so Ill avoid that. Because I don't think Tiffany should be a standard for anything except way overpriced.

But Tiffany has decided that I VS2 is the lowest they will carry because they feel that they are "better" and more desirable grades regardless of actual cut quality--and those grades are based on THEIR grading, not any actual reputable lab. They grade their own stones. So an I VS2 by their standards could be anything, really. It could be a K SI2 for all we really know. They claim to follow GIA's standards, but since they make their own grades, it can be whatever they want it to be, therefore allowing them to command even more in price.

A stone's quality is a combination of 3 of the 4 c's: Cut (most important), Color and Clarity. If you don't have the best cut, you won't get the most sparkle or beauty out of the stone. The combination of angles is the biggest way to figure out whether or not a stone is a good one or a dud. Cushions, and other fancies, don't have the same standards to define what is a well cut stone, those are by eye really. Rounds have angles and they generally are pretty cut and dried as to what a stone's cut quality is based on those. You also have some slightly out of range that might appeal to your eyes more than a "Standard" ideal.

I included SI clarity (SI1 mostly) because you can find eye-clean (meaning inclusions not visible to the naked eye) SI stones that are more cost-effective than overpaying for higher clarity. The human eye--MOST human eyes anyway--cannot tell the difference between a Flawless and a VS/SI stone clarity wise. SOME can, and most cannot. So why pay for higher clarity and sacrifice another characteristic if you cannot see it? You also are not guaranteed that a VS2 stone will be eye clean. They have frankly relaxed standards on those to their detriment. A stone graded VS2 can have a big black goober right in the middle and still get that grade. It's all about finding what is your comfort level.

As for a J, unless you are extremely color-sensitive, you won't see a lot of warmth face-up in a J stone. Especially not one with medium blue florescence which helps negate some of the warmth. I personally think H VS2 with medium flor is the sweet spot, because H's are quite white, the flor punches it up, and unless you hold it NEXT TO a D E F upside down you cannot see the color difference, especially face-up where you would be looking at it everyday anyway. I have owned several H's. Some with flor and I doubt I would ever go higher unless supply dictated that I needed to.

The big trick is to buy a stone with a good grading report, from GIA, AGS or EGL-USA( the USA is the important part there). The EGL-USA stones will be a lot more cost-effective and just because it's EGL-USA does NOT make it lower quality. There's a lot of factors as to why various cutters choose various labs.

We will gladly throw in our two cents in helping you pick a stone. Just know that the longer you wait, the more likely it is that supply will change and pricing could go up even more than it has. Many stones have increased 30 plus % in the last couple months and it's not looking like it will go back down or slow down on the increases. Also, make sure you know the ideal angle ranges and percentages if you go into a store so you don't end up buying a lower quality stone. You will likely pay more in a real brick and mortar store also, overhead and all, versus online. Some stores can bring in the same "virtual s tones" that Blue Nile can, and some may meet the price of the online retailer.
 
#13
How much smaller do you have to go to get a Tiffany ring? I am an advocate of purchasing non-brand stones since you can get so much more for your money, but it seems to me your heart is really set on a Tiffany's ring. So maybe you should sacrifice size in this situation and just get the Tiffany ring you love? I think you'd quickly get over the size issue since you'd have the ring you've always wanted, just in a little bit smaller package.
 
#14
Wow Ame, thanks so much for the detailed description! I will definitely make sure to post all the details of the stone if we decide to purchase online and get opinions on whether it is a good stone. I guess Blue Nile might not be so bad for a round brilliant if I make sure I am getting an ideal stone. I need to look more into the other websites you posted as well.

Lilmountaingirl - My heart has been set on a Tiffanys ring for a long time, but I've also been set on one carat for a long time. I can't decide which I care about more because my budget doesnt allow both! I'm not sure how much smaller I'd have to go because I've only looked at 1 carats, but from their website I am thinking 0.5-0.6ish which is a lot smaller!!
 
#15
^ Yeah there is definitley a sizeable difference between a half carat and full carat. If it were like the difference between 0.75 and 1.00 i would say it didn't matter much. But now you're in a completely different stone category. And cushions are very deep shapes. So it could appear a quarter- carat smaller as well. I never feel bigger is better when it comes to diamonds though. It is the total package. I'm currently trading my diamond in for one that is a quarter carat smaller so to me it is all about how much you love it. But hopefully you'll start looking around and seeing what's out there and you will have an easier decision.
 
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