I've decided on a Tiffany's E-ring! (to replace mine) - but need advice!

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surfergirljen

surfergirljen

Ooooh, pretty!
O.G.
Feb 24, 2009
3,184
59
#1
First of all, I LOVE this forum and have learned SO MUCH as I've been looking for a replacement engagement ring, so thank you to everyone!

I am sooooooo excited!! :yahoo:

As some of you might remember, my wedding set was stolen about a month ago... (or my daughter hid it somewhere REALLY good because it still hasn't shown up!)

DH finally told me he'd really like me to get the same style (round brilliant solitaire) as he chose for me, so I went to Tiffany's yesterday to try on styles and see if I liked the 6 prong (my old one was a "generic" but lovely .80 4 prong solitaire).

... and I fell in LOVE!!! There is NO other ring for me than the Tiffany Classic Setting... I know I'm paying for the name but I just don't care! LOL - I can't help it... there is something about that store and honestly just to know it's beautifully cut, beautifully set, worry free, ethically sourced and will be cared for for the rest of it's life by Tiffany's (I have two in my city so it's easy to stop by for a cleaning) is worth it to me. AND IT'S JUST SOOOO PRETTY!!!!! And even though I would not be one to broadcast it to friends, knowing it's from Tiffany's just makes my heart flutter a bit, I can't help it. Sweet Home Alabama's Tiffany's scene is my dream! LOL sadly they will not be shutting the store down for my ring! haha.

My last one wasn't Tiffany's and I loved it dearly - but this time I'm throwing in a few extra $$ on top of the insurance money and have convinced DH it's the ring of my dreams. The setting IS much prettier than my old one I have to say... (He got a big vacay this year and I didn't - was too busy having babies - so I think he thinks I deserve it!)

I've done so much research in the last few weeks and priced out loose stones... but the setting is very important to me as well (trumps size) and from what I've seen it's really hard to duplicate the setting perfectly. Plus I was pricing out the Polar Ice Canadian diamonds against a Tiffany one and the difference is really not as big as I would have thought.

Anyway... no "you're wasting your money at Tiffany's" lectures please! ;) I've read ALL the threads here, trust me... and I'm willing to ante up for the name and everything that goes along with it. Size isn't everything to me anyway - if I get a 1.3 carat I'll have one of the biggest diamonds of all my friends and I'm a busy mom so I would probably not even feel comfortable going over 1.5.

SO this was my question to the diamond experts out there!!

If you were buying a really beautifully CUT Tiffany's round brilliant diamond, would you go for colour or size?

For example, at my last visit she pulled two rings for me... one is a bit bigger (15%), one a colour grade higher. I don't know what to do!! Can the naked eye detect I colour diamonds in daylight? I would think any Tiffany's diamond would be pretty colourless to the eye, but have read that after cut, colour is the next most important "C" to consider... then carat, THEN clarity.

So here are the two options: (I'm sure there are more combinations to find but if I had to pick between these two I'd love to know what you ladies would pick and why!

1. 1.39 carat/ I colour/ VVS2 /$16,200

2. 1.24 carat/ H colour/ VS1 / $15,000

I'm trying to see if she has a slightly bigger H colour around $16K as I think I can go to about $16,500. But the question on the table is, in this ring would you sacrifice colour for size? Or should I go for the H colour?

THANKS!
 
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#2
YAY....your Tiffany ering is going to be gorgeous!

Here's where I stand: I'd be comfortable with stones as low as I SI, so either of those options would fit that bill. The I is still going to be really white.
 
#3
You're not going to see must of a difference at all between the H and the I imo. With the I having a VVS2 clarity it should sparkle more than the H with the VS1 clarity. I always look at Color, Cut & Clarity in that order first. Clarity being in the top because inclusions are the main reason for a diamond not being sparkly or looking cloudy. Either one sounds GORGEOUS!!!! :tup::tup::tup:
 
#4
I would go on Pricescope and plug the dimensions for each particular stone into the HCA to see which one scores better ;)

Will Tiffany let you copy down all the measurement specs for each stone off of the cert??

That is how I would make my decision.
 
#5
Also, CUT is the most important IMO because I have seen AMAZING SI2's even that look wayyyyyyy better than a poorly cut vvs1.

Not that anything from Tifs is going to be a "poor" cut but I can guarantee one WILL be better than the other.

Good luck, it is very exciting!!

Also........depending on the surface dimensions of these two stones, I would guess they will face up *almost* identical because the size difference is not too drastic.

Did either one "speak" to you more when you put it on??
 
#6
Thank you ladies!!

See I would have tended to agree - I think what worried me was the blue nile education tutorial about diamonds, under "colour" they group G/H together, and I/J together... Tiffany's stops at I so I always thought anything over I would be great!

G-H Near-colourless. Colour noticeable when compared to diamonds of better grades, but these grades offer excellent value.

I-J Near-colourless. Colour slightly detectable. An excellent value.

This makes me think I want H colour ... I wonder how big an H I can afford...

Buying diamonds is tricky!!!
 
#7
kristie said:
Also, CUT is the most important IMO because I have seen AMAZING SI2's even that look wayyyyyyy better than a poorly cut vvs1.

Not that anything from Tifs is going to be a "poor" cut but I can guarantee one WILL be better than the other.

Good luck, it is very exciting!!

Also........depending on the surface dimensions of these two stones, I would guess they will face up *almost* identical because the size difference is not too drastic.

Did either one "speak" to you more when you put it on??
Click to expand...

OMG the entire DISPLAY cabinet was YELLING at me BUY ME! hahaha!!!

No, not so much... that's why I'm confused. The size of the 1.39 IS a TAD bigger... they face up pretty much the same but that's the thing ... is 15% bigger overall worth a colour grade jump? I'm going from .8 to this so they are both a huge jump for me size wise! I just want to make the right desicion...

The lighting in there is tricky I have to say - it feels like it's designed to set all of the fire off in the diamonds but it's hard to see if there is any colour difference! I should have them hold up a D and an H for me to see if I can tell - if I can't see a difference there then I won't see on from H to I. I tried to blindly pick the colour in there (which was the I and which was the H) and couldn't do it... I just wondered if I got into the sun with my shiny new 1.39 if I'd see yellow and be sad that I should have gone smaller and whiter.

As for the cut - I was under the impression that all Tiffany's rings were cut the same, no? I'm assuming they would all be excellent or better though. Good point though, I should double check that.

I've also read that inclusions are less visible a) in a round brilliant, and b) in a very well cut stone. They say there would be so much light bouncing around that colour should ***** clarity. My last stone was SI1/I1 and had black dots you could see and it bugged me. Still it says everything at Tiffany's shouldn't be visible to the eye.

She wrote down those two specs and one "G" colour for reference... big jump in cost. The 1.20 G VVs2 was $20,000!
 
#8
kristie said:
I would go on Pricescope and plug the dimensions for each particular stone into the HCA to see which one scores better ;)

Will Tiffany let you copy down all the measurement specs for each stone off of the cert??

That is how I would make my decision.
Click to expand...

Just did that! Interesting... the 1.39 I colour one was priced around $650 more than the other one... hmmmm....
 
#9
surfergirljen said:
I've also read that inclusions are less visible a) in a round brilliant, and b) in a very well cut stone. They say there would be so much light bouncing around that colour should ***** clarity. My last stone was SI1/I1 and had black dots you could see and it bugged me. Still it says everything at Tiffany's shouldn't be visible to the eye.
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True, inclusions are less visible in a round brilliant (than other cuts) and if it an Excellent cut RB, even better......
Your last stone was an SI1/I1?? I am assuming it was not a GIA stone (GIA does not rate stones as SI1/I1, it would be one or the other)

Black inclusions/spots are carbon spots.....not all stones that are in the SI-I range will have black inclusions. Most actually have white inclusions, thus harder to see, especially in a well cut stone ;)

When you have a stone with any visible (to the naked eye) black carbon spots, it is almost ALWAYS graded with GIA as an I-1 or worse. EGL may call it an SI, but it is truly an I clarity.

Anywhoo, will anyone at Tiffany let you take the two rings outside?? Maybe even have the security staff hold them just so you can see them outside of that light in there that makes EVERY diamond look amazing??
 
#10
surfergirljen said:
Just did that! Interesting... the 1.39 I colour one was priced around $650 more than the other one... hmmmm....
Click to expand...
No, I meant the HCA (Holloway Cut Advisor). You would have to have the exact measurements of all aspects of the stone to put them in the HCA ;)

Also, if you are SUPER color sensitive, I would go with the H personally. RB's will always face up whiter than other cuts in the same color as well......but I am getting the feeling you will not be happy with the I.

Does the I have any fluorescence at all? I personally love stones with medium fluor.......they will face up 2 shades whiter than an I w/o fluor.

TONS of threads on fluor on Pricescope as well :)
 
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#11
I say, go for the H color. Tiffany's staff usually said to me and my hubby that with a VS1 and VVS2, nobody can spot the difference with the naked eye. You would have to be an expert AND have a 10x microscope or something to find the flaws. VVS2 is just a grade higher than VS1, which means it's not that big of a difference. I think people can definitely spot the color difference more easily.
 
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#12
Congrats, Surfergirl...how exciting! I had the same problem. I wanted diamond studs, 2/2.5 each about 4/5 TCW. First...finding two stones that look the same is harder then you think. I looked at several stones. I wanted a G color with a good cut. I had problems with the clarity. Nothing below a SI1. Finally found a G SI1 pair 2.24/2.25 TCW, cut basically the same. One stone had a slight inclusion near the rim that bugged me. We ended up mounting them in a martini 4 prong setting and one of the prongs covered the inclusion, can't tell a thing...only I know. I get a lot of compliments, they just sparkle. After this experience I'd stick to a good color, you see that from a distance.
 
#13
I agree with kristie, a medium fluorescence on an I colored stone shows up alot whiter than you would normally think an I colored stone would look like. There's some pictured under "what does your engagement ring look like" that are I's with medium-strong fluorescence and I couldn't believe how gorgeous they were!! I'll try and find the posts..
 
#14
There is not much difference in colour to the naked eye between an H and I stone. I have an I 1.45 Tiffany RB and it's gorgeous. I'd say go with number one. Enjoy your new ring!!
 
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