opinons on quality of my tiffany's ering diamond?

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icydipndots

O.G.
Jun 1, 2012
196
245
#1
i'm so excited to finally be ENGAGED! my fiance and i had done some basic diamond research (the 4 c's) and he went ahead and bought the ring. the diamond certificate came in today and i was nervous about the other specs on the certificate.

specs on my tiffany's 6 prong solitaire:
cw: .64
measurements: 5.52-5.54 x 3.4mm
color: G
clarity: vs2
triple ex, no fluorescence

cut proportions (what i'm primarily concerned about)
depth: 61.5%
table: 59%
crown angle: 34.1
pavilion angle: 40.9

i'm no expert and i thought every diamond we saw at tiffanys was pretty. i think my diamond sparkles, and i'm hoping that the diamond isn't a dud and have to go through an exchange process at tiffanys... please share your diamond expertise please!
 
#2
Were you happy with it prior to getting the paperwork? Because if so, then be happy with it and move on. If you weren't and the paperwork just confirmed your suspicion, then address it to him right now, assuming you guys are still in your return window. You need to tread very lightly with this one. If you address this to him, there's a likely chance he could be pretty hurt by your seeming rejection of a piece he gave you thinking he did a good job buying the brand you wanted and you both thought was a good fit, and thinking you did quality research. It would not pass my standards, but 99% of their diamonds don't meet ideal cut quality guidelines.
 
#4
Congrats on your engagement :)

What are you concerned about with the specs? G, VS2, excellent cut... if the diamond didn't have excellent proportions, I would expect it wouldn't get an excellent cut rating. You could really drive yourself insane reading too much into numbers. I agree with the above PFer that if the diamond wows you, be happy with it.

This is what I found by searching "ideal diamond proportions": http://www.ajediam.com/diamond_cut_chart.html
 
#5
Your diamond isn't a dud as long as YOU are happy with it. You said you think it sparkles nicely, so if you like how it looks just enjoy it...don't get too wrapped up in the numbers. Go with what your eyes tell you instead. If you like what you see, that's the most important thing.
 
#6
Like I asked above in my original post, if you were happy before you started worrying about the minutia, what's the issue?

karman said:
Congrats on your engagement :)

What are you concerned about with the specs? G, VS2, excellent cut... if the diamond didn't have excellent proportions, I would expect it wouldn't get an excellent cut rating. You could really drive yourself insane reading too much into numbers. I agree with the above PFer that if the diamond wows you, be happy with it.

This is what I found by searching "ideal diamond proportions": http://www.ajediam.com/diamond_cut_chart.html
Click to expand...
Just because Tiffany graded something as "excellent" that doesn't guarantee the best proportions or light return. They're not a reputable and independent lab that is grading these stones with the best interests of both the consumer AND the retailer in mind, they are the retailer, grading the stones with themselves in mind, so they can call it whatever they want. In the link you posted, those shown are not at all ideal specs, they're grossly inaccurate, way too wide of a range, and I'd be curious what that vendor used as their basis for that range. I have gone through these many times in many threads, Ill post this, again, in here:

Cheat sheet which is a great set of numbers for Round Brilliants

And I’d ask the sales person to limit the selection of round brilliant cut diamonds which they offer to me so that all of the diamonds are within the following range of proportions:
Total depth between 59 – 61.8%
Table diameter between 53 – 57%
Crown angle between 34.3 – 34.9 degrees
Pavilion angle between 40.6 – 40.9 degrees
Girdle thickness between thin to medium, faceted (bruted isn't bad, but faceted would be better)
Culet size: none

When you're dealing with a table of around 54-55, you want the depth to be in the 59-60 range, not the 61-62 range. I harp on the 55 because it's RIGHT in the middle of the range, and sometimes suggest a 56. The middle of the range is PERFECT, and is always talked about as the perfect table number.

The angles mentioned in degrees are a range, obviously you're going to have interplay, so there's not a specific ratio there. You have to see what the numbers on each stone are. There really is a bigger range of angles than that but ideally those would be great to hit.

Girdle: Bruted isn't horrible, my current stone is bruted. Faceted looks better, but bruted isn't a horrible thing.
Click to expand...
 
#7
ame said:
Were you happy with it prior to getting the paperwork? Because if so, then be happy with it and move on. If you weren't and the paperwork just confirmed your suspicion, then address it to him right now, assuming you guys are still in your return window. You need to tread very lightly with this one. If you address this to him, there's a likely chance he could be pretty hurt by your seeming rejection of a piece he gave you thinking he did a good job buying the brand you wanted and you both thought was a good fit, and thinking you did quality research. It would not pass my standards, but 99% of their diamonds don't meet ideal cut quality guidelines.
Click to expand...
i feel like this is hard to explain, i can't tell from looking at the ring that anything's wrong with it. but obviously he has worked really hard to save up for the ring and we don't want to spend our money on something that isn't what tiffany's advertises it to be. does that make any sense? we did our research and we were happy to get a G/VS2, but didn't know anything about the cut. when the certificate came in and we saw the numbers, we didn't really understand what it meant and if our diamond was "excellent" as tiffany's claims it to be (triple ex).

based off your numbers, the table is the only % that exceeds your parameters? how does a table effect the "fire" of the diamond?
 
#8
The table being that large means you're losing fire among other things. You are probably also seeing a "ring" of darkness if you look straight down which is "leakage" and means that instead of the light coming back up and out off the pavilion facets, its going straight out the bottom.

And no, it's not really an ideal which for that price you should get. It may be someone at Tiffany's idea of Excellent but the table is too large so those angles don't work right.
 
#9
glad i read this thread and also thought tiffany's is one of the best houses when it comes to stones. so i'm not so obsessed getting a tiffany diamond anymore.

lately all those "luxury" houses are into profits, profits and more profits.

thanks for starting this thread icydipndots.

enjoy the ring and your upcoming wedding!!!
 
#10
You CAN find a great stone from there, you will just have to be insanely patient and have a salesperson willing to look through their inventory for you to get it.
 
#12
Congrats on your engagement and what a sweet fiancé you have!
Personally I think it sounds like a great diamond and I think you will love wearing it! Please post some pictures when you get the chance :)
 
#13
ame said:
Like I asked above in my original post, if you were happy before you started worrying about the minutia, what's the issue?


Just because Tiffany graded something as "excellent" that doesn't guarantee the best proportions or light return. They're not a reputable and independent lab that is grading these stones with the best interests of both the consumer AND the retailer in mind, they are the retailer, grading the stones with themselves in mind, so they can call it whatever they want. In the link you posted, those shown are not at all ideal specs, they're grossly inaccurate, way too wide of a range, and I'd be curious what that vendor used as their basis for that range. I have gone through these many times in many threads, Ill post this, again, in here:
Click to expand...

I've never purchased a diamond from Tiffany before so I wasn't aware they grade their own pieces... I buy all of my diamond pieces from a local jeweller and they always include independent appraisals (and I update them every 4 years) and GIA reports

Edited to add: Just read the thread where you posted the specs... great read!
 
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#14
Their system is so bizarre to me, frankly, and I know there are a lot of folks that think I overly bash them, I do own pieces from their selection, including my wedding band, and yes, I do have some past negative history with them, as my original eng ring came from there, but my biggest thing about ANY purchase is going in with education about cut quality, and they shroud the details of those stones in mystery. Most SAs won't give you those details til weeks after you've paid for the ring and in many cases til you're outside of your return or exchange window. You CAN get a quality stone there, it's just hard to find one, or to find an SA that is willing to help you find one in their inventory as they want you to buy on the spot from what is there. The company itself occasionally will buy stones that are GIA graded from their siteholders (they don't cut their own stones but they oversee the cutting on their branded and patented cuts) but not many of their stones are with a GIA report anymore. Some will come dual-graded though, bearing both a Tiffany and a GIA report. Their selections for cut quality, I think, are whackadoodle. But what is considered to be truly ideal by numbers and on paper does not appeal to everyone's eyes, and some people can't convince their eyes it's great without it being perfect on paper ("mind clean").
 
#15
ame, can you tell me more about the "ring of darkness" that will result from a table too big? i've been staring at my ring for the last two days to try to see it but i have no clue what i'm looking for!
 
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