Diamond Ring??

Question

I'm looking at a diamond at auction. 1.5 Carats, Color F Clarity I2 Round Brilliant cut, EGL certified replacement value of $8730. Can return within 3 days if not what they say it is. Asking $800.00 - Would you buy??

Answer 1

EGL are not known in the jewelry industry as being the most stringent lab around. If it says F, I2, then it's probably G(which is still colorless), I3 (which should look a lot like frozen spit). It's worth the $800.00. A grading of I means you can see the inclusions with your naked eye. I=eye. I2 means they're really obvious; I3 is, well, I don't even know how to be nice about it...
But you wouldn't be getting any kind of deal for $800; you'd be paying for what you got, so just be careful please?

Answer 2

First, where is the auction at? Online? Online jewelry auctions are one of the biggest fraud problems on eBay. People pay big money and either receive nothing, or receive crap.

Secondly, I2 is a fairly flawed diamond. Even at 1.5 carats, I don't see how that would be valued at $8730.

Unless this "auction" is with a local business where you can see the merchandise ahead of time, and they have a good reputation to protect, I'd probably stay away. You know what they say, if it's too good to be true, it probably is.

Answer 3

Regarding Clarity
"Clarity is a measure of the number and extent of the flaws in the diamond. Generally speaking, the fewer the flaws, the more valuable the diamond. Completely flawless diamonds are extremely rare -- only a few hundred "FL" diamonds are produced per year worldwide.

There are several grading systems used to describe clarity. By far, the most popular is the Gemological Institute of America's (G.I.A.) scale, which ranks diamonds as Flawless (FL), Internally Flawless (IF), very very slightly included (VVS), very slightly included (VS), slightly imperfect (SI), and imperfect (I):

FL: Completely flawless

IF: Internally flawless; only external flaws are present, which can be removed by further polishing the stone

VVS1 - VVS2: Only an expert can detect flaws with a 10X microscope. By definition, if an expert can see a flaw from the top of the diamond, it is a VVS2. Otherwise, if an expert can only detect flaws when viewing the bottom of the stone, then it is a VVS1

VS1 - VS2: You can see flaws with a 10X microscope, but it takes a long time (more than about 10 seconds)

SI1 - SI2: You can see flaws with a 10X microscope

I1 - I3: You can see flaws with the naked eye. Consider avoiding I2-I3 diamonds.

There are many different types of flaws. The best way to become acquainted with them is to look at lots of diamonds. The more common ones are as follows:

Pinpoint: A very small white dot on the surface of the stone. By far, the most common flaw

Carbons: A very small black dot on the surface of the stone. Less common than pinpoints

Feathers: Small cracks within the stone, similar in look to broken glass. Small internal feathers are harmless (other than lowering the clarity rating of the diamond), but large feathers can become a problem because the crack can grow as the diamond ages

Clouds: Hazy areas within the diamond, actually made up of many small crystals that are impossible to see individually

Crystal Growth: A small crystalline growth within the diamond. Looks like a small diamond within the big diamond

Unfortunately, clarity is very difficult to judge accurately by an inexperienced consumer, so your best bet is to gain an education first by looking at lots of diamonds before making a purchase. Any good jeweler will spend the time you need to get comfortable judging the clarity of your stone -- ask different jewelers to point out the flaws in several stones until you can detect pinpoints and other flaws by yourself.

One pitfall to avoid when shopping for clarity is the "clarity-enhanced" diamond. This is an artificial process used to "fix" the flaws on an otherwise good stone. Although a clarity-enhanced diamond can look nearly flawless (in some cases, it is impossible to detect the enhancement), it is intrinsically worth as much as a flawed stone. Furthermore, the durability is nowhere that of pure diamond. Be sure to confirm with your jeweler that the stone you are considering is not clarity-enhanced, and be sure to double-check this fact on the G.I.A. certificate. If you do not receive a G.I.A. certificate with your stone, ask the jeweler to state that the diamond is not clarity-enhanced on the appraisal."

NOTICE IT SAYS CONSIDER AVOIDING I2 DIAMONDS.

Regarding Color
"For a diamond to be considered "colorless," the G.I.A. requires that it be a D, E, or F. However, the D-Z scale is continuous, so the difference between an F and G is very small. The average color for engagement diamonds in the United States is G to H.

When judging the color of a diamond, it is crucial to see the diamond unmounted. Ask to see the printout from the colorimeter, or ask the jeweler for a reference set of stones to make the comparisons yourself. To do this, place the diamond in question next to the reference stones face down on a white piece of paper, and compare the color of the stones until you get the best match."

See below for a very helpful site.

Answer 4

Check out the Color, clarity, definitely the price: is to low and suspicious. I would not buy. The suspicion is in the color and the clarity. It may be worthless. In the 3 days, you can take it to a reputable Jeweler, and have him look at it and he will tell you the value of the diamond. Call one and ask if they charge ?

Answer 5

I would not buy this diamond.

If the diamond is worth $8730, how can they sell it for $800 without there being some kind of catch? It has to be either stolen or a scam.

Answer 6

I really wouldn't. Think about it - Would YOU sell an almost $9,000 diamond for $800? I sounds like some kind of scam or rip off, and by the time it got to you and the auctioneer had your money, they would be long gone.

Always remember - If it sounds "too good to be true", it probably is.

Answer 7

No, it sounds too good to be true! I buy a lot of stuff online, but I have a jeweler make my jewelry for much less than I can buy it at a store. The markup in jewelry, especially diamonds is huge!

Answer 8

No, diamonds are less valuable than sapphires but DeBeers stockpiles them to artifically inflat the cost.

Answer 9

are you kidding??? that stone is worth around 2500.00 send me a pic or address to auction

Answer 10

unless you know who's the auctioneer and they're reputable best to get out of it...