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I’m new to shopping for diamonds and I REALLY appreciate the fact that you’ve taken the time to help make sense of all this.
What I’m looking for is the best round diamond I can find to go with a 14k white gold setting. My budget is no more than $7k for the diamond, not including setting.
Any thoughts?
I’d be happy to make some recommendations and guide you through the process. What type of setting are you considering? Will it be a solitaire or does it have sidestones/pave? This may affect the colors that I recommend for the center diamond (as we explain in our post on color).
Let me know and I’d be happy to send you some suggestions.
Thank you for your response.
With regard to the setting, I’m looking at a pave’ setting like this:
Blue Nile Petite Pavé Diamond Engagement Ring
Hope this helps.
In general, we are not fans of Blue Nile. Here is our BN review for a full explanation.
I really like this diamond for you:
https://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-SI1-Excellent-Cut-Round-Diamond-1524983.asp
It’s bright, eye-clean and will look great in a setting like that. What do you think?
That stone looks terrific. I’m not sure how I feel about the settings at James Allen, though. I found one that looks similar to the one I found on Blue Nile, with the only major difference being the prongs. How do you think this setting would look with that stone?
I think they would look great together.
After spending this past weekend out of town, I’ve come to the conclusion that I need to be looking for a slightly larger stone. My girlfriend and I went to look at some diamonds and settings in a couple of jewelry stores and after seeing them up close, she’s given me some good feedback. I’d like to both narrow the search down a bit. I’m now looking at a solitaire setting which helps on the budget. She really liked the look of the solitaire setting next to an eternity band.
So what I’m looking for now is this:
1.25-1.50 carat weight diamond with a budget of as close to $8000 or less as I can get.
Here is what I’d recommend:
https://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/I-SI1-Excellent-Cut-Round-Diamond-1517676.asp
https://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/I-SI1-Excellent-Cut-Round-Diamond-1533922.asp
I think the 1.35 is a winner. It’s close to 8k and your girlfriend will appreciate that it’s not in the bottom range of her expectations 🙂
I like both the stones below. I know you’re not a big fan of Blue Nile, but I also ran across a stone that I thought looked strangely under-priced based on its stats. What is your opinion of this diamond?
We are not fans of BN, but that diamond is a pretty good deal.
Hello again, Mike. I’m almost there. With regard to the 1.35 carat diamond you linked me. How do you think that would look in this setting and with this wedding band?
https://www.jamesallen.com/wedding-and-anniversary/Ladies-Eternity-Rings/ring/item_495-5224.asp
I think it will look fabulous. Make sure to get the HI SI quality on the wedding band.
What we love about them:
- No questions asked returns within 30 days of shipment. James Allen will send you a paid shipping label to return the ring.
- Lifetime Warranty
- Free International Shipping
- Free prong tightening, repolishing, rhodium plating and cleaning every 6 months
- Provide insurance appraisals
- One free resizing within 60 days of purchase
- Free ring inscriptions
- Best-in-class high quality imagery of all diamonds in stock
- 24/7 Customer Service
- Best-in-class packaging
What we love about them:
- No questions asked returns within 30 days of shipment. Blue Nile will send you a paid shipping label to return the ring.
- Lifetime Warranty
- Free Shipping
- Free prong tightening, repolishing, rhodium plating and cleaning every 6 months
- Provide insurance appraisal
- One free resizing within the first year of purchase
- High quality images of about half of their diamonds
- 24/7 Customer Service
- 100% credit towards future upgrades (must be at least double in value)
- Best in class fulfillment
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