5 replies to this topic

[colin]

I am trying to get as many opinions as I can get. I am working with a budget of 4k. I have already picked out the setting with matching wedding band. The cost for the 2 is 1499. That leaves me with about 2500. My girlfriend loves princess cut. My question is what can I expect for 2500. I would like to get 3/4 of a carat. I know little about the 4c's but before I start to negotiate the deal, I would like to know what I can get with that kind of money. I know it is a general question, but if you had 2500 what do you think would be more bang for my buck. Thank you so much!!!!

[ben]

With $2500, I would concentrate on getting a really nice, stylish setting that precisely matches the woman's style, and get a smallish center stone ( less than .5 ct).

[colin]

I have already selected the setting and wedding band. That is not what I am worried about. I am worried about the diamond. I have 2500 left for just the diamond.

I wanted to find out what kind of diamond (just the diamond) to expect to get for $ 2500. If I had a starting point...for example do you think I could get a VS2, G, 3/4 for 2500?

[Princess Tess]

Colin:

That quality is a little high for $2500, though not by too much.

Here's how I know: I entered your criteria into the "find online Jeweler" feature of this site and came up with a bunch of diamonds, all slighty more expensive than your budget allows. I used the "find online" jewlers rather than "find local" thinking they might be a teensy bit cheaper.

If you play with this feature and enter various parameters into the search function you can no doubt find a stone in your price range quite easily.

Good luck!

Princess Tess

[ben]

Colin, my apologies for not reading your original posting more carefully.

$2500 will buy a very nice diamond, in my opinion. I would go with a relatively low clarity and color (perhaps SI1 and G) and spend most of the money on a big stone with a nice-enough cut.

As far as "negotiating the deal", there is actually very little to do. If you're comfortable purchasing a diamond over the Internet, there are a number of quality vendors that will give you close-to-cost pricing. Tess' suggestion for finding them is a good one.

When you do find your dream diamond, keep in mind that the logistics of setting them into your pre-selected ring may be a bit daunting. You see, many jewelers are very reluctant to set someone else's diamond into someone else's ring, because of the liability that they incur (and rightly so -- diamonds can chip or break during the process). So, if I were in your position, I would try to do this bit of homework first before making the diamond purchase. Ask up front about the possibility of a diamond cracking, so that it is clear up front with whom the liability rests. Be prepared to pay a bit more than you might have expected for the labor of setting the diamond, to reward the jeweler for the liability if s/he represents to you that they will incur it if the worst should happen. In fact, if your $2500 budget is set in stone, you may want to know this cost so you can subtract it from the cost of the diamond.

Good luck!

[Princess Tess]

Let us know what you find!!!

Princess Tess