1 reply to this topic

[mrsq]

I live in Phuket, Thailand. After consulting a wealthy local woman who has lovely diamonds, she took me to her favorite reputable goldsmith. This shop also sells diamonds, which they say that they buy at the wholesale factories in Bangkok. Anyway, to cut to the chase, they showed me a gorgeous .51 carat, VVS1, G-H diamond. I want 2 as this will be for earrings. The total price quoted was about 2700 USD for 2. My husband and I looked at it under the loupe and could detect no obvious inclusions or flaws, but of course, if we buy it we will have it independently appraised. And I must add that I generally found the staff to be knowledgeable and open to questions. How is it possible that they can sell quality diamonds this cheaply? Is this a realistic price? I understand that labour costs here are significantly cheaper, but this is for a 2 loose stones. Any direction you can give me would be appreciated.

ms.que70@gmail.com

[denverappraiser]

The difference between G - H is pretty important to the pricing, as the difference between VVS1 - VVS2. This makes the accuracy of the grading an important issue and it's worth paying attention to the source of this information. One lab's idea of a G-VVS1 may be another labs idea of an H-VVS2 and they can be visibly very similar. You can use the search engine attached to this site to look up comparable offers. It's on the main page of diamond.info and also at the top of this page under 'find online jeweler'.

The advertisements here are mostly US based dealers and, in general, Thai prices are slightly higher than the US. As you point out, this is not a question of labor prices. Also notice that the prices will vary considerably even for the same general description. This has alot to do with cutting and other matters that aren't mentioned on the report. There are some good reasons to be buying from a dealer close to home and from a dealer that you otherwise have reason to trust. These prices seem in the right neighborhood if the stones are correctly described and are otherwise what you want.