WhiteFlash A Cut Above

I've got to admit, when I decided to propose to my girlfriend, I have zero knowledge in diamonds. I've heard about the 4Cs - Cut, Carat, Color, Clarity from some of my friends, and that's it. Even then, I already felt intimidated by the 4Cs.

Therefore, I started to study materials on Beyond4cs. I've learn much from the site, including things like IdealScope, ASET, the importance of cut, etc. With those knowledge, I then walked into one brick and mortar shop to ask about the diamond rings they have to offer.

Since I know that Cut is the most important factor for a diamond, therefore, Lazare diamonds caught my attention because they are famous for their ideal cut. I was told that if I buy a Lazare diamond, I need not worry too much on whether it sparkles or not because it sure does. During then, I was really tempted to buy one. However, I decided to hold my horses and did not rush myself into the deal because I want to see if I have better options. Hence, I decided to look into the online diamond websites that were introduced in Beyond4cs.

The first website I went to is JamesAllen. After playing with the site for awhile, I managed to filter out JamesAllen's best of the best - TRUE HEARTS diamond. From there, I will calculate the HCA score and see if the diamonds that were filtered out meets the value of 2 or below. Finally, I will cherry pick diamonds that fall within my budget. Unfortunately, JamesAllen does not ship to Malaysia, so well, guess I have to move on.

Next, I went to look at Whiteflash. The site may be daunting but it is actually not, in fact, everything works perfectly fine. I am able to browse through all the diamonds I am interested in using their advance filtering option. I have finally shortlisted 5 diamonds. Then, I talked to their sales representative, which happens to be their CEO, Debi Wexler. She answered by questions such as "Do you guys ship to Malaysia?" promptly. Lastly, I asked her a question regarding the 5 diamonds. Question as below:

Part A: Between these 3, which would be the better choice?http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3449674.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3497427.htm
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3621232.htm


Part B: If I were to top-up my budget, will this stone beat the stone you selected in Part A?
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3607947.htm


Part C: Finally, is this stone worth the premium over the stone you selected in Part A/B?
http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3473209.htm

She then redirected the question to their Master Gemologist, Bob Hoskins, who then replied me via email the same day:
Part A - Of the three F color diamonds I would take the 0.53ct. It is very slightly better than the other two and is also slightly larger.


Part B - The 0.591ct E VS1 is larger, a higher color and clarity but looking at the diamond itself I still think I would take the 0.53ct F.


Part C - If I were to make a choice from all five of these diamonds I would without question take the 0.507 D VVS1. It is not only an ACA which means it will have more fire, brilliance and sparkle than all other diamonds but it will also be a D which means it will be noticeably more white than other diamonds. It is definitely worth the premium. The perfect diamond for the perfect lady. You will be a hero!
Based on Bob's reply, it seems that he is quite professional, as he did not agree to go with the 0,591ct, even though it has better specs and a higher price. I did not ask him the reason why, but based on the Idealscope image which is available on their website, I believe that 0.53ct has a slightly better cut than 0.591ct.


I have actually emailed the same question to Paul Gian from Beyond4cs.com, and here is his reply:
You are asking me to split hairs.
These are the 2 best diamonds you can ever find anywhere in the world. It’s that good.

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3621232.htm?a_aid=recommended

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3449674.htm?a_aid=recommended
I’m really anal about cut and will dump the other stones.
The first URL is the 0.53ct diamond, while the second URL is the 0.414ct diamond. Both are within the 5 diamonds I have selected. So, based on both Bob's and Paul's suggestion, I bought the 0.53ct diamond.

As of now, you may noticed that Paul did not include the D-color 0.507 ACA diamond. This is because the diamond also has a (Update: 6 November 2017) slight light leakage weaker light return (green colour at the edge of the diamond). Since Paul already mentioned that what matters to him is Cut, that's why he did not recommend me that stone. So, comes another question - Why did Bob recommend me to purchase the stone that Paul did not recommend? Well, here is his reply:
You are correct the 0.53ct has a very slightly better cut but the higher color and clarity far outweigh that difference. Visually there will be no difference in the cut or light performance.
Personally, I won't say that he is pushing for sale, but rather, he is focusing on the rarity of the stone (D-color, VVS1, is rare), and the ultimate look and feel. Overall, I will just say it is just a difference in preference between him and Paul. Since I have been following Paul's advice and agree that Cut is the main reason a stone shines and since both recommended me 0.53ct, which is also within my budget, therefore 0.53ct is my perfect stone! :) But I've got to admit that I might top-up the difference if the cut of the 0.507ct diamond is as good as the 0.53ct's one.

July 06, 2016
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