The Complete Diamond Stud Earrings Review

This article contains two main parts.  In Part I,  I will present general guidelines to be followed when buying diamond earrings in terms of the desired qualities (specific for studs) of diamond color, diamond clarity, and diamond cut.  In Part II, I will present the results of research I had performed to discover which online diamond vendor offers the highest quality diamond earrings (studs) for the best value.

Bottom Line Recommendation: Quality requirements for diamond stud earrings can be significantly relaxed when compared to diamonds to be set in engagemenet rings. This is due to the fact that the average distance at which they are viewed is notably larger than the distance at which engagement rings are viewed.   Additionally, due to the added viewing distance, many stones for engagement rings that aren’t considered eye-clean can be considered eye-clean for diamond studs.

If you want to “build your own” pair of studs by choosing stones online, you’ll need some help making sure the two stones match, and making sure you’re not spending too much on features that will go to waste.  Please don’t hesistate to contact me with any questions.  I’ll gladly look through inventory online and send you recommendations of specific stones.

If you want to buy already matched and set diamond earrings at a fixed price, then skip down to Part II of this article where I compare the diamond stud offerings of the four largest (and in my opinion, best) online diamond vendors: James Allen, Blue Nile, Abazias, and Mondera.

Part I – General Guidelines for Buying Diamond Earrings

Diamond stud earrings are the perfect gift.  Every woman needs them.  Every woman wants a pair.  They’re probably the most versatile piece of jewelry out there. She can wear them with anything, for any occasion.  They’re great for casual evenings, great for work, and great for formal occasions.

If you haven’t yet given your girlfriend, wife, or fiance a pair, you can always count on this simple gift making her very happy (and making you look like a King).  If  you have already given your girlfriend, wife, or fiance a pair of diamond studs, then you can always buy her a larger pair.

Here’s a general guideline of what to look for when buying studs online:

Color Quality – H-J is the right range for color.  Higher than this, and you won’t be able to appreciate the very high color from the normal distance from which you look at studs on someone’s ears.

Clarity Grade – In theory, you should be able to buy a pair of studs that are graded I1 clarity without a problem.  But unfortunately, since most online vendors sell their studs uncertified, it’s difficult to trust anyone selling something marked as I1.  Most of the time, these studs are a very low I1 or even I2, and most likely will have eye-visible inclusions.

If you are looking to buy large studs (2 carat total weight or more), then feel free to contact me to inquire about having me broker you a pair that I will choose myself from the Israel Diamond Bourse.  I guarantee what I choose will be clean to the naked eye and be a superior ideal cut.  I also guarantee I can beat almost any price you find online.

Otherwise, I recommend you buy online from my recommended vendors (see Recommendations at the bottom of this article).  Stick with their SI2 qualities.  In my report, I discovered that James Allen sells eye-clean diamonds in their SI2 quality whereas  Blue Nile, Mondera and Abazias do not.  Buying studs in VS2 quality is a waste of money.  The SI2s are clean to the naked eye, so what’s the point in upgrading to a VS2 if you get nothing out of the upgrade?

One final option is to use James Allen’s build your own diamond studs option.  With this option, you will only really benefit if you are buying a larger pair of studs.  Since the cost of GIA and AGS certification is relatively high,  paying for two certificates on a small pair of studs (1ct total weight and below) will add significantly to the price in percentage terms.  If you would like help choosing two great looking stones for studs (and make sure they match each other), then please feel free to contact me.

Cut Grade – Here as well, since the average distance from which you view studs on someone’s ears is quite far, you can be more relaxed about the cut quality.  Just stay away from extremes in terms of depth and table, and you will be fine.  A Good GIA Cut grade will be fine as long as the stone isn’t too deep (and therefore you loose too much spread on the face of the diamonds).

Part II – Review of Diamond Stud Earrings from the Four Best Diamond Stores Online

Recently I happened to notice that most of the major online diamond vendors sell their studs blindly – without certification.  From my experience selling to retailers like Blue Nile the small diamonds that end up in studs, I know the reason for this – generally, studs are a cheaper gift product and adding the cost of two certificates often knocks the product out of affordability.  While this is great for the consumer in that it keeps prices down – I realized that this also creates some major problems for the consumer as well.

1. How can the consumer trust what the vendor claims about the diamonds they are selling?
2. How can the consumer reliably compare prices across different vendors if no objective 3rd party can attest to the fact that they are comparing an equivalent product?
3. Customer reviews are great for giving the consumer confidence in a particular vendor, but how can the consumer compare customer service across different vendors?

Dan Inspecting Diamond Stud Earrings

That’s when I came up with the idea for the Complete Diamond Stud Earrings Review.  This report seeks to address the three issues just mentioned.  To accomplish this, a pair of studs from each of the four leading diamond vendors online (James Allen, Blue Nile, Abazias, and Mondera) were purchased and inspected.

Unfortunately, since I live in Israel, I was not able to do the evaluation myself, so in my place I hired a former colleague of mine from Leo Schachter, Dan P.  Dan has extensive experience in the diamond and jewelry industry having worked for some of the industry’s largest and best companies in New York for over 15 years.  We worked closely together on a number of projects for Leo Schachter, and so I am familiar with his experertise and professionalism on a very personal level.   I have the utmost respect for him and his opinions.

To accomplish this review, Dan ordered 1/2 carat total weight (1/4 carat diamond in each ear) round diamond stud earrings from each of the above mentioned vendors.  Each vendor has at least two different quality levels.  To keep things consistent across each vendor, we chose each vendor’s “SI” quality.  While on the phone with each vendor, he made sure to ask numerous questions to test the customer service representatives’ knowledge.  He evaluated each pair of studs, and then returned them to their respective vendor when finished.  He documented every step of the process: customer service, packaging, diamond quality, and ease of return.

The results of his hard work are presented below.  First I will present his findings vendor by vendor, followed by side-by-side comparisons of all of the vendors together.

A)  James Allen

Invoice From James Allen – Click to Enlarge

Close-Up of Studs from James Allen – Click to Enlarge

Customer Service – Dan found that James Allen’s customer service reps were the friendliest, most helpful, and most well educated of the four vendors reviewed.  One innovation of James Allen’s that Dan noted was particularly nice was that they would send him numerous very personalized emails from the same service rep.  This ensured that if he had any issue, he could address them to the same person who would always be familiar with his case.

Another positive about James Allen’s customer service is that they have extensive phone hours – they are open until 12 am EST – great for night owls, and great for customers on the West Coast.

Additionally, James Allen is the only vendor to offer moving 3D images of their studs so you can really get a feel for what they look like.  They offer this unique 3D view of all of their jewelry.

James Allen Packaging – Click to Enlarge

Packaging - James Allen’s packaging was really quite exquisite.  Upon opening the Fedex box,   you are faced with a very handsomely designed grey box with James Allen’s logo embossed on the cover (see below to the left).  When you open this grey box, you are faced with an elegant dark-wood polished jewelry box set squarely in the middle of a perfectly formed block of foam that matches the box perfectly (see below to the right).  All in all, this was far and away the best packaging of the four vendors.  If you want to impress  your wife or girlfriend, giving them a wrapped James Allen box will certainly do the trick.

James Allen Packaging – Click to Enlarge

Diamond Quality - James Allen offers platinum mounted diamond studs in a G/H Color VS2 Clarity quality level and they offer 18K White Gold mounted diamond stud earrings in an H/I Color SI1/SI2 Clarity quality level.  As mentioned earlier, for purposes of consistency, we ordered the SI quality from each vendor.

James Allen Packaging – Click to Enlarge

Dan found that James Allen’s claims of quality were right on target.  He described the pair of diamond studs from James Allen as being well-matched diamonds with a very high quality cut, with a very good SI2 clarity grade.  He estimated the color as being a high “I” color (I say “estimated” because it’s very hard to guage the color of a diamond in its setting).

Dan also noted that the quality and workmanship on the gold setting was very high.

Ease of Return – Unlike some of the other vendors, James Allen does not include a pre-prepared return mailing label in their package with their product.  Dan did mention, however, that James Allen’scustomer service was so helpful and the process so simple, that supplying a return label wasn’t really necessary.   Dan noted that their customer service rep expressed a polite regret for his decision to return the product, but it was not at all trying to make him feel guilty or trying to convince him to change his mind.

B)  Blue Nile

Invoice From Blue Nile – Click to Enlarge

Close-Up of Studs from Blue Nile – Click to Enlarge

Customer Service – Dan reported that the customer service representative (CSR) who took his order “was not very friendly and also not too helpful — he didn’t direct me to the premade stud section even though I told him what I wanted and at what cost. It was as if he was trying to upsell me, and I can’t stand that kind of pressure.”  On the other hand, Dan did note that while unfriendly and pushy, the
CSR who took his order was knowledgeable about diamonds and jewelry.  He answered questions (correctly) about diamond color,diamond clarity, metals, rhodium plating, ideal cuts, etc.

One positive note about Blue Nile’s customer service is that they have the most extensive phone hours of any of the vendors reviewed – they are open until 2 am EST – great for night owls, and even more convenient for customers on the West Coast.

Blue Nile Packaging – Click to Enlarge

Packaging -Blue Nile’s packaging was very standard – nothing special at all.  The blue jewelry box wasn’t nearly as elegant as James Allen’s darkwood box, the Blue Nile package included more materials, such as information about Blue Nile, jewelry insurance, and jewelry care along with the invoice.

Diamond Quality – Blue Nile offers platinum mounted diamond studs in what they claim is an H Color VS2 Clarity quality level and they offer 18K White Gold mounted diamond stud earrings in what they claim is an I Color SI2 Clarity quality level.  As mentioned earlier, for purposes of consistency, we ordered the SI quality from each vendor.

Upon inspection, Dan found that Blue Nile’s stated quality level was relatively on target.  He described the pair of diamond studs from Blue Nile as being well-matched. The SI2 in the Blue Nile studs, however, was notably stronger than the SI2 in the James Allen studs. Additionally, the cut on the Blue Nile studs was significantly worse than the cut quality on the James Allen studs. This makes sense, since the Blue Nile studs are only rated “Good” cut quality while the James Allen studs are rated “Ideal.” The huge difference in brilliance is readily evident in the pictures provided. The cheaper price for most sizes vs James Allen is definitely NOT worth the sizeable drop in brilliance.

Additionally, Dan noted that the culets on both stones from the Blue Nile pair had chipped culets.
Dan also noted that the workmanship and polish on the gold setting was very high.

Ease of Return – Dan noted that when he called to return the item, they were sorry for his need to return but were very helpful in instructing him on the return process which was very simple.  He also mentioned that the CSR who handled the return was very friendly.  To make things even easier, Blue Nile includes an adhesive self-addressed return mailing label on the actual invoice (see copy above on the left).  This shows a true concern for detail in making the customer’s experience as pleasant as possible.

C) Mondera

Invoice From Mondera – Click to Enlarge

Close-Up of Studs from Mondera – Click to Enlarge

Customer Service – Dan reported that the customer service representative (CSR) at Mondera who took his order was very friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful.  In fact, without Dan having to ask for it, she immediately gave him 5% off the listed price.   Dan noted that he was pleasantly surprised by this as none of the other vendors had done anything similar.

Unlike the late night phone hours that Blue Nile and James Allen keep, Mondera only keeps their phones open until 7 pm EST.  This can pose a problem for those shoppers too busy at work during the day to bother with making an order.  Of course, you can always place an order online at any time of day.  But I know from experience that many customers just don’t feed comfortable making such a major purchase without speaking to someone first.

Mondera Packaging – Click to Enlarge

Packaging – According to Dan, Mondera’s packaging was perfectly average.

Diamond Quality – This is where Mondera’s marks start to take a turn for the worse.

Like Blue Nile and James Allen, Mondera has two quality levels.  A G/H Color VS2 Clarity in Platinum as their premium level and a G/H Color SI2 Clarity in Gold as their standard quality.  This is a slight deviation (at least according to their claims) from Blue Nile and James Allen, as they claim their color to be slightly higher on their standard quality (G/H versus H/I for James Allen and I+ for Blue Nile).

When Dan inquired with the CSR about what SI quality meant, the CSR informed Dan that “SI is really good quality and not eye visible.”  While this description is generally true, unfortunately, the goods delivered did not live up to the expecations.  According to Dan, the diamond stud earrings from Monderaclearly had I1 Clarity grades, and their inclusions were definitley visible to the naked eye.

Aside from the disapointment in diamond clarity, the stud earrings’ diamond cut wasn’t very good either.  Dan reported that the diamonds had no “life” and one of the stones’ culets was noticeably chipped.

The workmanship and polish on the settings, however, were quite nice.

Ease of Return – Like the others, Dan reported that the return process was simple.  Also, the CSR who handled his return was friendly and helpful.  They too mentioned they were sorry for his decision to return, but nothing overbearing.

D) Abazias

Invoice From Abazias – Click to Enlarge

Close-Up of Studs from Abazias – Click to Enlarge

Customer Service – Overall, it seems, the customer service atAbazias left a little to be desired.  Dan’s experience with them was less than stellar.

When Dan first contacted Abazias, he reached a customer service representative (CSR) who was not knowledgeable.  He was not able to answer any of Dan’s specific questions about the diamond stud earrings, both regarding diamond quality, and regarding the earring post styles.  The CSR told Dan he would call him back with answers, but he never did.

Nonetheless, Dan did try calling back, and the next CSR he received was able to answer his questions and was qutie friendly.

Abazias Packaging – Click to Enlarge

As with Mondera, Abazias’ live phone support hours leave what to be desired.  They close their lines at 6pm EST – making it difficult for busy people on the East Cost to order by phone, and making it virtually impossible for people on the West Cost to order by phone.

Packaging – According to Dan, packaging was very poor, as the earring box was placed in an unmarked envelope with no accompanying paperwork. When he called to inquire about this, they said they never put invoices in their boxes for security reasons, which is odd because the other three vendors didn’t have such a problem.

Diamond Quality – Like the other vendors, Abazias has two quality levels.  Unlike the other vendors, however, their G/H color SI2-SI3 clarity quality is their premium quality.  They also sell a lower quality J/K color I1 clarity as their standard quality.  Again, for consistency’s sake, we reviewed the SI quality.

When Dan asked the CSR about what SI2/SI3 quality meant, the CSR informed Dan that their SI2/SI3 is “usually eye-clean.”  According to Dan, however, the diamond stud earrings from Abazias were obvious I1s, and their inclusions were definitley visible to the naked eye.  The cut on the diamonds was not good, and the two stones were not matched well either.  Dan reported that one of the two stones was a “fish-eye” (industry term for a too-shallow round stone that has no life and looks like a dark black circle when viewed face-up).

Additionally, workmanship and polish on the settings were not great, as it looked like a small piece of gold was missing under one of the prongs.

Ease of Return – Like the others, Dan reported that the return process was simple.  Also, the CSR who handled his return was friendly.