hi everybody!  so my horsehead diamond ring arrived today from albuquerque!
i'm still amazed i got it, normally i would never buy something i wasn't 100% sure of, but my hubby thought it was a worthwhile buy so i did.  i also would have never known about horsehead diamonds without DBL.

so upon initial inspection i think it's about a .7ish carat, I-J, SI2ish.  this is my very humble and unsophisticated assessment. the ring is marked 14k which i think is right, and weighs in at 9 grams, pretty substantial.  the pawnshop owner said the gold itself was worth over $200 in scrap. my initial reaction that it's kinda ugly still stands (i think a hobbyist may have made it, it's not stamped but etched with '14k'), but it's grown on me in the last few hours, and the diamond is very sparkly and lively, i think in a better setting it could look amazing.

i forget who was talking about her pawnshop buys, but, per her story i took the ring to a jeweler to make sure it was a diamond, i was almost 99% sure about that part but still.  the jeweler said she had been a gemologist for 30 years and never seen or heard of a horsehead diamond before.  unfortunately, she was not impressed with it, she thought the idea itself was stupid, and my diamond in particular wasn't great.  she saw a few dark inclusions (i had too), and she thought that it used to be a full carat but was cut down to between .75-.8 to make the horsehead.  she said the prongs were worn down and noticed a chip in the table.  i had seen the chip right before i had taken it there too, which is a big bummer, i wonder if i couldn't get it fixed.
anyways, i'd love to post a picture but i can't find the cable to my camera!  i will figure something out because i'm dying to know what you guys think of the ring.
sorry for the long post!

thanks OMC, i'm so glad you brought that up. i'm unclear about what exactly a natural is. when i went to another jewelry store the owner tried to tell me a fairly pronounced chip on the girdle of a dark brown irradiated diamond was a "natural", can that be? i thought naturals were something that brought out the color in a stone. 

Quick question to anyone who might know, i have an ultrasonic cleaner, do you think with the questionable natural/chip it's safe to use?  sorry if that's a ridiculous question. thanks!

you are the best OMC, thanks a bunch!
visiting that jeweler earlier bummed me out quite a bit about my new diamond. i was super excited because the stone was bigger than i remembered and very clear and sparkly, it's definitely eye-clean, no cloudiness or anything. but she made me question the purchase, and made it seem like the stone was junk.  grr, did i mention i don't like local jewelers? she said the chip was bad, but looking at it through my loupe i don't think it created a crack. i'm not sure though...
i'll post pictures later tonight! 
thanks again!

Congratulations on your purchase!  OMC is a wonderful source of information, hey?

I can't wait for the photos!

yes i did see those earings, and i was thinking of the same thing for mine possibly, there is a tiny black inclusion along the chin i thought might be obscured by a bridle...    am always scheming a way to work with david.

Second pic (closeup)

Oh, I think you've got a great find, Allison!  I'm with you, I'd reset it; maybe with a noseband.  It looks like a man's ring, and the deep crevasses don't really help the the diamond shine or define the shape particularly.  It's a nice size, and if not as classic as the DBL earring shapes, it definitely is a clear horse and could be a lovely piece.

It looks like a lively stone. In the wrong setting. I'm with ah2bqat: that horse needs being set free!

BTW - I was looking for the chip/natural, but I can't see it, except possibly if it is on the neck, on the right?

The diamond is lovely but I agree it is in need of a setting that doesn't hide its shape as much.  Also, resetting it in a white metal might brighten it up a bit.  If it's going into a pendant, the noseband setting would be perfect!  If for a ring, I might consider a thin bezel with non-colorless pave around it to accentuate the shape.  Perhaps in the center of a dome ring?

Mikla

Why not set it in one of Davids pipe rings, I think that would look really fantastic.

Foxylady 

David can get you some matching earrings!  This is exciting.   You do not see these everyday.  Good find. 

hehehe, you guys are so funny.  thanks gia, i am happy with the find, horseheads are super unique.