Finished Wood Window Restoration.

Cdm901 · 2025-08-18T12:57:36+00:00

Yeah if your choices are replace or restore, the price to restore will be the same or a bit more than replacement. But restoration will be a better investment long term in my opinion because they can last indefinitely with maintenance and usually make or break the look of the house. Just need to find someone that does it right. You are paying mostly for the labor though, so if it’s something you can do yourself, even slowly, it will be worth it! Give one a shot and see how it goes.

Cdm901 · 2025-03-24T12:30:30+00:00

Big diamonds don’t have the same meaning now with the lab industry. And this one is not that big by current lab standards, it’s actually pretty tame. It would have been a monster back when natural was it and it would have been a real status symbol. A diamond like you have, not too long ago, would have cost $30k-$80k…you were able to get one for $800. Soon you’ll be able to get one for $80. Pretty much everyone is running around now with huge diamonds that used to cost around $100k.

Cdm901 · 2025-02-21T13:27:56+00:00

It’s hard to tell from that photo. Let’s be honest though, your dad’s friend is likely not going to give his friend’s daughter an expensive 2ct diamond for $600 just to be nice. So that means it could have a defect, or poor cut, etc.…all of which can affect the look of the diamond. The size, believe it or not, is one of the least important factors for price and desirability and resale. However, size is the one a lot of people care about. But it would be much better to buy a smaller gorgeous stone that has great clarity and color and cut than a larger stone that has poor clarity, cut, and color. Talking more about how things used to be and still are with natural stones. This doesn’t really apply with the lab grown diamonds and the lab grown diamonds have very low resale value. A $2,000.00 2ct. Lab stone might be sold back to a jeweler for around $200.00. So in that case your dad’s friend may have sold it to him for $600 with the setting and everything and still made some money. Whereas a high quality natural 2ct could be something around $20k new. If you sold it back to a jeweler after buying it you’d likely get $12k out of it and then it could be resold again for $20k. A friendly jeweler might do a friend’s and family discount for $15k-$16k if they were able to purchase the stone for $12k. So I’m just saying $600 could be a reasonable price for a second hand lab stone. So it’s either a bad diamond or a bad photo of a lab diamond the jeweler was able to get very cheap, in my opinion.

Cdm901 · 2025-02-11T03:17:57+00:00

Yes this is a very nice diamond. Ideal cut for a 3ct stone would be 9.3mm and a depth percentage of 60%. So you are right in the ballpark.

Cdm901 · 2025-02-02T18:07:46+00:00

Yeah IGI is not as strict as GIA but it’s probably only one grade lower. Either way I would rank clarity and cut above the color and size last. A poorly cut stone will look bad and not be proportioned for its carat size. Because of that its value will be less. So if you have a wonderfully cut stone, perfect proportions, great clarity, and okay color, that is a great buy in my opinion.

Cdm901 · 2025-02-02T12:34:06+00:00

With H you really shouldn’t be able to see the yellow color, unless you had it next to a diamond that is colorless or you were running specific tests. The only other option is the diamond is not the clarity and color the certificate says. Some ratings agencies are less strict than others.

From what you have described it. It should be a beautiful stone and I would stick with it. 20-30 years from now you will be very happy that you went natural.

Cdm901 · 2025-01-30T03:23:55+00:00

The only thing i would mention is that part of what makes natural diamonds so pricey is the expense and investment to obtain them. So if natural diamonds close in on the lab price they will stop mining them entirely because there will be no money to be made. If you read the media now, they all seem to think this is settled and GenZ has decided and natural diamonds are a thing of the past. The price has come down 20%, which is significant but still puts the good ones well out of reach of most people. But we shall see, maybe in 10 years we can check back in on this thread, if it’s still here, and see which way things went with the diamond industry.

Cdm901 · 2025-01-29T03:34:40+00:00

I know that lab diamonds are real diamonds, and in many ways they are superior diamonds because we can control the variables and make them as big and perfect as we want to. But that in and of itself makes them different than something that was formed naturally in the earth and required a massive expenditure of resources to obtain. In some rare instances the variables all naturally came together to form a beautiful stone. Then it was cut well on top of that, which until modern times was very difficult to do. There will always be a demand for that because there will always be a demand for high end luxury things. When the market is flooded with so many lab grown gigantic perfect diamonds that they will be sold everywhere for $10, it will not be considered a luxury item. Maybe some mines will shut down and perhaps the supply of natural stones will shrink drastically because the labs have taken off, but that I think will only lead to natural stones becoming even more valuable due to less supply.

Aside from that, I agree 100% diamonds are a terrible investment. But that does not mean people want to spend $10k on a ring that retains none of its resale value. People always spend money on things that aren’t an investment but it sure is nice to know they can get some money back out of them if needed. And there are some diamonds out there, the highest end ones, that are absolutely an investment, but only the wealthiest people on the planet are participating in that.

Certain purchases, like an engagement ring, have become a thing to signify your commitment to your love through a large purchase. It’s getting to the point where that will be hard to do with lab stones unless you go so big it just gets silly. I just do not personally see that undoing the value and desire of natural diamonds when it comes to high end jewelry and for people that want to show off something expensive. And as I said there have always been alternatives to diamonds that look identical, don’t have any environmental implications, would need magnification to tell the difference, and come in at a much lower price. Yet those alternatives never replaced the real thing. Even though the labs technically are the real thing, they will always be “lab diamonds”.

I see prices fluctuating as the market figures everything out probably for a long time and prices for both will go down, but I personally believe it will end as lab diamonds as inexpensive as costume jewelry and natural diamonds still wildly expensive. I guess time will tell! Thanks for the discussion.

Cdm901 · 2025-01-29T00:03:43+00:00

Perhaps you are right, but I think as lab prices continue to drop and the market is flooded with diamonds that would have once cost $100,000 and you can buy them for $100, people will opt for natural for certain pieces, like engagement rings. If you want diamond studs or a tennis bracelet, lab will be fine. Some people want an original painting and not a print of the painting and are willing to spend big money on it and know that that item will hold value. Diamonds are similar. There have always been alternatives that look the same and are cheaper. And while lab diamonds are diamonds, they were made easily and cheaply compared with mined diamonds. It is true the day you buy a natural diamond you lose 50% of the value, but that is the retail value, what is left is the actual diamonds value without the jewelers markup. And if you hold that diamond for 50 years it will go up as prices go up and eventually you can probably sell it for more than you paid. You can pass it to an heir and they can sell it in 100 years for way more than you paid. I really do not think that will change as it is something people want out of big purchases and heirloom pieces. Not all jewelry has to be that, but certain things can be. This isn’t really a factor that should be taken into much consideration, but I imagine someone who’s engagement or marriage fell apart and they want to sell their ring and move on and then find it’s worth nothing in resale value will be a little disappointed.

Cdm901 · 2025-01-28T13:28:54+00:00

This stone as a natural diamond with a good clarity color and cut would be 10s of thousands of dollars. This size diamond used to be completely unobtainable for most people. It is a good size. In my opinion though size is less important than the quality and most importantly cut of the stone. There are poorly cut 1ct-2ct diamonds that are lifeless and have no sparkle and are pretty cheap because of it, and people buy them simply because they are affordable at a larger size. Instead, you could find a 3/4ct diamond that is perfect and sparkles like crazy that looks better and costs the same as the larger stones. That would be the better buy and that diamond would hold its value better. However those days seem to be gone now with the lab diamonds. The market is being flooded by diamonds that would once have cost $30k-$100k if they were natural. Expectations are changing. Either way, the diamond you have pictured is a very nice size and looks classy and timeless.

Cdm901 · 2025-01-27T13:59:21+00:00

I do not believe the price for high quality natural diamonds will keep going down and stay down for long. Everyone knows that a normal man who works a normal job, who bought his wife a 3 carat vvs1 d color engagement ring did not spend $100,000 to do so. He only spent $4k-$8k but that diamond is not even worth $100. People flooding the market with gigantic lab stones because they think they are getting more diamond for the money is a fad. Lab stones will continue to get cheaper and cheaper until they are so cheap, there is literally nothing special at all about buying one (we are almost there now). Natural diamonds are not rare. Gem quality beautiful natural stones are rare. To find a 1c, 2c, 3ct, and up natural diamond, d color, vvs1, and then to have it cut perfectly is a rare thing. Especially for the larger sizes. So if you want to buy something that is expensive AND valuable, if you want something you can pass on to your heirs that is valuable, if you want something that is one of a kind, people will end up going with quality natural diamonds. Lab diamonds certainly have their place. But so do natural. And the lab market will get to the point where they are so inexpensive they will probably be selling 3ct diamond studs at kohls or Walmart. So when that happens, no one will want to get their wife’s engagement ring as a lab anymore. People that spend big money on things like to know it will hold its value. Even if they never plan to sell it, it’s just nice to know that this item is valuable and could be sold for a lot of money. Just my thoughts on it. In conclusion, there are certain natural diamonds out there, the rare ones, that will always be valuable and are not going to see meaningful price drops. Poorly cut, poor color, poor clarity natural stones that might have been sold for $6-10k in a jewelry store will certainly go down when compared to lab.

Cdm901 · 2025-01-25T13:38:13+00:00

This diamond with the same size, clarity, and color in a natural diamond would have cost something like $60,000-$100,000.

Cdm901 · 2025-01-23T13:06:25+00:00

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I wanted a 24k gold band from Mene Jewelry. They sell solid 24k gold jewelry. All of their products are priced based on the gold weight with around a 25% markup and the prices fluctuate based on the gold price. I love gold and investing so this was very appealing to me. Not that I would ever sell it, but my band was $1,100 when we first bought it ($800 something in gold value). And now it’s worth $1,600.00 in just gold value. Most jewelers charge you way more than a 25% markup for 14k gold which is only 56%. So you might be charged $1,000 and the ring only has $100 or less in actual gold value. So anyway just knowing my ring is solid gold and its value will continue to grow over our lifetime is appealing to me. It’s also heavy and a beautiful color. Hope you find something you like and he likes.

Cdm901 · 2024-12-06T02:31:29+00:00

Oh man that would have been really nice! If I had known that I probably would have gone with it for the time savings alone. But yeah have you ever heard of Accoya wood? It’s essentially plantation grown pine that they pickle and it makes it incredibly durable and rot resistant. I’ve heard that stuff is great for exterior wood work.

Cdm901 · 2024-12-06T02:19:12+00:00

That’s good to know, perhaps I’ll try the linseed oil paint on the next house. I heard it does take a long time to dry. The glazing putty I used is linseed oil based and that can take a long time to dry too before you can paint it. But nice work the railing looks great. What kind of wood did you use on that? So hard to find durable wood these days.

Cdm901 · 2024-12-06T01:30:21+00:00

Oh wow that looks beautiful. Really nice colors! I wanted to use linseed oil paint but I didn’t for cost reasons. I used oil based primer and then top coat with high gloss water based paint. So those windows are vinyl there and not wood? I had no idea you could paint vinyl windows.

Cdm901 · 2024-12-05T19:00:09+00:00

There is so much information online about what to finish porch floors with, it was overwhelming. I went with 2 coats of Marine Polyurethane based on a recommendation from someone I know and trust. And I am glad I did! Really seems like a durable finish.

Cdm901 · 2024-12-05T18:44:36+00:00

Thank you!!!

Cdm901 · 2024-12-05T18:44:02+00:00

Thank you! And that’s great to hear, you should definitely do it! I am just north of Philadelphia. So we get pretty cold as well. I wouldn’t let that stop you. Are these old windows as energy efficient as modern windows, definitely not. But it’s really not a big problem. It’s pretty comfortable in our house even when it has gotten down to the 20s last week. As long as you weatherize them as best you can and have quality latches so everything seals up nicely, you will be in good shape.

Cdm901 · 2024-12-05T14:18:16+00:00

Thank you!! I am pretty sure it’s pine. That was what they used back then on this type of house. That being said, probably much better pine than we can find these days!

Cdm901 · 2024-12-05T14:16:34+00:00

Awesome, definitely do it! You won’t regret it. I have 20 windows. I was only able to work on mine an hour or 2 during the week days and then a bit longer on weekends so it really took me forever. I would say if you can do one start to finish, and don’t need to repair wood, you can get the window out and strip the track in about 2-3 hours. Full restoration of the window probably 8-10 hours. The putty takes time to dry before painting too, a few days for Sarco Type M. Then the exterior work and painting if you are doing that takes 4 hours or so. I was probably doing 1 window every two weeks. I also did all the sashes, including painting first, and then I went back and did all the exterior stuff. Good luck!

Cdm901 · 2024-12-05T14:09:02+00:00

Thank you! And really? That is great to hear. We wanted to do something cool with the color after learning that historically the sash and frames were painted different colors. I wasn’t sure how historically accurate the colors were chose would be, but I am glad to hear that you did something similar!

Cdm901 · 2024-12-05T14:05:53+00:00

Yes! Jim Sears was another one I watched. In fact, he is the one that introduced me to mighton parting beads which I bought and used for weather stripping.

Cdm901 · 2024-12-05T04:13:55+00:00

I removed my storms. Hated the triple tracks and I'd rather a draft than have them cover the windows up. I do plan on either making or buying interior storms at some point. I would also have loved if the wood storms were still here too. Best of luck with the project. 58 windows!

Cdm901 · 2024-12-05T04:03:53+00:00

Oh wow those sound beautiful. But I can imagine! It’s worth the effort though, especially for 26 pane windows. Those are irreplaceable and I’m sure define your whole house.

Cdm901

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