
Whether you’re a guy buying your favorite gal her perfect diamond ring, or the gal who knows she’s getting engaged and wants to take part in the ring buying process, there are some things you need to know about that all important purchase.
1. The Metal. Though people will tell you that platinum is the way to go, I have it on good authority from a professional jeweler who’s been in business longer than I’ve been alive, that platinum, though beautiful, does not hold diamonds well. Platinum is a weaker metal and diamonds are very strong stones. As you wear the ring, the stone will start to chip away at the metal and could fall out. If you like the look of platinum, go with white gold instead — it’s stronger. Yellow gold is beautiful as well.
2. Cut. The shape of the stone is probably the most important part to the woman. Stones come in round, square, emerald (rectangular) pear (sort of like a tear drop) and a score of other shapes. This decision is a matter of taste, as different women prefer different shapes of stone.
3. Carat. This is the weight of the stone. Usually, the higher the carat weight, the larger the stone. If possible, try on a few different carat weights to make sure the size of the stone is proportionate to your hand. You don’t want a rock the size of Texas if your fingers are thin and short.
4. Clarity. Clarity describes the imperfections (called inclusions) in the stone. There are 11 categories:
FI-Flawless, no inclusions at all.
IF-No internal inclusions.
VVS1 and VVS2-Very very small inclusions that cannot be seen by the naked eye.
VS1 and VS2-Very small inclusions, cannot be seen by the naked eye.
SI1 and SI2-Small inclusions, can be seen easily with a microscope, but probably not the human eye.
I1, I2, and I3-Inclusions, visible with the naked eye.
Obviously, flawless is the most expensive and I3 is the least expensive. The higher the clarity grade, the better the diamond quality, but it is important to keep your budget in mind when deciding on a clarity grade.
5. Color. The color of a typical stone ranges from perfectly white (or colorless) to slightly yellow. This is graded on an alphabetic scale, with D being colorless and M containing faint yellow tones.
These five points are important to think about before you go to a jeweler. If you’d like to know more, check out Diamond Source of Virginia. They have some great information and a price calculator so you can see what you’d expect to pay for each shape, size, color, and clarity of stone. (I actually got my engagement ring there!). The most important thing is that she is happy (and you’re not broke!).
Photo by Liz Carey