diamondring411.com
how, where and what to look for when purchasing the perfect Diamond Ring...
Why this page was created
Basically, I didn't know anything before purchasing my first (and hopefully last Diamond Ring). I'm sure there are thousands of men out there who were/are in my same situation. Pressure from their significant other to get married and find the "right" ring.
I created this page to help come up with some simple solution to one of the biggest decisions of my life--my quest to find the perfect ring.
Let's Start with the How
For me, I knew she was the right one. That is probably an even bigger thing than finding the right ring. You need to make sure the woman that you're dating/seeing is the one you want to be with for the rest of your life. A couple things you can do to test this theory:
- Imagine her with 50 more pounds (check out her mom and grandma for good/bad gene traits).
- Imagine her with gray hair (check out her mom for this one too).
- Imagine waking up next to her every day for the rest of your life.
- The next things you can do really depend on the individual...I have a friend who constructs an excel spreadsheet with all the traits, including earning power, his alternatives,tc...I don't recommend this particular route.
So now you know she's the one!!! So what do you look for?
What to look for?
First you want to examine your budget. Make sure you have enough $$$. This is a difficult thing to do. Unless you are a CEO of a fortune 500 company, you have extremely generous parents, or you live at home with your parents--you are going to always want a bigger, clearer, brighter ring. Make sure the ring is something you can afford (or at least afford to take a chance on).
For me, I looked at my current job situation and the fact that I most recently purchased a house. Some people say you should only spend three months worth of salary . But then you have to think...is this before taxes or after taxes? What if you simply don't make that much? Don't worry. We will talk about this later in this site...
So now that you have identified your budget...let's say $20,000 in this example. Now you have to figure which ring is the best for your loved one. You probably have read tons of literature guides on the four cs (I know I did), but here they are again:
Clarity (click for more detailed information)
Cut (click for more detailed information)
Color (click for more detailed information)
Carat (click for more detailed information)
Now for the easy part of this. Let's determine which of these are the most important. In my opinion, Carat is of the highest importance to a female, than Clarity, followed by Color and Cut.
Carat and Clarity are the most important of the 4Cs because these are the "bragging points" among females. One engaged fiancee will tell her friend, "my fiancee bought me a 2 carat" whereas another one will say "mine is a D color (which is the highest color)."
Here is a quick breakdown of the 4Cs (for those of you too lazy to click on the individual linked items above).
Carat
A diamond's size is measured in carat weight. (Big rock equals many carats). Each diamond carat is also equal to 100 points. For example, a diamond that is a 1/2 carat can also be referred to as a 50-point diamond. But keep this in mind : bigger isn't necessarily better. A two-carat diamond that is cut poorly is not nearly as beautiful as a smaller diamond, cut by a skilled diamond artisan. Or, it may be cut well, but have poor color and clarity. The point is, to be exceptionally beautiful, a diamond must be of high quality in all 4Cs.
Cut
People commonly refer to the shape of a diamond as the cut (round diamonds, princess cut diamonds, marquise cut diamonds, oval diamonds, pear-shaped diamonds, emerald cut diamonds, radiant cut diamonds, heart-shaped and Asscher cut diamonds). But cut really is the craftsmanship applied in cutting the facets of the stone. The artisan attempts to cut a diamond to make the best use of light.
When a diamond is cut to good proportions, light is refracted from one facet to another, then dispersed through the top of the diamond. When a diamond is cut too deep, some light escapes through the opposite side of the diamond. If the diamond is cut too shallow, light escapes through the bottom of the stone before it can be reflected. In addition, the facets must be placed with precise symmetry for maximum brilliance.
Color
Color is the natural body color visible in a diamond and is the one C determined completely by nature, not man. As a rule, the closer a diamond is to colorless, the more valuable and beautiful it is. Diamond colors appear in a range. Color grades D, E and F are considered colorless, making them rare.
However, even more rare than the colorless are the fancy colored diamonds. These diamonds are beyond the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) color scale. There are well defined colors that include pink, canary yellow, blue and green highly priced, extremely rare, major showpieces!
Clarity
Clarity is an indication of a diamond's purity. When a rough stone is extracted from carbon, deep beneath the earth, tiny traces of natural elements are almost always trapped inside. These elements are called inclusions, though sometimes referred to as birthmarks, because they are formed naturally and are unique to each stone.
Please note the above descriptions are pretty generic and taken out of a manual I received at a local jewelry, to read more precise individual descriptions, click on the specific links above for each element.
Now for the hard part...do you order online or in person? Do you use a broker or go solo (or with buddy or two)?
I say...go online or go in-person by yourself. One thing to remember: you have to know your woman's finger size. One way to get this is to buy her a non-wedding ring as a gift a couple months prior to purchasing the engagement ring. This is the best way. If not, you can get her a bigger size. Most European or American women have finger sizes around 7-8. Buy an 8 if you're not sure--she can always change the setting later.
BTW, the setting should cost around $500-$2000 and is basically everthing besides the diamond. It can have sidestones or be a Solataire (which is one stone) on a plain ring, nothing else.
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