Online ShopChoosing your engagement ring(s!)
The diamond ring, the ultimate engagement ring choice.
When it comes to choosing your diamond engagement ring(s), it’s useful to keep in mind the ‘four Cs’: the cut, colour, clarity and carat. There is now also another aspect to consider, whether you feel you should got for an ethical diamond, which has been mined without exploitation.
The skill in which a diamond has been cut will determine its brilliance. A well-cut diamond will reflect light perfectly, from one facet to another. Equally, if a cut is too deep or too shallow, light can be lost through the bottom or the sides, resulting in a 'less sparkly' diamond (heaven forbid!). Cut also refers to the shape of the diamond, which can be called round, marquise, emerald, princess, pear, oval or heart. All are beautiful to look at, but round is the most 'brilliant' with its symmetrical shape allowing it to reflect nearly all the light that enters the diamond.
When it comes to colour in diamonds, less is definitely more. Diamonds are graded based on the presence or absence of colour. Colour in a diamond acts as a filter and diminishes the spectrum of colour that it emits so the less colourful the diamond, the more colourful the spectrum of light it emits, and the more valuable it is! Diamonds are graded on a colour scale ranging from D to Z. The most valuable diamond is absolutely colourless.
Diamonds have natural blemishes formed by minerals or fractures while they’re forming in the earth. These scratches or trace minerals are called ‘inclusions’ (so the ‘less included’ a stone, the better), and will generally disrupt the flow of light through the diamond. Most of these inclusions are only visible under a microscope and it’s always wise to select a diamond that looks clear to the eye.
We always think of carat as the size of the diamond, but actually it’s the weight. One carat is the equivalent of 200mg and the pricing structure can be quite complicated. For example, a one-carat diamond won't necessarily cost twice that of a half carat diamond. Larger stones are found less frequently, so their rarity makes them proportionately dearer. Quality is better than quantity, so it's generally better to go for a high-quality diamond of a lower carat, than a large, poor quality diamond.
Whatever you spend on an engagement ring, it’s the sentiment that is the most important thing and getting the style right for the person who is going to wear it. After all, if you get it right, your loved one may choose to wear that ring for the rest of their life.
