Four C’s of Diamond Engagement Rings - By: Jaish DeSouza

Before you buy that diamond for your beloved one, it is important to get an understanding on the features and characteristics of diamond engagement rings. Let’s get an understanding of the four basic and most important features while choosing that perfect diamond for someone you love the most.

Cut

The cut of the diamond determines its radiance. A well cut diamond is brilliant and appears larger than other stones of the same carat weight. The cut is what gives the diamond its sparkle, brilliance and luster. Irrespective of color and clarity, a diamond can look dull and lifeless if it has not been cut properly. An ideal diamond has increased brilliance and a larger diameter so that the light is returned back to the viewer’s eye.

Color

When shopping for diamond engagement rings, it is advisable to have some amount of color. The color of the diamond is divided into 5 broad categories.

Colorless (D- F) – In this colorless range the diamonds are the most valuable and uncommon. The D and E variety have no color whereas the F colored diamonds will have traces of color that can be detected by a gemologist.

Near colorless (G – J) – Though these diamonds offer value for money, the color can be observed when the diamonds are viewed against a white background. The color however is undetectable to an untrained eye.

The color can make a significant impact on the price while you are looking for diamond engagement rings. If you are purchasing under a tight budget, then a J color diamonds are most affordable and near colorless.

Clarity

As a purchaser of diamond engagement rings, it is advisable that you look at the best combination of color and clarity. The presence of impurities determines the clarity of the diamond. Similar to color there are five broad categories of diamond clarity.

FL/IF – These diamonds are the most expensive as they have no inclusions and even minor blemishes can be removed by polishing

VVS1/ VVS2 – Stands for very very slight inclusions and in this category it is very hard to find inclusions. These diamonds are also rare and beautiful.

VS1/VS2 – These are also excellent quality diamonds however they have very slight inclusions

SI1/SI2 – In these diamonds there are slight inclusions visible in 10x by an experienced gemologist

I1/I2/I3 – These diamonds contain significant inclusions

Carat

The word carat is derived from ancient times when a carob seed was used to measure the weight of the diamond. Majority of diamonds available in the United States are less than one carat and an average engagement ring weighs ½ a carat. The higher the carat, the rarer is its availability and therefore it is more expensive. When rough diamonds are polished they loose almost 2/3 of their weight.

While choosing the right size for your partner it is important to ask yourself which of the four C’s will she most value? Other things to consider will be her personal style, her expectations, her finger size and budget.

Finally ensure that the diamond is certified either by the G.I.A or the A.G.S. A certificate will give you all the individual characteristics of a diamond to help you take a more informed decision.

The G.I.A and A.G S are world renowned laboratories which provide reliable and consistent grading. Some of the details which they identify are weight, cut, quality, proportion, polish and symmetry.

So now since you have found the perfect diamond for the engagement ring for your partner, you can be rest assured it will sweep her of her feet!

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