Complete Diamond Guide for Your Engagement Ring

The whole year you have been buying gifts for your woman on every occasion. But now it’s time to surmount with something really grand- the Engagement Ring. So get set going to edify yourself on diamond rings and try to know diamonds like a book from today so that your engagement ring shopping becomes a lot easier task.

Usually while shopping for a ring one is hardly aware, especially in the case of diamonds, that how should they exactly be from in and out, except their shape. So here’s a complete diamond guide that will help all you proposers to find the perfect diamond for a sparkling engagement.

Let’s learn each detail of a diamond:

1) CUT- Cut is the basic facet arrangement of a diamond that affects its Brilliance i.e. reflection of light. The finer the cut, the better is the shine and sparkle which in turn demands more price for the diamond. Cut could be an ideal cut, deep cut or shallow cut, ideal cut refracting maximum light. A cut is of various types as graded by Gemological Institute of America (GIA)-
a. Excellent Cut (most ideal)
b. Very Good Cut
c. Good Cut
d. Fair Cut (least ideal)

2) COLOR- With color, we generally refer to the presence or rather absence of color in it in the form of yellow or brownish tints. The presence of color diminishes its sparkle as it restricts maximum refraction of light. GIA grades color of a diamond in the following scale-
a. D, E, F- Colorless (most ideal)
b. G, H, I, J- Near Colorless
c. K, L, M- Faint Yellow or Faint Brown
d. N, O, P, Q, R- Very Light Yellow or Very Light Brown
e. S to Z- Light Yellow or Light Brown (least ideal)

3) CLARITY- Clarity determines the purity of a diamond based on the in-bound impurities. Lesser clarity demands lesser prices for a diamond as compared to a diamond with higher clarity as it shines with maximum brilliance. The GIA has various grading scales to judge the purity of a diamond-
a. FL - Absolutely flawless. (most ideal)
b. IF – Internally flawless, with external flaws.
c. VVS1, VVS2 – Very very small inclusions- invisible to naked eye.
d. VS1, VS2 – Very small inclusions- affordable.
e. SI1, SI2 – Slight inclusions- sometimes visible to naked eye.
f. I1, I2 and I3 - Inclusions clearly visible to naked eye. (least ideal)

4) CARAT WEIGHT- Carat is the unit of measurement for diamond weight where 1 carat = 0.2 grams. Higher carat weight also increases price per carat as the diamond starts getting larger. Diamond range starts from a small point to more than 100 carat, but in regular diamond market people shop for diamonds ranging from 5 points to 3 carat. There’s no ideal weight for a diamond and it solely rides on your requirement and budget.

5) SHAPE – Diamonds come in a huge variety of shapes like-
a. Brilliant Round
b. Princess
c. Marquise
d. Oval
e. Pear
f. Heart
g. Radiant
h. Asscher
i. Cushion
j. Emerald

6) CERTIFICATES- Certificates carry minute details and characteristics of a diamond that are not visible to the naked eye and affirm the authenticity of a diamond. It is also of great importance while reselling the diamond to get a fair price. Never fail to buy certified diamonds while you shop for diamond jewelry. Many reputed gemological labs issue diamond certificates like-
a. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA)
b. American Gem Society (AGS)
c. International Gemological Institute (IGI)
d. European Gemological Laboratory (EGL)

With this much guidance, you should be prepared to go for your diamond engagement ring hunt. Remember to check out the season’s trendiest engagement rings at reasonable prices at B2CJewels.com, a fine online jewelry retail store.

For more detailed information on the details of a diamond, you can log on to B2CJewels.com and take a glance at their expert education section.

Sharon Reid writes on various subjects from the world of jewelry and shows special interest in topics pertaining to diamond jewelry, gemstone jewelry, gold jewelry and pearl jewelry. She has over 15 years of experience and now writes exclusive articles for B2CJewels.com