3 Tips for Choosing a Diamond
Congratulations for you’re about to buy a diamond! This means you have something big to celebrate – or maybe you just want to treat yourself to something that lasts longer than a shopping spree or a day at the spa. In any case, there are many, many factors you need to be informed about before buying a diamond, from checking for authenticity certificates to getting the most for your money. A good place to start is to know the “three C’s” of buying diamonds.
1. Cut of the diamond
The cut might be the most important to understand – you may have heard talk of a “princess cut” pair of earrings, or a “shallow cut” solitaire ring. These phrases refer to the different ways a diamond can be cut to reflect light and give it brilliance. The style of cut is up to your own preference, but remember that a well cut diamond should reflect light back at you, whereas a poorly cut one will appear dimmer.
2. Clarity of the diamond
The clarity of a diamond tells you about the impurities and other substances in it. An ideal or flawless diamond will have no other elements in it, but these are very rare. These diamonds are graded as F or IF. The VVS1-VVS2 grade has small internal impurities and few marks on the outside that are only visible under a magnifying glass. SI1-SI2 diamonds have external scars that appear under 10x magnification. The lowest grades of diamonds are I1-I2-I3 – these have blemishes that are visible to the human eye. Avoid buying these.
3. Carat weight of the diamond
A carat is the unit by which a diamond’s weight is measured. Large diamonds have a higher carat weight, and are significantly more expensive. To determine which carat to go for, you first have to know your budget. A 1-carat ring is large enough to look good on small fingers, however, you can go for an even smaller carat size when shopping for earrings or bracelets. If you have the budget for it, you can opt for a jewelry piece that makes a center piece of the diamond, as big as you would like it to be.
