Choosing A Diamond

SELECTING YOUR DIAMOND

How do you choose the diamond she’s been dreaming of? The one that will take her breath away? The one that will be a perfect fit for her hand, taste, and style?

You want the most beautiful diamond possible.

What makes a diamond beautiful? In a word - brilliance. Brilliance is the life of the diamond, its dance of light. Brilliant diamonds explode with light, inadvertently catching people’s eye, sparkling in candlelight, adding elegance and glamour to a woman’s whole being. A diamond’s brilliance is what elicits the “oohs and aahs.”

WHAT DETERMINES A DIAMOND’S BRILLIANCE?

Cut is the single most determining factor affecting a diamond’s brilliance. colour and Clarity also impact a diamond’s brilliance, but to a lesser degree. Here is how cut determines a diamond’s beauty

The first diamond is cut to proper proportions and offers the best balance of size and facet proportions allowing the maximum amount of light to be reflected, resulting in a more dazzling and brilliant diamond.

The second diamond is cut too deep, resulting in angles that preserve weight instead of maximizing brilliance. As a result, the portion of the diamond that faces up (the table) is noticeably smaller than the other two diamonds. Most of the weight is located in the girdle of the diamond. Also, the light that is lost and not reflected back through the top of the diamond.

The third diamond offers the largest appearance when faced up but lacks fire and brilliance. Its shallow cut allows light to escape the bottom of the stone.

The first cut diamond maximizes beauty and appearance.

WHICH DIAMOND SHAPE WOULD SHE PREFER?

Diamonds come in many shapes, sizes and colours. The type of diamond you choose is largely a matter of taste.

You should first start by finding the diamond shape you prefer. Although you may hear many people refer to shape as cut, cut and shape are two entirely different things. Cut really is the craftsmanship applied in cutting the facets of the stone. The shape of a diamond is its geometrical form after it has been cut. The most popular shape is the round diamond. But other fancy shapes are now in demand.


WHICH SIZE DIAMOND SHOULD I BUY?

The size of a diamond is an important consideration, and you may often hear the phrase “‘when it comes to diamonds bigger is better.” This is not entirely accurate.

There are many things to take into consideration, such as where the diamond will be set. Will it be set in an engagement ring, anniversary ring or diamond stud earrings?

Here is a set of general guidelines that can serve as a reference point as you purchase your diamond.

ENGAGEMENT RING DIAMONDS

Most engagement ring center diamonds are 3/8 of a carat and above.

One-carat diamonds are sure to impress and are usually considered the ideal size for engagement diamonds. This is likely because the price of a beautiful one-carat diamond falls within the range of most budgets.

Two or three-carat diamonds are extremely impressive size diamonds if your budget allows.

There is no “correct” size for an engagement ring diamond, and the smart diamond buyer will purchase the diamond with the largest visual appearance without sacrificing beauty.


ANNIVERSARY DIAMOND RINGS & DIAMOND STUD EARRINGS

There really is no accepted size guideline you can follow. It is important to note that when multiple diamonds are sold in one setting, size is referred to by the term Total Carat Weight, or TCW.

TCW is the combined weight of all the diamonds in that setting.

Because larger stones are rare -- and therefore more expensive -- you can often purchase more carat weight dollar for dollar when purchasing multiples of smaller diamonds than when purchasing a single diamond of equal carat weight.


WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A WHITE DIAMOND AND A COLOURED DIAMOND?

Although the majority of diamonds sold are “white” or have an absence of colour, many people do not know that diamonds are mined in a rainbow of colours. Yellow, pink, blue, red and variations of these colours are available to you as an option when buying your diamond. coloured diamonds are often popular with the jet-set and celebrity crowds.



Please note: The more vivid and intense the colour, the more rare the diamond and the higher the price.