What is the Best Carat Weight for a Diamond Engagement Ring?
Diamonds are quite tricky to work out if you are new to the world of gemstones and diamond buying! Finding out that a carat weighs a mere 200mg – or, in other words, it takes five carats to make one single gram of diamonds! – can be quite mind-boggling. Then seeing the actual size of a one-carat stone can be equally discombobulating, as they appear bigger than that slight weight would allow! How on earth can anyone decide which carat weight is best for their diamond engagement ring with all that going on? Well, there are more points to consider, before you even get to the jeweller’s store or website! Let us take a look, and by the end, you will be happy and confident in your diamond choices!
The adverts all say that you should have one-carat diamond engagement rings – but that is because one-carat diamonds are popular, expensive and sell exceptionally well, mainly due to superlative marketing!
Traditional Views
The adverts all say that you should have a one-carat diamond engagement ring – but that is because one-carat diamonds are popular, expensive and sell exceptionally well, mainly due to superlative marketing! The truth is that you can choose any size diamond, cut into any shape you like! Bear this in mind if you are feeling the weight of expectation, assuming that these traditional factors are ‘a must’ – talk it over with your partner and see what they think, before you struggle to get something that they are perhaps not all that invested in!
Which Cut Do You Like?
The shape and design a diamond is cut into will affect its appearance considerably – to the point that sometimes a half-carat diamond in one style will appear to be the same as a 1 carat diamond of a different style. This is due to the depth that the diamond cut requires, with the deepest cut diamonds being round brilliants, princess-cut stones, and oval-cut brilliants. The shallowest cuts for diamonds are emerald cuts, marquise and pear cut stones and cushion-cut stones. The shallower the cut, the more of the diamond is kept as its ‘face’ or table – the top of the stone which is visible once the diamond is set into a ring or other piece of jewellery. There is a trade-off, of course, and that comes with shallower cut diamonds offering slightly less intense sparkle than that offered by the deep or brilliant-cut stones. In this way, you can see that the deeper cut you opt for, the smaller the face of the stone will be, perhaps driving up your preferred carat weight in order to get a stone of the physical size you are hoping for.
What Size is the Hand the Ring will be Worn On?
But before you choose a large stone, look at the hand that will be wearing the ring. Very small hands, with delicate slender fingers, can support a smaller diamond, easily making half a carat – or even a quarter of a carat – look like the perfect stone for the small narrow band. Too large a stone will make the hand look unbalanced, and perhaps even continually slide around the finger under its own weight. Your diamond should be chosen for its ultimate wearer.
How Much Can You Afford?
Your budget is key! This may sound very unromantic but there is nothing romantic about not having enough money to meet all your expenses either! True love will stand the test of time without needing large and expensive baubles to prove it! Having said that, do buy your partner the best diamond that you can afford – after all, engagement is a once in a lifetime memory and you want to make yours a good one!
Diamond rings are expensive so make your mind while buying and choose the option that is affordable for you. However, you can also choose lab made diamond rings as these rings are compartively affordable in price and equal in shine and structure the only difference is that they are lab made so mining cost is not added in the price. So make your decision wisely.