A diamond solitaire engagement ring is perhaps the most enduring symbol of commitment between two people in love. Typically worn with great pride on the left hand by the bride-to-be, it reflects an impending marriage to someone she greatly loves. Even though there are many choices available for the engagement ring, diamond solitaires remain the hot favorite with women who are sophisticated enough to appreciate the classic understated style yet desire to make an emphatic statement. Since the star of the solitaire ring is the diamond, you have to make the final choice after considering all the aspects. Buying a solitaire ring is also a great option for men who are clueless about what to really buy for their fiancée because women can pair it with other jewelry very easily at a later stage.
The Star of the Show – The Diamond
When you choose a solitaire engagement ring, you need to appreciate that the diamond is the only thing that matters. What this means is that it has the sole responsibility of making the ring look spectacular. In addition to the setting and the ring style, you need to devote a lot of attention to choosing the diamond itself. It can be a very good idea to first choose the diamond and then go about the business of properly setting it in a ring.
Almost everyone would have heard about the 4Cs that make up the most important tenets of buying diamonds. The attributes of a diamond with respect to cut, color, clarity, and karat are taken into account by diamond merchants to grade diamonds and are widely used in the gem and jewelry sector to determine the quality and worth of a diamond. However, going by only the four Cs may not be such a good idea when you are out choosing handcrafted diamond ringsbecause the following are also extremely important:
Size: It is commonly believed that the karat count of a diamond refers to the size of the stone; however it actually measures its weight. This essentially means that for the same karat, two diamonds can look significantly different due to a number of factors such as the way it is cut, the size of the table, and its shape. It may help to stop obsessing over the weight of the diamond and instead focus more on how it appears in its setting. It is possible to make a diamond look bigger than what it is so you don’t have to go chasing after larger and more expensive stones.
Shape: While the round diamond shape has attained the status of a classic for engagement rings, there is a lot of opportunity for experimentation. The princess cut is also extremely popular, while women who have a penchant for extravagance may find themselves attracted to fancy shapes like pear, marquis, emerald, etc.
Beauty: Each of the 4Cs can influence a diamond’s beauty, especially the color and clarity. Going up or down the quality parameter not only affects its price but how good the diamond looks. It is very difficult to discern the difference in quality with naked eyes.Hence, you can buy a diamond that is technically poorer in quality at a cheaper price without anyone noticing it.
Cut: Perhaps the most important factor behind how good a diamond appears is its cut. This is because the facets and the angles determine the extent of light shining through the diamond and reflecting off it lending its characteristic sparkle. There are quite a few cut styles and you should definitely opt for the one that seems to reflect the maximum amount of light falling on it.
Conclusion
With so many factors to be considered when choosing a diamond solitaire ring, it can be quite bewildering for the uninitiated. What you should remember is that however good or expensive the diamond might be, the real beauty of the stone emerges when it is paired with a really elegant ring.The way the stone is set dictates how much it will sparkle but some prefer a look that is more delicate and feminine by opting for a halo setting instead of the more common prong setting. The design, color, and thickness of the band can also influence considerably the way the diamond solitaire finally looks on your finger.
Author bio: Sujain Thomas is the sales manager of Perigems.com, a leading online retailer of fine jewelry. Sujain loves to educate people about the many aspects of jewelry and has authored a number of articles for leading online resources on the subject.