A Civil World. Off-topic discussions on a variety of topics. > Time For a Coffee Break!

What do I need to know to buy a diamond?

(1/2) > >>

jais:
My BF and I have been discussing marriage for a long time now, while he's yet to 'officially' propose, he wanted to look at rings with me today.  Here's my issue...... I know NOTHING about this whatsoever and have no idea whom to ask.  He thinks I know all of this and can just pick one out and be done with it.  HELP!!  ???

OOPS!  I thought I put this under a different topic. Mods, please move to the correct section.  Thanks!!!

Maggie:
The 4 c's are cut, color, clarity and carat.  You should look at the  various cuts and eliminate the ones you don't want.  For instance some people hate the heart-shaped diamond and would never wear it.   Others never want anything else.  The major cuts are round, emerald-cut, princess-cut, and marquise.  There are other fancy cuts but for the most part these are the most popular.  If you want a princess cut diamond with the look but not necessarily the cost then look for 'princessa' rings.  These are 4 smaller princess cut diamonds put together to look like one larger one.  They are usually much cheaper than a single diamond. 

Color is a major factor to some people but not to everyone.  Some people would rather have a larger stone with inclusions or flaws in it.  In my personal opinion a diamond with lots of fire or light is much more valuable than a bigger diamond with no fire in it.  I have seen a 4 carat diamond that was horrible and then I have seen a 4 carat diamond that was very clear.  The difference in price is just $100,000.  lol

Clarity is the cloudiness of the diamond.  Like I said a larger diamond with less clarity is not worth as much as a clearer diamond with better color and clarity.

Carat is the size of the diamond. 

I worked in a jewelry store for 10 years.  If you would like to ask anything I can answer and if I can't I'll find the answer. 

Sophia:
In cuts, it isn't just the shape, it is the quality of the cut.  For example, many times they will make the flat part on top too large so that it 'looks' like a bigger stone, but it ruins the light refraction. 

I would look once to get an idea of what shape/size-ish you want, then research what a perfectly cut stone of that shape will look like.  Cut is something that doesn't have a quantitiative rating like color. 

FH and I had really good luck buying at a Gem Show.  Everything was around 70% off retail, and open to negotiation. 

jais:

--- Quote from: Sophia on February 11, 2007, 01:20:59 AM ---
FH and I had really good luck buying at a Gem Show.  Everything was around 70% off retail, and open to negotiation. 

--- End quote ---

Thank you!!! Any idea where I could get information on these?

jais:
Maggie~
Thank you! PM me and we can discuss this further when it's convenient for you. 

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page