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In terms of the four C's, the way a diamond's value is evaluated — by its cut, color, clarity, and carat weight — some brides are laser-focused on size (carat weight), while others are all about achieving maximum sparkle (cut). Some express their love of fashion with an on-trend ring style (like a rose gold band or a halo), while others go classic (a round-brilliant diamond solitaire). Some brides prefer the history of a hand-me-down family heirloom of a great-grandmother's ring, and others prefer to help custom-design something new that's exactly what they've always imagined. Some brides experiment with colored diamonds — think the six-carat pink diamond Ben Affleck proposed to Jennifer Lopez with — or include bold stones like sapphires or emeralds. But despite the fact that couples may go about ring shopping differently, or that brides may choose totally different styles, one thing stays the same: the meaning of an engagement ring, how good it feels to know you found your dream ring, and knowing that you get to wear it for the rest of your life. Explore the history of engagement rings, learn about how to shop for one and care for it, and check out fun facts about the ring that means "forever."
Many people think a ring's cut means round, emerald, pear, etc. — but in terms of the four C's, it actually measures how well a diamond's facets interact with light, and its cut is based on how the workmanship highlights the symmetry, proportions, and polishing of the diamond. 2. Go with an ideal cut for the most sparkly diamond In 1919, mathematician Marcel Tolkowsky created a formula for cutting diamonds, called the Ideal Cut, that took the standard 58 facets and trimmed it to 57, which created the best light refraction (aka, the most sparkly diamond yet), which didn't become popularized until the 1970s. 3. The most in-demand shape is round The most popular shape for a diamond engagement ring is by far the classic round, followed by princess (square), and cushion (square with rounded edges).
Because of demand, and also because a diamond cutter can work around imperfections with these shapes, oval, pear, and marquise-cut stones tend to be less pricey for the same carat weight. 5. Choose a finger-flattering diamond shape If you have short or chubby fingers, the most flattering shape is a pear, with the point out toward your fingernail, since it elongates the look of your finger; marquise can also work. If you have long, thin fingers, you might want to stay away from those elongating styles and instead go with round brilliant, cushion, or emerald-cut. 6. One setting reigns supreme The diamond solitaire is the most popular ring style, accounting for at least 30 percent of all engagement rings. 7. Save money on clarity As diamonds are forming deep inside the earth, small crystals can become trapped, creating imperfections called inclusions. The 11 clarity measurements — from Flawless (no inclusions even under a 10-time magnification) to Included (the inclusions are visible enough to affect the diamond's brilliance) — are based on the number, size, and position of these natural imperfections. Since only a trained diamond grader can see the tiny inclusions that might give your stone a Very Slightly Included 1 rating versus a less expensive Slightly Included 2 rating, going down a couple steps could save you big bucks... 8. A diamond's color rating isn't usually visible to the naked eye A structurally perfect diamond has no color at all — like a drop of water — and as a result, color has a huge impact on price. Diamonds are ranked from category D (colorless) all the way down to Z, though you often can't see the variation with your naked eye. Since color differences aren't often noticeable to the untrained eye, they're a painless place to save money by going down a bit in colorlessness. So long as you don't go past I on the grading scale, you won't have any yellow or brown tints.
Fifty-two percent of brides say they would wear a colored stone in their engagement ring. That could mean rubies, emeralds, or sapphires, which are usually less expensive than diamonds, so they're a great way to add to your ring. 10. Consider "fancy-color diamonds" They're past Z on the color scale and naturally come in colors like deep yellow, pink, or vivid blue; they are more expensive since they're rarer. Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Heidi Klum, and Jennifer Lopez have all had colored diamond engagement rings. |
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