Diamond ring buying guideOpen any magazine, not necessarily one devoted to jewelry, and you are bound to see at least one advertisement in which the model is flaunting a diamond ring. You enviously admire the piece, and covet a similar one for yourself. There are many people who buy a diamond ring merely for its beauty, without giving a second thought to the gemstone. However, there are customers who are more particular about the diamond set in the ring. This article aims to give some guidance on going about buying a diamond ring.
The Price Range of Diamond Rings
First and foremost, ask yourself: How much am I willing to pay for a diamond ring? It is all very well to covet a ring that you saw in a magazine or glimpsed through a store?s window. It is quite another thing to be able to afford it. A good quality diamond ring of 0.30 to 0.5 carats is generally available for a little over $700. Better quality stones of up to 0.75 carats cost over $1000. Rings with 1-carat diamonds are for those with larger budgets, as this range is from over $3,400 up to $5000. 2 to 3-carat diamond rings are the really high-end range these could be anything from $10,000 to a whopping $50,000 or even higher! Note: The above is merely an approximate idea of the prices of diamond rings and should not be considered as some sort of ultimate guideline! There could definitely be a difference in the price mentioned and the actual price, depending on the type of ring.
Grading of A Diamond
We?ve been talking about carats. Lets find out more about this term and other diamond characteristics that determine its grade. Carat is just one of the 4 Cs that a jewelry expert recommends you know about before purchasing a diamond ring or any other type of diamond jewelry. The other 3 Cs are: cut, clarity and color. In very simple layman?s terms, Cut refers to the how the diamond reflects light and brings out its inner brilliance. In no way should cut be considered as the shape of the diamond ? this is merely a reference to the stone?s exterior feature (e.g. round shape). Clarity refers to the marks that can be seen on the stone. These marks occur during the creation of the diamond. A mark could occur as a result of a naturally occurring flaw (such as a cloud) in the diamond?s structure, or during the chipping process. If you buy a diamond ring without color, rest assured it will sparkle the most! Coming back to carat it refers to the weight of the diamond. The larger the size of the diamond, the more expensive will be the ring.
Tips on Buying A Diamond Ring
• Buy from a creditworthy source.
• The diamond ring should come with a certificate that clearly states complete details of the gemstone regarding its cut and carat. Of course, don?t think that this certificate will determine the value of the ring in terms of dollars! It is merely stating the quality of the diamond. Jewelry experts advise that you buy a ring that is certified by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and the American Gem Society (AGS). When looking at rings, don?t limit your selection to ones with round diamonds. Other shapes are equally popular. You need to keep in mind the person who will be wearing the ring. A pear-shaped or oval diamond looks great on some, while an elongated one looks fetching on others. Equally gorgeous to look are rectangular-shaped diamonds in gold or platinum settings.
• Talking about settings remember to ensure that the setting of the ring is sturdy enough to take the weight of the gem at the centre. The setting could be in the form of a prong, which puts the diamond in the forefront so to say. A bezel setting is one that lovingly embraces the diamond. You can also buy a ring that has small diamonds set along the band. Yet another setting that you may have often read about is the Pav setting. This is when the ring is completely covered with little diamonds. To the naked eye, the diamonds look like they are jostling for space. However, each of these diamonds is set in its own tiny space, held firmly in place by a tiny metal piece. Due to the extreme care and patience needed to cover every bit of space on the surface of the ring, a Pav set diamond ring is considered to be very valuable.
• Select a ring with a sizing band and confirm that you can have the ring resized at some future point of time, so that it is always a good fit.
• When buying a diamond ring for a man, ensure that the band is wide.
• For an additional nominal charge, many jewelers offer machine or hand engraved diamond rings. You can put in initials, a memorable date, a brief inspirational quote, words of love, etc. Generally, on rings that are wide (about 7mm), 2 lines of engraving can be put in. Feel free to suggest your own design to the jeweler. However, you should know that you would not likely be able to return an engraved ring.
• Do not buckle under the pressure of the jeweler?s smooth talking jargon buy what YOU want! Especially turn a deaf ear to someone trying to give you free advice while supposedly appraising the ring.
• Confirm the warranty period of the diamond ring and aspects of the ring are within the warranty purview. Try and buy from a store that provides at least one month?s return policy and not just one week.
• Find out if you can return the ring for a refund or replacement in the eventuality that it is not up to your standards.
• If you are buying online, confirm if there are extra charges. Most sites offer free shipping, but some charge a nominal online service fee.
In addition to the actual price of the diamond ring, find out what is the additional sales tax ? this is sometimes overlooked, much to the dismay of the buyer who then realizes it is beyond his budget! It is possible to avoid sales tax when buying online, so check it out!
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