katelyntan

My hubby visited a number of jewellers before deciding which shop to get my engagement ring so he knew a lot more about diamonds! I wanted to learn more about diamonds too so I had a learning session myself and here's an article to share what you need to know when choosing your engagement ring! P.S. For those who are wondering, he paid for the ring in full and we eventually discussed after the proposal and agreed not to have any sponsors for our wedding. 

Diamonds

The first thing you need to know about diamonds are the 4Cs which determines the price of the diamond. To be honest, Carat might be the most important when selecting a diamond as it's the most obvious characteristic and also what affects the price the most! Below are some description about the 4Cs and their measurements with the one on the right being the best.

Tip: When comparing diamonds, cover them with a paper to block out the lights so you can see the true specifications. I could guess the size and clarity (VS or SI) correctly but I thought the diamonds were placed in the order of E, F, G, D, K.

Carat

Measurements: numeric, the bigger the merrier

This is the weight of the diamond which affects the size of the diamond. Needless to say, it's the most important when selecting your diamond since it's the most obvious and has a greater effect on the price. However, other than carat, you need to consider the height of the diamond too as that would affect its top-down size as well. Think of it as a cone, it the taller it is, the narrower it will be right? Same for a diamond.

Cut

Measurements: Poor, Good, Very Good, Excellent

The cut will determine the diamond's light performance, i.e. how well it can sparkle. Out of the 4Cs, the cut will affect the appearance of the diamond the most. The best would be one with triple excellet cut (which most jewellers term it as super ideal cut). Such diamonds have an Excellent Cut and very good light performance.

Colour

Measurements: J, I, H, G, F, E, D

Most jewellers told my hubby that anything G and above is colourless under the naked eye and sometimes the better the colour grading, the more yellow it might look due to the way it reflects the light. True enough, I played the diamond guessing game twice. The first time was when I went to resize my ring and I arranged the diamonds with G as the best, in the order of I, J, H, F, E, D, G.

Clarity

Measurements: SI2, SI1, VS2, VS1, VVS2, VVS1, IF, FL

The clearer it is, the less impurities it has. These aren't that obvious unless you see it under the magnifying glass but it might affect its brilliance since it would block the light.

There are more things to consider and many jewelers don't share these with you. Here are some things beyond the 4Cs which you need to consider as well!

Design

My hubby got me a 6-prong ring cause I sensed that he was buying one and I hinted to him hahaha. If your girlfriend didn't drop you any hints, you can choose one based on her style. E.g A classic 6 prong solitaire ring (commonly known as the Tiffany Ring), a British style cushion diamond with halo (similar to what Kate Middleton had but hers had blue sapphire instead), or a timeless three stone (similar to what Meghan Markle had). Think of what shape she would like - Round, Cushion, Princess, Emerald, Heart, Oval, etc, and whether you want to add any special elements in the design.

Budget

There's this saying where the engagement ring should be 3x the guy's pay but personally I feel it's better to save the money for your house! Hence I gave Alaric a budget and he kept to it cause he was worried I would throw the ring back at him if I were to exceed the budget. Yes, I threatened him hahahas. Anyway, he managed to get me a decent diamond ring which I really love within my budget (or so I was told) and many commented that it was really bright and sparkly. He actually did so by understanding diamonds and purchased the diamond (with GIA certificate) from a jeweller with an online database. So try to work out your budget first and see what you can get from there. I'm sure your girlfriend will love whatever you get for her and wouldn't want you to be in debt because of the ring too!

That said, most jewellers don't share much about factors beyond the 4Cs, design and budget! You should also consider the differences between offline and online diamonds, earth grown diamonds vs lab grown diamonds and more. If you want to truly learn more about diamonds so you can pick the right one for your fiancé, I would recommend that you check out eClarity's GIA Diamonds and Wedding Bands talks cause I really learnt a lot from Amanda, eClarity's GIA Gemologist! Below are the upcoming dates for the talks and you can sign up for your GIA Gemologist Dialogue tickets here.

• 29 June 2019
• 27 July 2019
• 31 August 2019
• 12 October 2019 *updated*
• 9 November 2019 *updated*
• 21 December 2019

Fret not if you are unable to make it for these sessions! Cause you can also make an appointment at eclarity.com.sg/appointment/ for a consultation on weekdays, 1 to 8pm, and Saturdays, 12 to 3pm!

Anyway, no worries if you cannot find what you want, cause other than having a variety of designs, eClarity allows you to customise the design too! What's more, enjoy 15% off warehouse price for GIA Diamonds and get a complimentary 30 mins 1-to-1 dialogue with a GIA Gemologist to ask anything about diamonds (worth $180)! That's all I have to share on about the engagement ring, hope it's useful to you!