Buying Guide

What Is Diamond Certification?

Independent certification shows that the diamond you're buying is of top quality and has been precisely graded without any bias. At Amour, all our diamonds are graded and checked for quality by the Gemmological Institute of America (GIA), which is one of the leading and most accurate diamond labs in the world. We encourage you to review the Diamond Grading Report or Diamond Dossier of any diamond to be sure of its quality before making a purchase. For every pendant, custom-made ring, or pair of earrings you buy from our store, you also get an appraisal that includes the item's retail replacement value that you can use to file an insurance claim.

The Difference Between Diamond Dossiers® And Diamond Grading Reports

Buying a diamond is one of the biggest investments you will ever make in your life. Diamond certification (or diamond grading) is, therefore, extremely crucial when buying a diamond. The GIA provides two reports on any diamond they evaluate (i) the Diamond Dossier and (ii) Diamond Grading Report. Although both are similar in many ways, they have their unique differences.

 

• Diamond Grading Report:This report provides information about the diamond's 4 Cs, namely cut, clarity, colour, and carat. It also lets you know the shape and exact measurements of a diamond, as well as a map or plot of the stone's unique characteristics. The diamond grading report will also reveal whether the gem comes with a girdle inscription and discuss other important characteristics beyond the 4C.  

 

• Diamond Dossier®:The diamond dossier contains almost the same information as the diamond grading report. The only difference is that it does not include the plotted diagram. The dossier also features the laser inscription number on the diamond's outermost edge to show that it's authentic.  

Check A Sample Of The GIA Grading Report

Get to know the look and orientation of a Diamond Grading report from the GIA. Amour customers get a GIA grading report for every loose diamond they buy from us, but you may also download a sample below. Check the 4Cs, plotted diagram, as well as the mapping of the diamond's proportion. Each product page of each loose diamond on our website will include a GIA grading report.

Is It Crucial To Receive A Diamond Grading Report When You Purchase A Diamond?

Yes, it's extremely important that you get a certification when you buy a diamond. In fact, it is often called the 5^th C. Buying diamonds with a GIA grading report will help you later on if you want to:

• Check your diamond's quality
• Help to verify ownership for repair or insurance purposes
• Be useful if you wish to resell the diamond

 

Measuring Ring Size Using Our Printable Ring Size

You can always use our printable ring sizer to measure the size of a ring quickly. Just print out the guide and put one of the wearer's current rings over the circles, matching the shank of the ring to the circle closest to it in size. In case the ring falls between two circle sizes, select the bigger size.  

Our guide also comes with a ring size chart including exact diameter measurements and their respective ring sizes, together with international ring sizes. Using our online ring sizer, you can easily and quickly find the right ring size for you or the recipient. 

Ring Size Chart

Measuring Ring size using Paper, Ruler, and String

If you are buying a diamond for another person, the simplest and faster way to know his or her ring size is by asking. But if you want to surprise them, you can get assistance from family and friends. There are ways they can help you ask without raising suspicion. Generally, women's average ring size is between size 3 and size 9. The most commonly bought women's rings range from size 5 to size 7, while the most popular is size 6. On the other hand, men's average ring size is between size 6 and size 13. The most commonly bought women's rings range from size 8 to 10 -1/2, and The most popular is size 9. When looking to buy a ring, these standard ring sizes can assist you in making the right choice. In case you can't find the size you want, reach out to our experts for assistance placing a custom offer. That said, there are also many ways to find your ring size at home.

4 Steps To Measuring Your Ring Size At Home:

 

1. Wrap a paper or string around the base of your finger
2. Use a pen to mark where both ends meet
3. Use a ruler (mm) to measure the paper or string. Divide what you get by 3.14 (or Pi) to know the diameter of the ring
4. Choose the nearest measurement on the ring size chart to know your ring size

Other Ring Sizing Tips

1. Calculate the diameter of another ring that fits you using our printable ring size or a tape measure.
2. The ring has to fit your finger perfectly. That is, it should be tight enough not to fall off but also loose enough to be easy to remove.
3. If the base of your finger is smaller than your knuckle, make sure to measure both places and choose a size that falls between the two.
4. You should measure your ring size in the evening when your fingers are not cold. Finger size varies based on the weather and the time of the day. Your fingers are smaller in the first hours of the morning and when the weather is cold. Note that the fingers on the hand you use the most are likely to be bigger.
5. Repeat the measurement 3 to 4 times for more accuracy

What occurs when My Ring is Resized?

In some cases, your ring may need to be resized to get the perfect fit. The resizing process involves removing or adding a small amount of metal based on the difference between the size of the ring you buy and the new size you asked for. Therefore, your ring might be a bit thinner or thicker once it is resized. However, these changes are not usually noticeable to the naked eye.  

The expert jewellers at Amour follow stringent quality standards to ensure that your resized ring fits well and sparkles brilliantly. Once the band is resized, the jeweller will clean and polish the ring before sending it back to you.

What If I Bought the Wrong Ring Size?

No worries. Amour will resize it for you free of charge as long as the wedding band or engagement ring is within the manufacturer's recommended sizing range and was bought not longer than one year ago. If you want another ring, we will also allow you to swap them within 30 days of purchase.

Rings That Cannot be Resized

The design of some ring styles makes it impossible to resize them. You will find an  icon on the product detail page for such rings.

Examples of rings that cannot be resized include silver rings, rings with alternative metals like Tungsten, milgrain or ornate bands, or gemstone and diamond eternity rings that have a certain number of gemstones per finger size.

At Amour, we offer a 30-day exchange policy if the ring is not the right size. Bear in mind that if you opt for a ring exchange, your new ring may or may not have the same number of diamonds, gemstones, or precious metal weight as the previous one, which can affect the price.

Why Does Diamond Cut Matter?

One of the most important factors to consider when choosing a diamond to buy is the cut. A diamond's cut does not mean the shape of the stone. It refers to the symmetry, polish, and balance of proportion achieved by the gem cutter. A diamond's cut quality determines how beautiful it is overall. The better the diamond cut, the higher the diamond's ability to refract and reflect light. Today's diamond cutters have a good understanding of how light passes through diamonds and have created some proportions and angles to cut a diamond to best optimize its innate brilliance.

In their natural state, diamonds look like two square pyramids that are arranged into an octahedron with eight sides. A point–cut diamond is a diamond that has been polished but still retains its natural octahedron shape. Although still attractive, this does optimize the effects of light passing through the diamond.

A diamond's width, depth, and table are the three main factors that determine its ability to reflect light properly. The light return from a diamond depends on the table size and depth of the stone in relation to the width. The proper width also ensures that light is refracted at the critical angle.

A properly cut diamond design is proportioned to ensure that most of the light that enters the stone goes out through the crown of the diamond, creating a balance between the white light (brilliance ) and intense flashes of fire of different colours (dispersion).

However, if a diamond is cut even slightly out of proportion, it can cause the stone to tunnel light direct light out of the pavilion instead of redirecting it back up towards the diamond table. This phenomenon is called light leakage. The result is a dull-looking diamond with poor light performance and a dark centre that conceals the diamond's innate sparkle.

What is Brilliance

A diamond's beauty lies in its brilliance. For a diamond to appear brilliant, it needs to reflect white light from its multiple mirror-like facets to the observer.  

Diamonds have two different types of facets: virtual and physical. Physical facets are actual cuts in a diamond. As these facets reflect and redirect light back towards the observer, it seems like there are numerous flashing lights within the diamond, even though there are just a few cuts in the gemstone. These flashes of light are the virtual facets.

Whenever light enters a diamond, the physical facets bounce it in various directions based on the tilt and angle. As the light changes its angle, different facets interact with one another to reflect the light back towards the table. The prismatic lights come together to form a dazzling white light as it goes out of the diamond through the table.

The higher the number of physical facets in a diamond, the greater its ability to create a brilliant display of flashing lights. Expertly cut diamonds exhibit exceptional brilliance since they reflect light off several surfaces, resulting in a multiplier effect that makes the diamond appear to reflect more light than the sum total of its parts.

What is Fire

What we see as white light is made up of a whole spectrum of different colours. Light waves through the air at an incredibly fast rate until they come in contact with a surface that impedes them.

Diamonds are known for their great ability to slow down travelling light, breaking it down into its parts and exhibiting a shiny spectrum of colour. When white light enters a diamond through the table, it refracts and reflects off the multiple mirror-like facets in different directions, gaining back its speed.

This effect is known as dispersion or, more commonly, fire. A diamond's "fire" creates a shimmering show of colour, which gives the stone its undeniably beautiful vitality. A top-quality diamond would display colourful flashes inside it, as well as brilliant sparks of orange, green, blue, purple, and red as light reflects off its facets. It is this effect that makes a diamond look lively and effervescent.

Diamonds need to be masterfully cut so that light can hit the critical refraction angle for full dispersion to occur. If a diamond is not precisely cut, it will not be able to refract and disperse light as efficiently, making the white light exit the stone instead of separating into its individual colours amongst the diamond facets.

What is Scintillation?

Scintillation is also known as the sparkle of a diamond. It is a dynamic cut characteristic caused by the interaction between white light (flash scintillation) and dispersed coloured light (fire scintillation).

When a diamond is illuminated, its facets will break down the white light into a whole spectrum of colours, creating flashes of light that seem like they are dancing along the facets. This contrasts with the darker, colourful flashes refracting through the internal facets of the diamond.

The overall sparkle is a result of the balance and symmetry between darker and lighter areas. Most of this dynamic effect is going to be lost as light exits through the bottom of the diamond and culet if this stark contrast does not occur.

How Are Diamond Cuts Graded?

The world's foremost diamond grading authority, the Gemmological Institute of America (GIA) has discovered seven factors that determine a diamond's cut grade after 15 years of studying the way light interacts with a round shiny cut diamond. These include polish, brightness, scintillation, symmetry, weight ratio, and durability.

When a diamond is evaluated, it receives a grade for each of these factors: Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair, or Poor. The lowest rating in any of the categories determines the final grade of the stone. For instance, let's say a diamond's lowest grade was "Poor" in durability. The final grade would be "Poor" even if the diamond was graded "Excellent "in all the other components.

This rule does not apply to "Symmetry" and "Polish." So, a diamond that was rated "Very Good" in polish can still be graded as "Super Ideal." Diamonds that are rated "Excellent" by the Gemmological Institute of America will be listed as either "Ideal or Super Ideal" on the Amour website.

At Amour, we evaluate our diamonds based on the GIA grading scale and unique characteristics of the stone, like symmetry and polish, to differentiate between Super Ideal and Ideal diamonds. In situations where the cut grade is not included in the grading report, e.g., for fancy-shaped diamonds, we use the characteristics mentioned above, as well as table, depth, secondary measurements and other factors to evaluate the difference in diamond cuts.

How Do Diamond Cuts Affect Price?

Since a diamond's overall beauty lies in its cut, you can expect to pay more for a stone with a higher cut grade. 

At times, a top-notch cut can make up for any shortcomings in the colour, carat, and clarity of a diamond. Expertly crafted facets result in excellent light performance that conceals inclusions and makes the stone seem larger than it truly is.

How Do Diamond Cuts Affect Sparkle?

Sparkle gives a diamond its unique character. It is what catches the attention of everyone across the room, creating a brilliant display as light dances on what appears to be countless inner facets in the diamond.

Therefore, it's important to pay careful attention to the complex interactions between the crown's angle, the table, the depth of the pavilion, and the overall depth when cutting a diamond. When the cutter properly calculates these and uses the right angles and well-defined proportions, the sparkles of red, orange, yellow, green, and yellow colours enhance the dazzling white brilliance.

What Is Diamond Colour?

Many people assume that diamonds are 100% clear. But considering that diamonds tend to contain some trace elements, they may have some slight colours. Although the colour is one of the most important factors used to grade diamonds, the focus is usually on its quality and rarity. Completely colourless stones are the most scarce, so they carry more value.

Since diamonds are dug from the earth, some may have brown, grey, or yellow colours due to the impurities they gain from the soil. These diamonds are graded based on tone, saturation, and hue, and all these factors can be found in the GIA diamond colour scale.

A diamond's hue is its actual colour – e.g., blue, pink, yellow, white, or brown. The tone indicates the degree of the stone's colour, ranging from light to dark. Lastly, saturation refers to the depth and intensity of colour. Completely colourless diamonds have no saturation, but they do have brilliance and fire.

What Is The International Colour Scale?

The International Colour Scale was created by the Gemmological Institute of America (GIA) to ensure consistency in the grading of diamond colour. It evaluates each diamond's clarity and colour using a jury system. Before a diamond can get GIA certification, the five-member jury must all agree on its grade.

The GIA scale evaluates the colour hue in so-called white diamonds using letters that start from D to Z, representing the degree of brown, grey or yellow in a diamond. Gemmologists measure the colour of a diamond by placing the stone face down on clean white paper to identify the flaws in its colour. For a diamond to get a D rating, it has to be icy white and colourless, while the Z rating is for diamonds with a yellow hue. Diamonds that fall between N and Z ratings are not usually used in jewellery.

Diamond Colour Grading and Diamond Colour Chart

At Amour, we offer both colourless and almost-colourless diamonds since they shine the brightest and have the most sparkle. Although colourless diamonds are scarce and undeniably beautiful when compared to white platinum or gold. Near-colourless diamonds are another excellent choice that can offer a good value.

Colourless Grades

When evaluating diamond colours, it can be difficult to notice the differences in the colour categories. Colourless diamonds are graded D, E, or F. But the little differences in their colour can reflect the diamond's quality and price.

The GIA colour grading system starts at letter D because the institute had developed older grading systems that used letters A, B, and C as well as Roman and Arabic numerals. So, they had to begin with D in order to have a unique grading system. While it may seem unusual to start a rating system at D, diamond buyers are now used to it.

As we said earlier, only totally colourless diamonds get a D, E, or F grade. It will be difficult to notice the subtle differences unless you use an electric colourimeter. Buyers cannot tell diamonds within this colour category apart since none of them possesses any detectable brown or yellow hues. Colourless diamonds are similarly priced, whether they are graded D, E, or F.

Near Colourless Grades

Diamonds that are near colourless are graded G, H, I, or J. Although they have a certain warmth to them, it is hard to notice any colour unless you place them beside a colourless diamond. Amongst the near-colourless grades, the G diamond is the most sought-after because it possesses the least amount of colour and is less costly than colourless diamonds.  

The first category of diamonds to have a detectable colour is the H diamonds, as you can see the slight yellow tone with your unaided eye. While the I and J diamonds also possess a yellow hue, the tone is more visible than in H diamonds.   

Faintly Coloured Grades

The colour grades for faintly coloured diamonds are between K and M. These diamonds possess a subtle yellow colour, which appeals to those who like anything yellow. Expectedly, faintly-coloured diamonds are not as costly as colourless and near-colourless diamonds. These types of diamonds are becoming more and more popular, as buyers like the slight, unusual colour with the hard and durable nature of diamonds.

 

What Are Fancy-Coloured Diamonds?

Diamonds typically come in yellow, pink, grey, or brown colour, and all these colours are included in the GIA grading scale. But some brown and yellow diamonds have hues that go beyond the Z grade on the GIA scale. These are referred to as fancy-coloured diamonds.

Fancy-coloured diamonds are graded using their own scale since their colours extend beyond the normal colour range. These diamonds are scarce and available in all rainbow colours. However, white diamonds can also be fancy, particularly those with a flashy opalescent sheen rather than the usual clarity common to white diamonds.

Fancy-coloured diamonds can also be made in laboratories. These are just as hard, durable, and quality as natural diamonds. Lab-made fancy-coloured diamonds are usually cheaper than mined-coloured ones, but they may also be costlier than white diamonds due to their rarity.

How Does Diamond Colour Affect Price?

Subtle differences in diamond colour can affect the price of a gemstone or diamond at jewellery stores, especially if the colour is noticeable to the unaided eye. Completely colourless diamonds are less common than diamonds with minor bits of colour. Plus, they are also more valuable because of their rarity, brilliance, and greater colour reflection.

Colour differences, even within the GIA scale, can increase or decrease a diamond's value by up to 10 % or higher. Even a minor colour flaw can lower the diamond price by hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars, especially when you also consider the cut, clarity, and carat.

 

How Diamond Shape Affects Colour

Whether a diamond colour is more visible or concealed can depend on the shape of the stone. A diamond's shape or cut can also enhance its brilliance, causing the facets to reflect colour instead of revealing any flaws in the stone itself. If a diamond possesses a colour, that colour can lower the brilliance and fire that makes the stone so attractive to people in the first instance.

Round, brilliant diamonds are usually better at hiding colour than any other cut. This is because they tend to have many small inner facets that reduce the underlying colours. On the other hand, diamonds with broad facets, such as pear, oval, or emeralds - display more colour.

How Ring Settings Affect Diamond Colour

The settings of a diamond ring can also affect its colour. The brilliance of colourless or near-colourless diamonds becomes more apparent when set in platinum or gold. A silver setting accentuates the diamond's white colour.

Faint colour diamonds with grading beyond J appear more attractive when set in traditional yellow gold. The yellow gold diminishes the stone's yellow hue, as the diamond seems to borrow colour from its gold setting. Higher-grade diamonds could look just like near-colourless stones when set in gold.

How Carat Size Affect Diamond Colour

Another factor that can affect a diamond's colour is the carat size. Since a diamond's colour is usually inside the gem, larger diamonds often exhibit their colour better than smaller ones. For example, a two-carat J diamond would look like it has more colour than a half-calf J diamond if you place the two stones next to each other.

The colour of a diamond, especially smaller ones, can also be concealed by combining the carat and setting. If you want to purchase a large diamond, you may choose a gem with a higher colour rating. However, it is important to select a diamond that you like and that's sold for a price you will be happy to pay.

What Is Diamond Clarity?

The clarity of a diamond refers to its inherent purity and rarity, as well as the degree of blemishes and inclusions it contains. When a diamond is forming within the earth, microscopic particles may get trapped on or within the stone. Gemmologists check for these tiny particles in a diamond using a 10x magnification loupe and then give the stone a numerical value (clarity grade) based on a qualitative grading system.

The higher the number of flaws and imperfections a diamond has, the lower the clarity grade it gets. When choosing the right clarity for your diamond, bear in mind that a diamond is never completely pure. But the closer a diamond gets to purity, the clearer it is. Diamonds with little to no inclusions are scarce and very valuable.

Although clarity has a huge impact on a diamond's value, most flaws cannot be seen with naked or unaided eyes.

How Diamond Clarity Grades Are Determined And Diamond Clarity Chart

Diamond evaluation involves assessing the size, quantity, location, relief, and type of the tiny characteristics and their impact on the diamond's overall appearance. Expert gemologists use a 10x magnification loupe to assess and classify these microscopic characteristics based on their type, size, and position.

These natural characteristics are later mapped on what's referred to as a "diamond plot," which differs for each diamond. Leading gemological laboratories, like GIA and IGI, grade diamonds for clarity using a scale that ranges from "Included" to "Flawless."

Diamond Clarity Ratings

Below are the different clarity grades you need to know about when buying a diamond:

• FL/IF:If you see anything on diamonds with a flawless clarity rating, it's most likely dust. If that small particle were an inclusion inside the diamond, it would undoubtedly reduce the stone to a VVS2.
• VVS1:Only a strong microscope can reveal the pinpoints. At this magnification, VVS1 size inclusions are not visible. A standard picture, even enlarged, can only concentrate on a single degree of depth.
• VVS2:A gemological microscope is required to detect a VVS2 inclusion since the pattern is often composed of many smaller VVS1-sized spots that add up to a VVS2 clarity grade. Because the individual dots are too tiny to view with a jeweller's loupe, they must be identified using a microscope.
• VS1:Unlike VVS2 clarity inclusions, a VS1 never requires the use of a microscope. However, it's still tiny and will never be seen by just the human eye.
• VS2:To the naked eye, VS2 clarity inclusions are nearly always clean.
• SI1:The diamond rated as an SI1 clarity is just below the VS2 clarity. One must remember that a clarity grade may be assigned to a diamond based on various distinct inclusion spots. It's uncommon for the clarity grade to be determined by a single focused inclusion. Typically, the clarity grade is composed of some smaller spots and clouds of tiny dots. Because each inclusion is so slight, the diamond seems flawless to the human eye in these instances.
• SI2:With step cuts like the emerald and Asscher, an inclusion with SI2 clarity is almost always apparent to the naked eye. In most cases, an SI2 clarity inclusion will be visible to the naked eye when used with other dazzling forms. An SI2 with a black centre on an emerald cut is about as awful as an SI2 can get. As with an SI1, the SI2 clarity rating is often composed of many tiny inclusions.

Types Of Inclusion

When a diamond is forming within the earth, small crystals can get stuck inside the stone. The crystal's atomic structure can also acquire some imperfections as it forms. The location, visibility, and size of inclusions have a significant impact on diamond clarity.

There are several types of inclusions that should be considered when evaluating the clarity of a diamond. Following are some of the most common types and their explanation:

• Cloud:A cloud is not a single flaw in a diamond; rather, it's a collection of extremely tiny pinpoints grouped that may impair the diamond's brilliance. If a diamond has many big clouds, it's referred to as a cloudy diamond.
• Graining:Due to the uneven crystal development, this inclusion produces internal graining that manifests as white, coloured, or reflecting lines, giving the diamond a highly hazy look.
• Cavity:The cavities may look colourless, depending on the kind of contained minerals found inside the diamond's body. If the crystal inclusions in the cavity are coloured, they become considerably more visible and are likely to be visible to the naked eye.
• Feather:This is a tiny fracture inside the diamond that may seem translucent or catch the light and give the diamond a white appearance, depending on the angle from which it's seen.

Is Diamond Clarity Important?

A diamond's clarity impacts how well the stone will shine and look when illuminated. The fewer the inclusions in a diamond, the more brightly it will shine. When choosing the right clarity for your diamond, bear in mind that a diamond is never completely pure. But the closer a diamond gets to purity, the clearer it is.

Other diamond characteristics, such as size and shape, also impact how important diamond clarity will be. Stones with step-cut shapes, like Asscher cut and emerald cut diamonds, have an open table and shallow bottom, which can enhance the diamond's clarity and make characteristics easily noticeable. Characteristics are also more visible in larger-carat diamonds because of their larger facets.

What Is A Carat?

Since 1907, the carat has been the universally accepted unit of measurement for diamonds. Before then, diamond evaluation differed from one country to the other, and standards varied based on where you live.

Carat (or ct) is the unit of weight measurement that's used only for diamonds and gemstones. Many people confuse carat weight with the visual size of a diamond, but it is different, even though it's also a measurement of weight. It is impossible to know the carat weight of a stone with the naked or unaided eye. The weight of a diamond depends on a number of factors, including the shape, density, and formulation of the gem.

Just because a diamond is visually big does not mean that it will have a high carat count. Carat weight will show itself differently based on the type and shape of the diamond that's being weighed. For instance, a 1-carat round diamond may measure about 6.5mm in length, while a 1-carat round sapphire may measure about 6.0mm. This is because of the differences in the density of the two gemstones.

Total Carat Weight (TCW) is a term you need to look for when shopping. It is the total amount of weight of all the gemstones or diamonds that a piece of jewellery has (when two or more stones are used). Jewellery sold in pairs or sets is usually sold using total carat weight (TWC). For example, a pair of diamond solitaire earnings is usually listed in TWC, which indicates the total weight of all the diamonds in the two earrings.

Diamond Size Chart

 

The diamond size chart shows how different diamond shapes will look based on the carat weight. Note that each picture shows what the individual diamond will appear like when viewed from the top down.  

While the diamonds in our size chart may differ in size, they have the same carat weight. For instance, the 1-carat pear diamond may look bigger than 1-carat radiant diamond, but the carat weight is the same for both stones.

How Is Diamond Carat Determined?

The term carat is derived from the Italian word carato, meaning carob beans. In the years gone by, gem merchants would use carob seeds to weigh diamonds and gemstones since these seeds have the same size and weight.

A carat has roughly the same weight as a paperclip, which is 200 milligrams or 0.2 grams. Today, carat weight is a common measurement that's used all over the world, no matter the measurement system that a particular country often uses.

To calculate the carat of a diamond, you need to first weigh the stone using grams as the unit of measurement. Divide the figure you get by 0.2, and the answer is the carat weight of the diamond. Nowadays, jewellers don't determine carat weight by hand. Instead, they use a unique scale that's specially designed for measuring carat weight to weigh diamonds and gemstones.

Jewellers and gemmologists also describe the carat weight of diamonds using a point system. Below is how it works:

• 50 points = 0.5 carat
• 100 points = 1 carat
• 500 points = 5.0 carat
• 1000 points = 10.0 carat

And so on.

Is Carat Size Important When Buying A Diamond?

While carat size does matter, it is not the only factor to consider when purchasing a diamond. The carat weight of a diamond is only as important as the buyer makes it. Bear in mind that no particular carat weight is universally believed to be the best to buy. It depends on the individual and the qualities that matter most to him or her.

While the 4Cs are not in any specific order, each of them impacts the beauty and value of a diamond. If you are shopping for the right diamond for someone else, you need to consider the recipient. For example, if the receiver likes dazzling, beautiful jewellery, you should focus more on colour, cut, and clarity than carat. However, you should focus on the carat weight and cut if the visual size of the stone is what the recipient is concerned about. 

How Diamond Carat Affects Price

One of the most important factors that determine a diamond's price is the carat weight. When you have determined the colour, clarity, and cut of the diamond to buy, you can then choose the carat weight based on your budget.

The bigger a diamond is, the more valuable it is. This is because bigger diamonds are rarer to find in nature than smaller ones. For this reason, the prices of diamonds are not linear. This means that a one-carat diamond may be more expensive than two separate half-two carats of diamonds of the same quality. Generally, a diamond's price will quadruple when the carat weight is doubled. So, it is more cost-effective to buy jewellery with multiple low-carat diamonds than buying a piece of jewellery that has just one diamond of a higher carat weight.

The two most common diamond carat weights are 1.0 ct and 1.25 ct. To reduce cost, you may look for an expertly-cut diamond with a slightly lower carat weight. When a diamond has a top-notch cut, it can appear larger than it actually is.

The cut-off weights for diamonds include   0.50 ct., 0.75 ct., 0.90 ct., 1.00 ct., 1.50 ct., and 2.00 ct. Any diamonds that fall below a cut-off weight are classified as "under-sizes." Under-sized diamonds are not easy to find since a diamond cutter would have to compromise beauty to cut a diamond that has the same carat weight as one of the cut-off weights, also referred to as "magic numbers" in the jewellery industry. With that being said, even a minor difference in carat weight can have a significant impact on a diamond's price. So, searching for an under-sized diamond can save you money when purchasing a diamond.