While shopping is strictly subjected to personal taste and preference, some rules are general and apply to all. Here is a well-defined approach to buying an engagement ring this year.
A Budget to Begin with
It is absolutely important that you set yourself a budget before you start looking out. When you know the size of your budget, shopping around gets much easier. With a figure in sight, you knowbe what price bracket you should be looking into. Obviously, a bigger budget offers a greater freedom of choice, but a smaller one doesn’t necessarily constrict your choices.
The whole drill rests on knowing how much you can afford and getting the best value you can get for your money. Today’s market is a lot more bespoke than it ever was. Most stores today host enormous collections and in them are choices galore for all kinds of budgets. There are those that only a lucky few can afford, and then there are those that come within a small budget and in the middle are the pieces that are priced to fit the wallets of the common middle-class buyers.
If you are looking into the designer range, then you should be prepared to fork up a sizeable sum of money, but if you are open to customization, you can combine good stones with great designs and decent material and make them fit inside a reasonable budget. So, what you ideally need to get started with a clear idea of how much you can spend and what kind of a ring would she like.
Choices in Precious Metals
In their excitement over gemstones, most buyers forget to consider the band metal carefully, when in reality metal has a huge impact on the value of a ring. These days, the choices in band metal are many. In gold alone, there are more than three choices, never mind other metals.
Gold and platinum make the most popular picks at this point. They are also the most expensive of them all. Alternately, if you want to consider an alloy-gold, white gold is one of the most recommended metals. It closely resembles platinum and costs half as much.
Although white gold still remains to be many people’s first pick, the general inclination is currently towards colored gold. In that, rose and yellow gold rule. But those alone are not your choices in gold. Did you know that there is a green gold alloy which wears a greenish sheen? Then there is black gold which looks like tungsten, but only many times more valuable.
While platinum stands at the top of the list, a slightly grayer metal which is gradually drawing attention is palladium. It has a silver sheen and shine which makes it hard to overlook.
Alternately, there are recycled bans that are a preferred choice among the environmentally conscious buyers. Those bands often contain a mix of gold and platinum, which makes them an outstanding choice of band for the alternative brides.
14K White gold engagement ring $560, image: www.Diamonds-USA
14K Rose Gold engagement ring $560
14K Yellow Gold $560
95% Platinum ring $1200
Gemstones- Cut and Setting
So far, diamond is the most popular pick of gemstone in engagement rings. The scenario has been so in 2018, and in 2019 thus far, it is unchanged. However, a section of the buyers has divorced from the tradition and is taking a keen interest in colored gemstones. Colored gemstones make great alternatives for engagement rings for two reasons- aesthetics and price. The colored gems are a safe and accepted deviation from colorless diamonds. They are also a fitting alternative for small budget buyers.
As for the size, it can be anything you want. The bigger ones, that are now referred to as rocks are pricier and naturally glamorous. The smaller ones come for low to decent prices, and are fairly beautiful. The size of the stone is strictly a matter of personal taste. Do not overlook the style of the wearer for trends.
Diamond’s actual mm size
Diamonds come in miscellaneous cut, some of which are more sparkling than the others. The bestselling cut of diamond is round brilliant which is also the most sparkling shape. Aside from the traditional shapes, the second best sellers are in the fancy cut range which features shapes like Cushions Ovals, Pears in the rounded group and Radiants, Princess, Asschers, and Emeralds in the squares group.
Below are diamond shapes by descending popularity:
Round diamond
Cushion diamond
Oval cut diamond
Pear shaped diamond
Radiant cut diamond
Emerald cut diamond
Asscher cut diamond
Settings too are a big factor in the design. Prong and bezel are the two most traditional settings seen in diamond rings. While the prong setting is delicate and feminine, the bezel set ring is more practical and fitting for active lifestyles. Prong settings are of two kinds- 4 and 6 prongs settings. The latter is more durable and safer than the former.
It is the correct combination of shape and setting that gives a ring the perfect appearance.
The most popular prongs set engagement ring, “image” Diamonds-USA
Bezel set engagement ring
The 4 Cs
If you are buying a diamond ring, you need to get familiar with the 4Cs of diamond, namely the color, cut, clarity and carat. Upon these 4Cs, the value and beauty of the stone balances. It can get a bit technical, but if picking a top-quality stone is a priority, you need to loosely wrap your head around these four factors. You will find all the 4Cs mentioned in the third-party document that every tested diamond comes with. Stores like Diamonds USA offer the following information in their certificates.
- Carat or weight of the stone. 1 carat is the standard size for engagement rings, but if you are pressed on budget, ½ or even a quarter carat is passable too.
- Clarity or the lack of blemishes in a diamond. Flaws are naturally included in diamonds, some carry more while carry less of them. Only a flaw less diamond bears no blemish.
- The cut determines the brilliance of the diamond. In rounds it can be mathematically calculated, in all other shapes one must observe the diamond to decide.
- Color in white diamonds range from colorless to faint yellow. Colorless diamonds are the most popular kind, although colored diamonds too are getting popular these days with colored gems and rose gold trending big.
The diamond color scale
Her Style should show in her engagement ring
One of the key things that sets a buyer in the right course is the style of the wearer. This will take some observing and figuring out on your own, because any unusual curiosity in her jewelry style will give you away easily. Understanding her style may seem a bit challenging, especially for those who are not very discerning in this matter, but it really isn’t rocket science. All you need to do is find out if she like vintage or classic or bold or minimal. There aren’t any categories. Aside from the said kinds, there are gorgeous and contemporary, none of which are difficult to spot. Take your time to study her pieces, but do not let her in on your proposal plan, because ladies like proposal to be a surprise.
Alternately, if you find it absolutely impossible to figure out by yourself, talk to a friend of her in complete discretion. A three-stone ring is a safe bet because it is glamorous, outstanding and is a popular favorite.
Classic engagement rings
Vintage engagement ring
Bold engagement rings
Dainty rings
Her Ring Size
One other thing that you need to find out is her ring size. This may be trickier than knowing her style. The best way to go is to sneak out a ring from her jewelry box and get the ring made in that size. But no matter if you don’t get the size perfect because it is simple and cheap practice re sizing a ring