Diamond Rings Dublin

Getting engaged is a big decision; for many people it is the biggest purchase they will make after a house and a car. How do you go about selecting a ring from all the engagement rings in Dublin?

Firstly, always remember that it is supposed to be a fun project! Many people let the confusion of different colours, cuts and clarities confuse them. At its simpliest, picking a ring is about choosing something that you like and are happy to wear. You will not walk around with a diamond certificate, you will walk around with a diamond. The human eye us very perceptive, your instinct will not lead you astray!

Here are a few questions you should think about before heading out…

Gold or platinum? There has been much writtenabout the differences between the two metals. The truth is that both are suitable for rings; the choice depends on your skin tone, and personal preference.

New or vintage? Decide if you would rather a new or old stone. Apply the same standards (colour, clarity, carat) and both should cost roughly the same. With a new diamond, you are wearing something that nobody else has ever worn. With an old diamond, it wll have been someone else’s ring before you. In it’s favour though, wearing an old diaomnd cuts the carbon footprint of that stone in two!

Solitaire, three stone, five stone? Consider the width of your hand. Narrow fingers usually need a solitaire with a thin band. Wider fingers may need a three stone (trilogy) ring.

Baguette shoulders? Pavé shoulders? Baguettes are thin diamonds set into the ring. Pavé shoulders are small round or square diamonds set into the side, usually three per side, sometimes more.

Colour, Cut, Clarity, Carat? As you improve in each factor, the price will increase. Some people notice colour – other people are happy do go down a grade or two if it means a bigger diamond. The same is true for clarity; many SI1 clarity diamonds will have no flaws to the naked eye.

Price? Decide a budget, and stick to it! It is very easy to creep up in budget with a diamond ring. There is no point in not being able to put petrol in your car, even if you have a beautiful diamond!

Backup service? Some people travel far and wide to buy a ring. It is worth considering your needs in the future; diamond rings need annual checking, and occassional servicing, which may not be practical if the ring was bought on the other side of the world. Consider the benefits of local back-up that you may need in the future (snagged claws, ring too big/too small, etc)

All in all, but something you love, something that makes your heart beat a little quicker when you look at; you’ll be wearing it long enough, make sure it’s The One!

Antique cut diamonds are generally considered to be those cut before the 1920s, when the modern cut, based on the mathematical models of Tolkowsky began to be used. There are several main differences between old and modern styles of cutting.

With an old circular brilliant cut diamonds there are exactly the same number of facets as the modern cut diamond; sometimes there is actually one more facet called a culet, which is a flat facet at the bottom to prevent the diamond from chipping. Many old diamonds, and indeed many modern cut diamonds, have a culet facet.

Many old or antique diamonds are assymetric; there is no one set of proportions that are truly “ideal”. You cannot get perfection in both brilliance and fire in any style of cutting. As you increase one, the other decreases; it is a question of striking a pleasing balance. There is always some light leakage from an antique cut diamond, however many people find the high levels of fire from an old stone to be attractive.

In general terms, a modern cut will have more brilliance, but an antique diamond will have more scintillation. It is a matter of taste as to which is preferable.

Most diamonds in the world contain traces of colour. The majority are either slightly yellow or brown.

Most graders use an alphabetical scale to describe the intensity of the colour in a diamond. This scale runs from D to Z, where D is a total absense of colour, and Z is a strong tint of colour. (Stronger intensities than Z are classified as “Fancy Colours”, and are a different category, both in terms or price and rarity.

Actually setting the colour grade of a diamond is a skill. You must train your eye to ignore the sparkle of the diamond, and instead look “into” the stone, to see the colour.

Here are a few tips to how to do this;

* Use non direct, natural light. Shop lights will always give a false colour, either better or worse. Direct sunlight makes it extremely difficult to grade colour.
* Try if possible to use Northern light (ie turn to the north). This ensures that the light is totally diffused and there is no direct light entering the stone.
* Use neutral background colours.Standing opposite a red-brick building, for example, may make you think that you are looking at a pink diamond!!! In the same vein, avoid wearing bright or strong colours – a bright tie, shirt or scarf can reflect into the diamond, and tint it slightly.
* Look diagonally into the diamond, focussing your eye about halfway into it. This takes a bit of practise, but soon becomes second nature.

* Use comparison stones. There can be a huge price diference between a D colour and an E colour, for example. If in doubt, compare with known standards.

Ultimately, if you are not sure, ask to see a report (”a diamond certificate”) from a reputable diamond laboratory. The most widely known, and reputable, is the Gemmological Institute of America, but there are many other labs around the world of high standard.

Clarity refers to the degree of purity if the diamond, specifically whether or not there are “flaws” in the diamond. A diamond of high clarity will have few or no “flaws”, a diamond of low clarity will have many.

The overall name name for what we call “flaws”, “inclusions”, “crystals”, “feathers”, plus all of the other terms relating to clarity grade is “clarity characteristics”. This is because they are not always bad things; they can help to identify the diamond, and also because they sometimes add to the interest of beauty of the diamond (for example, coloured mineral inclusions can be extremely beautiful).

Clarity grading is done with a lens of 10x power, called a “loupe” in the diamond business

When grading the clarity of a diamond, it is important to consider all clarity characteristics under 5 categories: size, nature, colour, relief, position.

Size

Quite simply, the bigger the inclusions in the diamond, the worse the clarity grade of the diamond.

Nature

You must consider what type of characteristic you are looking at, and its impact on the overall appearance on the diamond. An included crystal, or break will have more of an effect on a diamond’s appearance than slight graining, a cloud or a cluster of pinpoints.

Colour

Some inclusions are transparent or translucent, and as such will have less impact on the clarity grade than an opaque inclusion.

Relief

This is similar to colour, but links in to the background against which the clarity characteristic is viewed. White graining against a reflecting facet will be almost invisible, while the same graining against a non-reflecting facet will appear much more obvious, and could result in a worse clarity grade.

Position

A large included crystal positioned to the edge of the diamond will be less easy to spot than a crystal of the same size, nature, colour and relief positioned in the centre of the diamond, and can therefore have a better clarity grade.

The scale used to measure clarity is the following:

Flawless – the highest purity, a flawless diamond will have no clarity characteristics under 10x magnification.

Internally flawless – similar to flawless, an internally flawless diamond will have no internal clarity characteristics, but may have minor negligible surface blemishes, not visible from the top of the diamond. (Often on the edge of the diamond.)

Very very slightly included, grade 1 and 2 (VVS1 and VVS2) – These diamonds will have clarity characteristics that are difficult to see under 10x magnification, even to a trained grader.

Very slightly included, grade 1 and 2 (VS1 and VS2) – These diamonds will have clarity characteristics which a trained grader will be able to find easily enough with a 10x lens.

Slightly included, grade 1 and 2 (SI1 and SI2) – These diamonds will have clarity characteristics which an untrained grader will be able to find easily enough with a 10x lens. Generally these should be invisible to the naked eye, but some SI2 grade diamonds have clarity characteristics visible to the naked eye.

Included (I) – These diamonds will have clarity characteristics easily visible to the naked eye.