Quick and Easy Buying Guide
Carat weight: 1 carat = 200 milligrams = 6.5 mm diameter. Doubling weight doesn't double diameter.
Diamond clarity: FL/IF/VVS/VS = super expensive, near perfect. SI = best value if you can check a photo for obvious inclusions (defects).
Color: D-G = colorless, expensive, only if you have money to burn. H-J = best value. Can go lower in gold metal settings than white metal.
Cut: Better cut ratings let more light into a diamond, making it sparkle more. Very important property, don't skimp here.
Set a budget and minimum cut (Premium). Go J color for gold and I/H for white metals. Go searching for SI1/SI2 clarity diamonds at James Allen. Pick a diamond with small/no inclusions. Choose a ring setting and buy it risk-free (60-day returns).
0.25 Carat Diamonds
Each carat in a 0.25 carat diamond is equivalent to 25 points, so a 0.25 carat diamond is the same as a 25 point diamond. When you see a 0.25 carat diamond, expect to see about 4.09 mm worth of diamond.
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What many people don't realise is that a 4.09 mm wide diamond can be a range of weights, not just exactly 5 carats, because the diamond can vary in depth. The girdle thickness of the diamond plays an important role in determining the apparent size of the diamond - a diamond with an unnecessarily thick girdle will appear smaller than a diamond with a thinner girdle.
How big a diamond appears does not scale linearly with the carat weight of the diamond, which catches many people out.
If you're willing to try a few things to get a bargain, one thing you can try is searching for a diamond which has a strange carat weight, such as 0.96 carats. Often diamonds with these strange carat weights can be picked up for a bargain because they are not as sought-after even though they are practically the same size as the more popular 1.00 carat diamonds. There are hundreds of thousands of diamonds available online, which can be quite a daunting prospect if you're trying to narrow your choices down. One tip is to add another property of the diamond to the phrase that you're entering into your web browser - you could enter vs1 clarity alongside 0.25 carat diamonds.
Not all gemstones have the same density, leading to an often confusing fact that when you look at a one carat diamond and a one carat ruby, apart from differences in cut they will probably appear different in size due to the difference in their density. A large diamond which has a huge crack down the middle, or alternatively a big yucky looking inclusion, is not a good look - it looks like someone has gone for size and sacrificed all the other desirable properties of the diamond. Clarity, for example, can be just as important in picking a diamond.
It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver. Mahatma Gandhi.
