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).
0.40 Carat Diamonds
0.40 carats worth of diamond gives you a stone that weighs precisely 80 mg.
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The width of a diamond with a weight of 0.40 carats is about 4.79 mm.
Although there is a strong correlation between the carat weight of a diamond and its width, this does not guarantee that every 0.40 carat diamond is 4.79 mm wide. In evaluating the value of a 0.40 carat diamond, one thing you can do is work out the precise cost per carat of diamond.
Girdle thickness is a diamond property which many people never even think about, but which can critically affect how big the diamond appears to be.
Something that can catch out men searching for a diamond for an engagement ring is forgetting to take into account where the diamond will eventually be displayed - on a woman's hand, which is usually quite a bit smaller than a man's hand. Ever looked at a similar carat size of diamond and another gemstone and wondered why the stones appeared so different in size? This is undoubtedly because different types of stones have different specific gravity densities, leading to this discrepancy in size.
There are two tricks to avoid when comparing total diamond weight with the weight of an individual diamond - individual smaller diamonds are cheaper even if they add up to the same total weight as the single diamond, and smaller diamonds are often of poorer quality.
Some days are diamonds Some days are stones Sometimes the hard times won't leave me alone Sometimes the cold wind blows a chill in my soul Some days are diamonds, some days are stone. Neil Diamond .
People say the four cs for a reason - diamond carat size is just one of the four cs and the others are arguably just as important in determining how 'attractive' and 'good' a diamond is.