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).
0.58 Carat Diamonds
Diamond carats, points and normal units of milligrams can all be converted between - this 0.58 carat diamond for example weighs 116 mg. Diamonds that weigh 0.58 carats are typically 5.43 mm across their widest part.
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What many people don't realise is that a 5.43 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.
For prospective buyers who are really focused on the size of a stone but not the material or quality, consider changing to a different gemstone apart from diamond. Some other gemstones are significantly less dense than diamond, which means for a certain carat weight they will have a larger volume and hence will look bigger to the naked eye.
I would rather be adorned by beauty of character than jewels. Jewels are the gift of fortune, while character comes from within. Titus Plautus .
You shouldn't really worry about this, but the average size of a diamond in a diamond engagement ring, at least within the united states, is about half a carat.
You can trade carat size for diamond rarity by doing something like choosing a pink diamond. If you do this, perhaps you'd like to consider putting in a bid for the darya-ye noor diamond which is the largest pink diamond the world, or 182 carats of it. To get it, you'd have to go to iran however..
Don't mix up carat weights of single diamonds with total diamond weights - the mean very different things and mixing them up can trick you when you're considering different prices.
In terms of diamond properties, the carat weight of the diamond should be considered alongside the many other characteristics of the diamond, in order to find a diamond which is balanced and hence not let down by being of poor quality in one of these departments.