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).
Actual Princess Shape Diamond Sizes on Hand of a 1.74 Carat Diamond
This article has a useful picture showing you the apparent size of a 1.74 carat size princess shape diamond, when viewed in place on the hand of a woman. When searching on the web for princess shape diamond sizes, you may notice the numbers are slightly different across different sites - this is due to the fact that the size (7.3 mm for this 1.74 carat diamond) can depend on the cut, not just the carat weight.
If you've got a ring in your possession and you know the size, you can compare it to the US size six ring pictured - this will help you get a concrete idea of the diamond size shown in the photo. Long slender fingers will affect how a diamond looks just as much as the carat size of the diamond - so look beyond just considering the 1.74 carat weight of this princess diamond.
Sponsored Links
Some of my readers are men - if this is you and you're trying to calculate the right diamond size to get your other half, remember that the diamond will invariably appear a lot larger on her smaller, more petite hands.
