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).
Jared The Galleria of Jewellery
Jared is a range of stores started in the early 1990s that aim to have a much bigger range than normal jewellery stores. They are a relatively upmarket chain that operate primarily outside of normal shopping malls, so you may not have come across them unless you were specifically looking for them.
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They offer some bridal collections such as Neil Lane Bridal.
In terms of diamonds, they offer some ideal cut diamonds in the Peerless diamond range, as well as the Hearts Desire ideal cut diamonds.
Jared also has a wide range of non-diamond jewellery including a number of semi-precious stone types such as opal, blue topaz and peridot.