| The average diamond engagement ring | | | | know: SI1 or SI2 represent the best |
| costs as much as several notebook | | | | value. The "slight inclusion" rating |
| computers, or possibly a small car, yet | | | | means the imperfections are obvious |
| many men know next to nothing about how | | | | under magnification, but still |
| to make sure they don't get ripped off | | | | impossible to see with the naked eye. |
| when it comes time to tie the knot. | | | | Color is measured in letters which begin |
| Luckily, although there is much to know | | | | with D, which stands for "Colorless" |
| about diamonds there are only a few | | | | (don't ask). E and F are slightly less |
| things you need to remember, and I'm | | | | colorless to electronic color measuring |
| about to tell you what they are. | | | | equipment, but not human eyes. G, H, and |
| First, make sure you know the shape of | | | | I are considered "near colorless" and it |
| the diamond you want. The most common | | | | goes on from there into the yellows (and |
| are "Princess" (which looks square from | | | | pinks, and more!). G is where the best |
| the top) and "Round" which is also | | | | value is because it is technically |
| called "Brilliant" or "American" cut. | | | | colored but appears colorless to anyone |
| Your jeweler can show you other popular | | | | who isn't a color scanning machine built |
| cuts, but some of the ones worth | | | | for rating diamonds. |
| mentioning are "Pear", "Emerald", "Oval" | | | | You will notice I did not discuss |
| and "Heart", all of which look pretty | | | | "Carat". This is a measurement of weight |
| much like what you would expect. | | | | and has absolutely no bearing on the |
| After deciding on a shape it's time to | | | | quality of the stone. That being said, |
| get your hands dirty with the technical | | | | it has a LOT of bearing to most girls |
| stuff. I recommend looking at only GIA | | | | hoping to wear one someday. If you are |
| certified diamonds so you can be sure of | | | | one of the many men who feel the need to |
| the quality and compare different | | | | push your ring budget in the direction |
| diamonds (and different prices) more | | | | of rock-size then keep in mind what |
| easily. | | | | you've read above. No matter the size of |
| We'll start with the most difficult | | | | the stone your best value will always be |
| factor: Cut. And I'll start by telling | | | | a GIA certified SI1 G stone. Just make |
| you to ignore it for the most part. | | | | sure the cut isn't obviously too shallow |
| Basically, if the diamond is too shallow | | | | or deep. |
| or too deep it will affect how it | | | | Oh, and price around. There are three |
| "sparkles". Just make sure the diamond | | | | classes of diamond dealers, the most |
| looks fairly normal and you'll be fine. | | | | expensive of which is represented by |
| Diamonds, believe it or not usually have | | | | department stores like Fortunoff, which |
| imperfections inside of them. These are | | | | carry a lot of uncertified (read: |
| called "inclusions" and are measured on | | | | low-quality) diamonds at prices near or |
| a scale of "very, very slight" to | | | | at what a good quality rock costs. |
| full-blown "inclusion". All you need to | | | | |