Back to Basics: Rings

When you and your fiance decided that you were going to marry the woman or man of your dreams did you realize that one of you would be making the first major decision ...by yourself??? We thought we'd give you a little help - a cliff notes version of ring shopping if you will. Here are the basics you should know before heading out to the jewelery store to pick out that very beautiful and oh so important ring.




The 4 C's:

Cut - Refers to the number, placement and shape of the facets that create a finished diamond. A stone's cut will determine it's quality and sparkle-ability.

Color - Diamonds come in a wide variety of colors but most common is the clear, colorless, white diamond. Color grades are as follows: D-F Colorless (white); G-J Nearly colorless; K-M Faintly yellow; N-R Very light yellow; S-Z Light yellow; Z+ "Fancy" colors.

Clarity - Determined by how free of imperfections (on the outside and inside) the stone is. Clarity grades are as follows: F1=flawless; IF=internally flawless; VVS1/VVS2=very, very slightly imperfect on the inside; VS1/VS2=very slightly imperfect on the inside; SI1/SI2=slightly imperfect on the inside; I1/I2/I3=imperfect.

Carat - a unit of weight. One carat equals 200 milligrams or 100 points.




Diamond Shapes:

Brilliant - round and the most popular throughout history.

Princess - square cut, more contemporary in style.

Emerald - rectangular in shape.

Radiant - similar to emerald with the underside cut with more facets.

Marquise - Pointed at the top and bottom with rounded sides.

Oval - elongated round shape.

Pear - round at the bottom and pointed on top, like the shape of a pear.

Heart - very romantic notion, but the least sparkly.

Settings: Bezel - metal rim that fully surrounds the stone. Half Bezel - metal rim that surrounds the stone on either side but not top or bottom. Tension - a compression-spring pressure holds the stone in place between the band. Prong - three to six "claws" that hold the stone in place. This is the most commonly used. Channel - numerous stones sandwiched between two channels of metal, but no metal between them. Bar - thin vertical bars of metal between the stones secures them in place. Pave - three or more rows of small stones secured by raised metal. Gypsy - this setting sets the stone "flush" into a hole in the metal.

Happy Shopping!