Buying an engagement ring

One of the favorite pieces of jewelry is the engagement ring. Watching future grooms and brides dive
into the world of diamond rings trying to find the perfect symbol of their love. As romantic as that
sounds the thought of endless glass cases and an overwhelming number of choices is enough to bring
the average individual to tears.

A male friend of mine asked me to address the basics he should consider when looking at a ring for
his future bride. In this blog, I will address the two very basic characteristics of a diamond ring that
someone should consider when looking into this lifelong investment.

Starting to look for an engagement ring? That's exciting! The first place I would start looking for a
diamond is Blue Nile. Especially if you are here locally in Phoenix,
Arizona.

You can start getting an idea of what kind of stone you want and they are an amazing place to buy from because you can get all of the stones GIA certified, which is something you will want to do. You would be getting a huge markup if you buy your stone from a store or jeweler in town and can always have the ring made with a diamond you already buy. In my opinion, a SI1 grade with a color of G will get you the best looking stone for the best price. Anything above G(D-F) and SI1(VS2-FL) would only be visible to someone like me who looks at them everyday under a microscope.

The next most important thing (especially if you're looking for a round stone) is the girdle thickness.
This is in line with how the cut is rated. Thin to thick is ok, ideal would be medium. DON'T get a stone with a very thin girdle-it will have issues down the road, and if you pay for a stone with a thick to very thick girdle, it will look like a smaller stone than you are paying for because a lot of weight goes into that thickness. Fluorescence as long as it isn't yellow isn't important. Yellow fluorescence can make the diamond color look yellow, and if you're buying a ring set in a white metal (platinum or white gold) the diamond wouldn't look great against the color of the metal. If the cut of the stone is very good or above, the symmetry of the stone will be what you want. You could get a slightly smaller carat stone that would look the same size of a slightly bigger stone (with a thick girdle and a depth percentage of more than 64%) because it has the correct proportions. Blue Nile is a great company with a good reputation. If you look at places in town that don't have as good a deal, I wouldn't hesitate to go there and have the stone set with a jeweler in town.