Essential Tips for Shopping for an Engagement Ring
2018-01-23

Going shopping for an engagement ring? Congratulations! Obtaining a ring and getting ready to propose to your spouse is a crazy elating time, and many people might easily get caught up in all the romance. However, engagement rings don’t come cheap, so you want to make sure you get the right one.

There’s always plenty of pressure associated with this purchase. It signifies your love and affection for your partner and your readiness to take the relationship to the next level. For the majority of men, the acquisition of their fiancé’s engagement ring marks their first experience in the world of jewellery. Inside the jewellery store, they might be confused with terms that they have never come across before. Inclusions? Tiffany setting? Eternity band?

Don’t despair. Here’s an ultimate guide to enable you to shop for an engagement ring that your fiancé will fall in love with. Read on.

Ring size

Imagine buying a ring, getting down on one knee and trying to slide it on your lady’s finger only to find out that it doesn’t fit her. You can avoid such potential embarrassment by first finding out about your lady’s ring size. Just get a ring that she’s currently wearing and take it with you to the jeweller for measurement.

The engagement ring band

When it comes to the engagement ring’s band, you have a wide selection of metals to pick from. Typical examples include rose gold, yellow gold, white gold, silver, and platinum. Platinum is revered for its durability. On the other hand, gold is shinier than platinum due to its soft metal. Silver band is renowned for its good looks. For fashion-conscious women, white gold band or platinum makes a fashion statement while the traditional yellow gold band suits the classy women.

A quality diamond

The diamond is the focal point of the engagement ring. When choosing a diamond, the 4 C’s namely cut, colour, clarity along with carat weight must be taken into account. Cut denotes the angles and magnitude of the diamond stone and is determined by the cutter. It is the most vital of all the four C’s. A nicely cut diamond emits a fiery sparkle.

Diamonds come in a wide range of colours. Colourless diamonds are quite rare and pricey. In terms of popularity, white colour diamonds top the scale. However, see what your lady likes when choosing the diamond colour.

Diamond clarity is defined by how clear the diamond is. The fewer the inclusions and imperfections, the better the diamond’s clarity. Try to pick a diamond with fewer inclusions to avoid impacting on its dispersion of light, and consequently its brilliance.

Last but not least, carat denotes the weight of the diamond ring. The heavier the diamond, the more expensive it is. Talk to the jeweller about making the stone appear larger than its actual carat weight.

Diamond shape

Another important consideration is the diamond’s shape. Round diamond is a traditional, classic shape. Princess is basically a square diamond and is currently the trendiest shape for diamond engagement rings. Other shapes include pear, heart and oval.

Select the setting

The setting implies how the diamond is placed in the engagement ring. The type of setting to opt for will depend mainly on your fiancé’s preferences. Common types of settings include Tiffany, eternity band, bezel, channel and pave.

The above guidelines gives an overview of the essentials when buying an engagement ring and can prevent you from being entirely clueless when you set foot in the jewellery store. All the best!