Just Ask Jonathan – Does Diamond Size Really Matter?

Jonathan! Tell me, does size REALLY matter?

Short Answer: In everything size matters, and if your girlfriend, wife or date tells you otherwise, well, let’s just says they aren’t being honest with you!

Long Answer:  Size matters when it comes to a diamond only to the person who receives the diamond. The giver is usually more concerned with budget, and there is a way to marry the two very happily.

How to Get More Diamond for Your Budget

1. Buy a ‘Plus’ diamond. A plus diamond is a diamond that is just under the threshold of the next tier of cost.  Diamonds go up exponentially from 1 carat to 1.5 carats and from 1.5 carats to 2 carats and so on. But, if you have a budget that is $5,000 and you have found the clarity you like and the color you want, but you want to go up in size and can’t afford it, if you buy a 1.49 carat diamond (which looks like a 1.5 carat diamond) or a 1.79 carat diamond (which looks like a 2 carat diamond), you have stayed in the lower tier as far as what you are paying while still getting a stone that looks larger.
2. Another way is to go with a warmer color diamond that has a bit more fluorescence in it.  Here is the thing, no one is going to be comparing that stone against a white background or under a diamond light, and when you want to save money, it’s more about the cut and polish of the stone, than the color of the stone.  Remember, fluorescence isn’t a bad thing and won’t make your diamond glow in the dark.
3. Imperfections are in the eye of the beholder, or in this case can you see them with the naked eye. If you can’t see them with the naked eye, you are in good shape.  You can go with a lower clarity, but here’s the trick to this, make sure the imperfections are well placed or in desirable places.  In other words, if you can find a diamond that is an I1 and has a black mark in it, but it is along the side and can be covered up with the prong, although that stone will cost less the imperfection is actually in a good place, which makes the stone more desirable.
4. Excellent polish, symmetry and cut go a long way to make a diamond sparkle and you will pay for this, but diamonds aren’t free.  So, spend your money looking for the Triple X diamond and then you can go bigger if you stay under the thresholds and hang out around the warmer colors and imperfections that are more desirable.  If you don’t want to spend the money on a Triple X, go for a Triple Very Good or a Triple Good.  What matters in these stones is the % of the depth of the diamond to the table of the diamond, so if your diamond has the Triple X, Triple VG or Triple G you or in good company.

Here’s the thing, a diamond doesn’t have to be perfect.  You don’t have to buy a D color stone that is flawless.  Of course, we have sold plenty very large D color FL that are over 3 carats, but we prefer to sell stones that are reasonable to you and that will fit your budget while fitting what your girlfriend expects when you slip that ring on her finger, because trust me when I tell you, she will think bigger is better!