There's no doubt that engagement rings are quite an investment! Every girl dreams of having the perfect kinda ring she loves on her finger, and there is a lot of pressure on guys to match that as much as they can! So here's a low-down on what kind of engagement ring you can get in every budget to make it much easier for you both!
So first, it is very very important to know how the pricing of diamonds work. For that, understanding about the 4 Cs is imperative... These are
Cut, Clarity, Colour and of course,
Carat.
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Clarity
The transparency of the diamond. It ranges from flawless (loupe clean in the chart above), which is the most expensive, to P3 or I3, which has imperfections which are visible to the naked eye. The most common ones that we see in the shops are VVS1 to VS2 clarity.
Colour
Exceptional white or D being most expensive to Z being least expensive 'cz of the tint in the stone.
Carat
It's not just these sizes, diamonds can go bigger or smaller than this also. Cents is also a unit of measure, 1 carat=100 cents.
Cut
The shape of the diamond.
Photo Courtesy: www.gemfacts.com
In terms of pricing, this is how it works, with Round being most expensive and Emerald cut the least.
Round > Marquise > Heart > Pear > Oval > Princess > Cushion > Asscher > Radiant > Emerald
So now you understand? All this gyaan is important 'cz you can get a 1 carat diamond for anywhere between Rs 50,000 to as high as Rs 4 lakh. But in this case, it is the quality because of which the price differs so much. The cheaper 1 carat diamond is, the more you're sacrificing on the clarity, colour and cut of the diamond.
So now that you've had a crash course, here are the engagement rings you can get to suit your budget!
Budget: Under Rs 50,000
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Wedding bands are the way to go if this is what your budget is. They are simple to look at, easy to maintain and pretty functional if that's what you're looking for. You can opt for wedding bands in gold, white gold or platinum... plain and simple or with simple stonework using small diamonds. You can even get it inscribed to make it special.
Budget: Under 1 Lakh
It's not necessary that simplicity is the key here. You might not get a solitaire, but you get a lot of rings in this budget which look pretty fancy. Here's what you can get in under a lakh...
A classic ring
Photo Courtesy: www.caratlane.com
The trick here is to either pick up a ring with a diamond that's just about 0.75, half a carat or lesser than that, surrounded by tiny diamonds that makes it look bigger (halo setting). So it is basically the same setting as a heavy solitaire ring, just that the diamonds used are much smaller.
More bling for less
Photo Courtesy: www.weddingbee.com
If bling is what you're looking for in this budget and don't want something simple, then you can either get a ring with a complex setting with a lot of tiny diamonds, or get the cluster setting, which are basically loads of tiny diamonds compressed into the ring in a way that it gives the illusion of a bigger stone till you don't look at it carefully.
A big stone, but not a diamond
Photo Courtesy: www.bluenile.com
This is another classic choice, which looks different, but can still suit your budget. This involves ditching the diamond as the centre stone and getting a big emerald, sapphire or some other pretty stone in the centre. But make sure the bigger stone is offset by a diamond outline around the stone and maybe around the band as well to give it a more 'engagement ring' look.
For tips on how to save big bucks on your engagement ring, click
here.
Budget: Between Rs 1 lakh - 2 lakh
Photo Courtesy: www.bluenile.com
This budget can get you a premium quality solitaire of about 0.90 carats, which is just about a carat, or a 1 carat solitaire which is not of premium quality. You can choose whatever setting you want, but if you get one involving a solitaire and a lot of small diamonds, then this might just go over your budget! You can choose a cut like Princess, Assher or Emerald to bring down the cost as compared to a Round cut.
To maximise the value of your solitaire, get a 0.90 carat stone and surround it with smaller diamonds in a halo setting. This makes a ring look larger than it is.
Budget: Between Rs 2 lakh - 4 lakh
Photo Courtesy: www.caratlane.com
This budget can easily get you a 1 or 1.50 carat premium quality solitaire in any cut or clarity you choose. If this is your budget, you should choose a ring with a solitaire of 1 carat or over with a round setting, because it is the most expensive cut and looks timeless. You can even get a setting with a good number of smaller diamonds around the stone and on the band.
Budget: Over 4 lakhs
Now this is where it can get confusing. Sky is the limit after this if you can afford it, but there are certain things you should know. Like, just because a 1-1.50 carat solitaire is coming for Rs 2 lakh, that does not mean you'll get a 2 carat ring for Rs 4 or 5 lakhs. That is because the prices of solitaires rise exponentially as the carats increase. So a 2 carat diamond of premium quality will not come less than Rs 6 - 7 lakhs.
Photo Courtesy: www.thejewellery.com
Also, another thing to note here is that if you're looking for a pink or blue diamond, then you should be aware of how the prices work. A pink diamond is more expensive than a transparent one and a blue one is even rarer! So, if a 1 carat colourless diamond costs Rs 2 lakh, the same cut and clarity diamond that’s pink in colour will cost about 5 times.. and a blue one? Well, the same one in blue will cost almost 20 times more!
So hope that helped! While we all are sure about the cut and carat, just make sure to cross-check the colour and clarity with the jeweller before you take the ring, which is where most people can be easily duped!
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