Weddingbee boards

I've actually read that cut is really important - it will determine how well the ring reflects light and how it sparkles.  Color through about G or H won't make a noticeable difference unless you put your ring directly next to someone else's ring.  Miss Peony did some posts a while back about diamonds - if you search for those, they should help quite a bit.

Okay I sold jewelry at Service Merchandise back in the day and also at Friedmans... so I've spent tons of time looking and gawking at rings.. so this is the order importance IMO... from most important to least.

1. Clarity- if you have a ring with less than VS2 clarity, there will be inclusions- or imperfections- which are visible to the naked eye. You should look for a stone with the white "crack like" blemishes versus the black carbon spots. Oftentimes the white inclusions can be hidden under prongs (in my case) or are difficult to see from the top of the stone. Cause really who is looking at your stone from the side and up close, etc? Only people who really know diamonds.

2. Color- nothing less than an H-I is acceptable for an engagement ring. Colorless rings are nice, but honestly not many people get a flawless D color ring. We're not all millionaires.

3. Cut- Cut is important because the better the cut, the more brilliant the sparkle. A perfect cut diamond is a laser cut diamond. But diamond purists will say that a hand cut diamond is truly only the best (but costs TONS more).

4. Carat/Size- If you HAVE to sacrifice something. Sacrifice size. When sitting next together, there isn't much of a size difference between a 3/4 ct stone and a 1ct stone. Remember it is quality- not quantity.

Tips for getting a decent price. Check out a smaller jeweler. Going to a big name place, you are paying for the name- Tiffany's versus somewhere else.
My FH bought my e-ring from friedmans during a sale and got a great price (after I left to go to grad school). Granted we had the stone re-set into something more me-see below- because their stones come in a very basic and slim band. But this route was cheaper than ordering it exactly as I wanted from a higher end jeweler. Basically we bought the ring in the basic setting I wore it for a while, then a few months later, I bought the semimount (setting) that I had been wanting ever since we'd been talking about getting married and I got exactly what I wanted and then some.FYI Friedmans has a decent selection of colorless rings for less than 4-5k for the 1ct and the clarity is not too bad either.

Little nerd tidbit of information: Less than 1 in a million CUT diamonds are 1ct or more in size (.95-1.07). LESS THAN 1 IN A MILLION. Less than 1 in a MILLION stones mined are of quality to make as large as 1 ct. Think of the stats of that. Makes you take things into perspective.

Pics of my e-ring here (these are bad pics but what I have) http://bp2.blogger.com/_xTLZc6RqPhg/R3r-vYSlEbI/AAAAAAAAAGw/4fJsz-4ch58/s320/IMG_09311.JPG

http://bp0.blogger.com/_xTLZc6RqPhg/R3r-p4SlEaI/AAAAAAAAAGo/k5ZIbVqL460/s320/IMG_09301.JPG

Good luck on your search for your perfect ring and congrats!!!

I'm on the same page as JCM9608-Cut I think is the *most* important.  I have a GIA Excellent, it's 3/4 carat but shines and shimmers so much more than my friend's 1.5 carat ring of better color and clarity.  A poor cut will give only a dull sparkle, and that's no fun have a diamond that won't catch and reflect all the light!  I get so many compliments on how beautiful the sparkle on my ring is!

Color is definately second, but you can get away more with a lower (H,I) near colorless with a better cut because the sparkle masks any slight tint.  Clarity, as long as it's SI or above, no one sees it.  Really, who grabs a ring on their finger and uses a 10x magnification daily to view it?  If you get a SI1 or greater it's eye clean.  Congrats on the engagement!!!

I'm w/ the cut & color people.  Clarity is at the bottom of my list, but ONLY in the sense that you CAN get a stone w/ inclusions that are cleverly concealed.  It's like buying the sofa that has a rip at the bottom of the back and you put it against the wall -- yeah, it's ripped, but who's ever gonna know but you guys?! 

Another tip: buy slightly smaller than the nice rounded sizes. In other words, it is unbelieveable how much a stone's price will jump from the .97 or .98 to 1.0.  Everyone wants to say they have a 1-carat stone (or 1.5 or 2, or whatever); my guy saved thousands by not going w/ the 1.0 -- who can see less than 5-hundredths of a carat difference?  Not me!  And if you're like a lot of the other girls on here and have skinny little fingers...a stone just under a carat still looks pretty honkin' when you've got thin fingers!