How to Buy a Diamond Ring without Getting Duped

Ah, diamonds! These exquisite, sparkling gemstones make every occasion memorable and every moment special. People usually choose to mark their special moments with diamonds, especially a diamond ring. Rings studded with these precious stones make for perfect gifts. Whether you are gifting it to a loved one, buying one for your engagement, or treating yourself to some bling, there is no comparison to diamonds. And, what’s there not to love about diamond jewellery, especially diamond rings?

Irrespective of why you buy a diamond ring, you almost always spend a considerable amount of money for these sparklers. So when you are making a big investment for something so precious, how do you ensure you don’t get duped? That’s why you should choose a diamond ring as carefully as you choose your life partner. Below, we give you a quick guideline for buying diamond rings without getting duped. Read on and make an informed decision.

Things to Know Before Buying a Diamond Ring

If you thought it’s easy to tell if a diamond is real or fake by its dazzling shine, you need to think again. In fact, it is the very shine of faux stones that make you do the mistake. The stone you think is a diamond could as well be zirconia. It’s a simulated diamond that looks and also feels like a diamond, but isn’t really one. And to make things even more difficult, it’s hard to tell the two apart just by their looks. To be sure that you are buying a real diamond ring, there are a few simple steps you can follow. These include knowing the basics of diamonds, approaching a reputable jeweller, and asking for diamond certification, among others.

Get Your Basics Right: The Four Cs of Diamonds

The first step before choosing a diamond ring is familiarising yourself with the language of diamonds. These includes the four Cs which stand for cut, color, clarity, and carat. These are the four most important factors that help you find out a diamond’s worth.

Cut: Of the four Cs, the cut is considered to be the most important. It defines how much a diamond sparkles. A badly cut diamond will be dull and shine less as compared to a well-cut stone. Moreover, certain cuts like marquise or princess can make a diamond look larger than it actually is.

Colour: The second C, colour, is defined in terms of grades D to Z. Colourless diamonds graded D are the most costly of all the grades. Diamond’s price decreases as you move from D to Z.

Clarity: The next is clarity. What determine diamond’s clarity are the tiny imperfections or blemishes. These imperfections are called inclusions. Clarity of a diamond decreases with the increase in inclusions. Higher the clarity, better the diamond will be. Diamonds with the highest clarity are also known as flawless (FL) diamonds.

Carat: The last C of the four is the carat. Carat is the term used to define a diamond’s weight. Bigger the stone, more the caratage of a diamond. The price of the stone also increases as the carat value increases. Please keep in mind that two stones of the same carat value may differ in price depending on the other three Cs.

Does Diamond Certification Matter?

Yes, it indeed does! What determines the authenticity of a diamond is the certification. And reputed jewellers will always give you one for the diamond you choose. Real diamonds are certified by gemmological institutes or grading laboratories. A certification serves like insurance in case the ring you buy turns out to be a fake. In fact, don’t buy the diamond ring without asking for the certification. Let it be the other way instead. Buy a diamond ring from any jeweller only if they issue a certificate of authenticity.

Buy Your Diamond Ring from a Reputable Jeweller

With the fast growing online jewellery business, it’s easy to buy a diamond ring anytime. You have no dearth of options and there are huge discounts you can avail. However, this boom is also the reason why there are many imposters in the market. Buy diamond rings only from a reputed jeweller, be it online or offline. Don’t be lured only by heavy discounts. Look for retailers and jewellers who have been in the business for a long time. Also, check whether they have reviews and active social media profiles. Ask whether they can prove the diamonds on the rings they are selling are authentic (certifications, remember?). You need to consider their returns and refund policies as well, before making a decision.

Tips and Tricks to Tell Real and Fake Diamonds Apart

Never compromise with the basic precautions to follow before buying a diamond ring. However, there are some tricks you can use to check the authenticity of the diamond you’re about to buy. Here are two of the simplest tests you can use to tell apart the real diamond from the fake one.

The breath test: This test relies on the fact that diamonds are excellent conductors of heat. When you breathe on to a real diamond, the fog your breath creates will disappear almost instantly from the diamond’s surface. Whereas, the fake diamond won’t conduct heat as efficiently and will take a longer time to clear up the moisture. However, there is a material called moissanite that is similar to a diamond in its properties. It might also pass your breath test. If you are concerned about the authenticity of your stone, It is advisable to check the facets of a stone of the same shape on the ring you’ve chosen. Since diamonds and moissanites are cut using different faceting patterns, the two will look different because of the difference in their facets.

The sandpaper test: Diamonds are the hardest things on earth. And all it will take to find out if a diamond is real or fake is a piece of sandpaper. Gently rubbing a piece of sandpaper on a real diamond will have no ill effects on it. However, the fake one will scratch easily.

No doubt, beauty does lie in the eyes of the beholder; no one would want to buy a fake diamond ring. If you think what the jeweller claims is too good to be true, it might be. Educate yourself about the basics of diamonds. Do your research from where when it comes to choosing the right jeweller. Don’t get lured by extremely low prices even if they are too hard to resist. Keep these things in mind and you can avoid getting duped into buying a fake diamond ring.