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Q&A: Looking for a 0.90 Ct. Colorless Round Diamond With a £4,300 Budget

By Mike Fried,

My partner is looking to buy me an engagement ring.

He is looking for a round 0.90 ct size.

Can you please advise what should be the proportions ie table, depth, width that the diamond should be in order to receive the best possible impact of sparkle and value.

Thank you for your help.

I’d be happy to make some recommendations for you, but I need a little more info.

What style setting (solitaire, pave/side stones/halo) and metal (yellow/white gold, platinum) do you want to use? This may affect the colors that I recommend for the center diamond (as we explain in our post on color).

Can you give me your ballpark figure of what you’re planning to spend? Then I’ll be able to help you more.

We are looking to buy a solitaire ring in platinum 0.90ct with a budget of £4,300 including VAT.

Thank you for the info.

Color-wise, I’d recommend a J-color diamond. It is going to look colorless in a solitaire setting as there are no additional diamonds in the band.

The ideal depth % should be close to 61.5 and never exceed 62.8. As for the table %, we like to keep it between 55-59 to maximize brilliance.

I like this diamond for you:

Blue Nile LD10229318
It’s superbly cut and will be incredibly brilliant.

What do you think?

Many thanks for that. I have researched briefly on Blue Nile before.

I was initially looking at the following on their website

– 0.90ct
– colour E/D
– VS2

Howev,er upon reading up on your ‘cut’ pages, I realized that some diamonds didn’t have the exact cut (ie depth width table) as you mentioned in your previous email & on your website.

Are you able to have a look on the website and advise me on which diamond you think suits best?

Is there a reason you want the highest color grades? It is a huge waste of money: https://www.diamonds.pro/education/color/.

I’m happy to recommend D/E options as well, but I want to make sure you have all the information.

Obviously I am no expert and thought the higher the colour the better however I note that that may not be the case

I am open to any recommendations of yours.

We can compromise and focus on an H color. The difference in colors isn’t usually recognizable from anything above this grade.

Blue Nile LD10433026

Blue Nile LD09582562

I searched in the VS+ range and these options happened to be the best cut. They will have a lot of brilliance.

Thoughts?

Yes I do like the second link you sent me and indeed it has a very good cut!

Is it key to not go over 62% depth and 58% table with no cutler in order to get the best brilliance?

Different angles work better with different depth/table combinations, but generally, the closer to 61.5 (depth%) the better. The larger the table, the less light refracts through it (sparkles) so I wouldn’t go over 59 if you want to maximize brilliance.

Thanks so much!!!

You’re welcome.

James Allen James Allen is the leader in online diamond sales. Their imaging technology is the same as inspecting a diamond with a jeweler's loupe. They have the largest exclusive loose diamond inventory online and fantastic prices. They also have the nicest collection of lab-created diamonds online.
What we love about them:
  • No questions asked returns within 30 days of shipment. James Allen will send you a paid shipping label to return the ring.
  • Lifetime Warranty
  • Free International Shipping
  • Free prong tightening, repolishing, rhodium plating and cleaning every 6 months
  • Provide insurance appraisals
  • One free resizing within 60 days of purchase
  • Free ring inscriptions
  • Best-in-class high quality imagery of all diamonds in stock
  • 24/7 Customer Service
  • Best-in-class packaging
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Blue Nile Blue Nile is the largest and most well-known internet jewelry seller. They have a very large exclusive online inventory. Their high-quality images are catching up to James Allens' and their prices are amazing. Save 25% on settings at Blue Nile!

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What we love about them:
  • No questions asked returns within 30 days of shipment. Blue Nile will send you a paid shipping label to return the ring.
  • Lifetime Warranty
  • Free Shipping
  • Free prong tightening, repolishing, rhodium plating and cleaning every 6 months
  • Provide insurance appraisal
  • One free resizing within the first year of purchase
  • High quality images of about half of their diamonds
  • 24/7 Customer Service
  • 100% credit towards future upgrades (must be at least double in value)
  • Best in class fulfillment
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