Two carat diamond solitaire engagement rings for $30K
Hi Danny, I’m in the process of looking for a two carat diamond solitaire engagement ring for $30k and would appreciate your advice as to what combination of clarity and color is best. I looked at the photograph of the different color diamonds that is provided on your diamond color grading tutorial and think that I want something which is at least F/G in color, and I definitely want the diamond to be “eye clean” so I’m thinking that the diamond should be VS-2 clarity or better, but then the only option which I see is this 2.283 carat, G-color, VS-2 clarity, Brian Gavin Signature diamond for $40,350.00 and yes, I realize that I’m wearing champagne tinted goggles on a beer budget – help! – Thomas C.
The first realization that I want to share with you Bill, is that there are plenty of phenomenal options available in two carat diamond solitaire engagement rings for $30,000.00 but like anything else in life, it’s a matter of deciding which characteristics of the 4C’s of Diamond Grading (Cut quality, Color, Clarity, Carat weight) are most important to you… from my perspective, it is definitely the cut quality of the diamond, because that controls both the volume of light return, and the visual properties of the diamond, such as brilliance, dispersion, and scintillation.
Balancing the 4C’s of Diamond Grading:
If you are considering diamonds produced by Brian Gavin, such as the diamonds featured in the Brian Gavin Signature and Brian Gavin Blue collections, you don’t need to worry about the cut quality of the diamond because they are all produced to extremely strict standards, and graded by the American Gem Society Laboratory (AGSL) on their Proprietary Light Performance grading platform.
The multi-colored image of a diamond which appears on the Diamond Quality Document (DQD) issued by the AGSL for this 2.153 carat, H-color, VS-2 clarity, Brian Gavin Signature round hearts and arrows diamond, indicates that the diamond exhibits incredible brightness and exceptional optical symmetry. The reason I know this is because the majority of the diamond is red, which represents the highest level of brightness, with the color green representing the second highest degree of brightness, and the pattern of colors is evenly dispersed throughout the diamond.
Plus the diamond details page provides me with additional images of the diamond as seen through other reflector scopes which are designed to grade the optical symmetry.
With the understanding that the diamonds produced by Brian Gavin provide you with the highest degree of light return and visual performance, you can forget about trying to remember all the intricate details of diamond cut quality and light performance, and focus on figuring out what combination of diamond clarity and color best suits your personal preferences and budget.
Since diamonds are color graded from a side profile, we photographed diamonds from a side profile for this photograph, which is featured on our diamond color grading tutorial, to demonstrate the differences in body color between diamonds of different color grades. However it is important to realize that this photograph was taken under controlled lighting and in a completely dark room, and while that is how diamonds are graded for color, it is not representative of how diamonds look under normal lighting circumstances.
In addition to this, in the real world, diamonds are generally viewed from a top-down perspective and thus the sparkle of the diamond makes it significantly more difficult to judge differences in body color. Therefore while it might seem to you like an F-color or G-color diamond is your best option for a diamond which will still face up white, the reality is that the average person will not readily see color in an H-color or I-color diamond from a face-up perspective, and will barely be able to detect color in a J-color diamond.
Thus you don’t necessarily need to break the bank to try and afford the 2.283 carat, G-color, VS-2 clarity, Brian Gavin Signature diamond which you referenced earlier, the 2.153 carat, H-color, VS-2 clarity, Brian Gavin Signature round hearts and arrows diamond is going to look just as impressive and is well within your preferred price range, and you could even grab this 2.238 carat, I-color, VS-2 clarity, Brian Gavin Signature diamond, or this 2.311 carat, I-color, VS-2 clarity, Brian Gavin Signature diamond, and they will be just as bright and lively.
