The 4C’s: Carat

The carat is the most simplest of the 4C’s to understand. The only scale here is the actual amount of carats. The carat of a diamond is often confused with the size of the diamond. The carat of a diamond is a measure of the weight of the diamond. However, as the carat goes up, the overall size of the diamond would naturally go up as well. Depending on the cut, a diamond could look bigger and have the same carat weight. The carat is equivalent to 200 milligrams. One carat can be divided into 100 points. Therefore a 3/4 carat diamond is equivalent to 75 points or 0.75 carats. The value of a diamond rises exponentially as diamonds increase since bigger diamonds are more rare.

In choosing the size of a diamond, budget is a big consideration. However, you should also look into how the individual would wear the diamond. If she is prone to work in a environment that is prone to having the diamond being knocked around, a smaller diamond may be in order. The size of the fingers can also make a smaller finger have an appearance of a bigger diamond. Also, from the top, a 2 carat diamond may only look slightly bigger than a 1 carat diamond because of the cut. You can also sacrifice clarity for a bigger diamond.