Unless you’re Queen Elizabeth, your diamond can always be bigger. If you like a larger look (and who doesn’t?), you should know that the carat weight of your center stone is only one factor in how big your diamond looks on the finger. Here are six ways you can make the diamond in your engagement ring punch above its weight.
1. Choose Hearts & Arrows
Because impact is all about the sparkle, a brighter diamond looks bigger. A diamond’s brilliance is all about the cut: well-cut diamonds sparkle more and have more impact. To make sure you have the best possible cut, choose a hearts and arrows diamond. These stones are so symmetrical an well-proportioned that they have a specific pattern in a viewer that measures light performance (and the pattern really does have eight hearts and eight arrows: isn’t that romantic?) Only round brilliants and exceptional cushion cuts (like RockHer’s Cushion Brilliant) can be cut symmetrically enough to show hearts and arrows.
2. Fancy That
All one-carat diamonds are the same weight. But they are not the same size! Oval shapes, marquise cuts, and pear shapes are a lot bigger than round brilliants. In fact all fancy shapes look bigger and cost less per carat than rounds. So you can have a larger looking diamond for less.
3. Add a Halo
There’s a reason why halo ring designs are so popular. The ring of diamonds that surrounds the center diamond makes it look much larger. In most cases it adds a half-carat or more to the look of your center stone. Choose a halo with larger diamonds to make an even bigger difference or double the halo for double the impact!
4. Wear White
Setting your center diamond in white metal (and halo too if your design has one) helps to boost the apparent size of your diamond. You can choose platinum, white gold or palladium. If you like yellow or rose gold, don’t worry, you can still have the band whatever color of gold you prefer. A classic choice is yellow gold with platinum prongs.
5. Order a Side
Three diamonds look bigger than one, right? Set a diamond on both sides of your center stone and it will instantly appear larger because the design covers more of your finger. If you love halos and can’t decide between a halo and three-stone design, remember you can have both! Add halos to all three diamonds in your three-stone ring for maximum impact.
6. Just a Pinch
This design feature is subtle but it really works. A band that tapers to a point on each side of the center diamond makes the diamond look bigger. Compare a few styles with and without this pinch and you’ll see for yourself. It’s like a corset waist that emphasizes a woman’s curves. As a bonus, it also makes the design beautifully delicate.
