Valentine’s weekend: Advice to make it special
If you are thinking of buying Diamonds this weekend, be it an engagement ring, Diamond stud earrings or a special diamond gift, here are six top tips to assist you from Precious
1 Four C’s Tip
We talk a lot about Diamonds 
and when we talk, we talk about the four C’s:
Carat – the weight of the Diamond
Clarity – the purity of the diamond (the less inclusions/birthmarks the better)
Colour – A white Diamond is measured by how colourless it is
Cut – How perfectly the Diamond has been crafted
Tip ..ask to be shown the differences in the four C’s with each Diamond you view.
2 Certified Tip
If you are looking at a diamond, regardless of shape, over half a carat in weight, you should ask for its certificate or grading report. This will confirm that it is a natural diamond and confirm the four C’s.
Tip .. Better certs are: AGS; GIA; HRD
3 Cut Tip
I am regularly asked which is the most important of the four C’s … if you would like a Diamond that really sparkles, invest in a Diamond that is of higher cut quality, ask to be shown the difference, once shown never forgotten
Tip .. Higher cut quality gives Fire Brilliance and Scintillation
4 Valuation Tip
It is important to have your Diamond jewellery valued for insurance purposes, and insured on your house contents as an all risks item. I recommend this guy: David Dupuy of Irish Jewellery Valuations www.IrishValuations.com - Dublin based, good guy, reasonable, and comprehensive.
Tip: Have your Diamond jewellery valued
5 Daylight Tip
It is unlikely you will be allowed run out the door with a handful of rocks – all jewellers have daylight lamps which show you how your Diamond will perform in broad daylight, this is how Diamonds are graded.
Tip: Ask to see Diamonds under daylight conditions.
6 Enjoy!
Diamond buying is fun, you may be treated to champagne; chocolates; cola bottles as you peruse the selections on offer. Enjoy, take your time, try on everything, ask questions and fall in love, who knows, we might even see you in Precious!
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There is no doubt that love was in the air in February.
In Ireland and Internationally I am convinced that this year has surpassed many for proposals,
and Mike Conrie’s proposal to actress and singer Hilary Duff raised the bar.
Media reports suggest the diamond engagement ring Mike proposed with
is set with a Diamond that weighs between 7 and 14 carats,
and is either a princess, cushion, or radiant cut. A ‘rock’ by any standards.
Here is a picture of the ring on her finger
Hilary Duff's engagement ring - what size is the Diamond?!
Here is a picture of a Princess Cut Diamond
Princess cut diamond cut to perfection
Here is a picture of a Cushion cut Diamond
A natural diamond cut in Cushion style
and here is a picture of a Radiant cut Diamond
Radiant cut
while Princesses are square, Cushions and Radiants can both vary from square to rectangular (with curved edges).
Here is a competition for anyone interested … which is it? Princess Cushion or Radiant?
and anyone reading this with Hilary’s number – let her know she needs more depth in the band under her finger to balance the weight of the diamond. We would be delighted to carry out this alteration for her
Eoin
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They say good things come in threes.
And Billy Demong confirmed this when, after winning both gold and silver medals at the Winter Olympics this week, he proposed to his girlfriend Katy Koczynski in Vancouver. She said Yes.
Following tradition Billy got down on bended knee, but in this instance Katy was proposed to in front of Olympians, not a bad story to pass on to the grandchildren!
Read the full story here:
and for those of you considering the same move, minus medals, there are some tips on the Valentines page:
www.Precious.ie/valentines
Eoin
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Christmas is a great time for getting engaged, and many are surprise engagements.
Before you dust off the knee pads, here is advice on choosing the ring and choosing the diamond.
I have placed #NB before some of my points below, this is to signify ‘Nerdy Bits’ if you are looking for a quick read skip the #NB’s
Which Ring?
One of the most popular designs of all time is the ‘four claw round solitaire’ This is a very pure design with the eye being drawn to the Diamond. #NB The Diamond should be set at the correct height, not too high as to catch in clothes, not too low as to be hidden
Round Brilliant cut certified Diamond set within a Platinum four claw ring
Which metal?
Platinum is the finest metal an engagement ring can be crafted in. It is a naturally white metal, it is very strong (dense), it is incredibly rare, it has the highest polish of all the precious metals and most importantly it wears much better than gold or any other precious metal.
Which Diamond?
Round diamonds have the most sparkle. Fact. No contest. And fine cut round diamonds have the most sparkle of rounds. #NB If we took a poll of 1000 diamond rings set with round diamonds in Ireland, less than 10 would have the highest cut quality certified.
Only choose certified Diamonds. if you are planning on choosing a diamond over half a carat in weight it should be accompanied by a Diamond Grading Report or certificate. #NB the Diamond Grading report (Certificate) states the Diamonds characteristics, otherwise known as the four C’s
The Four C’s – whats important?
Diamond Colour: For colourless Diamonds only choose white: H or better
Diamond Clarity: No naked eye inclusions on a good certificate Si1 or better
Diamond Carat: Carat means how big the Diamond is, so of course the only restriction here is budget!
Diamond Cut: This is the most important of the four C’s, the only C that is up to quality. Cut determines sparkle. The more time and effort a Diamond cutter has placed in a particular Diamond, the more fire; brilliance and scintillation we will see in the Diamond.
If you are looking at rings in a retail store or with a Diamond specialist, ask to see one each of D colour and H colour certified Diamonds under natural light, and look at the other Diamonds presented, in comparison to these.
Proxy ring
An alternative to proposing with an engagement ring is to propose with a proxy design – deliberately not the engagement ring, this gives your partner full artistic licence when choosing or designing!
Lifetime warranty
You should receive a lifetime warranty with the ring – entitling you to bring in the ring at least once every year for a complimentary checkup.
Valuation
The ring should be valued by an independent valuer like David Dupuy of IrishValuations.com and it should be insured - it gives great peace of mind to have your ring insured as an all-risks item on your house contents.
Budget
It is totally up to yourself how much to spend – there is a Diamond to fit every pocket, it may be worthwhile looking at what your partners colleagues are wearing, the jewellery trade would like you to spend three months salary, I say why not sell the house too (though in Ireland now these may be similar )
Finger size
Finger size – this can easily be changed after the event, if it is possible to borrow a ring and have it checked it will give an indication. #NB finger size changes with weather temperature. On a cold day a ring will be loose which on a hot day may feel tight. In Ireland as we have the four seasons many days it is worthwhile taking time to judge final finger size – as much as a week of trial – after the proposal.
Exchange
One final point is to have a written guarantee from your jeweller or Diamond Specialist so that if your partner would like another design, your ring can be exchanged in full.
In conclusion best of luck you have just entered a whole new world!
Eoin
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So, what do RTE, Diamonds, service, and Dublin traffic have in common?….
Last night was a big night for Precious, being featured on RTE1’s 7pm Capital D programme, very exciting we were twittering and texting in anticipation.
Then, I got a call from a client at 5pm … could she pop her ring in to be polished … this evening … as she had a party coming up …. what to do, what to do? service won, I waited, I even smiled!
Then dashed out the door to be faced with Dublin traffic! at 6.50pm I made the decision to park (read abandon) the car and run to the nearest televison, tempted to knock on a random front door but how to explain?! I ran into a hotel lobby instead, which in itself was quite comical as halfway through our section the porter turned down the sound, I just couldn’t bring myself to say “mister, I’m on the telly”
Here is the link to the full programme, we are after Claudia Boyle the beautiful opera singer. http://www.rte.ie/player/#v=1057789
First up Claire Boyles treated us to opera .. what an act to follow! Then Precious – Trish, looking spectacular as always sporting our three row Diamond ring, then Diamonds, engagement rings and Diamond Nights!
I was delighted with the edit, and very amused by some of the tweets and texts (yes: we do let people examine loose diamonds, no: fake tan was not tempting). Micheal the cameraman and John Kilraine came with a macro lens to capture the fire (the colours bouncing out of precision cut diamonds) and scintillation (the sparks flashing from the edges of the facets of precision cut Diamonds), I was amazed how clear this came out on screen as I have found it difficult to show a Diamonds life/beauty with a static lens … I think Fred from Channelship is right … the future of the web is in video.
the ring to be polished
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Welcome to my blog. After much nudging and persuading by esteemed bloggers and social media gurus (Damien Mulley, Brian Honan, Ian Cleary, Fred from Channelship … the list goes on), I have finally succumbed and started to write a blog. It’ll be all about Diamonds. I’m passionate about Diamonds.
I come from
Diamond stock, my father established his first workshop in Dublin in 1958 and was a former Chairman of the Federation of Jewellery Manufacturers of Ireland. I have spent years searching for the finest cut quality diamonds and I’m thrilled to be working with them on a daily basis.
To be honest I’m a bit of a Diamond nerd but I’ll try my best to not get all nerdy on you. The best part of what I do is to design a ring that reflects a very significant time in someone’s life. With the couple involved we create the ring of their dreams – and often it lives in my dreams too while I’m designing it! Designing rings and sourcing Diamonds fascinates me. Truth is I get a little obsessed with ring design, I always think – how can I make this unique and personalise the ring?
A design crafted to reflect the scintillation of a radiant diamond
A client requested a radiant cut diamond, and I found a Diamond cutter with a really spectacular Radiant, so I designed the ring in platinum around the stone, sounds obvious but in this case the head, the shoulders, the band, each part of the ring reflected the radiant design – great fun? Yes! Obsessive compulsive? Perhaps!
Hopefully my readers and the aforementioned social media gurus will read and enjoy my Diamond musings. All comments are gratefully accepted.
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Hello everyone, welcome to our new website and blog!
Here we will bring you the latest news and views from the diamond industry, keep you informed, and give you the inside track on how and where to get the best bang for your buck.
To get started, check out our free guide to diamond buying!
Eoin & the Precious team.
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