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Jewelry Education

Jewelry Education Center

Buying guides, sizing tools, and the fundamentals of diamonds, precious metals, and gemstones, written by the people who make the rings in New York City’s Diamond District.

Buying Guides

Start here. How to choose a ring, a band, or a matching set, with the trade-offs spelled out.

Jewelry buying guides
Wedding Rings Buying Guide Metals, styles, width and fit, finishes, and what to budget for a wedding band. Explore
Matching Wedding Bands Guide Choosing a pair: degrees of matching, width and metal pairing, and sizing two hands. Explore
USA-Made Gold Wedding Bands Gold karats, colors, fit, customization, pricing, and verifying American manufacturing. Explore
How to Buy an Engagement Ring Budget, center stone, setting style, and metal, in the order the decisions actually come. Explore
Men's Rings Styles, widths, and materials for men's wedding bands and everyday rings. Explore
Promise Rings When to give a promise ring and why, and how it differs from an engagement ring. Explore
Right Hand Rings Why right hand rings became a statement of independence and personal style. Explore
Design Your Own Ring How custom design works, from first sketch to a finished one-of-a-kind ring. Explore

Tools & Care

Sizing, live metal pricing, terminology, and keeping your jewelry looking new.

Ring sizer and measuring tools
How to Measure Your Ring Size Measure at home, or request a free reusable ring sizer by mail. Explore
Ring Size Conversion Chart Convert between US, UK, European and Asian sizes, with diameter and circumference. Explore
Metal Price Calculator Live gold, silver and platinum prices per gram for every karat and purity level. Explore
Jewelry Glossary A comprehensive glossary of the terms used across the jewelry trade. Explore
How to Clean Your Jewelry Clean gold, platinum and diamond jewelry at home in five steps, and what to avoid. Explore

Diamonds

The world of loose diamonds, from cut and clarity to carat weight, color, and certification.

Loose diamonds
diamond 4Cs The 4 Cs of Diamonds An overview of carat, cut, color and clarity, and how they work together. Explore
diamond cut Diamond Cut The most important characteristic when choosing a diamond. Explore
diamond color Diamond Color How to choose the best diamond color for you. Explore
diamond clarity Diamond Clarity Read all about the various diamond clarity grades. Explore
diamond carat Diamond Carat How carat weight affects size, price, and presence on the hand. Explore
diamond shapes Diamond Shapes From round to radiant by way of princess, oval, marquise and other shapes. Explore
lab grown diamonds Lab Grown Diamonds Certified lab grown diamonds with 40-60% savings. Real diamonds, IGI certified. Explore
diamond certificate Diamond Certificates What a grading report tells you, and when buying uncertified makes sense. Explore
Inclusions & Blemishes The internal and external clarity characteristics found in a diamond. Explore
Conflict Free Diamonds How the Kimberley Process works and what conflict free actually guarantees. Explore

Precious Metals

What separates 14K from 18K gold, why platinum costs more, and what white gold really is.

Gold and platinum bars
gold Gold The difference between 10K, 14K, 18K and 24K gold, and what each is good for. Explore
platinum Platinum Why platinum is denser, naturally white, and never needs replating. Explore
palladium Palladium Platinum's lighter sibling: naturally white, hypoallergenic, and easier on the finger. Explore
Gold vs. Platinum Color, weight, durability, and price: an honest comparison for a wedding band. Explore

Gemstones

Sapphires, emeralds, rubies, and how gemstone color, cut and clarity are judged.

Colored gemstones
Sapphire Facts Where sapphires come from, how they got their name, and the colors they come in. Explore
Emerald Facts How hard emeralds are, the shades they occur in, and why they are cut the way they are. Explore
Ruby Facts Where rubies are found, and the anniversaries traditionally marked with them. Explore
Gemstone Color Guide Hue, tone, and saturation, and what makes a gemstone's color valuable. Explore