If you have a sparkly engagement ring, you know that isn’t a bad thing. However, the ring’s scintillation may leave you wondering exactly why it shines so bright.
Your engagement ring is probably so sparkly because of your diamond cut. It may also be sparkly if it has a good color grade, the ideal depth, and the right number of facets. Diamonds also tend to look their best when they are well-made by reputable jewelers.
Let’s break down the reasons why your engagement ring is so sparkly, including how you can maintain its shine.
1. Your Engagement Ring Is the Ideal Diamond Cut
One of the biggest contributing factors to how sparkly your engagement ring appears is the cut of the diamond.
While there are many reasons to choose different diamond cuts, everybody has their preferences, and you should always choose the cut you like the most. However, we can’t deny that certain cuts just tend to shine brighter than others.
For instance, if you have a round diamond cut, it will not disappoint with the sparkle it provides, as it’s the shiniest cut out there. However, it’s also one of the most expensive, so it may not be an option for everyone.
The princess cut diamond is a very popular option due to its more reasonable price. With this cut, you may get a lot of shine, as it tends to have a large surface area. Additionally, you generally get a similar sparkle with a princess cut as you get with a round cut, depending on the quality of the diamond you can afford.
Oval cut diamonds are also a great choice, as they’re the most similar to round cuts in shine and shape. Heart and pear shapes can also offer a similar shine without the steep price of a round cut diamond.
Why Do Some Diamonds Not Sparkle?
Some diamonds don’t sparkle as much because they don’t have the ideal cut to reflect light, which is what makes them shine. Some cuts are more sparkly than others, although a poorly cut diamond won’t sparkle as much, no matter how it’s cut.
Dull diamonds won’t cost nearly as much as sparkly ones, so it means you received a high-quality cut with your engagement ring if it’s so sparkly.
2. Your Engagement Ring Has a Good Diamond Color Grade
Most people don’t understand that there are different diamond color variations to choose from, and some sparkle more than others. While the colors are rarely noticeable by the naked eye, they can really come across in the shine.
Colorless diamonds reflect white light, while other colors don’t reflect white as much. The level of shine will also change based on the grade, so it’s important to know the color diamond you want and compare it to similar grades.
The diamond color is measured by grades, and the shiniest diamonds typically have less color. When looking at the scale of diamond colors, a D-grade diamond will give you the best possible shine.
If you don’t know the grade of the diamond in your ring, you may be able to tell just by looking at it. A lot of shine can indicate that your diamond is a higher grade, which is common in D, E, and F grades.
The level of sparkle won’t noticeably start declining until you get to J or K-grade diamonds, but even then, you might not notice the difference unless you compare them side-by-side. However, once you get to the much lower grades, you’ll probably start to see the contrast in shine.
So, even if your ring is not the best possible grade, as most can’t afford the absolute best, you may still notice its impressive shine, which indicates a very good grade.
3. Your Engagement Ring Has the Ideal Diamond Depth
Not only does the cut of the diamond make a significant difference in how much it sparkles, but the depth does as well. The depth can change how it reflects light, so the bigger the size is not always better.
If the diamond is too deep, it will not be able to reflect light as effectively as some other depths. This means that larger diamonds can absorb light rather than reflect it, which will cause the diamond to shine less. The same thing happens with very shallow-cut diamonds, as they have less space for the light to reflect and produce sparkle.
That means the sparkliest diamonds fall somewhere in between. Some shallowness is welcome in diamond cuts because it allows the light to reflect. So, if your engagement ring sparkles a lot, it is probably an ideal cut, which is not too deep or shallow.
What Is the Ideal Diamond Depth?
Jewelers measure the depth of diamonds as a percentage. Essentially, the depth is the distance between the top of the diamond and its point. You can find the depth percentage by dividing the diamond’s depth by its width.
For example, a diamond 2 mm (0.08 in) tall and 4 mm (0.16 in) wide would have a depth of 50%. However, a deeper diamond isn’t always better, especially when it comes to creating sparkles.
The ideal diamond depth is between 62.9% and 59.5%. At that level, your diamond will have the most amount of sparkles. However, your diamond can go slightly above or below that range and still show a ton of shine.
The diamond’s depth impacts the quality of the cut overall, changing its grade. So, it can also impact the price of the engagement ring, especially if it’s a round cut diamond.
4. Your Engagement Ring Has Enough Diamond Facets
Facets play a vital role in a diamond’s sparkle and overall presentation. They’re the flat surfaces in the diamond that are arranged in a geometric pattern that allows light to reflect, creating a sparkle effect. They act as mirrors, allowing the light to bounce around inside the gem.
You can see the facets in action when you move the diamond around, as the light refracts from different angles. A very sparkly ring may generally mean that the facets interact effectively with the light and each other. Correctly placed facets will lead to diamonds that sparkle the brightest.
The average number of facets recommended for maximum sparkle is 58 facets. Fewer than that means you’ll probably get a little less shine, but you won’t notice too much of a difference until it gets significantly lower.
Round cut diamonds tend to have 57 or 58 facets, which is another reason why they’re the sparkliest. However, overdoing the number of facets can negatively impact the sparkle that you can see, so if your ring has a lot of shine to it, you probably have close to the right amount in your diamond.
5. Your Engagement Ring Is Well-Made
If your engagement ring is so sparkly, it usually means that it is a well-made piece. Good quality diamonds that are well-cut tend to shine very distinctly compared to other cheaper alternatives.
A good cut will shine better than a poor cut, even if the poorly cut diamond is worth more carats. So, looking for sparkly diamonds can help you find ones that are very well-made. It’s a sign that it came from a talented jeweler.
Jewelers must use all the right tools to make an engagement ring as shiny as possible. If you have a very sparkly ring that seems to reflect light, it means that it has many facets, and the jeweler made it very well.
How To Make Your Engagement Ring Shine
If your engagement ring could use some more shine, here are some ways to care for it to get it as sparkly as possible.
Clean Your Engagement Ring Regularly
If you struggle to keep your engagement ring sparkly, consider cleaning it more often. Dust and dirt can prevent light from reaching the ring to project that shine you love, so keeping it consistently clean can help.
You only need gentle dish soap and warm water to clean your ring. Mix these in a bowl and let the ring soak for about 30 minutes.
Dish soap has a unique ability to separate dirt and grease from surfaces gently and can get the job done quickly. Many dish soaps contain oil that pulls the dirt from the surface and carries it off, which prevents it from moving around to other surfaces of your ring.
Scrub Using a Soft Clean Brush
If a weekly soaking isn’t getting your ring as clean as you want, you can scrub it with a soft brush. For engagement rings, I recommend using a new, soft toothbrush that will allow you to scrub off any dirt that may prevent a good shine without harming your ring.
Be careful not to use anything too harsh to brush your ring, as it may create scratches on the diamond or band and permanently damage it.
Avoid Using Harmful Cleansers
You should avoid using harsh chemicals to clean your ring. While it may seem like a good idea to get a really deep clean, you are very likely to damage it since chlorine and detergents can slowly erode the polish of your ring over time.
Bleach is another cleaner that most people wouldn’t allow anywhere near their rings. Solutions with alcohol, such as hand sanitizers, and anything that contains salt may also damage your ring, so avoid them at all costs.
Jewelers will warn you to remove your ring when cleaning or cover it with a glove so it doesn’t come in contact with potentially harmful cleaners.
Wipe Clean With a Cloth
If soaking your ring doesn’t quite get it shiny again and you aren’t using harsh chemicals to clean it, consider using a cloth to wipe it clean regularly. This works great in combination with the dish soap and water mixture, and after the ring soaks, you can wipe off any remaining dirt with a clean cloth.
However, you can also use this method for spot treatment between washes. While you should wash your ring about once a week, keeping a cloth close by can help you keep the ring shiny even on the go. Similar to wiping your glasses clean throughout the day, doing this can improve the appearance of your ring and prevent dirt from sticking to it.
Have a Professional Clean It
A professional jeweler will have access to more cleaning tools and equipment to get better results. If your ring just isn’t sparkling like it used to, they can steam clean and polish it for you. While cleaning, many jewelers will also offer maintenance checks and to make repairs to the ring.
Overall, you’ll want to have a professional do the cleaning if you aren’t feeling confident in doing it yourself. You wouldn’t want to chip or permanently damage the ring in any way.
It’s usually best to have a professional take a look at your engagement ring at least once or twice a year.
Are Diamonds Supposed To Be Sparkly?
Diamonds cut for rings are supposed to be sparkly, and a talented jeweler can make a diamond extremely sparkly. Generally, the more shine it has, the better the quality of the diamond. Clean diamonds also shine more, so it’s well taken care of.
When you look closely at a diamond, you’ll notice that it looks white inside. A real diamond reflects rainbow light onto other surfaces, while a fake one reflects light inside the gem. So, a real diamond is much more sparkly than a fake one. A better-made diamond will also have more sparkle to it than a crudely cut one.
Plus, sparkly diamonds are cleaner and better maintained than dull ones. For instance, you can clean your engagement ring to make it shine brighter. If you let it go without cleaning for too long, it will become dull. Many people take that as a sign it’s time to clean and polish their diamond ring.
So, having a shiny, sparkly diamond can mean you’re taking good care of your engagement ring.
