What Does Solitaire Mean for Diamonds? Classic Engagement Ring Styles

What Does Solitaire Mean for Diamonds?

Put simply, ‘Solitaire’ refers to a single diamond. Usually a round cut, set in jewellery such as a ring, pendant, or earrings, with the aim of showcasing the diamond's beauty and quality. The word is French meaning single, or alone, ironically the opposite of what a diamond solitaire represents; the love and commitment between partners. We’ve put together some frequently asked questions with all you need to know.

When thinking of a solitaire ring, the classic look always comes to mind, a single diamond mounted on a plain band made of precious metal (gold, white gold or platinum), the single diamond is enclosed in a claw setting with either four or six prongs. The classic diamond cut is round, also called the round brilliant, because the round stone is fine tuned to give the most brilliance (the brightness and sparkle of a diamond).

Is a Diamond Solitaire a Real Diamond?

This will vary depending on the shop you buy it from, traditionally solitaires are diamonds, but remember the word only means ‘single’ so any piece of jewellery can be called a solitaire if it has a single stone prominently featured. If it has diamond in the title then yes it should be a real diamond, but double check this with the supplier. It could be a real diamond but have some unnatural enhancements, or it could be a simulated diamond or lab created diamond. Lloyds only use fully natural, earth mined, none enhanced diamonds.

How Many Carat is a Solitaire and How Many Carats is a Good Size?

It's not any one specific size and weight, single diamonds can be very small or very large to the point of being too heavy to wear comfortably, but then you’re talking crazy money for diamonds this large; the sky is the limit.. well, within reason! Small diamonds start from 0.01ct, also called a one pointer which is approximately 1mm - 1.3mm, but this would be very small for a solitaire. One carat diamonds (1.00ct) are relatively large because this is where the price starts to really climb, most people don’t have a diamond of one carat or larger, these are approximately 6.5mm. This doesn’t sound big, but combined with the depth and sitting in it’s setting, this is an impressive sized diamond. Popular sizes are 0.25ct (quarter carat) 0.50ct (half carat) and 0.75ct (three quarter carat). To get a better idea of what carat means and more details about diamonds and their characteristics you can check out our diamond guide here >>

What is the Cost of Solitaire Diamonds?

This can be a complicated question and brings a lot of confusion for first time buyers. We try to take a lot of the headache out of buying diamonds which is why a lot of our jewellery is set with what we feel is the best compromise of diamond size and diamond grade for any given price. Sometimes less choice is better, if you can trust your jeweller to provide the best value for money, you can be free to concentrate more on the style of ring you’d like to go for. Basically, the larger the diamond and the higher the grade, then the higher the price. There are lots of variables, so we specialise in G colour diamonds as we feel this is a great option to have a bright stone without spending unnecessarily on higher grades. We also use a lot of Si clarity grade diamonds as we feel this offer excellent value, being clean to the eye (imperfections in the stone can’t be seen without magnification). For a better understanding of diamond grade you can check out our diamond grading information here >>

For an estimate on what a 0.50ct diamond goes for, we have a price comparison page here showing our half carat solitaire compared to some other high street retailers. You can have a look at our engagement rings here to check other prices. In general, solitaire diamonds are a luxury purchase as they are more expensive than smaller diamonds clustered together. Paying for a large solitaire diamonds can be expensive, and many can’t go for large diamonds, so there are ways to make the overall ring look much larger.

What are Diamond Halo Rings?

This is one of the most popular ways to make your diamond ring look much larger. A halo as we know comes from angels, the ring of light above the head. When referenced in jewellery this refers to a ring of diamonds set around the edge of the centre stone. Solitaires can also be complemented with diamonds set into the band of the ring, so if lots of sparkle is what you’re going for you can find our rings with centre diamonds combined with a halo and a diamond band. There are lots of choiced for your ring style.

We also provide illusion set rings, this is a type of cluster but with faceted claws to give the look of a large single diamonds. These are much cheaper but can still provide a lot of sparkle and be really eye catching pieces.

Is a Solitaire Diamond More Expensive?

Solitaires are more expensive than clusters and illusion set rings because a single diamond is rarer than the equivalent of lots of small diamonds, even if the total carat weight of small stones is higher (assuming the diamonds grade is comparable). For example a single one carat diamond is more valuable than five 0.25ct diamonds combined. Unless the one carat diamond is very low quality and the smaller diamonds are very high quality, but in general you’ll find large solitaires are a luxury purchase commanding high prices.

Is a Solitaire Diamond a Good Investment?

Although a diamond ring is not meant to be sold on, all being well, it’s good to know that your purchase will hold its value over time. Single diamonds don’t go out of style, so in the future even if the ring goes out of style, the diamonds will still hold or even increase in value. Rings with lots of small diamonds will be worth the price of the ring as a whole, the metal of the ring may even be worth more than the diamonds, but solitaires hold much more value for the diamond itself. You might also wonder, are some diamond shapes more expensive than others? Diamond shapes are all generally priced based on the weight and grade, but there are some situations where some shapes might command higher prices, although it doesn’t make such a huge difference that you’d need to worry about it too much, unless buying very high value diamonds for investment purposes only. Some shapes require a larger rough diamond to create the finished cut diamond, so you could pay more even though the finished diamond is the same weight as a different shape you might be looking at. One reason round cut diamonds are a great buy is because you get the least waste, it may only take a 1.20ct rough diamonds to make a perfectly cut 1.00ct diamond, where as emerald cut diamonds can have more wastage, using a 1.40ct diamond to make a 1.00ct finished cut stone. So that 0.20ct waste you’re still paying for even though you don’t see it in the finished ring.

What’s the Best Colour and Clarity for Diamond Solitaires?

There’s two answers to this, because there’s really two questions. 1. What is the highest grade diamond? And 2. What is the best diamond grade for me? The highest grades are easy questions, you just have to look at the diamond grading scales, these were invented by the diamond grading company GIA to simplify the diamonds grading process. The highest colour is D, this represents the complete absence of colour within the stone. This doesn’t give the diamonds more sparkle, it simply means there are less impurities which tint the overall colour which can have a yellow or brownish tint in lower colour grade stones. The highest clarity grade is flawless, this is the complete absence of imperfections in the diamond (also referred to as inclusions).

So would a D colour Flawless diamond be the best choice for you? Generally not. Buying diamonds usually comes down to compromise, if there is no compromise and you want the biggest and highest grade possible then prices can escalate into 5 and 6 figures. Realistically, most people are spending anything from £500 to £5000+in solitaire engagement rings. Most people want to largest diamond for their money, while still maintaining a nice colour with not too many inclusions. We suggest a starting point of G or H colour, SI1 clarity. Price a 0.50ct diamond up in this grade and go from there, if it's more than you wanted to spend, go down slightly in size, maybe a 0.40ct diamonds. If you can stretch the budget further look at larger diamonds. If you’re set on the perfect size diamond and still have budget left over then you could look at increasing the colour grade and/or clarity.

Is it Important to Have a Natural Diamond Solitaire?

There are lots of diamond types on the market, from lab created to real diamond with fillers and laser drilled stones. While there is a market for all, we only deal in natural diamonds with no enhancements. While these are generally the most expensive, we carefully select diamond grades to keep prices low while still providing high quality with bright and clear diamonds.

Top 5 Diamond Solitaire Engagement Rings

1. Diamond Solitaire Engagement Ring 0.25ct. 18k White Gold

Our number one pick is the perfect solitaire as it fits in with so many budgets while still offering high quality. This beautiful diamond engagement ring features a single 0.25 carat round brilliant cut diamond. Featuring a classic four claw setting to get the best view of the solitaire centre stone, set in solid 18k white gold stamped and tested for fineness at the London assay office. This diamond is 100% natural with no unnatural treatments, enhancements or fillers. Delivered free with a luxury gift packaging, authenticity certificate and a full 12 month manufacturer backed guarantee. Also available in yellow gold.

2. Diamond Bezel Set Halo Engagement Ring 0.25ct. 9k White Gold

Our second pic is a twist on the classic solitaire, while still featuring a single centre piece diamond, you’re also getting a diamond halo and diamond set band all at a surprisingly low price. This beautiful diamond engagement ring features a single bezel set round brilliant cut diamond set in solid 9k white gold, also featuring a round cut diamond halo surround with diamonds flowing onto the band.

3. Diamond Solitaire Engagement Ring 1.00ct. 18k Gold

Our number 3 spot is this stunning one carat ring, in the higher end of the budget range this is the perfect engagement ring. Featuring a large full one carat natural diamond set in a modern four claw white gold setting as to not bleed yellow colour into the diamond. The band is solid 18k yellow gold. This style is easily sizable if needed and the perfect ring if you’re lost on what to choose, it’s hard to go wrong with this classic piece.

4. Diamond Solitaire Engagement Ring 0.10ct, 9k White Gold

On the opposite end of the budget this 0.10ct carat ring is one tenth the diamond weight of our number 3 ring, and almost one twentieth of the price. For what it lacks in sheer size this lovely petite rings has all the quality of its big sister. Featuring a bright H colour diamond in Si clarity, this is a beautiful ring for budgets under £500.

5. Diamond Princess Solitaire Engagement Ring 0.70ct. 18k White Gold

Another classic, this time featuring the most popular fancy cut diamond with the prettiest name, the princess diamond. This beautiful diamond engagement ring features a single 0.70ct princess cut square solitaire diamond. Featuring a four claw square setting to get the best view of the centre stone while still giving maximum longevity and security.

View Our Full Selection of Solitaire Rings

You can find our full collection on our website, follow this link to find our selection featuring solitaire rings, halo rings and illusion set rings. We hope we have the perfect engagement ring for you. If you’re looking for something specific just let us know and we will endeavour to source it for you as the best price.