Shopping For A Tennis Chain or Bracelet
Who could resist the bling of a tennis chain or bracelet? All those diamonds dancing bright around your neck and wrist…water! Not to mention tennis bracelets and chains are the most expensive pieces of diamond jewelry made. What should you know before choosing one?
What Is A Tennis Chain & Bracelet?
Let’s start there. The term was coined after Chris Evert, a champion tennis player back in the 80’s, lost her diamond bracelet while playing a match, and stopped the game to look for it. Ever after, the style was referred to as a tennis bracelet.
It’s a bracelet composed of many diamonds encased in separate mountings and strung together to form a bracelet, with a sturdy clasp.
The Diamonds – Color and Clarity
It’s important that the diamonds are the same approximate color. It wouldn’t look good for some of them to be yellowish and some whiter. It really doesn’t matter so much what color you choose, as long as you stick to one.
The metal you choose will make a difference in what color you choose, also. We’ll get to that in a minute.
The clarity of the diamonds doesn’t matter very much, because they are relatively small. You wouldn’t be able to see any flaws anyway. If you want to take a look, though, you could look through a jeweler’s loupe to find them. Of course, if the diamonds are rather large, the clarity may need to be of a higher grade.
You should also inspect the diamonds to see any obvious nicks or cracks. You’d like to stay away from damaged stones.
The Mountings, Links and Clasp
Here’s where you want the diamonds to match the settings. If you choose white gold or platinum, whiter diamonds are in order. If your choice is gold, however, you can safely choose yellower diamonds, as the two will compliment one another.
Also, you will want to make sure that the mountings are firmly holding the diamonds in place. A bezel, or full metal enclosure, is recommended, although 4-prong mounting can be just as secure.
The links between each diamond should also be very robust, to avoid breaking the jewelry.
The clasp should be tested to determine whether it is sturdy and functional.
You will also want to check the flexibility of the bracelet. A good one should dangle easily and not kink or twist.
Now that you know how to shop for a diamond tennis bracelet or chain, we hope it will give you many years of enjoyment.
