Diamond Education

The 4 C's & Beyond - A Diamond Purchaser's Guide

With potentially millions of engagement ring styles & diamonds to choose from, where do you start? Right here, with us. Our diamond specialists have been helping couples find the perfect ring for over 100 years Before we begin to tackle the tough questions, it’s important to remember that not all diamonds are created equal.

Diamond Cut

Diamond Cut

The cut is the most important factor in determining a diamond’s brilliance & beauty. The better the cut, the more your diamond will sparkle. Small dimensional differences have a dramatic effect on a diamond’s reflection of light. Even if a diamond has perfect clarity and color grade, if it has a poor cut, it may appear dull.

Diamond Color

Diamond color is graded by letter, as shown below.
The higher the color (colorless), the more exclusive and rare the diamond becomes.

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D-F Colorless

The rarest and most valuable diamonds. Virtually no color when viewed by a gemologist.

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G-J Nearly Colorless

Appear colorless, with only a slight hint of color visible under close inspection on a white background.

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K-M Faint Yellow

Faint Yellow Has a very faint yellow tone to them, but well-cut diamonds will still constrain the brilliance and fire that makes them beautiful and unique.

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N-R Very Light Yellow

Very Light Yellow Have a very light tone to them, but will still contain the brilliance and fire that make them beautiful and unique.

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S-Z Light Yellow

Have a light tone to them, but will still contain the brilliance and fire that make them beautiful and unique.

Diamond Clarity

The clarity of a diamond is determined by the quantity & degree of internal birthmarks, called inclusions.
The better the clarity (Flawless, VVS) the more exclusive and rare the diamond becomes.

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F & IF - Flawless/Internally Flawless

No inclusions are visible to an experienced gemologist using 10X magnification.

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VVS1 & VVS2 - Very Very Slightly Included

Inclusions are minor and difficult for even a trained gemologist to see using 10X magnification.

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VS1 & VS2 - Very Slightly Included

Inclusions are somewhat difficult to see with a trained eye & very difficult to see with an untrained eye under 10X magnification.

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SI1 & SI2 - Slightly Included

It contains inclusions that are noticeable using 10X magnification & may be visible with the unaided eye.

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I1 - Included

It contains inclusions that are easily visible under 10X magnification & may affect transparency & brilliance.

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I2 & I3 - Included

Inclusions are easily seen with the unaided eye & will effect transparency & brilliance.

Diamond Carat Weight

Carat is the measurement diamond weight. 1.00 carat = .20 grams. Carats are then divided into 100 points. So a quarter-carat has 25 points and is written as 0.25 carats, or ¼ carat. Because of its rarity, one larger diamond is more valuable than a combination of small diamonds. Diamonds of the same weight can vary significantly in value depending on their color, clarity & cut.

Diamond Certificates & Diamond Grading

A certificate gives you a detailed scientific analysis of your diamond which is done by an impartial gemological institution, not the grading of the seller.

Many different gemological labs are recognized and respected in the jewelry industry such as GIA (Gemological Institute of America), IGI (International Gemological Institute), GSI (Gemological Science International), EGL USA (Gemological Laboratory), and AGS (American Gem Society).

Diamond Certificates vary greatly in terms of accuracy & should ONLY be used as a reference when comparing various diamonds & gems.

Since grading is heavily based on opinion, various certificates can differ greatly on what grades a diamond should receive.

Our Policy on Conflict Diamonds

Please be advised that we fully support a policy of not purchasing diamonds illicitly seized and sold by rebel forces.

Since it is not currently possible for retail jewelers to verify the country of origin of diamonds, we work closely with our diamond suppliers to ensure that they do not knowingly purchase diamonds from conflict areas.

Accordingly, we ask them to commit that all diamonds sent to us have been purchased from legitimate sources not involved in funding conflict and compliance with United Nations Resolutions.

Treatment

 

Fracture Filling: Utilizes a glass-like material to "fill" a diamond to improve a stone's appearance by up to two clarity grades. Not a permanent enhancement. Full disclosure to the consumer required.

Laser Drilling: A permanent enhancement process to remove the visibility of natural carbon inclusions using a laser to drill tiny holes (thinner than a hair) in the stone creating channels to melt or dissolve them.

Color Enhanced/Coating: Applies a thin layer of material to all or part of a diamond surface, to either mask underlying color or enhance a desirable color.

Download Our Diamond Buying Guide

 

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