Grading Your Diamond - The Four C's

Diamonds are extremely valuable, in fact are the most valuable gemstone today though there is very great variation in the prices which are commanded by different stones. In order to understand what determines the value of a diamond you must first learn how diamond quality is assessed and so equip yourself with the knowledge to know what makes a good buy and what you should be looking to avoid when you are buying a diamond ring or jewelry yourself.

The "Four C's" are the criteria by which a diamond is graded - they are:

· Cut

· Clarity

· Color

· Carat (or weight)

You should know that a diamond fresh from the mine looks like any pebble you may find on the beach; they are completely nondescript and look just like any other piece of rock except, once cut and polished the fire and brilliance within is brought forth.

The cut and polish process is the first stage of creating your diamond after it has been extracted (it takes about 250 tons of ore to produce one carat of diamond), the cut itself is performed so as much of the diamond is preserved as possible (i.e. keeps the weight as high as possible and minimizes any waste) but more importantly, how the cuts are made will determine how much light will enter and be internally reflected within the diamond itself. It is this ability to internally reflect light before it re-emerges from the stone which adds to the brilliance and fire of the diamond's appearance. The wrong cuts and the light will not reflect internally and so it will diminish in appearance; the right cuts and the fire and brilliance will be amplified. Cutting and polishing is understandably, a much sought after skill and requires a great deal of artistry and superb craftsmanship.

A carat is a measure of the weight of a diamond; one carat is equal to 0.2 grams but the term actually derives from the use of carob seeds to balance the scales when weighing a diamond; one carob seed was one carat. In practice, jewelers use carats and a point scale so 50 points is equal to half a carat. You must be aware that a carat is a measure of weight and not size - a diamond may appear larger due to how it is cut, but it may weigh less than another diamond which has a different cut. Keep this in mind; a carat is a measure of weight and not size or shape.

Diamonds are formed about 50 miles or more below the surface of the earth where the pressures are so intense that the carbon atoms which make up diamonds are compressed into a particular atomic formation. This is the structure which makes a diamond possess such qualities as very high strength and transparency. While the diamonds are forming in the earth, they may also include flaws created by bubbles of gas, inclusion of foreign matter, scratches and internal faults along the bonds between the lattice-work of carbon atoms. Sometimes these flaws are visible to the naked eye, sometimes not while a flaw may be located closer to the diamond's visible surface or buried deep within the body of the stone. The more visible flaws a diamond possesses the less valuable it is because of the less clarity it has.

Color is actually a misnomer - diamonds with no coloring at all are sought after as the absence of color increases the ability for a diamond to appear on fire; a diamond may have a yellow hue which dulls the brilliance of the stone. In this instance, the less color a diamond possess the more valuable it is though there are some pink and blue diamond stones which are highly prized because they are so very rare.

By Lawrence Reaves

Why Choose Brilliant Cut Diamonds For Your Diamond Jewelry?

Round brilliant cut diamonds present a lot of possibilities when it comes to jewelry design and jewelry making. Since these are usually the most common diamond cut around, they can easily be set in many different kinds of jewelry settings. You can see why they are the easiest to set as well as why they are one of the most popular diamond.

Most Number of Jewelry Have Round Brilliant Cut Diamonds

There are a lot of jewelry types that have diamonds as the gem of choice in them, and the usual cut that you can find being used in these jewelry are often brilliant cut diamonds. The reason behind this choice might be because of the way that these diamonds are easily cut from raw stone or because of the wide range of possibilities that round cut diamonds present when being used in jewelry making.

The round cut diamonds being used in jewelry may be the central stone of the piece or may be the surrounding smaller stones that help make the piece stand out. These diamonds may also be used in combination with other popular diamond cuts, like the oval cut or the pear shaped cut, in jewelry designs that combine the brilliance of the round diamond and the unique shapes of the other cuts.

Another reason why these diamonds are often the kinds of diamonds that are being cut out of raw diamonds is because of the brilliance and sparkle that the symmetrical shape of the round cut diamond has. It also produces less waste when cut in this manner and is the classiest and most elegant of all diamond cuts. You can have these diamonds alone on any piece of jewelry and still have it look elegant and precious due to its simplicity.

The Right Cut for Your Precious Round Brilliant Cut Diamonds

These round brilliant cut diamonds are often chosen for jewelry like engagement rings, earrings, and bracelets due to the fire that these stones emit. The fire that these diamonds emit is often the product of superior craftsmanship by the gem cutter who crafted the stone from its raw form into the round gemstone you now see.

A diamond's cut determines the way it will look in jewelry and how it will sparkle and shine. If the cut is too shallow, the diamond tends to lose the light through its sides, making it look dull and lackluster. If a diamond's cut is too deep, the light simply travels through it, making the stone look dark and dead.

The right cut for diamonds-or for any diamond, for that matter-should be one that lets natural light or any light bounce back at the person looking at the gemstone. The best cut that does this for round brilliant-cut diamonds is usually the very rare ideal cut. This kind of a cut helps the stone exude the most brilliance and fire by reflecting all of the light it captures back out.

This is a pretty difficult kind of cut to find and can cost a lot due to the difficulty in crafting it. The next best cut for round brilliant cut diamonds is the premium cut that reflects majority of the light that the diamond absorbs back out at you. This costs slightly lesser than the ideal cut but is the most recommended by jewelers as the next best choice for a diamond cut.

By Clara Ghomes

Choosing A Diamond With 4 Cs

Diamonds – girls’ best friend! Why do girls love diamonds? Why are they so precious? Is it because of their beauty and exquisiteness? Talk about buying. Purchasing a diamond can test the nerves of even the most astute buyer - what do you look for? What do the terms mean? What makes one diamond worth more than another?

When you get in the diamond shop and attempt to buy one, but do not know what the different between this one and that one. Even though those two have the same size and carat, the price can be completely different. Why? Here is a simple guide to the essentials of diamond grading.

Understanding these terms will help you discuss with the dealer the features most important to you, ensuring you get the very best diamond for your money. Diamond appraisers look for four qualities in a diamond when discerning its value. Commonly called the '4 Cs' they are: Cut, Clarity, Carat and Color.

CUT

There are 2 big aspects of CUT.

1. Quality of cut - affecting the brilliance of the diamond - the other refers to the actual shape of the diamond.

2. Shape - Diamonds are available in many shapes. Some of the more common are; round, oval, pear (teardrop shaped), heart, princess (square shaped), Emerald (rectangular shaped), marquise (football shaped) and round. Of all the shapes available, round diamonds are the shape most capable of being cut to exude the greatest brilliance. The brilliance is determined by the ability of the diamond to reflect light. A quality cut diamond will have facets angled to reflect the greatest amount of light. Beware of diamonds cut to maintain a higher carat weight while sacrificing the cutting of a good angle as this will dramatically reduce the brilliance.

CLARITY

Diamonds from natural sources are subject to individual flaws including trace minerals and scratches. A diamond without such characteristics is called flawless and is the rarest kind. While these flaws are often not visible to the naked eye, they affect the light reflecting qualities of the diamond which affects the overall brilliance.

Diamond clarity is classified as follows: Flawless, IF, VVS1, VVS2, VS1, VS2, SI1, SI2, SI3, I1, I2 and I3.

CARAT

Carat is the measurement of the weight of a diamond. One carat may also be referred to as '100 points'. This means that a half carat would be listed as '50 points' and so on.

The larger a diamond is the more costly it becomes. Since the larger diamonds are much rarer the cost will go up significantly with each increase in size. A one carat diamond will be more than just double the cost of a half carat, however, a ring with multiple diamonds that have a combined weight of one carat will be cheaper than a single stone of that weight.

COLOR

There are many diamond colors which called fancy diamonds. But the mostly found diamonds will be rated on an alphabetical scale from D to Z. A typical 'white' diamond should be as colorless as possible - a rating of 'D' being the rarest and most desirable. When choosing a colorless diamond it is best to stay within the D-J range or the diamond will have a yellow cast which lessens the value. The less natural color the diamond has the more colors will appear in the flashes reflected in the prism.

'Fancy' diamonds (diamonds with a rating over Z) come in a variety of shades and include some famous diamonds such as the Blue Hope diamond.

When decide to buy a diamond, please keep in mind of these 4 Cs as a factor of buying consideration. It takes years to gain a specialty in this area. Therefore, at least you should point out whether which features are of greatest importance to you and with a little knowledge select the diamond that will hold the greatest value and sentiment for your budget.

By George Williams