What You Should Know About Buying Diamonds

There are 4 C's that you should be familiar with prior to purchasing your loose diamond: Carats Clarity Color Cut By educating yourself in the 4 C's before making your purchase, you will get more bang for your buck! This means better quality for your money invested. Unless your pockets are lined with gold, it is important to decide which of the 4 C's is most significant to you. In doing so, you will be better equipped to decide if you would like a larger diamond with less brilliance or a smaller one with more flare. A brief description of the 4 C's: Let's touch on a basic meaning of the 4 C's. Carats - Diamond Carat refers to the weight of diamonds. Clarity - Diamond Clarity measures the amount of inclusions {inclusions interfere with the light passing through and therefore lowers the brilliance + fire}. Color - Diamond Color Grading evaluates the whiteness of loose diamonds {the more yellow, the less its value}. Cut - Diamond Cut measures the quality, not shape of the diamonds {a better cut results in more sparkle - simple as that}. Let's Dig a Little Deeper: CARATS: All loose diamonds are measured by carat weight. Normally, people want the largest diamond they can get. But technically, larger sized diamonds usually suffer in quality, such as a loss in brilliance. In order to cut loose diamonds at the best angles to produce the most fire, much of the original diamond rough is lost; thereby, resulting in a great decrease in the diamond's carat weight. There are 100 points to a carat and a carat equals 1/5 of a gram. Don't be fooled into buying loose diamonds that are said to be .25 points. They are NOT a quarter of a carat, and will be so small that they should only be used as accents to other stones or the gold itself. Since larger loose diamonds are more rare, the price of carats per gram rises dramatically at an exponential rate. A one carat diamond is worth more than several diamonds that measure a carat in total weight. CLARITY: Clarity refers to the clearness or purity of a diamond. Very rarely will one find perfect loose diamonds that are clear and clean of imperfections. When buying diamond jewelry, look for a clear diamond. Inclusions can sometimes be minor if not seen by the naked eye. When looking at clarity, look for a diamond that is from Flawless to Very Slightly Included; those are stones that look clear to the naked eye. There are two Clarity grading scales done by the American Gem Society Laboratories {AGSL} and Gemological Institute of America {GIA}. The AGSL scale is from 0 to 10, with 0 being flawless. The GIA scale has a scale that grades diamonds from Flawless to Imperfect {FL to I3}. GIA Clarity Scale: Flawless {FL} and Internally Flawless {IF} diamonds are virtually flawless with no natural inclusions seen under 10x magnification. These diamonds are extremely rare. Very Very Slightly Included {VVS1 and VVS2} diamonds have inclusions that are difficult to see under 10x magnification. They have excellent quality. It is extremely difficult to see, only visible from the pavilion, or have small and shallow inclusions that could be removed with minor polishing. Very Slightly Included {VS1 and VS2} diamonds have inclusions that are difficult to see with the naked eye. They are less expensive than VVS1 and VVS2. Inclusions in VS1 are difficult to see and somewhat easier to see in VS2 diamonds. Slightly Included {SI1 and SI2} have inclusions that are visible under 10x magnification and may be seen with the naked eye. They are a good value because their brilliance is still high but their prices are more affordable. Imperfect {I1, I2 and I3} diamonds contain inclusions that are obvious under 10x magnification and can easily been seen under the naked eye. These diamond gradings don't have as much sparkle to the naked eye. COLOR: Loose diamonds come in varying colors from yellow to light brown. Other colors, such as pink and black, are known as fancy diamonds and are not included in this color scale. The favorite color grading is colorless which is extremely rare. Color grading for diamonds has letter grades from D to Z. White Diamond Color Scale: D is colorless and extremely rare. E is colorless with trace color only uncovered by an expert gemologist. F is colorless with a little bit more trace color than E, but still only detected by an expert gemologist. G-H are near colorless, but excellent value. I-J are near colorless, color is slightly detected. K-Z loose diamonds that have a faint yellow to light yellow color. The best value diamonds are G-I; however, look at grades D-H when looking for an engagement ring diamond. When buying loose diamonds for engagement rings or wedding rings, remember to start off with a budget. There is a modern convention that the engagement ring should have a value equal to approximately two month's salary. Once you have established a budget, you can find out more information on the type of loose diamond you want. CUT: Popular shapes for a center diamond stone are emerald, heart, marquise, oval, pear, princess, radiant and round. The most traditional and popular shape is a round diamond. A round diamond shows the most brilliance and sparkle while also hiding imperfections because of its cut and shape. The other diamond shapes are sometimes more expensive because of the difficulty of cutting a diamond into various shapes. When choosing a diamond shape, think of her style and preferences. Does she like the traditional? If so, then a round diamond solitaire ring would be a good style for her. Is she modern and prefers the more trendy styles? A princess or emerald diamond shape may be her favorite. Speak to her friends and do a bit of investigating; it's possible she may already have an ideal diamond ring in mind. Study the 4 C's - Cut, Clarity, Color and Carats, to be better informed. The most important C is the cut. Loose diamonds are the earth's strongest material, but a single hard hit could cause it to chip. If you keep them away from heavy activity, the diamonds should last a lifetime. To clean diamonds and diamond jewelry, use water and a little bit of ammonia with a gentle brush while being careful of the metal. Keep diamonds away from lotion, perspiration and other household cleaners. Those items can dull the surface of the stones. Store your diamond jewelry separated with paper or jewelry bags so they do not scratch or dull each other. It's wise to keep the diamonds in their original velvet boxes.