DIAMOND GUIDE

This Diamond Guide defines the seven most essential characteristics of Gemstone along with tips for its care. By understanding these characteristics, you’ll be able to make a conscious decision when purchasing a gem or that gemstone engagement ring you were eyeing.

  1. Cut
  2. Color
  3. Clarity
  4. Carat
  5. Shape
  6. Certification
  7. Care

Cut

Diamond Cut is the most important property to increase its beauty because a well-cut diamond reflects light to maximize the stone’s brilliance. A diamond with perfect color and clarity could nevertheless have poor brilliance if it is not well cut.

After a proper cutting, size of the stone may reduce by half but its market value may increase more than four times for its brilliance and sparkle. Diamonds have a unique ability to manipulate light efficiently. This exceptional ability can be revealed and maximized only by cutting and polishing the diamond to an extremely high level of accuracy.

It is very essential to know Diamond Anatomy before understanding Cut.

Diamond Anatomy

(-GURSH insert photo diamond anatomy)

  • Diameter: Width of a diamond measured through the Girdle.
  • Table: Largest facet of a gemstone.
  • Crown: Top portion of a diamond extending from the Girdle to the Table.
  • Girdle: Intersection of the Crown and Pavilion which defines the perimeter of the diamond.
  • Pavilion: Bottom portion of a diamond, extending from the Girdle to the Culet.
  • Culet: Facet at the tip of a gemstone. The preferred Culet is not visible with an unaided eye (graded “none” or “small”).
  • Depth: Height of a gemstone measured from the Culet to the Table.

The cut of a diamond establishes how it reflects light, which is responsible for its sparkle or brilliance. Cut has following three components:

Diamond Cut by Shape

A Diamond Cut by Shape describes the outline of the stone and pattern of the facet arrangement. A stone can be cut in various Shapes like Round, Princess, Heart, Oval, Pear etc.

Gursh-insert photo diamonds shapes

Diamond Cut by Depth

A Diamond Cut by Depth is the ultimate feature for its brilliance and fire.

Shallow Cut: Shallow Cut will let light lost through a diamond’s bottom causing it to appear duller

Deep Cut: Deep Cut will allow light to be lost through a diamond’s sides causing it to appear darker

Ideal Cut: Ideal Cut is considered as the best cut and it will reflect most or all of the light that enters in the diamond back to the eyes, it is the desired cut for a diamond.

Quality of a diamond’s cut can be determined on the basis of its power to reflect light. They can be broadly characterized as Ideal, excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair or Poor. Ideal or Excellent cuts release the inner brilliance of the stone and project maximum amount of fire and sparkle whereas Very Good, Good and Fair cuts loose some light that enters the diamond. A poor cut loses most of its light from the diamond sides / bottom and it may even have some “dead” spots everywhere.

Diamond Polish and Symmetry

Polish and symmetry are two important aspects of the cutting process. The Diamond Polish expresses the smoothness of the diamond’s facets whereas the Symmetry refers to alignment of the facets. A poor Diamond Polish, or rough facets, can diminish a diamond’s brilliance and value.

 

Color

Diamonds are found in all colors of the rainbow, from colorless and transparent stones to ink black ones. Varying degrees of yellow or brown color is common in most of the diamonds and slight difference in color can make a substantial difference in value. A truly colorless diamond is extremely rare and considered the most valuable. It allows most light to pass through the stone and create the most brilliance.

During formation of Diamond from carbon, certain chemicals may have been drawn into the mix and results in added tinge of color in the transparent stone.

Most diamonds appear white to the naked eye, but they all include trace amounts of yellow or brown color. The color scale goes from D to Z (no diamond of color grade A, B or C has ever been found), with D being the most white and Z being the most yellow. The best way to see the true color of a diamond is by looking at it against a white surface.

Diamond Color Grade Table

Color Grade Description On Unaided Eye Inspection
Colorless Stone looks absolutely clear and transparent, with no hint of color.
Near Colorless Stone looks clear and transparent. Color will be noticeable by experts only when compared to diamonds of better grades.
Faint yellow Color slightly detectable and will be noticeable by experts only.
Very Light yellow Stone shows an increasing yellow tint, even to an untrained eye.
Light yellow Stone appears yellow, even to an untrained eye.
Fancy Bright, remarkable color – usually blue, pink, yellow, Red etc.

(Color guide above taken from refer to source)

Fancy Colored Diamonds

Although majority of diamonds come in shades of white, there are also “Fancy” natural intensely colored diamonds available in colors like yellow, pink, greens, brown, red, orange, blue etc. These intensely colored diamonds are very rare, attractive and desirable. A deeply colored diamond can cost more than its colorless counterpart. These intensely colored diamonds are known as “Fancy” colored or “Fancies”. Fancy colored diamonds are graded in two ways. The first factor is the basic hue, such as pink, yellow, blue, green, etc. The second is the intensity. Both color characteristics form the basis for determining a fancy colored diamond’s worth. Normally, the more intense the color, the rarer and more expensive the diamond will be.

Color enhanced diamonds

Diamonds that are colorless but can be irradiated to have a permanent color. The color will not wash out however these are not considered natural color diamonds and thus are a lot less expensive than natural fancy colored diamonds.

Fluorescent Diamonds

Fluorescence is a form of illumination that is created when a diamond is exposed to low or high wave ultraviolet radiation. Fluorescence up to some extent is common in majority of diamonds. Faint or medium fluorescence will rarely affect a diamond’s appearance although it is considered a flaw and will diminish the overall price of the diamond . Usually fluorescence remains unnoticed by human eyes in ordinary light.

 

Clarity

Clarity is a term used to describe the absence or presence of flaws inside or on the surface of a diamond. In other words, the clarity of a diamond refers to a diamond’s clearness or purity. The flaws in the diamond are called inclusions and most common ones are small minerals, crystals, feather, bubbles, knots chips etc. If these occur on the outside of the diamond they are called nicks, scrathches, blemishes etc. Most diamonds come with some kind of imperfections and the less imperfections the more the diamond is worth is a general rule.

Diamond’s clarity is based on the number, size, nature, and location of imperfections on the finished stone and often can be seen with eyes, for example a salt and pepper diamond is an included diamond that posses its unique array of inclusions making a beautiful pattern on a diamond.

Diamond Clarity Grading Scale Table taken from Google below shows the diamonds flaws in great details.

Image Clarity Grade Scale Description On Inspection through 10x magnification
F Flawless Clear Stone, no inclusions or blemishes. Exceptional and beautiful diamonds.
IF Internally Flawless No inclusions and only insignificant surface blemishes. Rare and beautiful diamonds.
VVS1 – VVS2 Very, Very Slightly Included – 1 & 2 Tiny inclusions, which are extremely difficult to find, even under 10x magnifications. An excellent quality diamond.
VS1 – VS2 Very Slightly Included – 1 & 2 Minor inclusions, which are difficult to see under 10 x magnification. These stones are less expensive than the VVS1 or VVS2 grades.
SI1 – SI2 Slightly Included – 1 & 2 Inclusions, which are easy to see under 10 x magnification. A good diamond value.
I1 – I2 – I3 Included – 1, 2 & 3 Inclusions, which are easy to see under 10 x magnification and sometimes, may be visible with the unaided eye. A good diamond value. Generally I3 grade is not used for jewelry purposes and mostly used in industrial applications.

 

Carat

The term “Carat” refers to the weight of a diamond. It is derived from the carob seeds, which are remarkably consistent in weight and shape and so were the favored scale balances in ancient times. This was standardized in 1907 and after that 1 carat became 0.2 grams or 1/142 of an ounce. Furthermore, each carat is divided into 100 points. Therefore, ¼ carat diamond is considered as 25 points and ½ carat diamond is considered as 50 points and so on. This term ‘Carat’ is different from the term ‘Karat’ which is used to describe gold’s purity.

Diamond’s Carat Weight Scale

There is one significant fact about diamond’s weight and price. When diamonds are mined, large diamonds are discovered rarely in comparison of small ones, which make large diamonds much more valuable. For that reason, the price of a diamond rises exponentially with its size. So, a 2 carat diamond of a given quality is always worth much more than two 1 carat diamonds of the equal quality. Although larger stones are often more highly valued, but size should not be the only consideration. High brilliance, which varies according to clarity, cut, and color grade, is highly desirable in a diamond.

 

Shape

A Diamond Cut by Shape describes the outline of the stone and pattern of the facet arrangement. Although diamonds are available in various shapes like Round, Princess, Heart, Oval, Pear etc., but when most people think of diamonds, what comes to their mind is the modern round brilliant cut because in jewelry industry, this shape is sold more than 75% of all diamonds. All other non-round shapes are called fancy shapes and these different diamond shapes show individual’s style and personality.

The most popular and stylish shapes are defined as under:

Round Brilliant Cut

The Round Brilliant Cut diamond is the most traditional and popular of all the diamond shapes. Many experts consider this shape ideal for a diamond because it maximizes its sparkle. It has 58 facets which offer great brilliance and stability. This shape of diamond is most commonly used in solitaire diamond engagement rings.

Princess Cut

The Princess Cut is most popular non-round diamond. Its beautiful brilliance and unique cut makes it a favorite for engagement rings. The princess has pointed corners and is traditionally square in shape. The ideal princess cut will have length to width ratio is as close to 1.00:1.00 as possible, as princess cut diamonds can range from this perfect square through to almost rectangular.

Emerald Cut

The Emerald Cut diamond is a square or rectangular shaped stone with cut corners. This is also known as Step Cut because it has rows of facets, usually 48 to 50, that resemble a staircase. Due to its larger, more open table, this shape highlights the clarity of a diamond but with fewer facets brings less brilliance than the other shapes.

Oval Cut

The Oval Cut is also a beautiful shape and provides great brilliance and fire through its 56 facets. A well cut Oval shaped diamond can be almost as bright as a well cut Round Brilliant shaped diamond.

Marquise Cut

The Marquise Cut is a traditional shape having elongated ends at both edges. The pointed ends make this shape the most fragile and the most expensive of brilliant style cuts. It has a total of 56 facets, construction of which requires a lot of experience and the delicacy of its sharp points demands utmost precaution. Now-a-days this shape is very popular for engagement rings.

Pear Cut

The Pear Cut diamond is often called a teardrop due to its single point and rounded end with 56 to 58 facets. This shape is popular for its uniqueness and brilliance. Pear Shape diamond is mostly used in pendants and also a good choice for a hand with smaller fingers.

Asscher Cut

The Asscher Cut is a modified version of the Emerald Cut. This shape is named after Joseph Asscher of Holland who was an eminent diamond cutter. In 1902, his company, Asscher Diamond Co., developed and patented the Asscher Cut, a squarer step cut with an almost octagonal outline. This new cut enhanced the fire and light of the stone; it had a small table, a high crown, wide step facets, a deep pavilion and square culet.

Radiant Cut

The Radiant Cut is a rectangular or square stone with cut corners. This shape comes with 62 to 70 facets and offers the elegance of the emerald shape with the brilliance of the princess shape. Trimmed corners are the signature of this shape, and they help to make the radiant cut a popular and versatile choice for jewelry. Diamonds with radiant shape look very good when adorned with baguettes or round side stones.

Heart Cut

The human heart is the ultimate symbol of love and the Heart Cut is regarded as the most romantic of all the shapes. The Heart shaped diamond is essentially a pear-shaped diamond with a cleft at the top and it typically contains 59 facets. Due to the complexity of the shape, skilled cutting is necessary to maintain the diamond’s brilliance. Generally people prefer a heart shape diamond for sentimental purposes. This shape is mostly used in pendants, but also suitable for most jewelry
items.

Cushion Cut

Cushion Cut diamonds are also known as “pillow cut” diamonds. This shape ranging from square to rectangular and it has rounded corners and larger facets to increase its brilliance. These larger facets also highlight the diamond’s clarity.

Baguette Cut

The Baguette Cut diamonds are generally used to fill in channels or stable grooved tracks around a gemstone centerpiece. This shape is similar to emerald shape.

Trilliant Cut

The Trilliant Cut is one of the unusual cuts and the diamond with this shape displays a very sharp brilliance or fire. This triangular shaped diamonds may either have pointed corners or more rounded corners.

 

Certificate

A Diamond Certificate or Diamond Grading Report is a statement, issued by an independent Gemological Laboratory, that at the time of evaluation, the diamond in question has been examined, measured, and documented by experienced Diamond Graders, using various gemological instruments, and determined to contain the characteristics as stated in the Certificate or Report.

In other words, a diamond certificate(certificate of authenticity) can be accurately described as the blueprint of a diamond. This Certificate or Report includes an analysis of the diamond’s characteristics in an easy to understand format.

There are many laboratories available through out the world for diamond certification but below mentioned laboratories are considered as most respected ones in the industry, for their consistency and unbiased diamond grading systems.

  • The Gemological Institute of America (GIA)The Gemological Institute of America was established in 1931 in Los Angeles. The GIA created and introduced the international grading system. Headquarters are still located in Los Angeles.
  • The Diamond High Council (HRD)The Diamond High Council is the officially recognized representative of the Belgium diamond trade and industry. HRD headquarters are located in Antwerp, World Diamond Center.
  • The American Gem Society Laboratories (AGSL)The American Gem Society Laboratories (AGSL) was established in 1934 in Las Vegas, Nevada by Robert M. Shipley, who also established the GIA.
  • International Gemological Institute (IGI)The International Gemological Institute was established in 1975 in Antwerp. This laboratory is also having labs in New York, Bangkok, Mumbai and Tokyo.Securing a certificate will provide you a much-needed peace of mind knowing that you are getting your money’s worth. Here are some reasons to buy a diamond along with its certificate:
  • A diamond certificate gives you the exact details of the stone and on the basis of this information you will be able to do some comparison-shopping before doing the actual purchase.
  • A diamond certificate allows you to pay money on the basis of stone’s characteristics. Your jeweler wont be able to charge you more and there are very good chances to get the best deals.
  • On re-sale of diamond along with its certificate, you will get better price for the diamond.
  • To get insurance for your diamond, you also need to produce diamond certificate.

It is a standard practice in the Diamond Industry, to ask for a Diamond’s Certificate or Grading Report from the jeweler before the purchase of it.

 

Care

Diamonds are forever as they are the hardest known substances on earth. But due to our day-to-day activities, it is inevitable that our precious diamond pieces get dirty and soiled. Even they can be scratched, chipped or dulled if not handled correctly. With proper care, they can last a lifetime and can even be handed down as heirlooms to future generations without losing their shining and sparkle. So here are some tips that will help you to preserve the life and beauty of your diamond:

Cleaning of Diamond Jewelry

Regular cleaning of Diamond Jewelry is essential to maintain shine and brilliance of diamonds. On wearing them, they get dirty as you use various skin and body care regimen such as soaps, lotions and even our skin’s natural oils. Even when you are not wearing them, they collect dust. If you are cleaning your diamond jewelry by your own then it will take few minutes but before cleaning, you should be aware about the cleaning at home and cleaning by a professional jeweler:

  • You can use a small soft brush such as an eyebrow or lip stick brush, soap and water to clean your diamond jewelry. Simply make a bowl of warm sudsy water with a mild detergent and gently place your jewelry pieces in the mixture. Then brush the diamonds with the soft bristles of the brush while they are in the suds. You will need to make certain that you rinse them clear of the suds after cleaning them. After this process, use a soft cloth or a jewelry polish cloth to pat them dry.
  • If you feel that your diamond jewelry is in need of a stronger cleansing then you can use a solution of one part ammonia and six parts water for cleaning the diamonds. Once they are soaked for 30 minutes, remove them and gently brush the mountings with a small soft brush. Then use the mixture of soap and water to wash them and after that use a soft cloth to pat them dry.
  • But if you find yourself too busy to be mixing soaps and ammonias, you can use liquid jewelry cleaners which are sold by many departmental stores. You can find these liquid jewelry cleaners in kit form. You just need to follow all the written precautions and instructions of cleaning.
  • In cleaning process, treat metal settings gently as gold can scratch.
  • It is also a good idea to have them cleaned once a year by a professional jeweler, where he will check security of the settings. He will also give advice for repair of loose or bent prongs which hold your diamond in place. This will prevent your diamond from falling out of its setting and becoming lost.

Storing of Diamond Jewelry

Diamonds should be stored individually packaged as well as jewelry pieces with diamonds should be stored individually packaged, they can scratch each other and therefore its important to keep them separated or wrapped in tissue paper.

 

DIAMOND BUYING GUIDE:

Diamond is purely made of carbon, which is one of the Earth’s most common elements. The diamond is the hardest known substance in the world that is uniquely resistant to damage by heat or scratching, and can be cut or polished only by another diamond. Diamonds are used in jewelry making and in industrial projects because they are the hardest material there is no competition today for the hardest material known to mankind.

  • When you are shopping for a  diamond you must consider 4Cs of diamonds – Cut, Color, Clarity, and Carat weight, as a base for your decision. These 4Cs will help you to choose the best diamonds on the same criteria on which jewelers use to select them.

Diamond Cut

  • Diamond cut is the most important attribute which increases diamond’s beauty because a well cut diamond reflects light to maximize the stone’s brilliance, when selecting a diamond give preference to diamonds with ideal/excellent cut
  • When we talk about diamond cut by depth, ideal/excellent cut is considered the best cut as it reflects most or all of the light that enters in the diamond back to the eyes.

Buying Tips for Diamond Cut

  • You should always go for the ideal/excellent cut diamond with the desired shape. You should also ensure that diamond is properly polished and is with perfect symmetry.
  • Diamond shape is a matter of personal choice. Brilliant round shaped diamond is one of the most desirable shapes and offers maximum brilliance, it is also the most common choice for an engagement ring

Diamond Color

  • Diamond color is also a vital factor to look for as diamonds are found in almost all the colors. Most diamonds appear white to the naked eye, but they all include trace amounts of yellow or brown color. Slight difference in diamond color can make a substantial difference in value. A truly colorless diamond is extremely rare and considered the most valuable.
  • The diamond color scale goes from D to Z, with D being the most white and Z being the most yellow.
  • Diamonds are also found in various intense colors like pink, greens, orange, brown, red, blue etc. These intensely colored diamonds, known as fancy colored, are very rare, attractive and desirable. A deeply colored diamond can cost more than its colorless counterpart.
  • In fancy colored diamonds, grades Z+ are used for grading
  • Fluorescence up to some extent is common in majority of diamonds but it remains unnoticed by human eyes in ordinary light

Buying Tips for Diamond Color

  • The best way to see the true color of a diamond is by looking at it against a white surface, stones in the D-F color grades are the most valuable, you can still obtain great value and save substantial money with diamonds grades G-J and K-M, since no color is visible to the naked eye. Even stones in the N-R range have a very light hint of yellow, which is visible to the untrained eye, can appear colorless in the right jewelry setting.
  • Usually yellow metal (gold) hides traces of color in a colorless diamond, while white metal (white gold, platinum, silver) enhances it. If your diamond is yellow choose yellow or rose gold, if your diamond is white choose any metal
  • Faint or medium fluorescence will rarely affect a diamond’s appearance but is considered a flaw

Diamond Clarity

  • Clarity is a term used to describe the absence or presence of flaws inside or on the surface of a diamond.
  • When flaws occur internally, they are called inclusions and the most common types of inclusions include crystals, needles, knots, chips, cavities, cleavage, feathers etc. On the contrary, when these flaws occur on the surface, they are known as blemishes and the most common types of blemishes include polish lines, naturals, scratches, nicks, pits, extra facet etc.
  • Diamond’s clarity is based on the number, size, nature and location of imperfections on the finished stone. Clarity of a diamond affects the beauty and value of the diamond.
  • Diamond with higher clarity is more valuable in comparison to diamond that contains numerous inclusions because it is less brilliant due to inclusions interfering with light passing through it.

Buying Tips

  • You can use jeweler’s 10X magnifying glass or microscope to examine diamond’s imperfections.
  • Ask the jeweler to pinpoint the inclusions and explain them in details
  • Choose a diamond by examining the imperfections yourself and understanding what the flaws are to make sure they are not visible to your naked eye

Diamond Carat Weight Explained

  • The term “Carat” refers to the weight of a diamond and 1 carat equals 0.2 grams or 1/142 of an ounce.
  • A carat may also be displayed in points and 1 carat is divided into 100 points. Therefore, ¼ carat diamond is considered as 25 points and ½ carat diamond is considered as 50 points and so on.
  • The price of a diamond rises exponentially with its size. So, a 2 carat diamond of a given quality is always worth much more than two 1 carat diamonds of the equal quality.

Tips for buying:

  • The carat weight of a diamond will always depend on your budget, we always say at Magnons you can make the ring with any diamond but the actual diamond is where your money is invested
  • This term ‘Carat’ is different from the term ‘Karat’ which is used to describe gold’s purity.

Diamond Certificate

  • A Diamond Certificate or Diamond Grading Report is a document explaining your diamonds qualities, properties and sometimes an approximate retail value.
  • There are many reputed laboratories available for diamond certification, which are known: for example, the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and the American Gem Society Laboratories (AGSL).

Buying Tips for Diamond Certificate

  • When you buy a diamond, you should always ask for a diamond certificate. It may cost you but it will provide you a much-needed peace of mind knowing that you are getting your money’s worth. All diamonds and jewelry pieces at Magnons come with a certificate of authenticity free of charge.
  • A diamond certificate gives you the exact details of the stone and on the basis of the certificate you should be able to make a better decision on you purchase.
  • A diamond certificate allows you to pay the money on basis of stone’s characteristics. Your jeweler won’t be able to charge you more and there are very good chances to get the best deals and to understand why you are spending the amount of money that you are.
  • On re-sale of diamond along with its certificate, you will get better price for the diamond with the original certificate.
  • To get insurance for your diamond, you also need to produce diamond certificate, often with your name on the certificate or an address.

General Buying Tips

  • You must set your budget for buying a diamond and then explore all your options. By this way, you’ll find a wide range of diamonds with different carat weights and qualities in your price range. Ask your jeweler to provide you with several options and compare all options to make a better decision.
  • Always buy a diamond which fulfills the basic criteria of 4Cs and suitable to your budget, understand that budget is a big factor in diamonds as the better the diamond is the more money it costs.
  • Understand that if you want a large diamond and have a small budget you will sacrifice on one of the C’s you might consider what is important at that point for you and your future partner. Ask your jeweler about the small details on all 4 C’s categories and let him or her explain it to you.
  • When you are buying a diamond please keep in mind what your partner would like and what is the best suitable option for their personality
  • You should also ask your jeweler, if the diamond you are considering buying is treated or enhanced in any way.

Since you are making a purchase of a lifetime, take your time to educate yourself and ask a lot of questions, any jeweler who is reputable will answer your questions and explain everything in details. A diamond purchase should be done within a good timeframe and not under any pressure so that you make a good wise decision.