From cut, clarity, colour to carat, diamonds are an extremely valuable gem and having basic knowledge of them can be just as valuable. If you’re on the hunt for the best engagement ring, knowing what you are looking for and what you are looking at could mean the difference between an extra thousand dollars towards the open bar at your wedding reception.
Rule of thumb-the 4 C’s. The 4 C’s are: cut, colour, carat and clarity. Perhaps surprisingly, some are more important to the diamond as a whole than others. Determining what makes a diamond beautiful will help guide you in making a decision that works within your budget.
CUT
Cut, considered the most important C of the four C’s, can effect the appearance of a diamond the most. Diamonds are, essentially, a prism of light and diamond cutters, when done well, will look to shape and facet a diamond to ‘ideal’ proportions. Diamonds can be cut too shallow, in order to minimize the look of inclusions and can be cut too deep lending the diamond to a heavier weight, or larger carat. When a diamond is too shallow light slips out through the bottom. On the contrary, when it is too deep the light escapes out of the sides. This effects the sparkle of the diamond, even if a diamond has perfect clarity and colour grade if the cut is poor it may appear flat.
The CUT grading scale from best to worst is:
Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor
COLOUR
So you’re out of sparkle shock, the second most important C to consider is the colour of the diamond. In this case, the less colour the better and the higher grade it will receive. The highest colour grade a diamond can have is D, which is absolutely colourless and a rare diamond, which means it is most expensive. E-F is near colourless. The scale goes right through the alphabet all the way down to Z; though J is considered near colourless it, and anything beyond, is yellow to the eye. The colour gradually gets browner and grey.
Diamonds with a colour grade G-I has little to no noticeable colour to the naked eye and, thus, is great value for money. Because they are not rare, they are less expensive, but they still retain the appearance of a colourless diamond for a fraction of the price.
CARAT
One of the most misunderstood C’s is carat. Contrary to popular belief, carat refers not to the size of the diamond itself, but to the weight of the diamond. The bigger the carat of diamond the rarer it is; therefore, the price can increase exponentially. However, there is a term that you should remember when you want to save where you can. The term is, ‘buy shy’. ‘Buy shy’ was coined by a diamond cutter in the States, and by that he means purchasing a diamond that’s weight is just under the whole or half carat marks. Instead of buying a 1.5-carat diamond, consider buying a 1.4-carat weight which will decrease the cost of the ring without losing any noticeable aesthetic value.
Combining carat and cut, if a diamond has a great carat weight with a poor cut grade it may appear smaller than it actually is. In turn, a smaller carat weight with a better cut grade diamond may appear larger. So, it is important to consider both factors if you are looking for the best diamond within your budget.
CLARITY
Clarity is often the least important C when it comes to effecting a diamonds aesthetics. This is because diamonds are a thing of nature as precious and rare as they may be, they are formed from Earth’s core and thus will have imperfections and natural flaws. These natural flaws are called inclusions or blemishes. Diamond cutters work around these imperfections; however, they will still remain to some extent.
The grading system for clarity grade ranges from F to I1, I2, I3. F is flawless inside and out while I1, 2 and 3 are included three levels. It is very hard to detect inclusions with the naked eye, so clarity is the C to save on. Compare the differences between SI1 and VS1, if you can’t see a difference then spend your money on cut and colour and go further down the clarity scale.
Now when you re-pin those engagement rings to your Pinterest board you’ll have a completely new perspective on what you are looking at. Knowing the four C’s catapults you from novice to a seasoned expert in diamonds.
Shop Diamond jewellery at William May.
