Diamonds

Shopping for a diamond can be a daunting task. Often the purchase is in the form of an engagement ring so it is a symbolic purchase that is intended to be worn for many years to come. The buyer wants to make the best possible choice and yet remain within budget. To help make the buying process a little easier, shoppers should become familiar with the four Cs of diamonds.

The first C is color. Diamonds are often thought of being clear and having no color but not all diamonds are truly clear. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has a system to grade a diamond's color. The color is judged in comparison to a control set of gems in all available colors. In order to judge a diamond, it is viewed loose with a 10X powered jeweler's loupe. "Loose" means that the diamond is not in a setting.

The GIA has assigned the letters D thru Z to label the amount of color in the diamond. The D is a totally clear diamond with absolutely no color. And the color system is only for standard white diamonds. The other diamonds, referred to as fancy diamonds, have a separate system. The letters D, E and F are considered colorless and are the most desirable. The G - J grades are called nearly colorless. K-M are faintly tinted and the tint is usually yellow. N-R are lightly tinted and that tint can be seen without the aid of a loupe. The S-Z diamonds are tinted and the tint may be brown. The tint is heavy enough that it is visible even when the diamond is mounted.

The second C is clarity. This term refers to the flaws either inside or on the surface the diamond. A truly flawless diamond is very rare. In many cases the flaws of the diamond are so small that they cannot be seen by the naked eye and are only visible with a loupe.

The third C, cut, can be a little confusing. It does not mean the shape of the diamond, even though the shaping of the diamond does require cutting. When rating the quality of a diamond, the term "cut" means the diamond's proportions like its depth and width and the consistency of all of the various facets.

A diamond's proportion has a lot to do with its overall appearance. That appearance comes mainly from the play of light as it interacts with the diamond. If a diamond is cut too shallow, the light does not bounce back to the eye and the diamond appears flat and dull. If the cut is too deep the light escapes out of the sides and causes the stones to seem dark.

The final C is carat weight. This is a weight measurement for diamonds and one carat equals 200 milligrams. The carat weight is used to refer to a single stone, or when used as carat total weight it refers to the total of all the diamonds in a piece of jewelry. When the diamonds are very small, their weight is sometimes measured in points. It takes 100 points to equal one carat.

Larger diamonds are rare and therefore more expensive than smaller ones. A one carat stone will be more expensive than a grouping of smaller diamonds with a total weight of one carat. Diamond buyers may be able to save money by selecting a stone that weighs in just under the one carat weight. The difference in size will be hardly noticeable once it is in the setting, but the price is typically lower because it isn't a full carat.