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Diamond Information
The 4C’s revisited-Some really practical tips on how to choose the right diamond.
Information about diamond classification (the 4 C’s) is available on almost every
jewelry associated web site, but it has a common shortcoming. The information is rather technical than practical. Here however I will focus on different aspects of the 4C’s which are not usually mentioned elsewhere and try to give you information that will help you choose right and buy wise.
The 4 C’s mentioned above stand for: Carat, Color, Clarity and Cut
Diamond Carat
This is the weight, and not the size of the diamond. The two are very much connected but often customers don’t realize that they are paying for the weight but are wearing the size and appearance. A diamond's weight is measured in what is known as “carat”, which is a small weight unit equal to 0.2 grams. Diamond carat is not a measure of a diamond's size, since cutting a diamond to different proportions can greatly affect its weight. Unproportionaly cut stones can add a lot of weight and damage the appearance of a diamond. The usual reason for unproportional cut is to retain as much weight as possible (remember-you are paying for the weight). Diamond like this must be sold with considerable discount. My personal opinion is to avoid such stones. How do we know the stone is cut for weight? Look at the insert that must come with the diamond report. If the cut is rated ideal, excellent or very good then there is no problem. Anything under this needs proper examination. Look at the paragraph “girdle“. This is the place where most weight is usually added. Excessively thick girdle can add up to 20% to the weight (and the price) without contributing anything to the appearance of the diamond. Girdle must be described as thin or medium. The most important thing to remember when it comes to a diamond carat weight is that it is not the only factor that determines a diamond's value. In other words, bigger does not always mean better.
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Diamond Colour
Diamonds are found in nature in a wide range of colors, from completely colorless (the most desirable) to slightly yellow, to brown. So-called 'fancy color diamonds' come in more intense colors, like yellow, blue, green and pink, but these are not graded on the same scale. The best diamond color is the lack of it. Color is an important quality but it is a bit overrated for non investment stones. Diamond color is graded with the letters of the alphabet from D (ABC is skipped) being the whitest or more precise the most colorless to Z being rather yellowish. On the GIA grading scale, D to F are considered colorless, G to I near colorless and grades down from J shows an increasingly yellowish tinge. The color of a diamond is best observed when it is placed table down on a piece of pure white paper and viewed through the side of the pavilion. The difference between two neighboring colors is completely undetectable for non specialist. Stones up to J and even K are perceived as white if there is no whiter stone next to them to compare. Color is a natural property of the diamond and although it greatly affects the price it should not be considered a shortcoming. Beyond the preference for a whiter stone, the color of a diamond does not affect its brightness or sparkle. The whiteness of the diamond is more important in case of pave set melee (smalls) where they must blend with the white metal around them. My advice is: for non investment diamonds go for colors G to J. Beautiful stones, great value for money.
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Diamond Clarity
Clarity is defining the existence (or lack of it) of natural inclusions or fractures in
the diamond visible to a specialist by 10X magnification. Again, important for investment stones and not so for every-day-ring diamond. Diamond clarity refers to the number, and size of the inclusions that occur naturally inside diamonds. The fewer and less obvious the inclusions, the more valuable the diamond. The usual diamond grading information boards used widely by retailers to explain the 4C’s to customers do not show the actual size and visibility of the different grade inclusions. They are, to say it mild, a bit misleading. The only way for a non specialist to see and assess the clarity is in the real diamond. Inclusions up to VS2 are not visible for non specialist under 10 x magnifications. Inclusions up to SI2 are not visible by naked eye. Inclusions up to SI2 and in most cases SI3 do not affect the overall appearance of the stone. My advice is: for non investment stones go for VS1 to SI2 or even SI3. Often the inclusion is a small dot or fracture on the periphery of the stone, completely concealable by the setting.
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Diamond Cut
This is not the shape but rather the proportions, symmetry and the quality of finish of the diamond. May be because it is sometime not mentioned on the main body of the report, the diamond cut is often overlooked. It is though, the most important C. It defines the quality of human intervention on shaping the rough stone to a spectacular brilliant jewel. It can make, on the other hand a piece of fantastic rough material look dull and lifeless. It is not necessary to learn the ideal proportions. As I mentioned earlier, the proportion insert of the report is a good indicator and as long as the proportions are very good, excellent or ideal the stone will look at its best. A diamond with such cut will reflect light right from the center, and not only from the periphery. You can also use a simple test if the diamond is not set. Draw a short line with a black pen on white piece of paper. Put the diamond next to the line lying on its table (the flat top facet). Now, holding it for the griddle with your fingers or better with a pair of tweezers slide it over the line looking trough the pointy pavilion. If you see the line trough the stone then there is a problem with its proportions or it is not a diamond. With properly proportioned diamond one should not be able to see any trace of the line passing through the pavilion while sliding it over. While color and clarity are big factors in the cost of a diamond, it is the Cut that breathes life, beauty and dazzling brilliance into a diamond.
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Other diamond properties are: brilliance, dispersion, scintillation and fluorescence. They are properties discussed in more profound diamond study and do not fit the scope of this article.
In a nut shell:
Try to find balance between the 4C’s that suite your budget.
Concentrate on qualities that count most. In order of importance they are:
If you have a budget,(which applies to most cases) you better spend on color or size instead on invisible clarity, especially higher than VS1. I would like to stipulate again that my advice in this article does not apply for investment diamonds, bought with intention to sell for profit. Do not compromise the cut for bargain price. Always consider more than one stone. Compare similar size stones with different color and clarity and try to see the difference. If you don’t see it in close look most likely nobody else will. Always relay on what you see rather than what you are told or what you read. The diamond is a feast for the eye and its appearance is the only important asset. Remember: the certificate does not determine the beauty of your diamond.
“The beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”
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Diamond certificate - Purpose and importance
The issue of diamond certificates is one discussed in dept in many articles, but the significance of this document is in many instances grossly overrated, pushing customers to overspend or make unfavorable choice. In this article I will state my opinion, based on more than 18 years of experience with diamonds including working with, quoting and examining this gem, as part of my full time job. I would like to stipulate that this opinion is based on my own experience and clarity on the matter, rather than scientific research or stringent statistics and should be perceived as suggested guidelines and not as sole source of information.
How important really is the diamond report or certificate?
First point to come in mind is that the certificate is an expert’s assurance that we got what we paid for. If this assurance is to have any weight, it must come from 3rd party, independent expert with the necessary credentials. It must not come from an expert, employed by the selling company or in the form of evaluation, from a rival company, offering you a better deal. The certificate has as much credibility as the company you are buying it from. Even AGS or GIA certificates become useless pieces of paper if they come with the wrong diamond, so before you start pondering the choice between two similar stones with GIA and EGL certificates, checkup the merchant’s credentials.
Second point is that the certificate is perceived as an assurance of the investment value of your diamond in future, and this is where the borders are starting to blur. Anything bought with investment in mind, should have a reasonable increase in value in time in order to be sold with profit. Although diamonds generally have steady growth due to proper managing of the market, only certain sizes and qualities have reasonable investment merit. Extensive statistics are not the purpose of this article and are available for those who want to know more. Here, it will suffice to say that the diamond with investment quality should be in the very rare to extremely rare category, which calls for sizes of 3 (better 4) carat up and quality of F-VS1 and better. So, is 1.5 carat H-SI1 diamond not an investment? A Diamond is an investment in beauty and pride of ownership, but not an investment upon which one can reasonably expect to make a profit. Remember that when you buy, someone is making a profit. A profit, which your diamond has first to cover with its value growth before you are legible for any profit, and for 1.5 carat H-SI1, although a beautiful stone, this is not going to happened in the near future.
The third point of reference is the purpose of the diamond. While the industrial diamonds (natural and synthetic) have plenty of useful applications, the only purpose of the jewelry diamond is to be beautiful. I cannot help it but to refer to the following paragraph by the psychologist Satoshi Kanazawa : “Of course, diamonds and flowers are beautiful, but they are beautiful precisely because they are expensive and lack intrinsic value, which is why it is mostly women who think flowers and diamonds are beautiful. Their beauty lies in their inherent uselessness; this is why Volvos and potatoes are not beautiful”. It makes sense then to choose a diamond for its foremost purpose – its beauty, and for this, your best advisor is your eye. The modern diamond buyer, presented with extensive highly specialized information, is trying hard to single out the best deal, comparing crown angles, pavilion angles and other proportions, often forgetting that he/she is buying a diamond and not a certificate.
Back to the issue of the certificates. If you agree, even partly to the above mentioned three points of reference, you are close to achieving clarity on what the importance of diamond certificate is to you. For me, the certificate of pedigree origin (AGS, GIA) is an important issue when it comes to investment quality diamond. For anything less, a good origin certificate is a bonus, as long as it does not add up to the price, otherwise EGL or the likes will do perfectly well. Recently I have read a forum discussion, where a woman was asking for an advice in order to make the right choice between two diamonds with seemingly identical characteristics. The one was GIA and the other EGL certified. With a difference in the price of almost 30% she was still in doubt. Different experts pointed out that with such a vast difference there should be something wrong with the cheaper one. No one considered, that may be the expensive one was overpriced because of its certificate origin. Let me put this different way. If the two stones are graded the same color, clarity and cut, how much of “generosity” in the grading of the one stone will command a price difference of 30%?
Now, to convert this information into practical advice:
The diamond report (certificate) is an important document for any diamond over 0.30ct as a document of authenticity, treatment disclosure and for insurance purposes. The credibility of the diamond merchant is more important than the certificate origin and is good to be addressed in respective order. Do not expect to be able to sale your diamond for the price you bought it for any time soon, especially if it does not fit in the investment diamond category. Bearing this in mind spend your budget on parameters that really counts, like size, color and good make (cut) rather than invisible ones like clarity higher than VS1, Ideal crown angle or pedigree certificate. Try to detach your choice from too many technical details and see if you can choose with your eyes. I will encourage you to make the following test. Go to a local jeweler and ask to see few diamonds with similar weight, without knowing the certificate details and price. Make your first, second and third choice and then ask for the price. Ask for the price alone and not for the details. Now with the price in mind, look at the diamonds again and figure out if the difference in price corresponds to the difference in appearance, remembering that beauty is the sole purpose of this gem. Only then ask for the certificates and decide for yourself the level of their importance.
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Diamond sale price
The estimated diamond sale price stated in this website is the average retail asking price. This is the price excluding of VAT, one will be usually quoted for the selected particular diamond weight, colour and clarity in a jewellery store. Discount and premiums over this price depend on difference in profit margins of different merchants in a free market environment. The diamond sale price is a complex algorithm driven by the ever changing supply and demand of certain sizes and qualities, used by the industry to determine trading price on different trade levels. There are different pricing systems but the most popular by far is the Rappaport Diamond Report or Rap Sheet, which is the system used in South Africa
Diamond Shape
Again do not confuse the cut of a diamond with its shape. Diamonds can be polished into a number of shapes, depending on the native shape of the rough stone. Some of the most popular diamond shapes in decending order are: round, princess, marquise, emerald, heart, pear and oval. The demand for certain shapes is closely related to their asking price, hence the round shape diamonds are the most expensive shape and in some sizes and qualities sell for up to 25 % more than other less popular shapes. Other than its versatility, the round diamond shape is favorite because it looks bigger than other shapes in given carat weight. One carat round shape diamond looks 15-20%bigger than one carat princess cut and this property cancels the disadvantage of the higher price.
Loose Diamonds - Why buy one?
Buying a loose diamond is usually initiated by the intention to use it in a piece of jewelry. Many sites have implemented “build your own” option, offering great flexibility and prices, an option I never miss opportunity to recommend. However this is a site where you can buy your diamond, and receive your diamond alone, without further dealing with the company on that matter. The purchaser is buying only diamond when the diamond is intended for a present, or it is going to be made up later probably by preferred designer. Buying a loose diamond for intended engagement ring in advance can facilitate financial relieve by breaking the expense in two, especially when you are not sure about the taste, preferences and even the finger size of your fiancé to be. The major reason of buying loose diamond however, is that you will usually get a better price. Buying the diamond separate from the setting provide perfect platform for comparing prices for similar size and quality, and since the classification of diamonds is quite accurate there is little room for misconception. Once the setting is also in the price the price forming factors are too many, making it impossible for non specialist to compare apples with apples. This web site contains great articles with practical information about diamond qualities, advices on how to buy wise and align all of the above with your budget. Taking few minutes of your time to read them could save you money and keep disappointment at bay.
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