Diamond jewelry is one of the most coveted in the world. Yet there is more to diamond jewelry than just picking out a big rock. The four main components to keep in mind when looking for a diamond are carat, cut, clarity and color.
Carat
A carat is the measurement of the weight of a diamond. One carat has the equivalent of 0.20 milligrams with 142 carats to an ounce. Carats are also often separated into points with one carat the equivalent of 100 points. Large diamonds are not found often in nature and are thus much more expensive. Yet the weight and size of a diamond is not the same thing; two diamonds with different weights may be the same size. Carats between different types of stones are also not equal because they have different densities.
Cut
With diamond jewelry, when discussing the cut of the diamond there is actually many factors that contribute. One of the main and most recognized aspects of the cut of a diamond is the shape of the diamond. The shape of diamond jewelry is the shape of the diamond itself. Some general shapes include: round, marquise, pear, oval, princess, emerald, heart, and radiant shape cuts. Another aspect of cut is the proportion of the diamond. The proportions of the diamond can attribute greatly to the brilliance of a diamond with the amount of light that reflects through it. Also brilliance can be lost if the diamond is cut too shallow or too deep because light can be lost by leaking out the bottom or side.
Clarity
Most aspects of diamonds are invisible to the naked eye and require a magnifying loupe to see the marks called inclusions. Clarity is graded by five categories.
- The best clarity is FL or IF which means that the diamond shows no flaws either on its surface or internally, making it the rarest and usually most expensive.
- The next is VVS1 or VVS2; this is a diamond with tiny inclusions that are invisible to the naked eye and can only be seen with thorough inspection with a microscope.
- Following this is VS1 or VS2 which are diamonds with small inclusions that are hard to find and can only be seen with a 10x loupe.
- The next category is SI1- SI3; these are diamonds with inclusions that can be easily identified with a loupe. These inclusions are mostly invisible to the naked eye in the SI1- SI2 range but may be seem with difficulty in the SI3 range.
- The last and least brilliant is the I1-I3 range, which are diamonds with inclusions that can be seem with the naked eye.
Inclusions that can lower the clarity of a diamond include: pimpoint, a small white dot on the surface; carbons, small black dot on the surface; feathers, open fractures within; clouds, hazy areas in the diamond made up of small crystals and crystal growth, small crystal development in the diamond.
The clarity of a diamond can also be enhanced by unnatural methods. One method is laser drilling in which a small hole is drilled using a laser beam to eliminate carbon specs. Another method is fracture filling in which fractures that get to the surface of the stone are filled in to help disguise them.
Color
Diamonds can range in color from grades of D-Z. D is the best diamond in that it is truly colorless, E and F are also considered colorless while G, H, I and J are near colorless. Ones graded K, L and M have traces of color and as one gets to P there may be changes in hue and tone of the diamond. There are exceptions to the color of diamonds in the form of “fancy” diamonds that range in color including: pink, blue, green and canary yellow. These diamonds are very rare.
The color of a diamond, like the clarity, can also be enhanced. By exposing it to particular types of radiation can enhance the color. This method is often used to make “fancy” diamonds.
By Lauren Culliton