The Diamond Guide: The 4 C’s and more
Welcome to our diamond guide. A diamond is forever. While there is a lot of debate about how the diamond rose to prominence over other stones, diamonds are stunning. While the price range, the main reason the diamond has overshadowed all others is because it sparkles ALWAYS–dirty or clean, a diamond SPARKLES forever.
Clarity, Color, Cut and Carat Weight determine the value of a diamond. The Diamond Trading Company developed the 4 C’s as a way to judge Diamonds.
CUT
Diamonds are cut into many different shapes, reflecting not only popular taste but proportions and quality of the rough stone. The most popular shapes include round, princess, oval, marquise, pear, cushion, emerald, asscher, radiant and heart. There are also over 200 specialty shapes available.
Cut refers to the angles and proportions that a diamond cutter makes in transforming a rough diamond into a polished one. The consistency and balance of these can greatly affect how the stone captures light and reflects it back to the eye: scintillation, brilliance and fire. Scintillation describes the flashes of sparkle that appear when light passes over a diamond.
Brilliance is the amount of light reflected. Fire refers to the way a diamond disperses white light passing though it into the different colors of the rainbow. Well cut diamonds display more scintillation, sparkle and fire than average or poorly and command a premium price.
Karenna Maraj Jewelry believes cut to be paramount, and as such all our stones are rigorously vetted for brilliance and artistry. So whatever shape you choose, your stone(s) will dazzle.
CARAT WEIGHT
The size of a diamond is measured, not by its dimensions, but by weight. One carat, the traditional unit of measure for a diamond, is equal to approximately 0.2 grams. You may of also heard the weight of a diamond referred to in points. A point is equal to 1/100 of a carat; therefore, a 50-point diamond equals 0.50 carat. Diamonds of equal weight may appear slightly different in size, depending on their depth and proportions. Because they are quite rare, larger diamonds of good quality are more valuable. A better quality diamond is always best, whatever the weight.
COLOR
The most sought after diamonds are totally colorless and will have premium prices. White diamonds are discounted in price when more body color is present. The color scale for transparent diamonds runs from D-F (colorless), G-J (near colorless), K-L (faint yellow), to Z (light yellow). Completely colorless diamonds are rare.
When diamonds are formed with traces of other minerals, rare and beautiful colors can result. Because of their rarity, colored diamonds are highly desirable and may be quite valuable. Fancy color diamonds can be intense yellow or brown in color (somewhat rare) and even pink, blue, purple, green or red (very rare). An intense pink or blue diamond can be among the most expensive. Out of all naturally occurring fancy color diamonds, red diamonds are the rarest and sometimes sell for millions of dollars.
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| Colorless | Near colorless | Faint Yellow | Very Light Yellow | Light Yellow | Fancy | ||||||||||||||||||
CLARITY
A diamond’s clarity is measured by the existence, or absence, of visible flaws. This is determined by the number, size, nature, and location of the internal (inclusions) and external (blemishes) imperfections. Even those seen only under magnification can alter the brilliance of the diamond and affect its value. Clarity levels begin with flawless and move all they way down to Included.
Conclusion:
All gem-quality diamonds are rare, taking billions of years for nature to form them. While the four C’s helps you to identify the quality of the diamond you are purchasing, it is the combination of these four characteristics that determine a diamond’s rarity and value. And remember—beauty is in the eye of the beholder. A diamond can only be truly perfect if you think it is beautifully perfect for you!
We pride ourselves and guard our reputation for fair dealing, honesty, and service. Investing in diamond jewelry is an exciting but serious decision. We only work with conflict-free diamond providers.