The 4 C’s: Colour, Clarity, Cut, and Carat
Bling, Ice, a Girl’s Best Friend; Whatever you call them, diamonds reign supreme in the jewellery industry.
Most natural diamonds have been buried in the earth for billions of years, forming in depths of 150km (and below) which adds to their aura of luxury. Diamonds come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colours, which really begs the question, what makes a diamond “good”.
Jewellers determine the quality of a diamond based on the Colour, Clarity, Cut, and Carat.
#1 Colour:
The Colour evaluation of a diamond in fact refers to the opposite: being its “lack” of colour. The gem is ranked between D (most expensive) and Z (least expensive); D being most clear and Z being the brightest yellow.
The less colour a diamond has, the purer the jewel, placing the most ideal diamonds for purchase between categories D to H.
#2 Clarity:
The Clarity of a diamond refers to its imperfections, which are called inclusions. The most common of these are cloudiness, scratches and pieces of black carbon found inside the jewel.
Diamonds are ranked flawless (FL), internally flawless (IF), very slightly included (VSI), slightly included (SI), and finally included (I).
When making a purchase, everything SI or better is considered good.
#3 Cut:
The Cut of a diamond is exactly what it sounds like: it’s the way the diamond is… well, cut. This influences the gem’s overall shine.
The most popular cut is called round brilliant, which gives the jewel the most glimmer.
While looking for the perfect cut, seek a circular shape and avoid jewels which are too deep or too shallow as they won’t sparkle quite as much.
#4 Carat:
For diamonds, Carat is based on the weight of the gem. Their weight is scaled on a point system, which is best explained through example: the average 3mm diamond is referred to as a 10 pointer because it weights one tenth (1/10) of a carat. So, a piece of jewelry with 10 ten pointers is a one carat piece (one carat of ten pointers).
Now, the important thing to remember is that different cuts result in different weights, meaning that each carat will be different depending on its shape.
Looking for a diamond engagement ring?
We hope you found this article helpful in your journey towards finding the perfect diamond.
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Info credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7fm3mG6jv4
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