Return to Diamond Rings ->
About Us ->
Jewellery ->
What are the Four C's? ->
Watches ->
Movement Types ->
Clocks & Barometers ->
Collectable Gifts ->
Where To Find Us ->
Contact Us ->
|
Certified Diamonds - A Guide to the 4 C's (Colour, Clarity, Cut, Carat)
Certified diamonds
The difference between our normal range of engagement rings and our prestigious certified selection of rings is the quality of the diamonds we have selected for certification.
To grade these precious diamonds we have chosen to use AnchorCert / GIA, an independent organisation linked to the Birmingham Assay office established in 1773.
The grading chart for Colour and Clarity they use is the same used by all major jewellers, which was
established by the GIA (Gemmological Institute of America).
But what is meant by Colour, Clarity, Carat and Cut, or more commonly, The Four C's?
It is easy to get lost in the science of buying a certified diamond, and below is a simple guide to
choosing the perfect diamond for yourself, or a loved one.
Colour
Above is the GIA scale for colour grading. D is at the top, and stands for Diamond.
This means the gemstone is completely colourless, or white in appearance. Typically
a white diamond is the most popular, and the higher up the scale the better quality
the diamond is. When buying a diamond ring, and the frosty winter white is what you
are looking for aim for a diamond between D-H. D is very rare, and will be hard to
find in a diamond of large size, as the price is reflected. E-F will be hard to distinguish
a difference with the naked eye. G-H is a good quality, and any colour is only really
distinguishable when comparing to a higher graded diamond.
A diamond I-J on the colour scale may have a faint colour present, but when set in
yellow metal this will be harder to see.
Between K-R colour will be clearly visible to the naked eye, but again, can still look
desirable when set in yellow gold.
Anything below this is known as a “fancy”. Some celebrities have bought these
diamonds into the spotlight, such as Jennifer Lopez’s 6.1 carat Pink diamond ring
from Ben Affleck, although at $1.2 million is out of most price ranges!
When we talk about colour it is commonly yellow which can be seen, which is a
build up of nitrogen when the diamond was formed millions of years ago, but nature
has also given us a range of colours, such as Pink, Green, Blue or Orange, but most
rare is Red.
Clarity
The diamonds that we buy today were formed millions of years ago completely naturally. Basically a diamond is formed by carbon being compressed in the earth under extreme conditions. It is an imperfect process, and, inevitably most commonly produces imperfect results. Small cracks, build-ups of uncompressed carbon and other minerals will often be found in the diamonds that we see. This means any diamond you buy will be as unique as the person who wears it. When relating this to the GIA clarity grading chart a diamond with less imperfections or “Natures Footprints” are considered more valuable.
As you can see from the chart above the top grading diamond is graded as FL, or flawless. This is a diamond that has no inclusions at all, and is extremely rare. And expensive. The lowest grading is I3, this may also be referred to as P3 or “Pique”. At this grade you will clearly see cloudy patches, black marks and small cracks inside the diamond. Between these two extremes sit the more commonly found diamonds in a high street shop. VS1-SI2 are the most commonly found. What is more important than the grading itself is where the marks actually are in the diamond. A mark close to the setting, for example, is going to be less conspicuous than a mark on the top of the diamond or in the middle.
The world’s largest flawless diamond is the “Incomparable” a 407 carat yellow-brown coloured diamond. It is currently on display at the Natural History Museum in Washington DC, although an attempt to sell it on EBay was made in 2002, although, with an opening bid of $15 million there were no buyers.
Cut
Cut is quite simply the shape that the diamond cutter chooses to get the best out of the diamond. A mined diamond will be split in half using a process called cleaving, roughly cut to shape and then laser cut and polished. The most popular cut is a round brilliant cut, which allows a diamond to really sparkle. Below is a chart of the most popular types of cut. No advice can be given here as it is very much a personal choice.
Carat
The term carat comes from the old fashioned weighing of diamonds where carob seeds were used to weigh a diamond.
One carat weighs 0.2 grammes or 2 miligrammes. Another way you will see a diamond weight explained is a point system. 100 points equals 1 carat. So a half carat diamond is 50 points, or 0.1 grammes Remember carat is in no way related to size. A diamond is naturally formed and so can be short and fat, or long and thin, so will look different in appearance.
Although we measure gold and silver in the same carat format, weight is not relevant when referring to carat gold. A carat in gold refers to the amount of pure gold present. A nine carat ring has nine parts pure gold and 15 parts other metals, such as zinc or copper. This is to make the item of jewellery stronger, and more durable.
Arguably the world’s largest diamond, at 530 carats, is the Star of Africa. This can be viewed at the Tower Of London in the Queens sceptre.
Buying Guide
Below are a few simple steps to bear in mind when buying a diamond. These are all points from our own staff opinions, backed with over 10 years of experience in jewellery retail.
· If you are buying the engagement ring as a surprise, don’t worry about the size. But do check with the jeweller that they will get you the right size in for no charge.
· The Clarity, Colour, Carat and Cut are only as good as the setting the diamond is in. Check the quality of the setting and make sure the diamond sparkles. A cheaper, lower quality diamond in a four claw setting can look good compared to a poor quality finished band
· Try and get a diamond with equal quality. A D grade I3 will look worse than a H Grade VS1
· It is worth spending the extra for a Platinum band, opposed to White Gold. All White Gold has plating called Rhodium, to keep it looking shiny. This plating will wear off over time. It will wear off quickly if you wear your ring for everyday tasks, such as cleaning. Platinum, on the other hand, is naturally shiny and will stay the same colour.
· Platinum is more expensive because it is so rare. If you took all the platinum in the world and put it in an Olympic sized swimming pool it would barely cover your ankles.
|
|
