Diamonds are Forever...
An Impartial Guide to Diamonds
Information about the 4 C 's to
Diamonds - The Carat Weight
What does the Carat Weight of a diamond,
an important category in the 4C 's,
mean? A Carat is a standard unit of
weight for diamonds. Carat weights are
also expressed as "points" with a one
carat diamond equalling 100 points. The
term 'carat' is often misunderstood to
mean the size of a diamond. The size of
a diamond relates to the dimensions of
diamonds in terms of length, width and
height. As the carat weight is a unit of
measure, and not size, two diamonds both
weighing 1 carat may appear to be
different sizes! The final size of a 1
carat diamond depends on how it is cut.
Some diamonds will have extra weight on
the bottom part, or pavilion and
therefore appear smaller. A well cut
diamond will sometimes appear larger
than many diamonds of a heavier carat
weight.
Information about the 4 C 's to
Diamonds - The Cut
The Cut of a diamond, an important
category in the 4C 's, refers to two
separate factors. The first factor
relates to the shape and style of the
cut e.g. Pear, Round, Marquise,
Princess, Brilliant Heart shaped etc.
The second factor is the way the rough
diamond is cut to produce a polished
diamond. The effects of a good diamond
cut result in the heightened levels of
brilliance, fire, sparkle and luster of
a diamond. A diamond cuts with good
proportions reflect more light and
appear to look better than other
diamonds of higher clarity and appear to
look 2 or 3 grades higher than the
actual color. The quality is also
dependent upon the cut of the diamond
facets.
Information about the 4 C 's to
Diamonds - The Clarity
The Clarity, another important category
in the 4C 's, relates to exactly how
clear a diamond is and describes the
presence, or absence, of
Diamond
Inclusions (flaws) within the
diamond and any blemishes on its
surface. Inclusions disrupt the flow of
light in the diamond so that some of
light reflected will be lost. The
numbers, sizes, colors, locations and
visibility of any inclusions or
blemishes can effect the relative
clarity of a diamond and its quality.
The majority of diamond inclusions
cannot be seen by the human eye so
systems have been developed to grade
diamond clarity as detailed in a
Diamond Clarity Chart.
Information about the 4 C 's to
Diamonds - The Color
The Color, another important category in
the 4C 's, relates to rarity, value and
quality of a diamond. What is the
difference between natural and treated
colored diamonds? Natural colored
diamonds are a unique natural product
created over thousands of years by the
process of crystallization. Factors
affecting diamond color include
fluorescence and color enhancements such
as high pressure, high temperature
treatment and irradiation. The process
called Irradiation is used to change the
color of the diamond, these are called
the treated color diamond. Synthetic
colored diamonds are not natural as they
are created in a lab. Synthetic stones
are much cheaper than natural colored
diamonds making them easily affordable
to everyone.
Diamond Fluorescence
Information about the 4 C 's to
Diamonds - The Cost
The 4 C's to diamonds - the Cut,
Clarity, Color and Carat Weight -
provide a good guide to what a diamond
should cost. Buying a diamond is not an
everyday occurrence. This website will
testify that the subject of diamonds is
literally a minefield of information and
most of us are not aware of the
complexities of diamonds, until we have
to buy one! The Cost can then be added
to the 4C's to diamonds.
-
Carat Weight - Remember that
the cost of a diamond does not
increase in proportion to the weight
of a diamond
-
Clarity - Remember that the
cost will reflect the brilliance,
fire, sparkle and luster of a
diamond. The numbers and types of
inclusions or blemishes need to be
established
-
Color - Remember that the
cost of a diamond will reflect the
color. Natural colored diamonds are
rare and expensive (Fancy colors).
Treated or synthetic stones are much
cheaper. The cost of White or
colorless diamonds are graded from
'D' (colorless - most expensive) to
'Z' (dark yellow - cheapest).
Fluorescence is also an important
factor
-
Cut - Remember that the
diamond quality is dependent upon
the cut of the facets which reflect
the brilliance, fire, sparkle and
luster of a diamond.
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