Choosing your Diamond - Know the quality of what you are buying

You will see from our engagment rings that we base our prices on setting a G-H/SI2 diamond into the ring. Here we give you all the information you need to know about diamond grading so you can choose whether that is right for you. We are happy to source an alternative stone to create your perfect ring.

Diamonds are the hardest natural substance knows to the man, it has the simplest chemical composition being crystallized carbon. They are the most highly value of gemstones. This is because diamonds are found deep below the surface of the earth, approximately 250 tones of ore must be mined to produce a one carat polished gem-quality gemstone.

Diamonds are cut with great precision and delicacy, and come in various colours, many shapes, quality and prices. It takes skilled craftsmen to transform a rough diamond.

The Characteristics of a diamond - The 4 C's 

To understand the visual appeal of Diamonds we are going to consider De Beers famous 4 C’s by which the value and quality of a diamond is determined depending on the combination of these factors.

These factors are:
 - Carat - weight
 - Colour
 - Clarity
 - Cut

* Some jewelers in the Diamond industry talk about a Fifth C (5C’s) called    “Certificates”. This is a report produced by a professional describing the characteristics of the stone.

CARAT – WEIGHT:

Diamonds are weighted in metric carats:

1 carat = 200 milligrams = 0.2 g.

0.01 ct or carat = one hundredth of a carat

The carat is a unit of weight, not size. It is the most obvious factor in determining the value of a diamond.

To make an assessment of the weight there are various ways do this.  In theory a modern brilliant-cut Diamonds have certain standard proportions, so by measuring the diameter of the stone at the girdle an estimate of weight may be arrived at. Of course, if you can also measure the depth of a diamond you can work out a more precise weight.

COLOUR:

Colour is the most important characteristic of a gemstone and has become much more important in day-to-day jewellery transactions. It is one of the key factors when determining the value of a diamond. The colour of Diamond is due to the presence of nitrogen, boron and hydrogen, which causes irregularities in the crystal causes. Naturally coloured Diamonds can be very valuable.

The ideal colour is an absolute lack of colour, except in fancy colours of yellow, pink, blue, green, champagne and very rare red, where an intensive hue is an asset. A very precise scale of colour grading is in general use today in the diamond trade as defined by the GIA (Gemmological Institute of America). The grades are distinguished by letters of the alphabet, beginning with the letter D.

GIA Colour grading scale:

D to F: Colourless  

G to J: Near colourless   

K to M: Faint yellow   

N to R: Very light yellow   

S to Z: Light yellow   

Fancy Light yellow   

Fancy yellow   

Fancy intense yellow.

CLARITY:

Clarity describes how free the stone is from inclusions (internal objects) and blemishes (external marks) under magnification of x10. Almost all diamonds contain minute traces of non-crystalized carbon or small non-diamonds crystals, and is the Nature’s fingerprint making every diamonds unique. Their position is important as well as size and number and will affect the final prices of the diamond.

Definitions of clarity grades according to internal defects:

IF – Loupe clean. A diamond is termed loupe clean when an expert finds no internal defects with a x10 loupe.
VVS1 VVS2 – Very, very small internal defects which can be detected by an expert with a x10 loupe only with degrees of difficulty ranging from very considerable to great. Size, position and number determine the distinction between 1 and 2.
VS1  VS2 – Very small internal defects which can be detected by the expert  with degrees of difficulty ranging from not too difficult to easy.
S1 S2 – Small internal defects which are very easy for the expert to detected with a x10 loupe.
I1 – Internal defects which are very difficult for the expert to detect with a naked a eye.
I2 – Large and /or numerous internal defects which are easily detectable by the expert with the naked eye and which slightly diminishes brilliance.
I3 – Large and /or numerous internal defects which are very easily detectable by an expert with a naked eye and which diminishes brilliance. 

CUT:

The cut of a diamond, its proportions and symmetry are of extraordinary importance as they have the greatest influence on the brilliance, liveliness or sparkle of a stone. This is the one factor most directly influenced by man. The most popular diamond shape is the round brilliant-cut which is based on specific optical calculations aiming at maximising beauty. Other shapes, such as the emerald-cut, oval pear, heart, princes-cut, and marquise, are referred to as “fancy cut”.

The cut and proportion of a stone in the diamond trade can be described as very good, good, medium or poor ‘make’. When a diamond is ideally cut, light rays from all sides are bent towards the center of the stone and are reflected back through the top in a blaze of light.



The added value you get from a CRED diamond or semi-precious stone is that CRED all our stones are guaranteed to come from legitimate sources and not funding civil wars and internal conflicts. We present the finest traceable diamonds to our customers insisting on excellence in cut, colour and clarity as well as ensuring that they are conflict free. This is why all our stones are sold with ‘denomination of origin’ verification. At the moment we source our stones from Australia, Canada and Namibia. Read more about our diamonds and semi-precious stones