Diamonds have always been a part of man's civilization. Ancient people like the Greeks associated them with love that is both eternal and pure love. No wonder, the word diamond is rooted on the Greek word "adamas" which means unconquerable. In most parts of the globe, Diamonds play a major role in the courtship and marriage customs. Now and then, diamonds are still one of the most enduring and grandiose expressions of one's affection.
Choosing the right kind of diamond is never easy. One must always strike a balance between what you want to give and what you can afford. But before going out and buying diamonds based solely on what you can afford, there are still a few things you need to know about how they are valued. A diamonds' value is based on what jewelers' call the 4 C's; cut, clarity, color, carat weight. Contrary to popular belief, a diamonds cut is not its shape. Rather, a cut refers to the ability of the diamond to reflect light and optimize its brilliance. This is done by shaping the diamond to match a formulated optical proportions model with as less loss of its original weight as much as possible (lesser weight = lesser carat). Currently, there are 8 cuts available. They are; round, oval, pear, marquise, heart, emerald, princess cut and radiant. Of the eight, the round cut diamond tends to be more valuable than the others.
Why round-cut diamonds have better valuation?
- They are the most sought after cut in the market. They account for "75% of all the diamonds sold in the market."
- They are also considered to be the most brilliant of all cuts. The current cut allows it to maximize a diamonds brilliance, fire and size.
- They are very difficult to execute and as such the resulting stone will be always be lighter in carat weight. On the other hand, the other cuts are simpler to execute and would usually result in a much heavier carat weight.
The second factor to be considered is Clarity. This refers to the absence or presence of inclusions (blemishes) in the stone. Typically, a valuable stone has less or no inclusions at all. Inclusions are an important consideration because they can either make it less brilliant or make it vulnerable to shattering.
Types of inclusions:
- Mineral/crystal - tiny crystals/minerals embedded in the diamond.
- Pinpoint - tiny light or dark crystal that appear by themselves or in clusters.
- Laser lines - vapor like trails produced when using a laser to remove dark inclusions.
- Feathers - cracks in the stone which are in the shape of feathers.
- Cleavage - a straight crack with no feathering. This can split the diamond in two (2) halves.
- Girdle fringes/bearding - these are hair like line that occurs in the girdle part of the diamond. Only extensive bearding is considered as a problem and is usually treated by polishing or re cutting the diamond.
- Grain lines/growth lines - colorless that only become a problem once they occur in large mass. They can lower a diamonds' clarity grade.
The third attribute that must be considered is color. This refers to the presence of yellow or light brown streaks in the stone. The lesser the color, the more valuable a stone would be. The website www.bridaltips.com, suggests you use or request the use of a jewelers loupe when assessing the diamond for its color and clarity. The site further suggests that the loupe should be black and have a 10x magnification. It would also help that you have access to a pair of diamond locking tweezers to hold the diamond. Should you feel uncomfortable studying the diamond through a loupe (an experience eye is needed to use it) an alternative would be to request the use of a gem scope microscope. This allows you to scrutinize the diamond without the need of a trained and experience eye. Finally, we come to carat which is simply its physical weight (1 carat = 1/5 gram). Typically, a large diamond would result to a larger carat weight. However, this does not immediately result to a higher dollar value. You still need to know how it fares with regards to color, clarity and cut. Of the four (4) values, cut is deemed to be the most important. It can account to anywhere between 25%-50% of a diamonds total value.
In the end, a diamonds final value is dependent on how it measures up in terms of cut, clarity, color and carat (weight). About 25% to 50% of the value is due to its cut. However, this doesn't mean that less attention should be give to the other three (3) values. Some authoritative websites suggest that the buyer should always request the use of jewelers' grading instruments such as the loupe, locking tweezers and a gem scope microscope. These will make your checks reliable, easy and quick. The more stores you can check, the better your chances of getting the best price available.
HAPPY HUNTING!
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