Just over four years ago, I decided to propose to my girlfriend of four years. I wanted to buy her a diamond ring that she would fall in love with, and get lost in its beauty. I started to look at rings, but I soon found out, the most important part of a beautiful ring is the characteristics of the diamond itself. These characteristics will determine the diamond’s sparkle and beauty, and will make the ring “pop”.
The most important of these characteristics are known as the “4Cs of Diamonds” Cut, Colour, Clarity and Carat. It is these characteristics that will be explained in this article, and will help you to understand the different features of a diamond.
Contents
Cut
Cut is the most important aspect to a diamond’s beauty. It refers to the quality of the diamond’s proportions, symmetry and polish, achieved by the diamond cutter.
The overall balance of the cut has a direct impact on the amount of light the diamond reflects. The greater volume of light a diamond reflects, the more it sparkles, and will appear more brilliant. Alternatively if the cut is shallow or deep, the diamond will appear dull and lifeless.
The GIA (Gemological Institute of America) grades the quality of the diamond’s cut on a scale of “Poor” through to “Excellent”.
Colour
Diamonds come in varying natural colours. The closer to colourless, the rarer and more expensive a diamond becomes.
The GIA grades the colour of the diamond from Z to D. A pale-yellow hue through to a colourless icy white with all the varying shades between.
The naked eye will not be able to distinguish between two adjacent colours. However in certain settings, or when compared to other diamonds, the colour may be more apparent.
Clarity
Clarity refers to the inclusions within the diamond. As the diamond is being formed, natural microscopic characteristics can be trapped within, or on the surface of the diamond itself. These are graded by GIA on a scale of I3 (Included) through to FL (Flawless) based on the number of these imperfections, or how visible they are.
Inclusions in a diamond with a clarity of VS2 or higher should not be visible to the naked eye. However, clarity can still impact the beauty of the diamond. This is because the inclusions can interfere with light reflection causing the diamond to appear cloudy or dull.
To ensure that diamond clarity is not impacting its beauty to the naked eye, I recommend having an expert confirm that the diamond is “eye-clean”.
Carrat
Carrat is the final of the 4Cs of Diamonds and refers to the overall weight of the diamond itself. Generally the larger the carrat weight the larger the diamond. However, based on the cut and shape of the diamond, some diamonds of identical carrat may appear to be larger. The larger the carrat the rarer and more expensive the diamond is.
Many purchasers often neglect cut, colour and clarity in favour of a larger diamond, overemphasising carrat. However, the sparkle of a diamond is what makes it more eye-catching and carrat has no impact on the brilliance of the diamond itself. It is therefore very important to take cut, colour and clarity into consideration to ensure your diamond “pops” and you do not end up with a lifeless diamond.
Bibliography
Fried, Michael, (Dec 8, 2020) The 4 C’s of Diamonds: Evaluating Diamond Quality, The Diamond Pro, Retrieved Dec 8, 2020 from https://www.diamonds.pro/education/4cs-diamonds/
Blue Nile (n.d.) The 4Cs of Diamonds, Retrieved Dec 8, 2020 from https://www.bluenile.com/ca/education/diamonds/
Brilliant Earth (n.d.) Learn about Diamonds, Retrieved Dec 8, 2020 from https://www.brilliantearth.com/diamond-education-guide/
GIA (n.d.) How to Buy a Diamond, Retrieved Dec 8, 2020 from https://4cs.gia.edu/en-us/diamond-buying-guide/