The Four C’s
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The Four C’s
A diamond is one of the largest purchases most people make in their life time. As with any large purchase you should understand what you are buying and take the time to educate yourself as to what to look when shopping for a diamond.
The value of a diamond depends on certain characteristics of the diamond that are graded. Diamonds are examined and graded by trained workers at laboratories using grading criteria established by The Gemological Institute of America (GIA). Four of these criteria are essential to understand when buying a diamond. When you apply these four criteria accurately and completely, you can be confident that you are getting the best diamond quality and value for your money.
Keep in mind that the Four C’s should only be applied to a loose diamond and not to a diamond mounted on a ring. Known as the Four C’s,” these criteria are: Color, Clarity, Carat and Cut.
With an understanding of the Four C’s, you will be able to comparison shop and buy the best diamond at a fair price. But buying a diamond shouldn’t be done on a whim or rushed. Give yourself plenty of time and shop around, see what is out there to be purchased, then decide on the shapes and styles that appeals to you.
Cut
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Cut – One of the Four Cs
Cut is probably the most important of the four c’s and is the only one of the four c’s that is controlled by a human being.
The cut of a diamond refers to the angles and proportions (height, width, depth) of each diamond. As one of the four C’s, cut does not refer to the shape of the diamond: round, princess, radiant, oval, emerald, heart, marquise, pear, cushion, asscher, baguette and trillion. Cut dictates a diamond’s reflective quality. Most diamonds are cut with 58 facets. The different angles and the finish of a diamond determine its ability to reflect light and give it its brilliance and scintillation by allowing the maximum amount of light that enters through its top to be reflected and dispersed back, also through its top, into the viewer’s eye.
When a diamond is cut too shallow or too deep, the light that enters through the top is allowed to leak out through the bottom and does not reflect back, making the diamond look less brilliant and firry.
A poorly cut diamond is significantly cheaper than a well proportioned one. Many cutters choose to sacrifice some of the diamond’s beauty to achieve a stone that is a larger carat weight. Some jewelers will downplay a diamond’s bad cut and try to convince you that the diamond is larger. But keep in mind that just because two diamonds have the same weight, does not mean they are the same size.
The cut of a diamond can also affect its durability as well as its beauty. Some cutting faults can make a diamond prone to breakage when it is set or mounted on an engagement ring.
Choosing a diamond’s cut quality is difficult for a lay person. That is why you should always get a certification from GIA, or any of the respected labs, to verify a diamond’s quality.
A diamond’s certificate will list the important proportions of that diamond:
Table percentage (table / diamond width)
Depth percentage (depth / diamond width)
Cut quality is difficult for a lay person. That is why you should always get a certification from GIA, or any of the other respected labs, to verify a diamond’s quality.
Just compare these numbers against a master chart of percentages for that diamond’s shape. A master chart will tell you what the ideal proportions are for particular diamond shape.
The certificate will also list the polish and symmetry of a diamond.
Polish will indicate any nicks, scratches or other flaws on the surface of the diamond.
Symmetry will indicate the accuracy of the cut to the shape and pattern of the facets.
The GIA rates both as EX (excellent), VG (very good), G (good), F (fair) or P (poor). The AGS rates both as ID (ideal), EX (excellent), VG (very good), G (good), F (fair) or P (poor).
A diamond graded very good is your best choice for quality and value. But if you are on a tight budget go for a good rated diamond.
Color
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Color – One of the Four Cs
Diamonds come naturally from the Earth in almost every color of the rainbow. In most cases, the whiter the diamond, the more valuable it is. Fancy colored diamonds are an exception to the rule. Diamonds that are rated yellow colored past D are rare and are more valuable.
Color is the second of the four c’s in importance in determining the overall beauty of the diamond. The color of a diamond is rated using a Color Scale – GIA’s scale is the most widely used – which classifies the stones in alphabetical order starting with the letter D, being the whitest or colorless, or best, and goes down the letter Z, being near-colorless, with slight hints of yellows or browns.
The lack of color, or whiteness in a diamond, allows maximum light to pass through the stone and disperse that beauty back to the observer. A white diamond will look very clean, crisp, and brilliant, with a lot of dazzle. A yellow diamond will not really look yellow, as it will look darker and dirty brown, without nearly the same brilliance. These are differences that you can clearly see, as you do not need to be a trained expert or certifies gemologist to see these differences.
G, H and I are near-colorless diamonds that look colorless to the naked eye. These are the whitest stones commonly available in the engagement ring market.
A diamond rated G and H on the color scale is your best choice for quality and value.
Clarity
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Clarity – One of the Four Cs
When diamonds were formed, small imperfections such as tiny bubbles, scratches or minerals found their way into the diamonds crystal. These flaws or inclusions make each diamond different and unique and is sometimes referred to as nature’s fingerprints.
Clarity, one of the four c’s, documents a diamond’s inclusions by the number, size, and position of internal and external blemishes it has. Inclusions are not usually visible to the naked eye. To determine a diamond’s clarity grade, it must be examined loose (unmounted), under 10x magnifications by a gemologist.
It is extremely important to view the diamond loose for clarity grading because it is very easy hide flaws in a setting to make a diamond appear better than it is. There is nothing wrong with flaws as long as you know about them and you are not paying a premium for a lesser diamond.
Diamond’s clarity is rated according to their position on the GIA Clarity Scale:
F: Flawless. No internal or external flaws.
IF: Slight flaws inside the diamond.
VVS1-VVS2: Just slightly flawed. Slight imperfections that are hard to see using 10X magnification.
VS1-VS2: Very slightly flawed. Imperfections not detectable with unaided eye but visible using 10X magnification.
SI1-SI2: Slightly flawed. The imperfection is not visible with the naked eye but is easily seen with magnification.
I1-I3: Flawed. The imperfections are noticeable to the naked eye.
Generally, a diamond rated SI-1 or above looks flawless to the unaided eye. Even a tiny inclusion visible to the naked eye will bump the diamond to an SI-2 or I-1. A diamond rated SI2 and VS1 on the clarity scale is your best choice for quality and value.
Carat
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Carat is the unit of weight by which diamonds are measured. Carat is actually a measurement of weight and not size. One carat is divided into 100 points, for example 150 points would equal one and a half carats. One carat is equal to 200 milligrams.
Some people prefer larger caret diamonds above the other three c’s and some people prefer smaller diamonds with better clarity, cut and color. Although a higher carat weight may increase a diamond’s rarity and value, the cut, color, and clarity of a diamond also influence the price. Small diamonds can actually be more expensive than larger diamonds if the other three c’s rate highly.
Don’t make the mistake of buying the biggest diamond at the best possible price. You will likely end up with a diamond that is inferior in quality in cut, clarity and color that it will simply look cheap when your partner compares it to her best friend’s smaller diamond. There is nothing wrong with putting more importance on the size (carat weight) of a diamond but do consider the other three c’s to make sure you understand your trade offs.
Carat weight is the easiest of the four c’s to determine, but the diamond must be loose. Some jewelers approximate carat weight, for instance, when you want to buy a one carat diamond, which should to be 100 points, you may actually be getting less than that.
Again, this is where a diamond certificate will come in handy, as an unbiased documentation of a diamond’s vital data and all its characteristics and attributes that will affect its value, to take the guess work out of what you are interested in buying.
A diamond that has a balance of cut, color, clarity and carat is your best choice for quality and value.