How to Choose a Diamond

Six Parts:Cut Clarity Color Carat Selecting Features to Go With Your Diamond Shopping for a Diamond

A diamond's quality and price are determined by a set of four conditions known as the four C's: cut, clarity, color, and carat. When selecting a diamond, look for one that balances these four qualities without straining your budget. Perfect quality diamonds are rare and extremely expensive, but you can select a slightly less perfect diamond that still appears brilliant to the naked eye.

The cut determines a diamond's shape and brilliance. A well-cut diamond reflects light from one facet to another. If cut too deep or too shallow, light escapes from the diamond prematurely, reducing the stone's quality.

1

Pick out the right shape. While cut refers more to quality and level of brilliance, the shape is one aspect of the cut. Review the possible shapes available on the market, and choose the one you like best.

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2
If buying a diamond for someone else, ask his/her opinion before selecting a shape.
- Alternatively, ask a close friend or family member of the receiver if you want the gift to be a surprise, as is often the case with engagement rings.
- Select a popular, classic shape if you have no one to ask. The most popular shapes are round brilliant, princess, and emerald.
- Consider a non-traditional shape if the receiver has a non-traditional personality. Less common shapes that are still fairly popular include marquise, oval, pear, and heart.
3
Choose the highest quality of cut you can afford. A diamond's cut determines the vast majority of its brilliance, and many consider the cut to be the most important factor when choosing a diamond.
- Ask the jeweler to see the Gemological Institute of America's (GIA’s) diamond grading report for any diamond you consider purchasing. This report will give you a rough grade on cut, even though more precise grading is hard to find.
- Select and "Ideal Cut" diamond for the highest level of perfection.
- Choose a "Very Good" or "Excellent" grade diamond for a slightly less expensive yet high quality stone.
- Consider a "Good" grade if you want to balance the other C's and still stick to a budget.
- Never purchase a fair to poor quality diamond, especially for engagement rings and other gifts. Diamonds at these levels severely lack brilliance.
4

Consider chevrons. The pavilion side is the lower side of a diamond, which isn’t visible enough and has no impact on its sparkling style. Chevrons are of particular importance when considering the princess cut diamonds. These are the facets at the pavilion side of the diamond surrounding the main pavilion. Most princess cuts have two, three or four chevrons. The more the chevrons, the more the light gets reflected upon.

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EditPart 2 of 6: Clarity

Clarity refers to the purity of a diamond. Most diamonds have some internal blemishes known as "inclusions," but extremely high quality stones have no visible marks and are considered flawless.

1

Ask the jeweler about the clarity of any diamond you consider purchasing.Diamonds are dressed in considerable amount of sparkle and brilliance allowing a diamond’s inclusions to be less noticeable. The various clarity levels associated with diamonds are F to IF, VVS1 to VVS2, VS1 to VS2, SI1 to SI2, I1 to I3. A reputable jeweler will be honest about a stone's grade and will answer any questions about what that grade means.
2

Request a look at a stone's GIA grading report. A GIA grading report can guide you further about which clarity grade one should opt for.
3
Purchase a stone without visible imperfections. Many imperfections are not visible to the naked eye, however, and can only be seen by using a 10-power magnification glass.
- Buy flawless, FL, or internally flawless, IF, for stones without any internal imperfections. These are very rare, though, and very expensive.
- Consider VVS1 or VVS2 clarity grades for high quality diamonds with very, very small inclusions that are invisible to the untrained eye, even with a 10-power magnifier.
- Look at VS1 or VS2 grades for diamonds that are flawless to the naked eye with very minor inclusions.
- Consider a diamond with an SI1 or SI2 rating for a stone with small inclusions that are still invisible to the naked eye, but easy to spot with a magnifier. These stones appear high quality to the vast majority of individuals looking at them, and are also less strenuous on your budget.
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EditPart 3 of 6: Color

The highest quality diamonds are colorless, since colorless stones are rare and reflect light better than tinted diamonds. Most diamonds have slight tints of yellow, which are often impossible to see with the naked eye.

1
Purchase a diamond that balances colorlessness with price. Since most tints are extremely difficult to see, a higher grade for color does not make much difference in quality. It can, however, make a huge difference in price.
- Select a D grade (blue white) for an absolutely colorless diamond only if price is of no concern to you.
- Look at E (ice white) or f (fine white) diamonds if you cannot afford a D grade diamond but still want a stone that is colorless to any eye.
- Ask to see G (white), H (top commercial white), or I (commercial white) that are near colorless. These diamonds appear colorless in a face up position, but do display a faint yellow tint when viewed against a perfectly white background. The tint is nearly impossible to see once mounted against a metal setting, however, especially if the setting is gold.
- Consider J (top silver), K (top silver), L (silver cape), or M (light cape) colors for stones that are still relatively colorless set against a yellow metal, but more obviously tinted when matched with a white metal like platinum.
2
Ask the jeweler about a diamond's fluorescence. Fluorescence appears when a diamond is exposed to ultraviolet light, but usually has no effect on a diamond in regular light conditions. On rare occasions, strong fluorescence can alter the appearance of a diamond's color, sometimes causing it to look milky or oily.
- Consider a diamond with medium fluorescence or strong fluorescence if on a tight budget, since these diamonds are often discounted.
3

If you have the budget, consider purchasing a "fancy" diamond, which is a type of rare stone with an especially deep hue. Red and pink fancy diamonds are rare, beautiful, and expensive.

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EditPart 4 of 6: Carat

The weight, or size, of the diamond is measured in carats. The more carats a diamond has, the more expensive it will be.

1

Take carat weight into consideration last. This does not affect the quality of the stone in any way, so a heavier weight does not necessarily indicate a higher quality stone.
2

Consider selecting a popular size carat. The most common sizes for engagement rings are 1/2 carat, 1 carat, and 2 carat.
3
If buying an engagement ring or other gift, find out what the recipient prefers in size. Not all women prefer many carats. Some may place quality over size, while others may be willing to sacrifice a bit of quality for a more noticeable diamond with more carats.
- Ask the recipient herself about her preference.
- Ask close friends or family about the recipient's preference.
4

Consider the size of the wearer's hand if buying a diamond ring. Women with more petite hands may prefer the look of a smaller stone to larger stones that have a tendency to overwhelm.

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EditPart 5 of 6: Selecting Features to Go With Your Diamond

1
Choose a band metal. Make a list of the precious and long lasting metals. Here, it is important that the band material lasts just as long as the stone.
- Metals like gold, silver and platinum are not only beautiful in their look, but last long for years. Choose the best among these as per the budget and characteristics.
- Look for gold and its variants like yellow, rose and white gold as per your skin tone.
- Also, considering carat weight, when making gold band selection is important. 24 carat gold has the highest amount of pure gold. Moreover, due to the higher amount of pure gold, 24 and 22 carat gold are softer than 18 or 14 carat gold creating a greater chance for jewelry to scratch or bend.
- Silver is yet another metal that is affordable and suits almost every skin tone. Out of the various variants of silver, sterling silver is the best comprising of 92.5 per cent pure silver, and 7.5 per cent mixed alloys. As such, it is the most affordable and a durable ring band option.
- You can go for platinum bands if budget is not a problem for them. Platinum is considered as the most lustrous of all precious metals and is getting widespread popularity for diamond and engagement rings.
2

Pick a setting. Assuming you're choosing a diamond for a ring, you will have a choice about what kind of setting to place it in. The cut you picked will be a big factor here. For example, on a princess cut diamond, you'll want to choose a setting that protects the stone's corners.
3

Add accent stones if desired. You'll want to make sure you match the color and grade of any accent diamonds to the center stone, since that is your focal point.

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EditPart 6 of 6: Shopping for a Diamond

1

Set a budget before you start shopping. Doing so will help you choose the highest quality diamond you can find for your money.
2

Do your research. Learn as much as you can about diamond quality and price to prevent yourself from getting cheated.
3
Shop around. Visit several different jewelers for a wider selection.
- Only visit reputable jewelers.
- Avoid shopping for diamonds over the Internet, especially if purchasing an important piece such as an engagement ring. Always look for a diamond in person so you can examine the quality firsthand.