ENTER THE WORLD OF DIAMONDS
Prized for thousands of years, as a symbol of wealth and power there is much more to a diamond than meets the eye. Diamonds vary hugely in quality, so learning about and understanding diamonds can help to ensure that you are choosing the right diamond.
SI Luxury World’s diamond education is designed to answer all your questions and in just a few minutes you’ll know everything you need to know about finding your perfect diamond.
Diamonds are split into different categories based on a number of factors. This is called grading. Diamond grading involves evaluating each diamond on its own and deciding where on the scale it sits for the many different aspects on which diamonds are graded.
There are a number of bodies out there who are authorised to certify diamonds, SI Luxury World believe the best of these to be the GIA.
The GIA laboratory provides a clear and systematic way to compare diamonds called the 4C system.
The 4C system is so called because of the four characteristics it compares: Cut, Clarity, Colour and Carat. In combination, these four factors provide an internationally standardised way to discuss diamonds and to compare one diamond to another.
Please click the tabs to learn more about each individual aspect of diamonds.
UNDERSTANDING CLARITY
Clarity is a measure of the number and size of the tiny imperfections that occur in almost all diamonds. These imperfections are usually microscopic, and do not affect a diamond's beauty in any discernible way. Natural imperfections occur in all but the finest diamonds.
Gemmologists refer to these imperfections by a variety of technical names, including blemishes and inclusions among others.
Inclusions are minor flaws that are totally enclosed in the diamond or extend into it from the surface. Blemishes are confined to the surface of the diamond. Inclusions normally have more impact on a diamond's beauty and value than blemishes.
Diamonds without any flaws are extremely rare, which makes them especially valuable. Flaws exist in all diamonds that have not been cut.
It is up to the manufacture to fashion the diamond in such manner that the final result will contain the smallest number of inclusions, abrasions and blemishes possible.
Clarity quality grades are described in the following manner, from best to worst:
Flawless (FL)
Internally Flawless (IF)
Very Very Slight Inclusions 1 (VVS1)
Very Very Slight Inclusions 2 (VVS2)
Very Slight Inclusions 1 (VS1)
Very Slight Inclusions 2 (VS2)
Slight Inclusions 1 (SI1)
Slight Inclusions 2 (SI2)
Inclusions 1 (I1)
Inclusions 2 (I2)
THE DIFFERENCES IN COLOUR
The term colour relates to the amount of internal colouring in a diamond. Truly colourless diamonds are very rare and valuable. Most diamonds used in jewellery are nearly colourless, however in lower quality jewellery the diamonds will likely contain some hints of yellow or brown.
With near-colourless diamonds, less colour means higher value. Diamonds can also be found in a variety of other colours, such as pink and blue. With these coloured diamonds the opposite is true; more colour usually means the gemstone is worth more.
The different shades and colours of a diamond are caused during the crystallisation process of the carbon atoms as the diamond is formed within the earth’s crust.
The forming diamond’s proximity to different minerals imbedded in the earths layers cause the colours changes and variations. With clear diamonds, Colour Grades range from D (totally colourless) to Z (heavily coloured).
Fancy colour - Only one in every 10,000 diamonds possesses natural colour and is referred to as a fancy colour diamond. For this reason, fancy colour diamonds are purchased almost exclusively for the intensity and distribution of the diamond's colour.
From pink to black spanning all the colours of the rainbow including blue, red, yellow, green, grey and brown, natural colour diamonds are all excluded from the D to Z classification, which only applies to colourless (‘white’) diamonds
Criteria considered when purchasing a white or colourless diamond, such as cut proportions and clarity are less important when purchasing a fancy colour diamond. Colour intensity, the deepness or richness of colour, is the most important consideration when purchasing a fancy colour diamond.
The more intense the colour, the more rare and valuable the diamond will be. Fancy colour diamonds are graded in order of increasing intensity from Faint, Very Light, Light, Fancy Light, Fancy, Fancy Intense, Fancy Vivid, Fancy Dark, and Fancy Deep.
A DIAMONDS PROPORTIONS CUT
The term Cut refers to a diamond’s proportions and the quality of its finish and is its most important characteristic. It has the greatest overall influence on a diamond's beauty and determines what we generally think of as its sparkle.
The term comes from the fact that when a diamond is found it is generally much larger than the finished diamond you would see on a piece of jewellery.
The finished diamond is then ‘cut’ out of the larger original diamond and polished to a dazzling finish. A well-cut diamond refracts the light around it and appears to shine.
A diamond's cut grade is an objective measure of a diamond's’ light performance’. When a diamond is cut with the proper proportions, light is returned out of the top of the diamond (which gemmologists refer to as the ‘table’). If it is cut too shallow, light leaks out of the bottom; too deep and it escapes out of the side.
THE WEIGHT OF A DIAMOND CARAT
The weight of a diamond is measured in carats. A carat equals one-fifth of a gram (0.200g). Larger diamonds are more rare and therefore more valuable than smaller ones, provided of course they are of the same quality.
A larger diamond of a lower quality can be worth the same or indeed less than a much smaller diamond of a higher quality.
Choosing the right size diamond to suit a specific piece of jewellery is an art form, one that the skilled artisans of our brand partners have spent years perfecting.
DIAMOND FLUORESCENCE
Diamond fluorescence, in its most simple form, is the effect that ultraviolet (UV) light has on a diamond. When you stand under a blue light or ultraviolet light, sometimes you can see your whites get brighter or your teeth appear to glow. This is the same effect the diamond has under the UV rays. Fluorescence is the visible light that a diamond emits when it is exposed to the UV rays.
On a GIA Diamond Grading Report, fluorescence refers to the strength, or intensity, of the diamond’s reaction to long- wave UV, which is an essential component of daylight. The light emitted lasts as long as the diamond is exposed to the ultraviolet source. Although invisible to the human eye, UV radiation is everywhere. Sunlight contains it. Fluorescent lights emit it, too.
If the fluorescence is too strong it might make the stone look cloudy or “oily.” And that can lower the value of the diamond.
CARING FOR YOUR DIAMONDS
Diamonds are one of the hardest substances on earth and are uniquely resistant to damage by heat or scratching. That said diamonds are not indestructible.
When wearing your diamond, you should be conscious of it on your finger, removing it when doing any type of activity that might expose it to a rough substance or a hard blow.
During the course of ordinary wear, a diamond is exposed to dirt, perspiration, makeup, and natural skin oils as well as household chemicals. Over time, these materials build up on a diamond dulling its sheen.
Luckily, cleaning a diamond is easy and requires very little time. Soak your diamond in a solution of one part ammonia and six parts water. Dip a very soft brush, such as a soft-bristle toothbrush, into the solution and pull it gently across the diamond to loosen dirt.
Be careful when applying the brush to the metal of your setting, as harsh or rough cleaning can scratch. Finally, rinse well to renew brilliance.
You may also clean a diamond by following the directions on non-abrasive jewellery cleaner. These are available at most department stores. Make sure that the jewellery cleaner specifies that it is safe to use on diamonds and the metal of your setting.
After application of the jewellery cleaner, use a soft cloth to remove any remaining dirt or other residue. Because of their hardness, diamonds can scratch other diamonds, gemstones and jewellery metals.
This is one of the most common ways jewellery is damaged. For this reason, store all jewellery, especially diamond jewellery in individual soft cloth pouches when not being worn.
AA RACHMINOV DIAMONDS
SI Luxury World is proud to be partnered with A.A Rachminov Diamonds, one of the world’s leading diamond specialists. A.A Rachminov Ltd is a second generation diamond trading & manufacturing Company founded by the Rachminov brothers.
They have been dealing in diamonds from the early 1950s, since the dawn of the Israeli diamond industry.
Thanks to years of experience within the diamond trade A.A Rachminov now operate on a global scale covering all aspects of the industry, from trade and manufacturing to Jewellery.
They also have branches around the world and a list of well over five hundred clients including top jewellers, celebrities and royalty.
Their inventory consists of high-end GIA certified diamonds, round and fancy cuts with the vast majority being a minimum of two carats in weight, going up to fifty carats and beyond.
All A.A. Rachminov diamonds are graded with clarity of IF-VS and a colour grading of D-I, as well as a vast collection of prestigious well-known stones. Many of their diamonds are cut and polished by their diamond experts using industry leading equipment and expert cutters.
THE WORK OF THE G.I.A
Diamond grading reports date back to the middle of the twentieth century. They've become an enormously important part of the modern diamond trade.
The GIA has been active since the 1930s as a diamond grading laboratory and as a diamond research centre responsible for numerous breakthroughs and the establishing of the trade's internationally recognized standard, the 4Cs.
Gemmological laboratories grade thousands of diamonds a year.
Therefore it is imperative that their systems and methods are beyond reproach. The GIA are regularly and independently audited to ensure that their grading is entirely accurate. Another factor that contributes to the accuracy is that, at most laboratories, several graders examine each diamond.
Systems at most major gemmological laboratories are adapted to the GIA diamond grading system because it's universally accepted. Even if a grade is based on the GIA system, however, the only source of an authentic GIA diamond grade is the GIA laboratory.
A quality report from a reputable laboratory allows a retailer or dealer to choose a diamond without seeing it. Imagine a Canadian retailer that needs a centre stone for a ring he's designing. He contacts dealers in Tel-Aviv, New York and other big manufacturing centres to find it in stock; the GIA report gives him a good enough description to purchase the diamond without ever seeing it, confident that the report will be totally accurate.
This is how much of the diamond trade works, so it is again essential to ensure that any diamond you purchase comes with a full report. A report can also work the other way.
You can check a diamond that's accompanied by a quality report to make sure it matches its description. This protects you against switched stones.