Diamond jewelry is often at the top of a woman’s holiday wish list but getting her a gift that she’ll love doesn’t have to be complicated. In the second installment of our 2013 Holiday Buying Guide series, you will learn the basics of what to look for when shopping for diamond jewelry.

The first thing to know is that not all diamonds are created equal. In fact, every diamond is unique, which makes buying a diamond seem all the more challenging. For starters, how do you compare them? To protect consumers and help everyone better understand diamond quality, GIA created the 4Cs, now globally accepted as the language used to describe diamond quality. The 4Cs are so universal that diamonds are valued by how they measure up to each of the Cs. Being familiar with the 4Cs not only helps you better appreciate each diamond’s unique beauty, but also understand its price.

Every woman knows ‘good things come in small packages’ and this short 4Cs primer will get you well on your way to making sure the gift you give her this holiday is one that will delight.

Color

GIA D-to-Z Color Grading Scale measures the degree of colorlessness of a diamond, as compared to a set of master stones of established color. D is the highest grade representing colorless. As you go down through the scale, the diamond is picking up more yellow or brown color. Colorless diamonds are the most rare, and their price will reflect their rarity. Even the slightest hint of color can make a dramatic difference in value. This interactive tool shows you the subtle differences in color.

Clarity

Few things in life are perfect, and diamonds are no exception. Diamonds have internal features, called inclusions, and surface irregularities, called blemishes. Clarity grades assess the number, size, relief, nature, and position of inclusions and blemishes. Flawless is the top grade in the GIA Clarity Grading Scale, and flawless diamonds are so rare that it’s possible to spend a lifetime in the jewelry industry without ever seeing one. There are 11 clarity grades assigned to a diamond, and the fewer inclusions and blemishes, the higher the value.

Cut

Cut is the finished shape of the gem and the number and angles of its facets. The GIA Diamond Cut Grading System for standard round brilliant diamonds (still the most popular diamond shape and cutting style) has five cut grades ranging from Excellent to Poor and takes into consideration not only the proportions, polish and symmetry, but also visual appearance. Many people mistakenly use the term “cut” to refer to the diamond’s shape. Diamond shapes other than round brilliant are called fancy shapes, and include marquises, pears, ovals, hearts, and triangles to name a few.

Carat Weight

As most people know, diamonds are priced by weight. Diamonds are weighed to a thousandth (0.001) of a carat, which is 0.200 grams, and then rounded to the nearest hundredth, or point. These exact calculations are important; fractions of a carat can mean price differences of hundreds—even thousands—of dollars. Only one in 1,000 diamonds is more than a carat, and this rarity means that larger diamonds of the same quality are worth more per carat. In other words, a two-carat diamond will often cost more than the total of two one-carat diamonds, because of a higher per carat cost.

Going to a jeweler with a basic understanding of the 4Cs will help tremendously in your ability to compare diamonds and talk knowledgably with the salesperson.

For even more information, GIA created the 4Cs app, available for iPhone, iPad and Android ®, which includes videos and interactive tools explaining each of the 4Cs in greater detail. It also has a useful tool called “My Diamond Wish List” where you can save and compare GIA-graded diamonds from different jewelers as you’re shopping this holiday season.

Now that you have a basic understanding of the 4Cs, you’ll want to know how to make sure the diamond you’re buying has the qualities you’re looking for. For more about GIA grading reports, stay tuned for the next installment in our 2013 Holiday Buyers Guide.

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GIA’s 4Cs Q&A series continues with a careful consideration of carat weight.

Q: What is the difference between carat and karat?

A: Karat (abbreviated “K” or “Kt”) is a unit of measure that describes the purity–or fineness–of gold.

Q: How did the carat system start?

A: The modern carat system started with the carob seed. Early gem traders used the small, uniform seeds as counterweights in their balance scales. The carat is the same gram weight in every corner of the world.

Q: What are “magic sizes”?

A: Some weights are considered “magic sizes”–half carat, three-quarter carat, and carat. Visually, there’s little difference between a 0.99 carat diamond and one that weighs a full carat. But the price differences between the two can be significant.

Q: How is diamond carat weight measured?

A: To determine carat weight, the grader weighs the diamond using an extremely accurate electronic micro-balance that captures the weight to the precise fifth decimal place (the nearest ten-thousandth of a carat).

To see if your knowledge of carat weight measures up, please check out 4Cs of Diamond Quality or download the GIA 4Cs app, now available on iPhone, iPad, and Android!

Color Q&A | Clarity Q&A | Cut Q&A | Carat Weight Q&A

All diamond images and diagrams are for reference only and may not reflect true diamond carat weight.

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A metric “carat” is defined as 200 milligrams. Each carat can be subdivided into 100 ‘points.’ This allows very precise measurements to the hundredth decimal place. The diamond carat weight of a diamond below one carat can also be described by its ‘points’ alone. For instance, a diamond that weighs 0.25 carats could also be referred to as a ‘twenty-five pointer.’ Diamond weights greater than one carat are expressed in carats and decimals. A 1.08 carat stone would be described as ‘one point oh eight carats.’

All else being equal, diamond price increases with diamond carat weight, because larger diamonds are more rare and more desirable. But two diamonds of equal carat weight can have very different values (and prices) depending on three other factors within the 4Cs: clarity, color, and cut.

In other words, knowing all the 4Cs inside and out makes you a much more educated and empowered diamond consumer. Wouldn’t you all agree?

Be sure to brush up on cut, clarity, color and the Diamond Grading Scales.

All diamond images and diagrams are for reference only and may not reflect true diamond carat weight.

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GIA created the 4Cs (Color, Clarity, Cut and Carat Weight) as a universal method for establishing the quality of any diamond, anywhere in the world. The 4Cs means two very important things: diamond quality can be communicated in a universal language, and diamond-buying consumers can know exactly what they are about to purchase.

All diamond images and diagrams are for reference only and may not reflect true diamond quality grade. Images are not for color or clarity diamond grading.

Interested in learning more about how to buy a diamond? Stay tuned for next week’s tutorial on diamond color or check out these great 1-minute videos on the 4Cs: Color, Clarity, Cut and Carat Weight.

The post GIA Diamond Grading Scales: The Universal Measure of Quality appeared first on GIA 4Cs Blog.

This guide will help you navigate and understand the relative quality differences that exist on the color, clarity and cut grading scales.

The post Download GIA’s 4Cs Guide to Understanding Diamond Quality appeared first on GIA 4Cs Blog.

You can buy coffee by the pound. You can even buy deli meat by the pound. Even if you’ve never bought a diamond, the correlation between weight and price is a concept that we can all understand. Therefore, the general perception is that a larger diamond is more valuable than a smaller one.

Diamonds are measured or weighed in “carats”, or the equivalent of 200 milligrams. Precision in weighing a diamond is such that a diamond is weighed to a thousandth (.001) of a carat and then rounded to the nearest hundredth.

What is not as easy to understand is that a 2.00 carat diamond is not always worth twice as much as a 1.00 carat diamond. Large diamonds are rarer than smaller ones, so logically they seem to be worth more. But the value of a diamond is determined by considering all of the 4Cs of diamond quality as a whole.

Remember, when you are looking at diamonds, bigger is not always better. Learn about the next C, Diamond Color, before your next purchase.

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• Carat:  Diamonds are weighed in metric carats. Two carats weight about the same as a small paper clip. A carat is divided into 100 “points”, so a diamond of 50 points weighs 0.50 carats.

• Clarity:  Nearly all diamonds contain unique clarity characteristics.  Flawless diamonds are exceptional and costly. Most inclusions are invisible unless magnified.
• Color:  Colorless diamonds are extremely uncommon. Most diamonds have a slight yellow or brown tint. GIA uses letters to represent colors, beginning with D (colorless) and ending at Z (light yellow or brown). “Fancy colored diamonds” come in every color imaginable, are also very unusual and have their own GIA color grading system.

• Cut:  While diamonds come in different shapes, such as round, pear or marquise, the term “cut” refers to proportion. The well-cut, balanced diamond has unbridled brilliance, sparkle and fire.

Below is a suite of diamonds including, (clockwise from top) Asscher cut, pear shape, marquise shape and round brilliant cut. These diamond shapes remain popular in today’s diamond market. Photo by Robert Weldon, © GIA 2008

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