What Makes Up a Diamonds Clarity

Clarity refers to an objects transparency or purity. This is a very important characteristic for diamonds. To determine a diamond’s clarity the placement, appearance, and number of inclusions, blemishes, or flaws are noted. The number of inclusions, blemishes, or flaws can affect the opacity of the diamond, its sparkle, and its overall brilliance.The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) is a not for profit institution dedicated to research and education in the field of gemology. The GIA is responsible for creating a gem scale to rate diamonds clarity.The scale is as follows:Flawless(FL): This refers to a diamond that does not have any blemishes or inclusions at all when viewed under a 10x magnification by an experienced diamontologist.

Internally Flawless(IF): This refers to a diamond that does not have any inclusions, but may have some minor blemishes when observed by a certified diamontologist under a 10x magnification.

Very Very Slightly Included(VVS1 and VVS2): This refers to a diamond that has very tiny inclusions. These inclusions will be hard, even for an experienced diamontologist, to see when using a 10x magnification.

Very Slightly Included(VS1 and VS2): This refers to a diamond that has very minute inclusions such as small clouds, feathers, or crystals when observed under a 10x magnification.

Slightly Included(SL1 and SL2): This refers to a diamond that has noticeable inclusions such as clouds, feathers, or crystals, that are evident to an experienced diamontologist under a 10x magnification.

Included(I1, I2, and I3): This diamond is often referred to as imperfect. It may contain some inclusions that are fairly apparent to an experienced diamontologist that may be visible without any magnification.

From the above definitions it is easy to tell that you do not want your diamond to have too many inclusions, but what exactly is an inclusion? An inclusion is an internal characteristic that, due to the immense pressure it takes to create a diamond, is often formed during the formation process or caused by an irregularity in the crystal structure. A blemish on the other hand is an external characteristic that can be caused during the formation of the diamond, during the cutting process, or by everyday wear.

There are many different types of inclusions. One common type of inclusion are feathers. Feathers look quite literally like feathers and in some cases extend to the diamonds surface. The diamonds stability can be affected if the feathers extend to the surface of the diamond. Some other types of inclusions are bearding, cleavage, crystals, and pinpoints.

One common type of blemish is naturals. Naturals refer to a part of the diamond that was not polished during the original cutting/polishing phase. Hence they are still natural. Some other examples of blemishes are fracture, nicks, and scratches.

These inclusions and blemishes are not always a bad thing. They are used as a way to identify diamonds. A truly flawless diamond is very hard to find and very expensive as well. It is always a good idea to have your jeweler plot your diamonds characteristics so that you can easily identify it in the future.

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What Makes Up a Diamonds Color

There are 4 general ways to classify a diamond: Clarity, Color, Cut, and Carat. These are referred to as the 4 C’s of diamonds and provide a standardized way of evaluating diamonds. Color, or the lack of, is an extremely important and often times incredibly diverse characteristic of diamonds. Diamonds come in a variety of colors. Among some of the natural colors found in diamonds are orange, grey, blue, red, and black.Most of the time interstitial impurities or structural defects in the diamond are responsible for changes in color. The exception to this are diamonds that, when exposed to radiation, turn green in color. Pure diamonds are diamonds that are structurally and chemically untainted and are completely transparent. These types of diamonds are very rare and incredibly expensive.

Nitrogen impurity is the most common cause of color in a diamond. Often this leads to a yellow or brown diamond. In much rarer cases warping of a diamonds crystal’s during the growth stage can cause the diamonds to exhibit pink, red, or brown colors.

In the early years of diamond grading there were many different and confusing methods of describing a diamonds color. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) changed all of this when they developed the D-Z Grading Scale. The GIA, founded by Robert Shipley in 1931, is considered to be the world’s chief authority in gemology. The D-Z scale put an end to many of the numerous terms that were developed to describe a diamonds color as well as many conflicting scales.

This scale assigns each diamond a character D-Z from the alphabet; hence it is called the D-Z Scale. Diamonds that are rated D-F are considered to be Colorless. These diamonds are extremely unusual and costly. Diamonds that are assigned a G-J are considered to be Near Colorless. Near Colorless diamonds are still considered to be above average, but are usually less expensive than Colorless diamonds. These types of diamonds are a great buy and an alternative to the pricier Colorless Diamonds.

Diamonds that are assigned a K-M, N-R, and S-Z are considered to be faint yellow, very light yellow, and light yellow. These types of diamonds are considered to be of lower quality and the imperfections are obvious to an untrained eye.

There is one final class of Diamonds. This is the Fancy Colored Diamonds. This is reserved for diamonds that are very brightly colored. Fancy diamonds, like the red diamond, are extremely rare and can be very pricey. This is not always the case though because it is possible to get some great deals on green, blue, or bright yellow diamonds.

The Aurora Diamond Collection is a well known collection of diamonds that is considered to be the most comprehensive collection of diamonds in the world. It contains the extremely rare red diamond. The Aurora Diamond Collection, currently on display in London, is probably the best way to get a feel for the different colors that diamonds can be. While most of us will not be able to make it London, there are many pictures available on the internet that can give you an idea of the different colors found in diamonds.

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