The “Four C’s” of diamonds are the following traits: cut, color, clarity and carat. All of the traits should be equally considered when deciding to buy diamonds rings; however the most important factor of all is the cut quality, according to Tiffany and Co.
Cut: The cut is prone to mistakes and bad practices being the only feature of a diamond which is not dictated by nature. A diamond which has an incorrect cut will have the defining sparkle totally compromised. If the cuts are too deep or too shallow then the diamond ring will end up being less brilliant.
The cut style also determines the final shape of any diamond. The most usual shape is the round cut, but other cut styles include the emerald, the marquise, the pear, the oval, the princess and the heart shape. Take a look at the picture in order to get accustomed with the different cut styles.
Color: The most precious and rare color is white, which in fact is colorless. Jewelers grade absolutely colorless diamonds with a “D” o a scale which moves up to “Z. Between these two extremes, diamonds will display various subtle colored tones. Diamonds which have a very strong and distinct color are extremely rare and they’re called fancies.
Clarity: Many people are over-concerned with the clarity of a stone on a diamond engagement ring. If you look into the majority of diamonds with a jeweler’s magnifying eyeglass you will notice small “inclusions”, which are also known as “nature’s fingerprints”. They seem like minute clouds or feathers and they’re not visible with the naked eye. These kinds of imperfections can affect the diamond’s fire, but in the same time they also make your diamond unique so they shouldn’t always be looked upon as a fault. So you should worry too much about something you can’t really see.
Carat: This feature tells the weight, and thus the size, of a diamond. A carat means 0.2 g, or 200 mg and it’s divided into 100 smaller units called points. For example, half a carat is 50 points. The average size of most diamond wedding rings is situated between one carat and half a carat.
Any professional jeweler should know about the four Cs and be prepared to explain them to you when displaying diamonds. In the case that you don’t want to place your trust wholly in a jeweler, you should ask for a “cert stone” – a diamond which has been assessed graded and coded using a laser by an independent gemological laboratory. The type of certificate is relevant, because not all are universally recognized. The most internationally recognized are issued by GIA (the Gemological Institute of America). Some other popular certificates include HRD, IGL, EGL and AGS (see Diamond Certificate Issuers, right).
