Before you go out a make your Diamond purchase here are a few bits of information you should know.  With this information you can make the perfect choice for you or your Bride.  This is known to jewelers as "The 4 C's". With this knowledge you can ask the right questions and understand a stone's grading scale.  

Little bit of  Diamond Information​

Cut - is very personal.  Look for Brilliance, Fire, Sparkle and always look at the stone under different types of lighting.​



Pear Shaped, Emerald, Marquise, Asscher Cushion, Princess, and the Heart.  The "Round Brilliants" have their own instinctive shape.

 

Clarity - this is a 11 step scale, each Diamond is rated based on this grading scale.​



Flawless (FL), Internally Flawless (IF), Very Very Slightly Included (VVS1 & VVS2), Very Slightly Included (VS1 & VS2), Slightly Included (SI1 & Sl2) and Imperfect Included (I1, I2 & I3). 



The most common is VS to SI range, in this range they are clean to the human eye. Only under a magnification can inclusions be visible.  In all cases inclusions are a good thing, they help identify your stone, and make it unique to you.  Our suggestion is to stay away from anything in the "I" range. 

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Color - Colorless diamonds are graded on a scale from "D" (completely clear) to "Z" (traces of yellow, gray and brown). There is a letter grade for each shade. ​



"D" is like looking into glass,  "E and F" are also pretty colorless. 

"G thru J" are near colorless.  "K thru L" start to turn a very light yellow.  Recommended to stay in the "D" thru the "L" range this will give you great brilliance for your dollar. 



Fancy Color Diamonds - yellow, pink, blue, and any other color, are currently not rated by the GIA for their color, but the more saturated the color the more expensive the stone will be. 

 

Carat - the diamonds weight and not it's size.​

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Each metric carat weighs 200 milligrams, with each carat divided into hundredths, or points.  An easier understanding is a dollar contains 100 pennies, so each carat comprises of 100 points.  Example is 75 -points diamond weighs 0.75 carats, or a 50 pointer weighs 0.50 carats.