Learn About the 4 C's... Plus 1 More!
Your experience with Diamond Design Studio means more to us than a one time purchase, it involves building a long term relationship. In doing so, we recommend that you be educated when making this lifetime purchase.
A diamond is judged by four distinct factors that combine in a number of ways to arrive at its value and beauty - Cut, Carat, Colour and Clarity. We believe one more 'C' is integral when purchasing a diamond... Confidence.
Cut
The Cut of the diamond is, in our opinion, one of the more important factors because it greatly adds to the fire, beauty and brilliance of the diamond. A well cut diamond will appear larger, make inclusions harder to see, and will also hide lower colour better. A well cut diamond also means the dimensions are ideal, or close to ideal, in proportion; this means that a one carat will look like a one carat. Ideally, light should reflect allowing for highest level of brilliance. However, when a diamond is cut too shallow or too deep, light escapes from the sides or bottom.
Carat
The Carat Weight of a diamond is the size, and therefore a lot of consumers look at this factor as very important because it is easily visible to the human eye. Carat weight is the most objective factor, it involves no estimates, comparisons or judgments.
Colour
The more closely a diamond approaches 'colourless' on the scale, the less colour it has, the more rare it is, and therefore the higher the value. The best colour of a diamond is no colour (D) - a totally colourless diamond that allows white light to pass effortlessly through it and be dispersed as rainbows of colour. The differences between one grade and another are very subtle as can be seen by the number of grades within any one category.
Clarity
Each diamond is unique and has a fingerprint unique only to itself. Hence, clarity refers to the birthmarks or flaws, either internal (inclusions) or external (blemishes). Almost all diamonds contain small traces of non-crystalized carbon - the element from which they were born. The extent to which these imperfections are visible is how the scale of Clarity is graded.
Flawless (FL) - no blemishes and inclusions are visible to a trained eye under 10x magnification
Internally Flawless (IF) - no inclusions and only blemishes are visible to a trained eye under 10x magnification
Very, Very Slightly Included (VVS) - inclusions are difficult for a trained eye to see under 10x magnification
Very Slightly Included (VS) - inclusions are minor and range from difficult to somewhat easy for a trained eye under 10x magnification
Slightly Included (SI) - inclusions are noticeable for a trained eye under 10x magnification
Included (I) - inclusions are obvious under 10x magnification, and may affect transparency and brilliance
Confidence
The last 'C' - Confidence - is related to us and what we will do for you. Being aware of the 4 C's and all the technical lingo doesn't necessarily mean you will make the right decision when making such a large investment. Allow Diamond Design Studio to guide you through the process, in making the entire journey transparent, brilliant and eternal.
