Diamond Clarity, What you Need to Know?
Diamond clarity is, in my opinion, the most important factor in deciding whether to purchase a particular diamond or not. This is because there is one big misconception surrounding diamond clarity that every consumer should know. That is, when you are wearing a diamond ring, people aren’t going to go up to you with a jeweler’s loupe and start examining your jewelry. What I’m trying to say is very simple: You don’t have to buy an internally flawless (IF) diamond to have a beautiful engagement ring. What you do have to buy is an eye-clean diamond whose flaws (or inclusions) are not visible to the naked eye.
Take a look at this diamond clarity tool from Zoara. It’s a little cheesy, but it will show you the very minor differences in the various clarity grades. Read what they have to say on the subject, but don’t get too obsessed with buying a diamond with perfect clarity, unless you’re trying to launder money or something.
While technically true that the higher a diamond is graded in terms of Diamond Clarity, the more valuable the stone is, my contention is that this is only the case because many gullible people and some stone collectors are willing to buy these diamonds for whatever the price in order to inflate their own egos.
The best diamond to get for your ring is one that is slightly included (SI1 or SI2), or in other words has flaws that are on the edges of the stone and can be covered up by a prong or bezel setting. Take a look at this bezel set engagement ring for example. You’ll see that the metal that holds the diamond in actually covers the edges of the stone. The key is to find a stone whose inclusions are on the side of the diamond and can be covered up by a bezel setting like this one. That will get you the best ring for the lowest price.
When shopping online, it is a good idea to contact the vendor in question and ask them to find out from the supplier exactly where the inclusions are and to recommend a setting that can cover them up. They will gladly oblige. You can also contact me to be your middleman and I will do my best to find you the best value stone for your money.
If you can afford to, go up to VS1 or VS2, but any higher than that and you are probably spending too much.
For more on the subject, see this article on Diamond Color
Take a look at this diamond clarity tool from Zoara. It’s a little cheesy, but it will show you the very minor differences in the various clarity grades. Read what they have to say on the subject, but don’t get too obsessed with buying a diamond with perfect clarity, unless you’re trying to launder money or something.
While technically true that the higher a diamond is graded in terms of Diamond Clarity, the more valuable the stone is, my contention is that this is only the case because many gullible people and some stone collectors are willing to buy these diamonds for whatever the price in order to inflate their own egos.
The best diamond to get for your ring is one that is slightly included (SI1 or SI2), or in other words has flaws that are on the edges of the stone and can be covered up by a prong or bezel setting. Take a look at this bezel set engagement ring for example. You’ll see that the metal that holds the diamond in actually covers the edges of the stone. The key is to find a stone whose inclusions are on the side of the diamond and can be covered up by a bezel setting like this one. That will get you the best ring for the lowest price.
When shopping online, it is a good idea to contact the vendor in question and ask them to find out from the supplier exactly where the inclusions are and to recommend a setting that can cover them up. They will gladly oblige. You can also contact me to be your middleman and I will do my best to find you the best value stone for your money.
If you can afford to, go up to VS1 or VS2, but any higher than that and you are probably spending too much.
For more on the subject, see this article on Diamond Color