All About the Clarity of Diamonds

All About the Clarity of Diamonds

Clarity is an important aspect of a diamond,

and it is important to know how to grade the

clarity of a diamond before you buy one. It is

actually quite easy to learn how to grade the

clarity of a diamond. There are basically two

things that you must understand: Diamonds

with visual inclusions and blemishes, and

those that are ‘eye clean’ meaning that there

are no inclusions or blemishes that can be

seen with the naked eye. From there, the

clarity of a diamond is further broken down

into subcategories.

Many people mistakenly think that diamond

clarity refers to how clear it is. This isn’t so.

Clarity actually refers to the internal and

external imperfections of the diamond. The

best diamonds, of course get a grade of FL

or IF – Flawless or Internally Flawless –

meaning that it is perfect. A grade of I-1, I-2

or I-3 means that the diamond is imperfect,

with a grade of I-3 being the worst.

Other grades are VVS1 and VVS2, which

means that the diamond is very, very slightly

imperfect; VS1 and VS2, meaning the

diamond is very slightly imperfect; SI-1 and

SI-2, which means that the diamond is

slightly imperfect.

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Where Diamonds are Mined

Where Diamonds are Mined

Argye mine located in the Kimberley region

in the far north east of Western Australia.

Owned by Rio Tinto, this mine is the world’s

largest single producer of volume of

diamonds.  However, due to low proportion

of gem quality diamonds it is not the value

leader.  It does produce 90-95% of the

world’s supply of pink diamonds.  

Diavik is also owned by Rio Tinto, located in

Canada it is a very large mine.   It is located

north of Yellowknife and south of the Artic

Circle on an island.  The island is connected

by an ice road.  It is also an important part of

the regions economy employing more than

700 people and producing more than 8 million

carats annually.

Ekati diamond mine is owned by BHP

Billiton and located south of the artic circle

in the Northwest Territories of Canada. 

The Ekati is Canada’s first operational

diamond mine.     Diamonds mined here

are sold under the Aurias trade name  

Authenticity is verified through Canada

Mark service.  CanadaMark service is also

owned by BHP Billiton Diamonds, Inc.

Baken diamond mine is located along the

lower Orange River in South Africa.  It is

owned and operated by Trans Hex.  The

average size stone for 2004 was 1.29

carats.   In 2004, this mine produced a

78.9 carat D color flawless diamond that

sold for more than 1.8 million dollars (US),

as well as a 27.67 pink diamond that was

sold for over 1 million US dollars.

Merlin is the second of only two diamond

mines in Australia.  No longer operating it

was owned by Rio Tinto and sold to Striker

Resources, who has explored the

possibilities of reopening the mine.  

Orapa is the world’s largest diamond mine. 

It us located 240 Km west of

Francistown.  The mine is owned by

“Debswana” which is a partnership

between DeBeers and the government of

Botswana. This mine operates 7 days a

week.  It maintains pre primary and

primary schools for its employee’s children. 

There is also a 100 bed hospital and game

park.  This mine began production in 1971

and is the oldest mine owned by the

Debswana Company.

The Premier mine located in Cullinan, South

Africa produced the largest gem diamond

ever in 1905.  The Cullinan Diamond

weighed 3,106.75 carats.  This mine also

produced the Golden Jubilee diamond

which weighed 545.67 carats.  This mine is

owned by the De Beers Company and was

renamed The Cullinan Diamond Mine in

2003 in celebration of its centennial.

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What Are Dirty Diamonds?

What Are Dirty Diamonds?

A dirty diamond is one of two things: a rough

diamond, or a diamond that hasn’t been

cleaned in a while. Rough diamonds are

uncut and unpolished – hence, they are dirty.

But that type of dirty diamond will soon be

cut and polished and sitting in a beautiful

jewel box in a display case. Then someone

will purchase it, and before long, it will

become a dirty diamond once again.

Diamonds become dirty. When you wash

your hands with a diamond ring on, soap

scum clings to it. When you put on hand

lotion, it gets grease on it. Shower with your

diamond earrings or necklace, and again,

you get soap scum. In one short day, your

brand new diamond could be dirty!

Purchase an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner the

same day that you purchase your diamond

jewelry, and use it every single day, without

fail. The clarity of the diamond changes

when the diamond is dirty – it loses its

sparkle. By taking one minute each day to

clean your diamond jewelry, you can avoid

this, and your diamonds will never be dirty!

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Synthetic Diamonds

Synthetic Diamonds

The first synthetic diamonds were produced

by General Electric in 1954. A synthetic

diamond is basically a rock that has the

durability, refractive index and hardness of

a natural diamond – but it is made by man.

A synthetic diamond should not be

confused with stimulant diamonds, such as

glass, cubic zirconia, or moissanite.

Although the technology for synthetic

diamonds came into play in 1954, no

synthetic diamonds were ever seen on the

market until the 1990’s. This was due to the

fact that it took many years for General

Electric to produce a synthetic diamond that

could compare with the quality of a natural

diamond – and when they figured out how to

do it, they found that it cost more to produce

a synthetic diamond than it did to mine and

cut natural diamonds.

Finally, a small company by the name of

Gemesis Corporation figured out a way to

produce synthetic diamonds that were of the

same quality as natural diamonds, at a

cheaper price. Today, Gemesis produces

synthetic white diamonds, and colored

diamonds as well. These diamonds sell for

about 1/3 of the cost of a natural diamond,

but there is a shortage of them, and they are

hard to find. In fact, it seems that synthetic

diamonds are rarer than natural diamonds!

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Selecting Diamonds

Selecting Diamonds

Diamonds are graded for certification by

laboratories using grading criteria. Four of

these criteria are critical to understand when

making a diamond purchase or investment.

Known as the “Four C’s” these criteria are:

color, cut, clarity and carat. 

Color is the result of the composition of a

diamond and it does not change. When a

jeweler is describing the color of a diamond

they are referring to the presence or absence

of color in white diamonds. Because a

diamond with no color allows maximum light

to pass through, colorless diamonds are

preferred for their sparkle.

Cut refers to a diamonds reflective quality.

Most diamonds are cut with 58 facets. The

brilliance of diamonds is heavily dependent

on the cut. The different angles and the finish

of a diamond determine its ability to reflect

light and cause its brilliance and fire.

Remember that the cut of a diamond can

have an impact on its durability as well as its

beauty. Some cutting faults can make a

diamond prone to breakage. A diamond

that is cut too thin can also cause light to

leak out of the back and the diamond will

lose some of the sparkle and appear not

to shine. So, as you can see the Cut is

probably the most important of the Four C’s.  

During the formation process, inner flaws, or

inclusions occur in most diamonds. The

number and size of these inclusions

determine what is referred to as the clarity

of a diamond. Diamonds that are clear

create more brilliance and therefore are rarer

and highly priced. To be considered

“flawless”, a diamond must have no surface

or internal imperfections visible upon being

viewed by a skilled diamond grader using

10 power magnifications.

Carat is the unit of weight by which diamonds

are measured. One carat is equal to 200

milligrams. A carat is divided into 100

segments called points. 150 points would

equal one and a half carats. 

When you go to the store to make that all

important diamond purchase, do not be shy! 

Ask questions, get the answers needed to

make an informed purchase. Shopping for

certified diamonds enables you to make an

informed selection. Knowing the “four C’s”

allows you to comparison shop and purchase

the best diamond at a fair price.  But, before

making a purchase, shop around and decide

what shapes and styles really appeal to you.

Enjoy your diamond for years to come!

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Insuring Your Diamonds

Insuring Your Diamonds

Insuring a diamond takes a bit of thought,

planning, and shopping around. Diamond

insurance isn’t like purchasing car insurance.

It is quite different. Depending on the state

that you live in, there are basically three

different types of policies that will cover

diamonds, and all insurance policies that

cover diamonds are considered Marine

type policies.

The first type of insurance policies for

diamonds is an Actual Cash Value policy.

If the diamond is lost or damaged beyond

repair, the insurance company will replace

the diamond at today’s market value, no

matter how much you paid for the diamond

to begin with. This type of insurance policy

for diamonds actually is not that common.

The most common type of insurance for

diamonds is Replacement Value insurance.

The insurance company will only pay up to a

fixed amount to replace the diamond that was

lost or damaged beyond repair. This does not

mean that they will pay that amount – it means

 that they will pay up to that amount. In most

cases, the diamond can be replaced at a

lower cost.

The third type of coverage offered for

diamonds is Agreed Value. This is

sometimes called ‘Valued At.’ This type of

coverage is very rare. In the event that the

diamond is lost or damaged beyond repair,

 the insurance company simply pays you the

amount that you and the company agreed

upon. This is the best type of insurance to

have, but it is rarely offered. If you can’t get

Agreed Value coverage, Actual Cash Value

coverage should be your next choice.

Your rates will be determined by the value of

the diamond, the type of coverage that you

select, and the area that you live in. If you live

in an area with a high crime rate, you can

expect to pay more for your diamond

insurance coverage. It is important to

remember that insurance agents are not

qualified jewelers, and jewelers are not

qualified insurance agents. It is best to get

a certificate for your diamond, and to

provide the insurance company with a copy

of that certificate. This leaves the insurance

company less room for arguments over the

actual value of the diamond.

Don’t rely on separate coverage to cover

your diamond. For instance, if you diamond

is stolen from your home, it is probably

covered on your home owner’s insurance

policy – but the diamond probably won’t

always be in your home, and once it leaves

your home, there is no coverage.

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How to Sell A Diamond

How to Sell A Diamond

There are many reasons why you may want

to sell a diamond that you own. Perhaps

you’ve gotten divorced, or you are strapped

for cash. The reasons why don’t really matter

– getting the best possible price is what

counts! The way to obtain the best price

for the diamond is to not be in a rush. Slow

down, and carefully consider all of your

options – there are many.

First, have the diamond appraised. In fact,

have it appraised by two or three jewelers to

get an accurate idea of the diamonds value.

Tell the appraiser that you want the Rapaport

Value. This is the wholesale value of the

diamond, and it basically tells you the highest

price that you can sell your diamond for. If your

diamond has no certificate, you should

consider getting a certificate from GIA. This

may help you get a better price for the

diamond as well.

First, try to sell the diamond yourself, to

people you know. Friends and family

members may be interested. If you don’t have

any luck with friends or family members, you

should turn to outside sources. Absolutely

avoid pawn shops! A pawn shop will only offer

you about 10% of what the diamond is worth!

Also avoid offers of selling the ring on

consignment. There are many things that

can go wrong, and there is no shortage of

diamond scams – even in well known

jewelry stores.

If the diamond is important, you should

strongly consider auctioning it off through

one of the famous auction houses, such as

Christie’s or Sotheby’s. If it isn’t what is

considered an ‘important’ diamond or a

high-end diamond, you should try to sell it

to an individual using classified ads, or even

eBay. However, selling to an individual that

you do not know could put you in danger –

especially if the diamond is worth a lot of

money.

Your final option should be a jewelry store. It

is vital that you not let your diamond out of

your sight while in the jewelry store – you

might find that the diamond you walked in

with is not the same diamond that you walk

out with! The jeweler will try to tell you that

your diamond is of poor quality or low

weight. Inevitably, there will be some

problem with the diamond. This is where

your appraisal and/or certificate will come

in handy.

If the jeweler is fair, they will offer you

between 60% and 80% of the value of the

Rapaport Value. Do not accept anything less

than this. Again, do not let the diamond out of

your sight until you have been paid for it.

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