Diamonds
Before you even start diamond shopping, you want to have a full understanding of what you're buying. This guide simplifies the four Cs of diamonds — cut, color, clarity, and carat weight, so you can select your diamond based on the same criteria jewelers use to grade them.
After reading through this guide, you'll be ready to choose the diamond that's right for you.
Certification
The most important step in choosing a diamond is reviewing the diamond certificate, referred to by diamond grading labs as a grading report. A grading report documents the characteristics of a diamond, like the four Cs. Before purchasing a diamond, review a copy of its grading report, as this is your guarantee of quality for that diamond. Learn more about the diamond grading report.
Before purchasing a diamond, you should expect to review a copy of its certificate, as this is your only guarantee of the quality and value of that diamond.
What's in a certificate
A diamond certificate, also called a diamond grading report, diamond dossier®, or diamond quality report, is a report created by a gemologist, or gemologists, who have scrutinized the diamond and placed it under a microscope to analyze its dimensions, clarity, cut, color, finish, symmetry, and other characteristics.
Every loose diamond sold by MyJewelryStore.com has been analyzed and graded by either the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) or the American Gem Society Laboratories (AGSL). MyJewelryStore.com works with these independent laboratories, as they are some of the most respected laboratories in the diamond industry. These two laboratories are known for having the most strict, consistent, and unbiased systems for grading diamonds. Diamonds that are accompanied by these grading reports are the most highly valued in the industry, as their quality is considered guaranteed.
Also, in addition to being graded by either the GIA or the AGSL, all MyJewelryStore.com Signature Collection diamonds are certified by GCAL. This additional certification provides you a second authoritative analysis of your diamond.
View Certificates while shopping
At MyJewelryStore.com, you can view certificates for many of the diamonds we offer. Read on to learn more about each certificate:
- GIA Diamond Grading Report
- GIA Diamond Dossier®
- AGSL Diamond Quality Document
- Appraisal Document
- GCAL Certificate of Diamond Authenticity
If you are interested in a diamond and a certificate is not available for viewing, contact a diamond and jewelry consultant at 800-000-0000.
More About Cerficiation
How Do the GIA and AGSL Grade Diamond Cut?
While the AGSL uses several criteria to grade diamond cut, the GIA does not even assign a grade. Using information found on both GIA and AGSL reports, MyJewelryStore.com provides cut grades that help you compare diamonds by using equal criteria.
Diamond Cut Grading
At MyJewelryStore.com, we offer diamonds graded by both the AGSL and the GIA, as these are the two most respected diamond grading laboratories in the world. Unfortunately, these two grading laboratories approach the grading of diamond cut slightly differently. This poses a challenge when trying to compare diamonds that have grading reports from these different diamond laboratories.
To give our customers equal grounds on which to compare diamonds graded by these laboratories, we present a consistent set of measurements for diamonds with AGSL and GIA grading reports.
MyJewelryStore.com classifies cut grades based on the table and depth percentages of a diamond. You'll find these measurements clearly posted in the details for each diamond.
MyJewelryStore.com Cut Standards
Based on criteria listed on both grading reports:
--> Table percentage
--> Depth percentage
Evaluations or grades for the culet, girdle, polish, symmetry, and fluorescence are all clearly indicated.
MyJewelryStore.com uses the measurements from each diamond's grading report to determine:
--> Table percentage: The ratio of the table diameter of the diamond to its overall diameter.
--> Depth percentage: The ratio of the depth of the diamond to its diameter.
From these proportions, MyJewelryStore.com assigns each diamond a cut grade. Here are the proportion ranges for each grade of diamond cut.
GIA Cut Grading Criteria
- Diameter measurement
- Table measurement
- Depth measurement
- No grade given
- AGSL Cut Grading Criteria
- Table percentage
- Crown height
- Total depth percentage
- Girdle thickness
- Culet size
- Pavilion angle
- Pavilion depth
- Crown angle
AGS and GIA Cut Grading
GIA: The majority of all high-quality diamonds have grading reports from the GIA, which does not assign a grade to the diamond cut. Instead, the GIA lists the diamond's dimensions: the width of the table, the width of the diamond, and the depth of the diamond. Learn more about the GIA Diamond Grading Report and Diamond Dossier®.
AGSL: The AGSL assigns cut grades of Ideal, Very Good, Good, Fair, and Poor. The AGSL labels a diamond that meets their standard of perfect proportions, polish, and symmetry as "Cut Grade: Ideal" and is known through the diamond industry as a "000" grade. These diamonds are highly sought after and are priced accordingly. Learn more about the AGSL Diamond Quality Document.
The Cut
The cut of a diamond has a tremendous effect on its sparkle, or brilliance. Even if the diamond has perfect color and clarity, a poor cut can make a diamond look dull. MyJewelryStore.com carries only the highest grades of diamond cut, which present the most beautiful brilliance. Learn how to choose a diamond cut that has the most brilliance within your budget.
The Cut Determines Brilliance
The cut of a diamond — its roundness, its depth and width, the uniformity of the facets — all determine a diamond's brilliance. Many gemologists consider cut the most important diamond characteristic because even if a diamond has perfect color and clarity, a diamond with a poor cut will have dulled brilliance.
The width and depth have the greatest effect on how light travels within the diamond, and how it exits in the form of brilliance.
Too Shallow: Light is lost out the sides causing the diamond to lose brilliance.
Too Deep: Light escapes out the bottom causing the diamond to appear dark and dull.
The diamond's proportions, specifically the depth compared to the diameter, and the diameter of the table compared to the diameter of the diamond, determine how well light will reflect and refract within the diamond.
Diameter: The width of the diamond as measured through the girdle.
Table: The largest facet of a gemstone.
Crown: The top portion of a diamond extending from the girdle to the table.
Girdle: The narrow band around the widest part of a diamond.
Pavilion: The bottom portion of a diamond, extending from the girdle to the culet.
Culet: The facet at the tip of a gemstone. The preferred culet is not visible with the unaided eye (graded "small" or "none").
Depth: The height of a gemstone measured from the culet to the table.
Polish and symmetry Affect Sparkle
Polish and symmetry are two important aspects of the cutting process. The polish grade describes the smoothness of the diamond's facets, and the symmetry grade refers to alignment of the facets. With poor polish, the surface of a facet can be dulled, and may create blurred or dulled sparkle. If a diamond has poor symmetry, light can be misdirected as it enters and exits the diamond. The polish and symmetry grades are clearly listed in each diamond detail page and within the AGSL or GIA diamond grading report.
Diamond measurements are calculated and applied to a cut grading scale that makes it easy to understand how well each reflect light:
MyJewelryStore.com Signature Ideal cut: Represents roughly the top 1% of diamond quality based on cut. The highest grades of polish and symmetry allow it to reflect even more light than the standard ideal cut. Our most brilliant cut.
Ideal cut: Represents roughly the top 3% of diamond quality based on cut. Reflects nearly all light that enters the diamond. An exquisite and rare cut.
Very good cut: Represents roughly the top 15% of diamond quality based on cut. Reflects nearly as much light as the ideal cut, but for a lower price.
Good cut: Represents roughly the top 25% of diamond quality based on cut. Reflects most light that enters. Much less expensive than a very good cut.
Fair cut: Represents roughly the top 35% of diamond quality based on cut. Still a quality diamond, but a fair cut will not be as brilliant as a good cut.
Poor cut: This includes all diamonds that do not meet the proportion standards of a fair cut. These diamonds are deep and narrow or shallow and wide and tend to lose most of the light out the sides and bottom.
MyJewelryStore.com does not carry diamonds with cut grades of poor.
Which Cut Grade is Best
For a diamond with the best cut, that will look exceptional even when viewed under a microscope, look to the MyJewelryStore.com Signature Collection. These diamonds reflect the most brilliance because they are cut to the most exacting proportions, and have the highest polish and symmetry grades for round diamonds, and have either excellent or very good for princess-cut, emerald-cut, and Asscher-cut diamonds.
For the best value in a brilliant diamond, choose a diamond with a cut grade of good or very good, and polish and symmetry grades of very good or good.
In an ideal- or very-good cut diamond with very good or good polish and symmetry, consider less expensive grades of color and clarity — look for a diamond with G or H color and SI1 or SI2 clarity.
Color
Colorless and near-colorless diamonds are most highly valued and are priced accordingly. Other diamonds may have a slight tint of color, and some can even have a readily noticeable tint which can diminish the brilliance. To help you choose the most brilliant diamond, MyJewelryStore.com offers diamonds with the highest grades of color. Learn how to choose a diamond with no color noticeable to the unaided eye.
Acting as a prism, a diamond can divide light into a spectrum of colors and reflect this light as colorful flashes called fire. Just as when looking through colored glass, color in a diamond will act as a filter, and will diminish the spectrum of color emitted. The less color in a diamond, the more colorful the fire, and the better the color grade.
- D: Absolutely colorless. The highest color grade, which is extremely rare.
- E: Colorless. Only minute traces of color can be detected by an expert gemologist. A rare diamond.
- F: Colorless. Slight color detected by an expert gemologist, but still considered a "colorless" grade. A high-quality diamond.
- G-H: Near-colorless. Color noticeable when compared to diamonds of better grades, but these grades offer excellent value.
- I-J: Near-colorless. Color slightly detectable. An excellent value.
- K-M: Not carried at MyJewelryStore.com.
- N-Z: Not carried at MyJewelryStore.com.
At MyJewelryStore.com, you'll find only the finest diamonds with color graded D-J. Diamonds graded better than J are colorless or near-colorless — their color is typically undetectable to the unaided eye.
The color in diamonds graded K-Z detracts from the beauty of a diamond. It's especially noticeable set in platinum or white gold. Note that MyJewelryStore.com also carries fancy-yellow colored diamonds. These diamonds are graded on a different color scale than white diamonds. Since the scale above ranges from the best to the worst quality in a white diamond, the yellow color in fancy-yellow diamonds cannot be found on this scale.
Related to, but not affecting diamond color, fluorescence is a unique effect that causes a diamond to produce a slight blue glow when exposed to intense, direct ultraviolet light. Some people seek diamonds that produce this unique effect, while others definitely avoid it — it's purely a matter of taste.
For the purist, look for a colorless diamond with a grade of D-F and a fluorescence rating of faint, inert, none, or negligible.
For an excellent value in a diamond with no noticeable color to the unaided eye, look for a near-colorless grade of G-I, and a fluorescence grade of medium or strong blue.
Or, if you'd rather not compromise on color but would like to stay on budget, choose a diamond with a good cut, SI1 SI2 clarity, and consider going with a strong fluorescence. It will still be beautiful to the unaided eye and you may prefer the unique effect of a strong fluorescence.
Clarity
Diamonds completely free from internal flaws, or inclusions, are very rare and highly valued. Clarity is graded based on the number, location, size, and type of the inclusions found in a diamond. MyJewelryStore.com has some of the clearest diamonds available. Learn how to choose the best grade of clarity for your diamond at the best price.
Diamonds that are absolutely clear are the most sought-after and therefore the most expensive. But many diamonds have inclusions — scratches, trace minerals or other tiny characteristics that can detract from the pure beauty of the diamond. The GIA and AGSL use a detailed system of rules and standards to summarize the number, location, size, and type of inclusions present in a diamond.
- FL, IF Diamonds: Flawless: No internal or external flaws. Internally Flawless: No internal flaws. Very rare and beautiful diamonds.
- VVS1, VVS2 Diamonds: Very, Very Slightly Included: Very difficult to see inclusions under 10x magnification. An excellent quality diamond.
- VS1, VS2 Diamonds: Very Slightly Included: Inclusions are not typically visible to the unaided eye. Less expensive than the VVS1 or VVS2 grades.
- SI1, SI2 Diamonds: Slightly Included: Inclusions are visible under 10x magnification, and may be visible with the unaided eye. Be sure to call MyJewelryStore.com for a consultation if you're considering a specific SI diamond. A good diamond value.
- I1, I2, I3 Diamonds: Included: MyJewelryStore.com does not carry diamonds of I-grade clarity.
Which Clarity Grade is best?
We recommend that you select an "eye-clean" diamond — one that has no inclusions visible to the unaided eye. An excellent value, diamonds of this clarity are much less expensive than IF- or FL-grade diamonds and typically do not contain visible inclusions that detract from the beauty of the diamond. If you're considering an SI grade diamond, call to speak to a diamond and jewelry consultant who will review the diamond to ensure the inclusions are not visible with the unaided eye. But, if you'd rather not compromise on clarity yet are budget conscious, choose a diamond with a good cut and G or H color. The table below compares the prices of diamonds with the same carat weight, color, and cut grades.
Carat Weight
The weight of a diamond is measured in carats. Since larger diamonds are more rare than smaller diamonds, diamond value tends to rise exponentially with carat weight. Read more about carat weight and learn how to balance diamond quality with the size of your diamond.
Once you've determined what cut, color, and clarity grade you're looking for in a diamond, it's easy to determine the carat weight of diamond that will fit within your budget.
When diamonds are mined, large gems are discovered much less frequently than small ones, which makes large diamonds much more valuable. In fact, diamond prices rise exponentially with carat weight. So, a 2-carat diamond of a given quality is always worth more than two 1-carat diamonds of the same quality.
What size is Best
To choose the best carat weight of diamond, consider her style, the size of her finger, the size of your setting, and your budget.
If you have a set budget, explore all your options and you'll find that there is a wide range of diamond carat weights and qualities available in your price range.
If your recipient is very active or not used to wearing jewelry, she may find herself bumping or nicking her new ring. Consider a smaller size diamond or a setting that protects a larger diamond from getting knocked against doors and counters.
Also keep in mind that the smaller the finger, the larger the diamond will appear. A 1 1/2-carat diamond solitaire looks much larger on a size 4 finger than a size 8.
If you have already chosen a setting, to make sure you choose a diamond to fit, look for the diamond size specifications of your ring in the product catalog or ask your MyJewelryStore.com diamond and jewelry consultant what size diamond you should look for.
Finally, if a large carat weight is important to you, yet you're working within a budget, consider a diamond with a good cut, SI1 SI2 clarity, and an I or J color grade.
But the best way to determine what size is best is by getting an idea of what she is expecting. If you plan carefully, you can get some answers without even raising her suspicions. For ideas and suggestions on how to choose the right engagement ring, read our Engagement Ring Guide.
Care
Many people think diamonds are indestructible, but they do require care. Read how to keep your diamond sparkling, and securely set in your ring.
Diamonds are the hardest substance on earth. They are uniquely resistant to damage by heat or scratching, and can be cut or polished only by another diamond — but an extremely hard blow to the girdle can cause a diamond to chip. By having your diamond set in a relatively protective setting, and remaining conscious of it on your finger, you can keep your diamond intact for a lifetime. Exposure during ordinary wear to perspiration and household chemicals, like chlorine and hairspray, can cause buildup that dulls the surface of a diamond. We suggest periodic cleanings to keep the diamond brilliant and refractive.
Cleaning your diamond
A solution of one part ammonia and six parts water can be used to clean diamond jewelry at home. If cleaning by hand, gentle scrubbing with a soft brush should loosen most dirt and greatly increase the brilliance of the diamond, but be careful not to scratch the metal of your setting. Once a year, it is a good idea to have your diamond cleaned and have the security of the setting checked.
Storing your diamond Jewelry
We recommend that all diamond jewelry is stored individually in soft cloth pouches when not being worn to prevent the diamond or diamonds from scratching or dulling other jewelry.
