DIAMOND EDUCATION
Diamonds
THE FOUR Cs
Diamond Carat Weight
Carat refers to the weight of a diamond. The greater the carat weight, the rarer and generally more valuable the diamond becomes. Five metric carats weigh exactly one gram.
If size is a priority, the right combination of cut, color and clarity can help you select a beautiful diamond that works within your budget. The size of diamond a ring can accommodate also depends on the style and type of setting.
Prong settings can often accommodate a wider range of diamond sizes, while tension and bezel settings may have more specific size limitations.
THE FOUR Cs
Diamond Cut
Diamond cut refers to the quality of a diamond's proportions and symmetry. These proportions have a significant impact on how brightly a diamond shines and how effectively it returns light through the top of the stone.
An ideal cut considers factors including depth, table size, crown height and angle, girdle thickness and overall symmetry. Cut should not be confused with diamond shape, such as round brilliant, oval or princess.
Ideal — The rarest cut grade and designed to reflect the greatest amount of light.
Excellent — Reflects a high level of craftsmanship and light performance.
Very Good — Reflects nearly as much light as an Excellent cut, often at a lower price.
Good — Reflects most of the light entering the diamond.
Fair — May appear less brilliant or somewhat glassy.
Poor — Typically not recommended and not carried by Blue Marlin Jewelry.
THE FOUR Cs
Diamond Color
Color is one of the more noticeable characteristics of a diamond and can have a significant impact on its value. Diamonds range from colorless to stones displaying noticeable yellow or light brown color.
The traditional diamond color scale ranges from D through Z. The less color present in a white diamond, the rarer it generally is.
D–F: Colorless
G–J: Near Colorless
K–M: Faint Color
N–Z: Noticeable Color
Diamonds can also occur naturally in fancy colors such as yellow, blue and red. These are evaluated differently from diamonds on the traditional D–Z scale.
THE FOUR Cs
Diamond Clarity
Natural diamonds can contain internal characteristics called inclusions and external characteristics called blemishes. These characteristics help give each diamond its own unique fingerprint.
Diamond clarity is evaluated by trained graders using 10x magnification. The clarity grade reflects the number, size, position and visibility of these characteristics.
F — Flawless
No inclusions or blemishes are visible to a skilled grader.
IF — Internally Flawless
No inclusions and only blemishes are visible.
VVS1–VVS2 — Very Very Slightly Included
Inclusions are difficult for a skilled grader to see.
VS1–VS2 — Very Slightly Included
Inclusions are visible but considered minor.
SI1–SI3 — Slightly Included
Inclusions are noticeable under magnification.
I1–I3 — Included
Inclusions are obvious and may affect transparency or brilliance.