Choosing The Cut For Your Diamond
The diamond cut is one of the most important factors to consider.
A diamond’s cut is measured using range from Excellent to Poor.
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Excellent
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Very good
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Good
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Fair
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Poor
At GalOr Jewelry we only recommend good to excellent cut grades because they guarantee
a lovely sparkle and shine which lower grades may not be able to deliver.
Cut refers to the quality of a diamond's proportions and symmetry.
These angles allow the diamond to capture light and reflect it, producing sparkle.
If a diamond's pavilion is too deep, for example, the center will be noticeably dark.
A diamond's cut is crucial to the stone's final beauty and value.
And of all the diamond 4Cs, it is the most complex and technically difficult to analyze.
Note: Only round brilliant cut diamonds get a cut grade while all the other shapes do not have a grade as other shapes can have different length to width ratios. For example, a cushion cut diamond can be square or elongated, an oval cut diamond can be long and narrow or short and fat, the options are endless!
A Diamond’s Clarity
When choosing your diamond, clarity is something worth caring about.
The clarity grade is based on any tiny natural identifiers found within a diamond.
Most diamonds selected by GalOr Jewelry are SI2-VS2 free from inclusions that are visible
without magnification. We recommend these diamonds for the best balance of quality and price.
Similar to human birthmarks, diamonds develop natural inclusions while they are being formed, and these natural birthmarks make each diamond unique, you could say that inclusions are actually a solid proof of a diamond’s authenticity.
Diamond Clarity Chart
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IF - diamonds are Internally Flawless
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VVS1 VVS2 - diamonds are Very, Very Slightly Included
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VS1 VS2 - diamonds are Very Slightly Included
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SI1 SI2 - diamonds are Slightly Included
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I1 I2 I3 - diamonds are Imperfect
Get in touch with one of our trained specialists today to get advice on the diamond selection process and on creating a beautiful and unique ring.
Understanding Color
In nature, diamonds are found with a wide array of color — from colorless, to faint yellow or even brown, to rare pinks, blues, greens and other colors known as “fancies.”
The less color within a diamond, the more valuable it is likely to be. The color of a diamond can impact the price significantly and also the look of the diamond. Traditionally we think of diamonds as “Colorless” or “White”.
These diamonds are graded by a sliding alphabetical scale starting as
“D” which is colorless all the way to “Z” which shows a strong yellow color.
diamonds in the D-to-Z range usually decrease in value as the color becomes more obvious. Just the opposite happens with fancy color diamonds: Their value generally increases with the strength and purity of the color. Large, vivid fancy color diamonds are extremely rare and very valuable.
Fancy color diamonds come in almost any color you can imagine. Red, green, purple, and orange are generally the most rare, followed by pink and blue. Yellows and browns are the most common fancy colors, but they’re generally less valuable than the rarer colors.
What Is Carat Weight?
The weight of diamonds is expressed in carats, with 1 carat (abbreviation: ct) weighing 0.2 grams.
A 1 gram diamond therefore has a weight of 5 ct. Although it is possible to get diamonds in different intermediate sizes, The larger the diamond, the more rare it is.
It is important to remember that two diamonds of equal carat weight may have dramatically different values, depending upon the stone’s cut, clarity and color.
Oval, Princess, Emerald, Cushion, Heart, Marquise, Asscher, Pear, Trapeze and Baguette are all shapes, and are often referred to as 'fancy shapes'.
