How To Buy A Diamond

There are four factors that a contribute to the diamond value known as the 4 C's: Carat weight,Color,Clarity and Cut

Carat Weight

Carat weight is the easiest of the 4 C's Carat is the measure of the weight of a diamond. the greater the carat weight, the rarer and more expensive the diamond is. Two diamonds of equal carat weight might vary in value depending upon their cut, color and clarity. One carat is divided into 100 points a half-carat stone may be referred to as a "50-pointer" or "50-points".

Color

Diamond color is one of the most important factors ,colorless diamonds or white diamonds (D,E ,F) are rare and more expensive than near-colorless diamonds (G,H,I,J) The color of the diamond is really up to you some people prefer slightly tinted diamonds(J,K,L) that are more affordable, in most cases your best choise would be near colorless diamonds (G,H,I,J)

Clarity

Clarity refers to how free a diamond is from naturally microscopic imperfections ,Diamonds are assigned clarity grades based on what can be detected with ten-power magnification. diamonds with relatively few clarity characteristics are very rare and more expensive ,imperfections show up as minute black or white marks , our advice is to look at several diamonds of different clarity grades and let your eye be the guide!

Cut

A well-cut diamond will allow the maximum amount of light to enter and reflect back to your eye. The width and depth have the greatest effect on how light travels within the diamond it is the cut that provides a diamond with it's brilliance, Many consider cutting quality to be the most important diamond characteristic

Conflict Diamonds (Blood Diamonds)

Conflict diamonds are diamonds that originate from areas controlled by forces opposed to legitimate and internationally recognized governments, and are used to fund military action in opposition to those governments ,Conflict diamonds are those sold in order to fund armed conflict and civil war used by warlords and rebels to buy arms during the devastating wars in Angola and Sierra Leone

What's being done to stop conflict diamonds?

In 2003 The Kimberley Process was introduced requires participants to certify that shipments of rough diamonds are conflict-free covers the entire diamond supply chain, from mine to point of sale ,today less than 1% of all diamonds sold in the US are considered conflict diamonds

By : Raphael Mizrahi