It doesn’t matter whether you’re adding to your lifelong collection of diamond jewelry or shopping for your very first diamond ring—every buyer can benefit from a baseline understanding of what makes these glittering beauties so unique. But where should you start?
Before you browse the aisles of your favorite jewelry store, we recommend seeking out a little clarity (no pun intended) on how a diamond is graded. The words cut, color, clarity, and carat may not mean much to you yet, but once you familiarize yourself with the 4Cs of diamonds, shopping for diamond jewelry will feel easy. Find all your questions answered today.
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Why Should You Know How Diamonds Are Graded Before Buying?
Just because you aren’t a trained gemologist doesn’t mean you have to go into purchasing diamond jewelry blind. Learning even a little bit about the 4Cs of diamonds and how each individual stone is graded and valued will help you compare each gem objectively, steer you away from scams, and protect you from overpaying for stones with invisible imperfections. If you want to spend smartly and ensure every design you buy is a worthwhile investment, you have to understand the grading processes and terms.
Have Diamonds Always Been Graded for Jewelry?
Diamonds may have been used to adorn crowns, necklaces, rings, and more for centuries, but at what point did artisans realize their value? Before the mid-20th century, there wasn’t an agreed-upon grading system. Instead, jewelers and traders would evaluate stones based on what was visible to the human eye, using subjective words such as “perfect,” vague terms like “water” to describe colorless appearances, or location-based categorizations, like “Cape.”
While this method worked for quite some time, the inconsistencies began to cause widespread confusion as global trading and purchasing became more commonplace. With certain countries using A, AA, and AAA to describe diamond color and others using Roman numerals, getting an accurate value of a diamond became nearly impossible.
Who Standardized the Diamond Grading Process?
Determined to establish a universal language for diamond value, the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) created standard grading scales in the 1940s and 1950s. The founder, Robert M. Shipley, taught other jewelers about diamond quality for a decade before formally introducing a diamond grading system, known as the 4Cs of diamonds, in 1953. Since then, the diamond color scales and verbiage used to describe diamond cut and diamond clarity have been adopted and used as an objective standard around the globe.
Are Lab-Grown and Natural Diamonds Both Graded Using the 4Cs of Diamonds?
While it may come as a surprise to people who do not believe that lab-grown and natural diamonds are equally valuable, both types are still valued based on the 4Cs of diamonds. Since lab-grown gems have the same physical and chemical properties and visible aesthetics as those found in nature, experts have no qualms using the same grading scales.
Learning About the 4Cs of Diamonds
When it comes to purchasing diamond jewelry, whether that be a sparkling marquise engagement ring or a gold tennis bracelet, it’s important to remember that not all gemstones are equally valuable. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that they aren’t worth buying. Diving into the 4Cs of diamonds will give you an inside perspective on why each stone is priced the way it is.
The 4Cs of Diamonds:
- Cut
- Color
- Clarity
- Carat
What is Diamond Cut?
Diamond cut is one of the most important factors in a stone’s overall appearance and quality. The diamond cut refers to the proportions, symmetry, and polish of a diamond.
Not to be confused with shape, diamond cut describes the specific and purposeful arrangement of facets on the stone’s surface. A well-cut diamond will have perfectly flat facets that are precisely sliced in a way that maximizes the amount of light the gem can capture.
The 3 Main Components of Diamond Cut Explained:
- Symmetry: Refers to the precise alignment and shape of the facets, which is crucial for a uniform sparkle. If the stone is even slightly asymmetrical, the light will be misdirected when it travels through the stone.
- Proportions: Describes the angles, relative sizes, and dimensions of every single facet in the diamond’s cut, directly affecting light performance. If the proportions are well-designed, the light will bounce around beautifully. If the cuts are too shallow or too deep, the stone will have a dull center.
- Polish: Categorized by the quality of the stone’s exterior surface. Polishing is meant to remove all imperfections, such as microscopic abrasions or lines, to create mirror-like facets. Flawless polish helps light enter and exit the stone without being diffused, while poor polish can lead to a hazy or streaky look.
How Does Diamond Cut Affect a Gem’s Performance?
Every single slice in a diamond cut adds up to how the stone will be able to intake and reflect light. The cut of a diamond is directly responsible for the quality of the gem, affecting its brightness, the total reflection of all white light, its fire, the light’s dispersion into a spectrum of color, and scintillation, the sparkle created from a stone’s movement. If a diamond cut is not perfect, it can result in a lifeless stone, even if it has high grades for diamond clarity and diamond color.
Breaking Down the Diamond Cut Grading System:
- Excellent: the diamond cut emits a consistent pattern of light and dark areas and quality levels of light dispersion and brilliance
- Very Good: the most commonly sought after diamond cut demonstrates a high level of craftsmanship and has a good amount of light and brilliance
- Good: the diamond cut disperses an acceptable or good amount of light with less-than-brilliant scintillation
- Fair: the diamond cut lacks contrast, appears darker, and only emits a fair amount of light and scintillation
- Poor: the diamond cut does not adequately disperse light and reflects a low level of craftsmanship
How Are Diamonds Cut?
It’s not like in the movies, where treasure hunters stumble upon priceless, perfectly cut gems, plucking them straight out of the ground and collecting them as is. Naturally occurring diamonds do not come out of the earth perfectly faceted and polished. Instead, a rough or raw diamond must be expertly cut to reveal its signature sparkle.
But how can a gemologist possibly cut the hardest natural material into something usable and gradable with the 4Cs of diamonds? The goal is simple: cut the largest, most beautiful diamond from the rough material with as little waste as possible. If the lapidary has the proper training and technology on hand, they can get to work.
Most gem cutters rely on modern technology, including specialized scanners and computers, to get an understanding of the rough diamond's interior and identify internal flaws before outlining the general cutting plan. They begin the cleaving and sawing processes by carefully whittling down the natural stone into more manageable pieces with diamond-coated tools before moving on to bruting, shaping the stone into their desired shape, and wearing down the edges with a spinning lathe. The gem is then attached to a dop stick and placed against a spinning wheel, where the cutter carves precise angles into the diamonds before polishing and revealing the smooth, high-luster product.
Words to Know for Diamond Cuts:
- Girdle
- Culet
- Facet
- Pavilion
- Crown
- Table
- Star length
What is a Girdle in a Diamond Cut?
In diamond cut lingo, the girdle refers to the thin outer edge where the pavilion and crown meet. No matter what shape your diamond is in, the girdle is the portion of the stone that makes direct contact with the setting. It might be the widest part of the gem, but it does not have a noticeable effect on the overall diamond's appearance or quality.
What is a Culet in a Diamond Cut?
The culet is at the tiniest point at the bottom of the diamond, where all of the pavilion’s facets join together. It should be noted that not all diamond cuts result in a culet—especially if you’re buying a modern design. If the stone you’re considering for your partner’s future engagement ring does have a culet, it will be marked in the stone’s total number of facets.
What Are Facets in a Diamond Cut?
Facets are the flat, geometric surfaces cut onto the surface of a diamond. Each individual facet acts as a tiny mirror or window, working to capture, reflect, and refract light within the gem. Each diamond cut has its own expected number of facets.
What is a Pavilion in a Diamond Cut?
The diamond cut pavilion makes up the bottom portion of the stone, connecting the culet and girdle. When cut correctly, the pavilion invites the maximum amount of light from the stone’s surface. If the diamond cut is excessively deep or shallow, the light will escape from the bottom and sides, affecting its ability to sparkle.
What is the Crown in a Diamond Cut?
The crown of a diamond is the official word for the top portion of the stone located above the girdle and below the table. Composed of several angled facets, this section acts as the diamond cut’s primary light-gatherer, driving the return of light, dispersing rays throughout the stone, and determining the level of brilliance and scintillation we see.
What is the Table in a Diamond Cut?
The diamond's table is the largest facet of the stone, refracting light rays and directing them towards other facets after passing through the center. If the table of a diamond cut is too small, it will not let enough light in for maximized brilliance; if the table of a diamond cut is too big, it might be a hindrance to dispersing light evenly. The ideal table percentage will vary according to the stone’s shape.
What is the Star Length in a Diamond Cut?
The star length refers to the horizontal distance of the kite-shaped facets from the edge of the table to the edge of the girdle. The proportions of this component directly affect the balance between a stone’s brilliance and fire.
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What is the Most Popular Diamond Cut?
Though trends are always coming in and out of fashion, the round brilliant cut diamond is widely considered to be the most popular choice, accounting for around 50% of all diamonds sold in the jewelry business. Timeless, romantic, and precisely cut, the round brilliant cut has either 57 or 58 facets, resulting in an indescribable brilliance and fire. The next time you’re in the market for a statement diamond ring or round engagement ring for the love of your life, consider shopping for this enduringly stylish diamond cut.
Are Diamond Cut and Diamond Shape the Same?
Unless you’re already familiar with the 4Cs of diamonds, there’s a high chance that you’ve confused diamond cut and diamond shape before. While the two may sound similar and are often used interchangeably in less professional environments, the two have a short list of distinct differences.
Diamond shape is how we describe the outline of the stone. The silhouette of a gem is typically described with geometric words and can either fall under the “pear” or “round” category. Shape plays a major role in dictating the personality and aesthetics of a diamond design, whether it’s a flattering oval shaped diamond ring or a delicate yellow gold diamond pendant.
Diamond cut, on the other hand, refers to how well-proportioned the angles, facets, and symmetry carved into the raw form of the stone are. While it can certainly affect the shape of a gem, its main focus is ensuring that the gem reflects enough light to appear bright and sparkly.
How to Choose a Diamond Shape
If you’re looking for the perfect round diamond engagement ring to pop the question or searching for a “just because” diamond necklace for a loved one, it’s as important to consider shape as it is to get information on the 4Cs of the diamonds in the design. Everyone has their own tastes and styles, but if you’re a little stumped on what diamond shape she’d prefer, don’t worry—start by looking at the most popular diamond shapes with your jeweler, and together, you can figure it out from there.
The 9 Most Popular Diamond Shapes:
- Round: often called the round brilliant or modern round diamond, identified by its circular top, 57 or 58 facets, wide middle girdle, and small culet at the bottom
- Princess: recognizable by its signature square table and combination of brilliant and step-cut facets, resembles an upside-down pyramid with between 50 and 58 facets, depending on the diamond cutting method
- Pear: sometimes called a teardrop diamond, features a combination of round brilliant and marquise-shaped cuts to create a curved head, rounded shoulders, straight wings, and tapered pavilion into a pointed culet.
- Cushion: looks like a boxy square with rounded corners, can have brilliant or modified brilliant cuts, with a flat face, thick girdle, and tapering size down to the culet, and anywhere from 58 to 64 facets
- Oval: known for its elongated shape and brilliant-cut 58 facets, with a long girdle, curved ends, a flat table, and a thinning pavilion
- Emerald: almost rectangular in shape and with a minimum of 49 facets, a large table, an elongated shape, and beveled edges
- Marquise: resembles an oval with a rounded middle, two pointed tips at the top and bottom, and an average of 58 brilliant cut facets, often looks larger due to its shallow depth
- Asscher: combines the look of emerald and square-shaped diamonds to retain more carat weight, features 58 facets and step-cut styling, with a small profile, thick girdle, and pyramid-like shape to the culet
- Old Mine: refers to a hand-cut stone shaped into a 58 faceted, rounded square, with a smaller table, larger culet, and higher crown than similar brilliant cut and cushion cut stones; no two are exactly alike
What is Diamond Color?
Diamond color is one of the most visible 4Cs used to grade diamonds. Contrary to what it sounds like, diamond color does not refer to how vibrant a glittering gem may be, but rather, the lack of color. High-end jewelry brands tend to prefer colorless or near colorless diamonds in their designs, hoping to achieve that sparkle and fire white diamonds are known for—but that doesn’t mean stones that rank lower on the official diamond color grading scale are completely worthless. It’s all a matter of what you, the buyer, are comfortable purchasing.
How Do Diamonds Get Their Color?
It’s nearly impossible for diamonds to form deep within the earth without coming into contact with other minerals. When certain minerals come into contact with the carbon atoms that make up diamonds, they produce inclusions that affect the gem’s crystal structure and overall color. These chemical impurities, such as nitrogen or boron, give white diamonds a yellow or brown tint, moving them away from a perfect diamond color score.
What is the Diamond Color Scale?
The GIA grades diamond colors on an alphabetical scale from D to Z, with D being the highest grade and Z being the lowest. The range of letters helps jewelers and buyers describe and understand the extent of the tint in a white diamond. To get a consistent grading, the gemologist views the stone both upside down and from the side to get a more neutral view of the stone before comparing its color to a set of master stones.
The GIA Diamond Color Scale:
- D-F: colorless, exhibits no discernible additional hues to the naked eye or under magnification
- G-J: near colorless, may have minor perceptible traces of color, often considered the best value for unbeatable beauty
- K-M: faint, displays a visible, yet mild, yellow or brown tint, commonly thought to be the most affordable option that still looks beautiful to the naked eye
- N-R: very light, color is apparent to the untrained eye, rarely used in high-end jewelry
- S-Z: light, noticeable, and detectable hues, low desirability and value
What Are Fancy Colored Diamonds?
Fancy colored diamonds are naturally formed with a distinct and visible hue that extends far beyond the colorless to light yellow range of a white diamond. If a diamond exhibits any hue outside of the normal spectrum, it is categorized as a fancy colored diamond. Designs with these bright gems are increasingly popular in today’s trending jewelry styles, whether it’s a yellow gold bangle with brown diamonds or a yellow diamond engagement ring.
While diamond color is a major factor for the 4Cs of diamonds, the same does not apply to fancy colored diamonds. These vibrant beauties are graded on a scale that measures color strength and purity instead, ranging from fancy light to fancy vivid. In fact, the more colorful these stones are, the more valuable they become. If you’re looking for a statement piece or crave a bit of rainbow in your accessories, consider stepping away from traditional white diamonds and shopping fancy!
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Common Colors of Fancy Colored Diamonds:
What is Diamond Clarity?
While rarely visible to the naked human eye, diamond clarity is a crucial factor to keep in mind when shopping. As one of the 4Cs of diamonds, clarity refers to the number (or absence) and size of inclusions and imperfections in a stone.
To the untrained eye, a diamond might look transparent or sparkling, but since completely pure diamonds are incredibly rare, it’s likely not the case. Understanding the intricacies of how diamond clarity is graded will help you go into your high-end jewelry shopping experience prepared.
Types of Diamond Imperfections:
- Needles: rod-shaped structures that spread out
- Pinpoints: tiny white, black, or grey dots
- Clouds: hazy or cloudlike clusters
- Feathers: wispy shapes that spread like a feather
How Much Does Diamond Clarity Affect a Stone’s Value?
Since inclusions can affect how light passes through a stone, the diamond clarity ranking has a significant impact on a stone’s value. If a gem has an extremely low clarity grade, it has the potential to appear cloudy and dull, instead of brilliant, and no one wants that.
The Diamond Clarity Grading Scale:
- Flawless (FL): no visible blemishes or inclusions
- Internally Flawless (IF): no visible inclusions, but does have blemishes
- Very Very Slightly Included (VVS1, VVS2): slight inclusions that are difficult for graders to identify
- Very Slightly Included (VS1, VS2): inclusions that are observed but can be characterized as minor
- Slightly Included (SI1, SI2): noticeable inclusions
- Included (I1, I2, I3): obvious inclusions that may affect transparency, durability, and brilliance
What Diamond Clarity is the Best Value?
Completely flawless diamonds are hard to come by, with the average stone falling between the VS and SI diamond clarity grading. But just because a diamond has “flaws,” doesn’t mean it’s not beautiful enough to be used in a pair of gold diamond hoop earrings or a chain link diamond bracelet. Buying what experts call “eye-clean” stones, typically referring to VS2 or SI1 stones that have no internal inclusions seen by the naked eye, is a budget-conscious way to end up with a beautiful design without breaking the bank.
How Does an Expert Grade Diamond Clarity?
After a naked eye examination, in order to fully identify the level of a diamond’s clarity, the stone is placed face up under 10X magnification in daylight (or equivalent) lighting. All graded stones must be examined in the direction that they will be set in the jewelry, as diamond clarity works off a relative scoring system. The less noticeable an inclusion or blemish is from this angle, the closer to flawless it will rank.
Once they notate the number, size, position, nature, and color of these external and internal imperfections, the gemologist will assign an official rating on the diamond clarity 11-point grading scale. If the diamond clarity is between two grades, multiple people will have to evaluate it to reach a consensus.
Does the Size of the Stone Affect the Diamond’s Clarity Grade?
Size plays a major role in how an expert will determine a diamond’s clarity—and it makes more sense than you think. If a large diamond has a small, yet eye-visible, inclusion, it’s still relatively small in comparison to the size of the stone. If a smaller stone had the same exact inclusion, it would receive a low diamond clarity grade. Evaluating these in an unbiased and unrelated format requires skill, expertise, and precision.
What is Diamond Carat?
Not to be confused with karat, the measurement for gold’s value, diamond carat is the standard unit of measurement used for weighing a diamond. Since this factor from the 4Cs of diamonds is weight-based, this means that even if you have two diamonds of the exact same size, they could still have vastly diverse carat values. One carat is equal to 0.2 grams, and though it is difficult to visually distinguish a 1.99-carat diamond from a 2.00-carat ring, the difference is always reflected in the price.
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Is Diamond Carat Different from Diamond Size?
When it comes to the 4Cs of diamonds, remember that diamond carat and diamond size are completely different elements to consider. Carat measures the stone’s weight, while size measures its physical dimensions, length, width, and diameter, often dictated in millimeters. While both should be considered when shopping for a diamond pendant or pair of diamond stud earrings, size and carat do not hold equal value to the final price tag of a design.
How Can You Tell How Many Carats a Diamond Is?
Unless you have years of experience, it’s nearly impossible to identify a diamond's carat weight just by looking at it. If you’re buying from a reputable source, you can simply look at the diamond’s certificate for the grading report, where the exact carat weight is required to be listed.
Some modern designs, especially when it comes to wedding jewelry, will have a stamp with the total carat weight engraved along the inner shank or band of a ring. Otherwise, you can always bring it into a professional jewelry store to have them weigh it on their calibrated micro-balance scale for an exact weight.
Is a Higher Diamond Carat Always Better?
If you’ve ever paid attention to the movies or overheard someone talking about their dream engagement ring, you’ve likely heard people discussing diamond carats before. But the idea that a higher carat diamond is always better is a widespread misconception.
Typically, prioritizing quality means considering each of the 4Cs of diamonds, which may lead you to a smaller carat weight. If you’re simply interested in sporting a large, heavier statement piece, you might need to sacrifice other gradings. Focusing on finding a diamond that has great grades in cut, clarity, color, and a heavy carat weight will require a significantly higher budget.
Which of the 4Cs of Diamonds Matters Most?
While cut is typically considered the most important of the 4Cs of diamonds, a fairer answer is that it varies depending on what you’re looking for. A well-cut diamond will create the maximum brilliance and sparkle. But if you’re looking for an impressive visual aesthetic, you might want to step down a diamond clarity level to maximize carat weight. For those obsessed with perfection, we recommend prioritizing diamond color and clarity most.
What Diamond Grading Methods Are Used at Fink’s Jewelers?
Focused on stocking our showcases with only the best diamonds in the business, Fink’s relies on the 4Cs of diamonds for all of our glittering beauties. With each stone ranking high on the recognized standards of diamond clarity, diamond cut, diamond color, and diamond carat, you’re sure to find a timeless and brilliant design at our store. Especially when you consider our secret weapon: our 5th C, Clif.
Our diamond expert, Clif, has been hand-selecting every single Fink’s diamond we offer for more than two decades. Where most jewelry stores buy bulk diamonds that fit within a specified grading range, Clif takes it upon himself to individually inspect each gem to ensure it offers durability, optimal diamond cut, brilliance, and light performance required to meet his high standards. If he, himself, wouldn’t “put it on [his] wife’s hand,” it gets rejected.
You don’t have to learn everything there is to know about diamond grading processes to buy a piece of designer jewelry—but it doesn’t hurt! The next time you’re in the market for a sparkling new accessory, take a second to learn about the 4Cs of diamonds. Nothing makes a customer feel more confident about their purchase than a bit of insider knowledge.
