Jewelry
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Determining The Cost Of A Diamond
By Matt Ryan
The first time you go into the jeweler and
begin looking at diamond engagement rings you'll quickly find that
the majority of the cost will be in the diamond itself. Of course,
the setting and the ring will carry some value, however, the diamond
often can make up nearly 75% of the cost of an engagement ring.
There are four determining factors that go into
the cost of a diamond and these are commonly referred to as the 4
C's. The 4 C's refer to: cut, color, clarity and carat. The grading
system based on these four important factors is what really
determines the final cost of a diamond.
Diamond Cut
The cut of a diamond is often confused with the
shape of a diamond, but there is much more to the cut of a diamond
that simply shaping the diamond. The sparkle and the brilliance of a
diamond is almost completely affected by how the diamond is cut, not
shaped.
Regardless of what shape the diamond is cut in,
if it is cut too shallow or too deep it will lose brilliance or
appear dark and dull. If a diamond is cut poorly it will greatly
lower the cost of the diamond and in some cases render it almost
valueless.
Diamond Color
The most common diamond color is white. A
common misconception is that all sparkly diamonds are colorless but
what they really are is prisms that are bending the color spectrum
to give off that appearance. However, there are extremely rare
diamonds that are completely void of color.
When determining the cost of a diamond the
grader will take into account the amount of yellow contained in the
diamond. Generally speaking the more yellow, the lower the cost of
the diamond. The majority of diamonds on the market will have some
amounts of yellow tint to them.
At the other spectrum of diamond colors are the
fancy colors. Fancy colored diamonds are diamonds with only a single
color and no secondary colors affecting them, such as red or blue
diamonds. These diamonds are the most expensive of diamonds and are
extremely rare.
Diamond Clarity
The clarity of a diamond is often the second
most important aspect when determining the cost of a diamond. There
are two factors that affect the clarity grade of a diamond and they
are: inclusions and blemishes.
Inclusions are internal imperfections of a
diamond. Some types of inclusions are other embedded minerals that
became part of the diamond while it formed, some diamonds have lines
or streaks in them and some diamonds appear somewhat milky in color.
Inclusions such as these will lower the diamond clarity grade, in
turn, lowering the cost of the diamond.
Blemishes are the external imperfections of a
diamond. Often these are simply nothing more than scratches, nicks
or pits. Diamond blemishes can also be caused during the cutting and
polishing process of the diamond. Like inclusions, the more
blemishes or visible blemishes a diamond has will lower it's cost.
Diamond Carat
The carat of a diamond is actually the weight
of the diamond and one carat is equal to two hundred milligrams of
weight. Diamond weight is the most important factor in determining
the cost of a diamond. Diamonds are weighed before they are placed
in settings and more often than not larger diamonds cost more than
smaller diamonds. The only time this would be reversed is if the
larger diamond was graded quite lower on the other three C's.
When you are looking at diamond engagement
rings, for example, you'll sometimes see the ring has a total weight
of 'x' carats. What this means is the actual combined weight of all
the diamonds contained in the ring. If there are small diamond side
stones, they will be included with the size of the center diamond.
Many times this can be confusing as people think when they see total
weight it refers only to the major diamond in the ring.
Perhaps the most important aspect to take into
account when shopping for a diamond is the reputation and knowledge
of the diamond retailer. Most are more than willing to help explain
in more detail what goes into the cost of a particular diamond you
may be considering for purchase and will be able to guide you the
right diamond for your budget.