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"How to buy a diamond" Relates to all fashion jewelry.

You shop at a grocery store to buy sugar, how many pounds do you buy. When you buy? When you buy gold, you think of it in terms of how many grams to buy. It’s simply a measure to weigh something. It’s the same with carats and diamonds. The “carat-weight” of a diamond tells you the weight of the diamond, not the size and they are incredibly valuable. Think of it this way: A Troy ounce of gold sells for around $675.00 or so, but an ounce of decent diamonds would cost you tens of thousands of dollars. So, if you buy a “pound of diamonds,” be prepared to spend millions or much, much more!

Let’s get back to reality:
The heavier the diamond, the more valuable it is. And… “2+2” doesn’t usually = 4! A one carat diamond can be a bit more valuable than two one-half carat diamonds, even if their total weight is the same. Why, because the larger the stone, the more difficult to find: which adds up to being more valuable. Supply and demand is what it’s all about. An example: Let’s say we have two ½ carat diamonds that are “F” in color and “SI2” in clarity; they sell for about $1,200 or $2,400 for the two of them. Take a single one carat diamond of the same exact quality and the carat weight (identical to the two one-half carat stones). This single one-carat diamond could cost upwards of $5,000.

Here’s what I suggest: If you but a diamond with an “SI2” or higher grade, you will have a diamond that has fire and sparkle. The spots are not usually visible to the naked eye, and they won’t “interfere”. A stone below “SI2” on the grading scale, the spots are visible to the naked eye. More importantly, the diamond won’t have as much sparkle. Go down too far and your diamond will be downright dull.

The old saying you should spend two months salary on your engagement ring is only a guide. That guide is offered by the diamond houses. You could say they have a “vested interest” in having you spend a lot of money. Of course, I won’t mind if you choose to spend two months salary, but I want to give you some ideas on how to shop and perhaps save you some money!

My goal is simple. I want to give you the quality you want, at a price that you can afford. You probably have an idea of what you want to spend. That’s important. Sometimes people spend more than they expected. Why? Buying a diamond is like buying anything else. You know what you’re looking for, and what things cost, you sometimes decide to go for the higher priced item. Like when buying a computer or a car.

You need to go through the education process. See what’s out there and what it costs. Talk to me about a specific diamond. I’ll give you the grading and quality of that diamond. Then talk to some other jewelers. Have them quote you a price for the same size and quality of the stone I quoted you. Ask if it is certified GIA or EGL. Ask lots of questions, after all it’s your money at stake here. Buy wisely and careful. A diamond is an investment.

COLOR is the most important factor in buying a diamond. Color is the “c” that you can see with your own eyes.

Use the grading scale developed by GIA and used widely in the trade. The letter “D” is colorless. As you go down the scale (and alphabet) near colorless, to faint yellow, you will see more yellow with an unaided eye. Diamonds beyond “Z” have color classified as “fancy” and go up in price. These are your yellow and brown diamonds that happen to be in vogue at this time. Diamonds are not graded face up. The color grading is done face down in a white card or tray. A fluorescent light free of ultraviolet rays should be used (equivalent to North daylight).

Diamonds that are colorless to near colorless are best for jewelry (Colors D thru J). If you want to get a larger diamond for a good price get a near colorless stone (G thru J). It still has sparkle!

When CUT well, a diamond has brilliant sparkle or as some people say “fire” to describe that sparkle. Well cut diamonds separate a good diamond from a poor one. It’s pretty technical…not too deep…not to shallow…ahh, just right. Which means sparkle! Fire! Brilliance! A stone that will be noticed! If the diamond isn’t well cut, it probably won’t “cut it” either. The fire and brilliance make the diamond fun to look at and show off. Tips of a poorly cut diamond: It seems to be foggy. It looks more like glass than a diamond. It seems to sparkle in some parts more than others.

It could be dirty. But, if you’re in a jewelry store it should be nice and clean. A dirty diamond won’t have that “fire” in it. The light can’t get through and come back out. “Keep the fire burning” and clean your own diamonds often.

CLATITY is a fancy word for “spots” and “flaws”. Imagine your windshield has some tiny cracks of chips, not big deal, right? You can still see well. You might not even notice them. But if they are noticeable, if they extend across the windshield…If they interfere with your vision, well, that’s not good. And it’s ugly.

Some diamonds are called “flawless”. Simply put, there are no spots in the diamond. They don’t have any “dings” at all. These diamonds are hard to find. There aren’t many of them when you do find them, and you’ll pay a premium for them. They are quite valuable and they also retain their value because they are rare.

The thing is that most diamonds have a least some spots or flaws – they call them “inclusions” in jewelry speak.

Are “flaws” in a diamond bad? Not at all…Unless..they interfere with the diamonds ability to show off the fire and sparkle. When this happens, the diamond basically isn’t worth as much. The rule is: The fewer the spots, the more valuable the diamond, more spots and the diamond is going to be worth less.

Will a diamond develop new “spots” as time goes by? No. Whatever spots are in the diamond right now will, literally, be the only spots that diamond will ever have. It can’t “grow” new ones.

Will the “spots” in a diamond go away over time? No. That doesn’t happen either. They’re part of that diamond “forever and ever”.

I hope you learned a few ideas on how to buy a diamond and get the best value for your buck!

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