Choosing the Right Jeweler: Good jeweler should be both knowledgeable and generous with advice and help. Someone who will take thee to lea timd you carefully through the 4 Cs – your guide to every diamond’s quality and help you to choose the right style and design.

Choosing the Perfect piece: Choosing the perfect jewelery can be nightmares, but it disappears once you realize that diamonds are the only answer. Now it’s time to choose the perfect piece and you ‘ll not go wrong with classic pieces like the diamond ring,diamond ear studs, or a diamond nose ring. A good jeweler will have a range from which you should easily find your idea of heaven.

You need to be an expert and use specialized equipment to make sure a diamond is real.

Round brilliant diamond has the most brilliance, and the most popular. Fancy diamonds look more elegant in larger sizes. Also, they tend to look larger than they are by virtue of their shape. But by all means Round Brilliant Diamond has te best value for money.

On a brilliant full-cut stone, there are 58 facets; 32 facets plus the table above the girdle and 24 facets plus the culet below the girdle. Some stones with only 18 facets are referred to as “single cuts”.

The four C’s are Carat (weight), Color, Clarity and Cut of the stone.

1. Carat: The Standard measurement used to weigh a diamond is known as carat.
   1. 1 carat is 1/5 of a gram or 200 milligrams.
   2. There are 100 points to a carat.
2. Color: He shade inherited by a diamond during the course of its formation is known as color. In diamonds the color is rated in alphabetical order with the earlier letters of the alphabet is “D” which having least color.The Color Grading for a diamond are as follows:
   1. D, E and F – “Colorless”
   2. G, H, I & J – “near colorless”
   3. K, L and M – faint yellow or “top silver”
   4. N to Z – very light or “light yellow”
   5. Z+ – grades are considered “fancy yellow”
3. Clarity: the inclusions (imperfections within the stone) in a diamond known as clarity.You will typically find ratings such as this:
   

   GIA	Clarity
   FL	Flawless
   IF	Internally Flawless
   VVS1	Very Very slightly included
   VVS2	VVS1 to a less perfect degree
   VS1	Very slightly included
   VS2	VS1 to a less perfect degree
   SI1	Slightly included
   SI2	SI1 to a less perfect degree
   I1	Included
   I2	I1 to a less perfect degree
   I3	Severely Included

4. Cut: All rough diamonds are cut into polish, but resultant dimensions of the cut stones may vary. The better the quality of the CUT the better the stone will create BRILLIANCE and FIRE – and the helps determine the value of each stone Principle types of Cut:
   1. ROUND BRILLIANT
   2. OVAL
   3. K, L and M – faint yellow or “top silver”
   4. MARQUISE
   5. HEART
   6. EMERALD
   7. PEAR
   8. PRINCESS
   New Cuts introduced recently:
   • ASHER
   • RADIANT
   • LILY
   • STAR

The “Ideal Cut” is a cut based on a specific set of proportions for a round brilliant diamond.Essentially, the larger the table, the greater the brilliance at the expense of fire. A generally termed ideal cut will have a table percentage between 53% and 57% and a depth or height of 58% to 60%. Expect to pay 15%-20% more for an ideal cut stone.

• A white circle resembling a donot in the face-up view of a diamond. It occurs when the pavilion is too shallow and the girdle is reflected out.
• Obvious dark spots/centers when viewed face-up. These indicate that the pavilion was cut too deep.
• Extremely thick girdles reduce the brilliance and make the stone look small for its weight.
• A girdle of uneven thickness (for reasons other than geometry) around the stone.

One good way to see how well a stone is cut is to view it straight down on the table. The table and the four corners form a “square shape”. On well-cut stones, the sides of the square will bow in “slightly”. Sides that bow out are not ideal. A slight inward bowing may be tough to detect, so consider a seemingly perfect square to be a decent cut. Severely bowed in squares are also undesirable.

The most common is the round brilliant cut. It reflects more light back from the table, accounting for the beauty of the diamond. Some prefer the fancy shape like pear or marquis. The emerald cut is less common in sizes less than 1 carat.

1. Personal preference.
2. Desired brilliance (round brilliant cut has the most).
3. Weight (Fancies look more elegant in large sizes).
4. How big you want it to look.
5. Shape and size of hand.
6. Color and clarity of diamond (round brilliant cut hides defects and yellow tints best).

Fancy colored diamonds are called Z+ diamonds. These Z+ diamonds are the rarest hence the most expensive Z+ is more expensive than D s.

Yellow and pink diamonds are the most commonly sought after fancy colors, and most likely will continue to be for years to come. Of late, there has been an increased demand for orange, blue, and green colored diamonds. As they are rare in nature, supplies are limited, and demand can shift price.

GIA is the oldest lab and so has become the most well-recognized and reputed, especially in the United States. On the other hand, IGI &HRD is well-regarded by the diamond community. HRD, IGI and GIA differ ever so slightly in systems of grading. All three strive to conform to their own system and overall, all do good and comparable jobs. You should to be able to buy a diamond with a high degree of confidence with either lab’s report.

Yes. Buying with a certificate from a recognized authority such as the HRD, GIA or IGI means that your diamond has the credentials to be recognized worldwide as a valuable item. Resale values of diamonds drop drastically when unaccompanied by a certificate. Also, a certificate makes you sure about the authenticity and purity of your diamond.

Diamonds need care to keep them looking at their brilliant best. They should be cleaned at least once a month to keep away the “dullness” that can be caused by skin oils, soap, cosmetics and even cooking grease. The only substance that does not stick to a diamond is water. A clean diamond will reflect better light.

There are several ways of keeping diamond jewelery clean.

The detergent bath is performed with a small bowl of warm suds using any mild liquid detergent. Immerse jewelery pieces in the suds and brush gently with a tooth brush. Rinse under warm running water and pat dry with a soft, lint-free cloth.

Some extra helpful hints to keep diamond jewelery looking at its best:

• It is better not to wear diamond jewelery when doing rough work or the dishes. Despite the durability of a diamond, it can be chipped by a hard blow along its grain.
• Take care when doing the housework, not to let diamond jewelery come into contact with chlorine bleach, as it won’t harm the diamond but can pit or discolor the mounting.
• When placing diamond jewelery in a jewelery case, be sure to wrap them individually as they can easily scratch each other as well as other gem jewelery. Be sure to take all types of precious mounted jewelery to a jeweler at least once a year to check for loose settings and signs of wear.