How to get the best diamond and prices

Diamonds are comprised of unmodified carbon, and they are the hardest objects known to man. They are formed due to extremely high temperatures and high pressure far beneath the surface of the earth’s crust. Volcanic eruptions bring these one to three billion year old gems to the surface, where they are mined from rivers by means of dredging and sifting. Only one carat of usable diamond is found for every 250 tons of earth processed. Only 20% of diamonds found are even worthy of being used for jewelry. This is why diamonds are very expensive. They are rare and precious gems of incomparable beauty.

Diamonds are a symbol of love because of their indestructible composition. Since diamonds last forever, the commitment of love associated with marriage makes them the perfect token of devotion and adoration. A diamond ring is a sign of commitment to the person you intend on spending the rest of your life with, so choosing a diamond is a momentous occasion. Knowing what to look for in a diamond is beneficial when making this important decision.

Diamonds are graded according to cut, color, and clarity. They are graded by diamond grading laboratories that use a special scale to determine these attributes. The most recognized independent diamond grading labs are The European Gemological Laboratory, The International Gemmological Institute, and The Gemological Institute of America. You will often see the initials of these leading laboratories on diamond appraisals.

Diamonds are graded on color from “D” to “Z”. You will pay a premium price for colorless diamonds in the D, E, and F range. Brilliantly colored diamonds are the most expensive of all because they are quite rare. The most common diamond color is yellow or cognac. There are also varying shades of champagne. Blue and red diamonds exist, but are even rarer.

The clarity of a diamond is determined by flaws and inclusions within the diamond and how easy they are to see. Flawless, internally flawless, and diamonds listed under VVS and VS on the clarity chart are higher in price. Near colorless diamonds that are considered “SI” (slightly included) are the best value.

The cut of a diamond will also determine the cost. You will pay more for an “ideal cut” diamond. Diamonds considered slightly less than ideal will cost less but still offer a brilliant look.

Diamond jewelry having a serial number engraved on the side for security purposes will cost you more. If you’re on a budget, this option may be one you can do without.

Avoid mall stores when shopping for your diamond jewelry. These stores typically have higher overhead costs. Shop for your diamond jewelry

in stores that offer diamond guarantees that are free of charge. Should you lose or break a diamond under normal conditions, they will repair or replace the diamond at no cost to you. Most jewelers offer this service, but most are not free

.

Avoid jewelry stores that have set prices on diamonds. They guarantee low prices, but they’re not necessarily the lowest. Keep in mind, there is a HUGE mark-up on most diamond merchandise. Don’t be afraid to ask for a lower price on a diamond. Some jewelry stores will accept a lower price if you’re paying with cash rather than putting the item on layaway or paying with a credit card. Asking if the item is the best possible price could save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

Use these tips and suggestions to get the diamond jewelry you want at a price you can afford. Keep in mind that love is priceless, and you shouldn’t have to pay a fortune to get the diamond jewelry you desire.

A Barbie doll that will be looked at but never played with is being auctioned at Christie’s auction house on the 20th of October in New York.
The big difference with this barbie doll is the pink diamond necklace that adorns her plastic neck. Designed and arranged by Jeweler Stefano Canturi, the one carat pink diamond surrounded by smaller white diamonds is expected to bring between 300 and 500 thousand dollars, making this the most expensive barbie in the world according to Christie’s.
Combined there are a total of three carats of diamonds arranged in the necklace. As well as the necklace, Canturi designed the Barbie dolls clothes and accessories as well.
Although bidding is expected
This maybe the most expensive barbie doll ever sold. The previous most expensive barbie up for sale by auction fetched just over 17 thousand dollars.
Just show you what a good quality necklace can do? 

Bulgari Diamond: A two-stone ring with a rare triangular blue diamond the size of a quarter on a gold band with baguette-cut diamonds could bring at least $15 million when it is offered at auction in New York next month.

At 10.95 carats, the stone is the largest triangular-shaped fancy vivid blue diamond ever to come to auction, Christie’s told The Associated Press in advance of the Oct. 20 sale. It is paired with a 9.87-carat white diamond cut in the same shape.
“Vivid blue is the strongest and purest saturation in any colored diamond,” said Rahul Kadakia, Christie’s jewelry expert. “As a vivid, this is as good as it gets.”
The two diamonds were cut to be together.
“They are perfectly matched in size and shape. They may be different in terms of weight, but the measurements are perfect. These two stones are made for each other,” Kadakia said.
The Gemological Institute of America said the blue stone in Christie’s sale is the largest triangular-shaped fancy vivid blue diamond they’ve ever graded, Kadakia said.
It is being sold by an anonymous European businessman. Kadakia described him as “someone with a very, very keen eye” who purchased the ring for $1 million from Italian luxury jeweler Bulgari in Rome in 1972 — a gift to his wife for the birth of their son. The couple went on to have three more children, celebrating each birth with an important gift.
Bulgari’s distinctive geometric forms, classic Greek and Roman influences and unusual combinations of colored and colorless diamonds have long adorned celebrities and movie stars, including Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor.
Last year, a 7.03-carat cushion-cut blue diamond sold at Sotheby’s for $9.5 million, or $1.3 million per carat — setting the highest price ever for a fancy vivid blue gem.
Based on that sale, the Bulgari blue diamond alone is worth $15 million, said Kadakia. With the white diamond, the ring could well surpass that estimate.
The Wittelsbach-Graff Diamond, a 17th-century fancy deep grayish-blue 35.56-carat gem, holds the world record for any diamond and jewel sold at auction. Christie’s sold it in 2008 for $24.3 million.
Worldwide, Kadakia said, blue diamond production accounts for 0.0001 percent of all diamonds produced. And only one in 10 million diamonds have a color pure enough to qualify as fancy vivid blue and measuring over 10 carats.
The blue is determined by trace amounts of boron. The GIA scale runs from faint blue, light blue, fancy light blue, fancy blue, fancy intense blue, deep blue and — when the tonality and saturation are perfect — fancy vivid blue.
The Bulgari blue diamond probably came from the Premier Diamond Mine in South Africa, virtually the only mine in the world producing blue diamonds, Kadakia said. It is where the 3,100-carat rough Cullinan Diamond was found in 1905, and from which the British Crown Jewels the Great Star of Africa and Cullinan II diamonds were cut and polished.
Kadakia estimated that the Bulgari blue diamond came from a rough of at least 20 carats — the rest being lost to polishing.
The world’s largest known deep blue diamond is the 45.52-carat Hope Diamond, discovered in the 1600s, and housed at the Smithsonian.
Kadakia said that in the last 2 1/2 years he has seen a 15-20 percent rise in the number of clients investing in high-end jewelry and diamonds, both those who buy at auction and privately.
“In what other form could you carry $15 million to $20 million so easily?” he asked.
The ring will be officially unveiled at Christie’s Geneva gallery on Tuesday, with stops later in Hong Kong and London before returning to New York.

The Curse of the Black Orlov Diamond, said to be worth over 2 million dollars, may well be broken at the 78Th Academy Awards if worn by Actress Felicity Huffman (Desperate Housewives) and she wins an Oscar. The Black Orlov Diamond is said to be ridden with a curse and three people have reputedly died as a result of the curse.
The owner of the diamond, J. Dennis Petimezas of Johnstown, Pa, hoping that his Necklace with the diamond will be the one worn at the Oscars.
Known as the Black Orlov, or “The Eye of Brahma,” the jewel is haunted by a curse said to have begun when the original 195-carat diamond was removed from a Hindu shrine in southern India. The diamond is tied to the deaths of three former owners who apparently killed themselves.
Only one out of every 10,000 diamonds is a black one.
In 1947, Princess Nadia Vyegin-Orlov and Princess Leonila Galitsine-Bariatinsky - both former owners of the Black Orlov - leapt to their deaths in apparent suicides.
Fifteen years earlier, J.W. Paris, a diamond dealer who imported the stone to the United States, jumped to his death from one of New York’s tallest buildings shortly after concluding the sale of the jewel. In an attempt to break the curse, the diamond was recut into three separate gems and has since been owned by a succession of private owners, all of whom seem to have escaped the curse.
Petimezas dismisses the curse and said the necklace has brought him nothing but good luck since he purchased it more than a year ago.
“Since I have owned it,” he said, “I have married my longtime sweetheart, we have moved into our dream home and enjoyed continued growth in the diamond business.”

This entry was posted on Saturday, August 28th, 2010 at 3:34 pm. 

Diamond Arkansas Ice

Looking down can be very worth while it seems. A young 14 year old boy was doing just that when he spotted something sparkling in a footprint of other visitors in the Crater of Diamonds State Park a few days ago.
According to a park official, ‘The diamond resembles a miniature ice cube’.

Peter Slowik and his father were searching the surface of the Murfreesboro, Ark., park not far from the south washing pavilion when he spotted the gem in a footprint of other park visitors.
‘Peter Slowik’s diamond is so clear, just like a piece of ice.’ The eight grader has named the diamond Arkansas Ice.

Pink Diamond
A rare pink diamond ring was sold at auction recently to wealthy British billionaire Laurence Graff for over 46 million dollars. Graff modestly dubbed it the “Graff Diamond.” This sets a new record for the highest priced diamond, also bought by Graff in 2008. Graff described it as the “most fabulous” diamond he had seen in his entire career. He said he had bought the gem for his own collection, immediately naming it “The Graff Pink”.
After the auction, which took place in Sotheby’s in Geneva, he said: “It is the most fabulous diamond I’ve seen in the history of my career and I’m delighted to have bought it.”
Auctioneer David Bennett, head of Sotheby’s international jewellery division, also described the diamond as “absolutely sensational”. He said: “I find it difficult to exaggerate how fine this stone is because I love it.”
Bidding started at 20 million Swiss francs – £12.65 million, but with frenzied bidding quickly surpassed the previous record.
It finally went under the hammer for 40.5 million Swiss Francs, with the premium pushing it up to 45,442,500 Swiss Francs or £28.8 million or 46 million dollars.
Mr Bennett told the room: “That is a world record for a jewellery sale anywhere in the world.”
After the sale he added: “Tonight’s spectacular result demonstrates that truly extraordinary objects will bring truly extraordinary prices. It was simply one of the most desirable diamonds I have seen during my 35-year-career at Sotheby’s.”
The diamond was formerly owned by the late Harry Winston, US jeweller to the stars.
Its incredibly rare, perfect pink colour is thought to have been caused by it absorbing light in an unusual way when it was formed deep inside the earth over millions of years.
It is set between shield-shaped diamond shoulders on a silver ring.

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 18th, 2010 at 8:17 pm. 

 

 

The Great Diamond and Prices

Sotheby’s D-Grade Flawless Diamond (White Diamond)
Price: $16 million
Carats: 108
This flawless white diamond--arguably the finest of its kind for sale anywhere in the world--is graded ‘D’ for color (highest possible rating). What makes it extraordinary isn’t so much its heft--a generous 108 carats-- as its nearly total absence of flaws.

Mouawad Diamond Necklace
Price: $12 million
Carats: 70 (for the largest stone)
This necklace of white and colored diamonds was once displayed at London’s Natural History Museum and is currently owned by the Robert Mouawad as part of his collection housed in Geneva, Switzerland, which contains his higher-end pieces. The largest jewel in the necklace is a 70-carat white sparkler. 

Leviev Fancy Vivid Yellow Diamond
Price: $10 Million
Carats: 77.12
“Fancy vivid” is the highest rating you can give a colored stone, and London jeweler and Israeli diamond tycoon Lev Leviev is offering for sale one of the world’s most spectacular. Leviev, who controls the third largest group of diamond mines in the world, got this stone from one of his own diggings. It hangs from a white diamond necklace.
For more information, visit: www.leviev.com.

Graff Fancy Vivid Pink Pear Shaped Diamond
Price: $10 Million
Carats: 13
Graff doesn’t loan diamonds to celebrities, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have your own piece of red carpet bling. Collectors will be clamoring for this beauty, mounted in a platinum ring with white pear-shaped diamonds on both sides.
For more information, visit: www.graffdiamonds.com.

Harry Winston Fancy Intense Pink Diamond with two Trapezoid Diamonds
Price: $8.3 Million
Carats: 10.11
Pinks are among the rarest of colored diamonds, and this particular stone is one of the largest offered on the market today. The diamond displays a 100% pure pink color that is evenly distributed and saturated to a degree found only in the best vivid-grade diamonds. Clarity rating: VVS1.
For more information, visit: www.harrywinston.com.

de Grisogono Green Diamond
Price: $7.3 Million
Carats: 25.06
Colored diamonds, specifically green ones, rarely come to market, which helps account for the relatively high price of this one from de Grisogono. The 25-carat GIA-certified VS1stone is set in white gold with 382 black diamonds (7 carats’ worth) surrounding it.

Top 10 Celebrity Engagement Rings of 2007

Selita Ebanks-- Although she took it off her finger in October 2007, the Victoria's Secret model will always have the memory of the 15-carat, cushion cut diamond Jacob & Co. engagement ring that was presented to her by Nick Cannon.

Brittany Murphy-- If diamonds are a girl's best friend, then the "Just Married" star has plenty of pals. The actress, who said "I do" to Simon Monjack in an intimate L.A. ceremony, received two platinum Neil Lane engagement rings from her hubby-- a 5-carat yellow diamond embraced by a circle of smaller white diamonds, and a 6.5-carat cushion cut diamond resting on a diamond-encrusted band.

Elizabeth Hurley-- The model-actress waited until one month before her walk down the aisle at Sudley Castle before debuting her 15.09-carat Asscher cut diamond, the crowning glory on a white gold band adorned with pave diamonds. The stunning sparkler was purchased from the "Haute Joallerie" collection at Chopard, the jeweler which also created the bride's white gold wedding band, which is adorned with 20 square cut 3.91-carat diamonds.

Selita Ebanks-- Although she took it off her finger in October 2007, the Victoria's Secret model will always have the memory of the 15-carat, cushion cut diamond Jacob & Co. engagement ring that was presented to her by Nick Cannon.

Ivana Trump-- The social siren, who made "Don't get mad, get everything" a catch phrase, now has it all-- her own jewelry line and signature "Ivana Haute Couture" scent, the love of fiancé Rossano Rubicondi and a platinum engagement ring designed by her daughter Ivanka, which is topped with a 12-carat, emerald cut diamond.

Brooke Mueller-- The 11-carat, radiant cut yellow diamond atop the platinum band that Charlie Sheen placed on his fiancée's finger sparkled in the Costa Rican sun when the "Two and A Half Men" star proposed at the Four Seasons Hotel.

Tracey Edmonds-- Eddie Murphy mulled over the many designs offered by Cartier before choosing an 8-carat yellow diamond engagement ring, which he presented to his bride-to-be in July 2007.

Kate Walsh-- The "Private Practice" star had to start rehearsing her wedding vows after she was presented with a Jubilee cut diamond Neil Lane engagement ring during a romantic San Francisco getaway in May of 2007.

Jennifer Love Hewitt-- "The Ghost Whisperer" received a hauntingly beautiful heirloom engagement ring created with a center diamond encircled by 10 white diamonds from her fiancé, Ross McCall.

Delta Goodrem-- Diamond solitaires make a statement, and the ring placed on the Australian singer's finger in November tells the world that she's Brian McFadden's one and only.

Heidi Montag-- While only time will tell if the lovebirds from "The Hills" tie the knot, the most talked-about bauble on TV proves that diamonds aren't the only way to display devotion. Spencer Pratt presented his co-star with a platinum engagement ring topped with a lemon amethyst, which is surrounded by small diamonds.

Hollywood Star's Diamond and Engagement Rings

Angelina Jolie Diamond Accessories

Everyone from Angelina Jolie to Heidi Klum displayed their finest diamond jewelry and gemstone jewelry in Los Angeles last night at the 81st annual Academy Awards.

Jolie, who was nominated for Best Actress, looked fabulous in a black Elie Saab Couture gown accessorized with a 65-carat Colombian emerald ring and 115-carat emerald earrings from Lorraine Schwartz.  Lorraine Schwartz has been the hottest name in diamond jewelry lately, dressing everyone from movie stars to First Lady Michelle Obama.

Other celebrities wearing Lorraine Schwartz to the 2009 Oscars included Beyonce, with her yellow-gold diamond leaf Lorraine Schwartz rings, and Heidi Klum, whose $900,000 worth of Lorraine Schwartz diamond jewelry complemented her asymmetrical Roland Mouret gown.  Klum wore the bold crimson gown to draw attention to the Heart Truth campaign, which raises awareness about heart disease among women.

Best Supporting Actress nominee Amy Adams made the largest jewelry statement of the evening, topping off her crimson Herrera bustier dress with a Fred Leighton bib necklace that contained 39 carats of diamonds and 630 carats of emeralds, rubies and sapphires.  But the Oscar winner for Best Supporting Actress, Penelope Cruz, also scored with her outfit: a 60-year old vintage Pierre Balmain gown which she accessorized with a whopping $3 million worth of Chopard diamond jewelry, including a 69-carat diamond necklace. 

Other fashion winners included Best Actress Kate Winslet with her Chopard diamond bracelet, Halle Berry with her H. Stern diamond jewelry, and Marisa Tomei with vintage jewels from Van Cleef & Arpel that included a 1941 diamond and sapphire bracelet, a 1960 diamond ring, and 1973 lapis and diamond earrings.

Celebrity Engagement Rings

Celebrity marriages may have the self life that lasts as long as a freshly baked muffin at your local bakery but the rings these brides-to-be sport are often decadent, opulent and jaw-dropping beautiful. Square cut or pear shaped, diamonds really are a girl’s best friend….and even if the marriages don’t last, these rings have gone down in history.

Perhaps the most famous engagement ring of all time goes to the unlikely duo of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez, formerly dubbed Bennifer by the media. The pink Harry Winston diamond had a whooping 6.5 carats and had an estimated price tag of anywhere from 1.2 million dollars to 2.5 million. The pink solitaire diamond was flanked by trapezoid shaped white diamonds on each side. Alas, the nuptials never took place and Harry Winston reacquired this legendary gem and put it back on the block for an undisclosed amount.
Who could forget the fairy tale wedding of Princess Diana and Prince Charles. It all began with a proposal and an oval blue sapphire engagement ring that had an astounding 18 carats surrounded by 14 diamonds. Diana was given her choice of rings by Garrard Jewelers, and bucking royal tradition, chose a ring that was not a one-of-a-kind creation. Diana’s legendary ring was a piece featured in the upscale jewelers catalog for $65,000 and available to anyone who could afford it.

Speaking of Princesses, Grace Kelly become royalty after her marriage to Prince Rainier of Monaco with a 12 carat emerald cut diamond engagement ring. She sports this hefty rock in her final film performance titled “High Society” and Bing Crosby famously quips “some stone, did you mine it yourself?”. The famous emerald cut stone had a baguette diamond on each side and was specially chosen by the prince in the trend of the large rings that Hollywood actresses were wearing.

Jackie Bouvier was presented with a ring featuring a 2.88 carat square cut diamond and 2.84 carat emerald with tapered baguettes by Van Cleef & Arpels from John F. Kennedy in June of 1953. As with most everything Jackie Kennedy did, this media darling set a trend, making emeralds a popular choice during the 1950s for engagement rings. Her second marriage to Aristotle Onassis landed a 40 carat diamond ring on her hand and when it was auctioned off in 1996, it brought in 2.5 million dollars.

The couch-jumping, Scientology-loving actor that is Tom Cruise popped the question to Katie Holmes at the top of the Eiffel Tower in 2005 with a pale pink diamond engagement ring, with an estimated worth of just over 1 million dollars. The 5 carat oval shaped diamond is set in platinum and rose gold and has an antique look, reminiscent of an art deco style.

Catherine Zeta-Jones sports a 10 carat marquise cut diamond engagement ring by Michael Douglas. This antique looking ring was designed by Fred Leighton and inspired by the 1920s. It has been estimated at a worth of around 2 million dollars and features a 10 carat stone in the middle, surrounded by 28 smaller stones.

Diamond and Sapphire

The first step in choosing a diamond is deciding what shape you want. While the round shape is the most popular, there's plenty of other beautiful shapes to choose from which deliver brilliance and fire.

Of course, the most popular and commonly seen shape for diamonds is the round or brilliant cut, which has 57 or 58 facets (depending on whether the culet, or point at the bottom of the stone, is faceted or not). It's the 'classic' shape that most people think of when they think of a diamond. But the round cut is by far not your only choice. All shapes are capable of fantastic fire and brilliance. The only difference is the result of the diamond cutter's decision to cut the rough diamond into that particular shape.

Choosing the best shape for you

The most important factor in determining shape, of course, is what appeals to you, and what looks best on your hand. Longer and shorter stones can visually affect the appearance of your hands, making them look longer or shorter in return. Also, your taste may guide you toward more traditional shapes, like the classic round brilliant, or toward less conventional shapes like pear, marquise or heart. While the shape of the diamond you choose is ultimately a matter of personal preference, there are differences in the various shapes that affect their brilliance, apparent size and value:

• Round brilliant-cut diamonds show the most brilliance and sparkle of all the shapes. When it comes to hiding imperfections, the round brilliant cut is the king. Its design allows it to hide flaws and yellow tints better than diamonds of other shapes. In emerald cuts and baguettes, which have long, flat facets, flaws become the most obvious.
• Emerald cuts, while sleek and attractive, are not quite as brilliant. If you like the square or rectangular shapes of an emerald cut, you may want to consider a radiant, princess or quadrillion, which have more facets and therefore more brilliance.
• If you want a diamond that looks as big as possible, even if it doesn't weigh much, consider a fancy shape like a marquise or pear, which appear bigger and longer than round diamonds of the same carat weight. 

Cut is the result of a craftsman's skill in transforming a rough diamond into a breathtaking gem. A diamond has facets that allow light to enter it, become refracted, and exit in a rainbow of colors. So it follows that a better cut diamond does a better job of dazzling us with its beauty. Here's the 'secret' to how a diamond sparkles:

As you can see, the diamond with the correct proportions does a more effective job of refracting light out the top of the stone to your eye. The less-than-ideal cut diamonds allow some light to become lost out the bottom.

There are many measurements that go into creating a diamond that truly maximize the refraction of light. Facets must be cut at exactly the right angles relative to one another; the top and bottom halves of the stone must have the proper depth relative to each other; the table, or flat surface on the top, must be the correct size, relative to the overall size of the stone. And, of course, the facets on the top (crown) and bottom (pavilion) must align correctly with each other. Here is a diagram showing a diamond's basic proportions:

These measurements and percentages are different for each diamond, and are all taken into account in the evaluation of a diamond's cut. In fact, each diamond shape (heart, round, oval, emerald, etc.) has its own set of guidelines for what makes a Premium or Good cut.

An 'ideal cut' is a specific set of guidelines that delineate the proportions that give a diamond the highest amount of fire and brilliance.

Although the proportions of an ideal cut vary depending on the source you talk to (from jeweler to jeweler, country to country), there are certain ranges that are generally accepted as capable of evoking the most desirable fire and brilliance from a stone. These ranges must cause the light entering the diamond to be reflected and dispersed through the table (top), not through the sides or bottom.

But most of all, an ideal cut diamond must be cut to bring out the stone's brilliance and fire, not retain the most weight from the rough cut stone.

Top Diamond.com's Diamond Proportion Guidelines Diamond.com maintains extremely stringent guidelines for diamond quality. All diamonds we offer must fall within specific ranges to be judged acceptable by our staff gemologists. Below is a table listing each of our three cut grades for a round brilliant diamond (Ideal, Premium and Good). The table percentage given is the measurement of the diamond's table width, relative to the width of the entire stone (at its girdle, or widest point). This relationship is critical for maximum fire and brilliance: too small or too large a table can hamper the diamond's ability to disperse light properly, not to mention possibly causing the stone to appear smaller for its weight. The depth percentage listed is the length of the stone from table (top) to culet (bottom), expressed as a percentage of the diamond's width, measured at its widest point. This depth-to-width relationship is largely responsible for the diamond's being properly proportioned, resulting in the proper refraction of light and maximum fire and brilliance.

The most important thing to know about diamond color is, in general, the less color a diamond has, the more valuable it is, all other factors being equal. 

Diamonds are found in nature in a wide range of colors, from completely colorless (the most desirable trait) to slightly yellow, to brown. So-called 'fancy color diamonds' come in more intense colors, like yellow and blue, but these are not graded on the same scale.

The diamond color grading system uses the letters of the alphabet from D through Z, with 'D' being the most colorless and therefore the rarest and most valuable, and 'Z' having the most color within the normal range, and being the least valuable, all other factors being equal. A diamond's color is determined by looking at it under controlled lighting and comparing them to the Gemological Institute of America's color scale, which is based on a set of diamonds of known color. Here is a diagram showing how a diamond's color is graded

Diamonds found in nature come in colors ranging from colorless to slightly yellow or brown, to more rare and costly pink, green or blue stones (commonly referred to as 'fancy' diamonds). Excluding 'fancy' diamonds, the ideal color for a diamond is colorless, although this is extremely rare.

A diamond's color is most accurately determined when it is not mounted in a setting, since settings can introduce tints of their own color into the diamond. This is more evident in yellow gold settings, and less so in white gold and platinum settings. Even a trained professional can't always tell the difference between close grades of color in a diamond if it is still mounted in a setting. For this reason, gemological laboratories such as the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and American Gemological Society (AGS) will only grade diamonds that are unmounted.

Diamonds with a color grade of D, E or F are considered colorless; G, H, I and J are near colorless; K, L and M have a faint yellow tint; N, O, P, Q and R have a very light yellow tint and S, T, U, V, W, X, Y and Z are light yellow. A diamond that is a D color is absolutely colorless, and is therefore the most valuable. However, it's important to understand that color alone does not determine the value of a diamond. All '4Cs' must be taken into account. A diamond of D color that has imperfections or is poorly cut is not as valuable as a stone of a lower color grade that has a superior cut and clarity.

The bottom line

A diamond's color also has a great impact on its cost. Since ''colorlessness'' is the most sought-after trait in terms of color, diamonds that are higher up on the color scale (e.g. D, E, F) will have a greater value. If a diamond with a specific cut, clarity and carat weight is moved to the next color grade, it's possible to see a significant increase or decrease in the per-carat price--all other factors being equal. The idea is to choose a diamond that is as high on the color scale as your budget will allow, taking all 4Cs into account.

A diamond's weight is measured in what is known as a 'carat', which is a small unit of measurement equal to 200 milligrams.

Carat is not a measure of a diamond's size, since cutting a diamond to different proportions can affect its weight. (The word 'Karat' is used to express the purity of gold, and is not used in relation to diamonds.) Here is a diagram that shows the relative size of various carat weights in a diamond that is cut to the same proportions:
Note: the diamonds illustrated are not shown actual size. You may also print a PDF file with the actual sizes.
Carat Weight Scale
The most important thing to remember when it comes to a diamond's carat weight is that it is not the only factor that determines a diamond's value. In other words, bigger does not necessarily mean better. All four Cs-Cut, Color, Clarity and Carat Weight must be balanced in order to arrive at a diamond that fits your budget. None of the 4Cs is mutually exclusive, nor is any one more important than the others.
The word carat actually comes from the word carob (as in carob seeds), which is how ancient cultures measured the weight of diamonds on their scales. In 1913, however, the weight was standardized internationally and adapted to the metric system.
Although they can be measured when mounted in jewelry, diamonds are most accurately weighed when they are not mounted in a setting. In fact, gemological laboratories such as the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and American Gemological Society (AGS) will only grade diamonds that are unmounted. A diamond grading report will tell you the exact carat weight, to the nearest hundredth of a carat, for that particular diamond. Each Carat is divided into 100 parts called 'points.' So a 1-carat diamond has 100 points, a 3/4 carat has 75 points, etc. Points in a fraction of one carat are measured within ranges, so that a 3/4 carat diamond may have between .69 and .82 points and still be considered a 3/4 carat. Here's a table of size and weight ranges:
Carat Fractions and Their Decimal Equivalents:

CARAT FRACTIONS		DECIMAL EQUIVALENT
1/10	=	.09 - .11
1/8	=	.12 - .13
1/7	=	.14 - .15
1/6	=	.16 - .17
1/5	=	.18 - .22
1/4	=	.23 - .28
1/3	=	.29 - .36
3/8	=	.37 - .44
1/2	=	.45 - .58
5/8	=	.59 - .68
3/4	=	.69 - .82
7/8	=	.83 - .94
1.0	=	.95 - 1.05

Remember, all diamonds are not created equal. Two diamonds of equal Carat Weight may vary substantially in price due to their Cut, Color and Clarity. Also, a diamond's weight can be 'hidden' in different parts of the stone. For example, you can have a well-cut diamond, whose weight is distributed properly, a diamond that is cut too shallow to make it wider and heavier, but not the most brilliant, or one that is cut too deeply, to add weight to the bottom of the stone - again compromising its ability to radiate maximum brilliance.

The bottom line

The carat weight of a diamond is an extremely important determining factor in its value. Diamonds are valued on a per-carat basis. For example, a diamond of exceptionally high quality may sell for $20,000 per carat, while one of lesser quality may sell for $1,000 per carat. So, a three-carat stone could be $60,000 or $3,000, depending on its per-carat price. Diamond values also increase disproportionately as the size of the stone increases. In other words, a two-carat stone will not necessarily cost twice per carat than a one-carat stone. It could cost much more, since diamonds are rarer in larger sizes. As you take a stone of a particular cut, clarity and color and move its carat weight to the next price category, you may see quite a large increase in the price per carat. Remember that size isn't everything. When choosing a diamond, all 4Cs must be taken into account. The key is to strike a balance among them, while still working within your budget. 

A diamond grading report is a detailed explanation of a diamond's characteristics such as its cut, weight and dimensions. Many diamonds are certified by an independent laboratory so that purchasers can feel confident that their diamond is indeed of the quality the seller represents. A certified diamond's quality is guaranteed, and is therefore more valuable than an uncertified stone. A certificate verifies a diamonds identity and value and is recognized by all gemologists.
Diamonds are certified by independent grading entities whose expert gemologists evaluate each diamond's particular characteristics and attributes, such as clarity, cut, color, carat weight, fluorescence and other characteristics. Loose diamonds from Diamond.com are graded by either the GIA (Gemological Institute of America), AGSL (American Gemological Society Laboratories), or IGI (International Gemological Institute), the world's most respected grading entities. All of these institutes including the GIA, IGI and the AGSL are known for their consistency, stringency and impartiality when grading diamonds.
Below is a sample diamond grading report from the Gemological Institute of America, the foremost authority on diamond grading. The majority of diamonds you'll find at Diamond.com come with a GIA report.

A diamond grading report from an independent laboratory is not an appraisal, which estimates the monetary value of a particular stone. It is an unbiased, informed opinion made by an experienced gemologist. You will receive the original certificate or report with your diamond order.
Purchasing loose diamonds accompanied by certificates allows one to comparison shop and know exactly what they are getting. The slightest change in a diamond's grading can significantly alter its value.

There's no magic answer to the question, "which 'C' is the most important one?" The fact is, finding the best diamond for your money is a delicate balancing act among the 4Cs. For example, you may have to choose a lower Carat weight in order to find a diamond with better Clarity for the budget you've set. Or you may decide to trade a slightly lower Color grade in order to get a stone with a better Cut, etc. Excluding carat weight as a factor, the highest quality attainable in a diamond is a "D" color, IF (internally flawless) clarity stone that is Ideal Cut, meaning it gives off the maximum amount of fire and brilliance. You'll have to decide, based on your budget, how close to this ideal you wish to come.

How a diamond's Carat weight affects its value

The carat weight of a diamond is an extremely important determining factor in its value. Diamonds are valued on a per-carat basis. For example, a diamond of exceptionally high quality may sell for $20,000 per carat, while one of lesser quality may sell for $1,000 per carat. So, a three-carat stone could be $60,000 or $3,000, depending on its per-carat price. Diamond values also increase disproportionately as the size of the stone increases. In other words, a two-carat stone will not necessarily cost twice per carat than a one-carat stone. It could cost much more, like three times. This is because diamonds are more rare in larger sizes, so increases in size can mean disproportionate increases in value. As you take a stone of a particular cut, clarity and color and move its carat weight to the next price category, you may see quite a large increase in the price per carat. This jump gets proportionately larger as the number of carats increases.

How a diamond's Cut affects its value

A diamond's cut is a complicated evaluation based on many factors, including depth and table percentages, crown angles, girdle thickness and others. Added to that, some independent grading laboratories do not grade cut, like the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), making the determination even harder to quantify. We can, however, tell you that an ideal cut diamond generally garners a 20 to 30% higher price than one that is just "good". A diamond's shape can also affect its value, although usually to a lesser degree than its cut does. The reason for price differences between stones of comparable quality and size is primarily due to their supply and demand at a particular time, as well as the cost of the specialized labor skills needed to cut more intricate, fancy shapes. It is also less time consuming to cut, measure and select small round-shaped diamonds than small diamonds of more complicated shapes. Generally speaking, because of the popularity and demand for larger round diamonds, they usually cost more than fancy-shaped diamonds of comparable size and quality. There is very little differentiation in the value of comparable quality diamonds that have been cut into emerald, square or rectangular brilliant-cut shapes. 

How a diamond's Color affects its value
A diamond's color also has a great impact on its cost. Since ''colorlessness'' is the most sought-after trait in terms of color, diamonds that are higher up on the color scale (e.g. D, E, F) will have a greater value. If a diamond with a specific cut, clarity and carat weight is moved to the next color grade, it's possible to see a significant increase or decrease in the per-carat price-- all other factors being equal.

How a diamond's Clarity affects its value
Since clarity, or the measure of imperfections or blemishes in a diamond, is so critical, it will of course result in price differences. If a diamond of a particular cut, color and carat weight is moved to the next clarity grade, it's possible to see a significant increase or decrease in the per-carat price-- all other factors being equal.

Sapphire and Diamond

Sapphires have been some of the most sought after gemstones for a very long time now. There have been instances of countries even going to war over them. Such has been their popularity. There are many countries in which even magical properties are attributed to sapphires. In these countries it is believed that these gemstones offer protection against evil spells and evil eyes. No wonder than that sapphires is in great demand all over the world. Cheap sapphire jewelry would also make for a great piece of gift for literally any occasion too.
Sapphires have been part of legends and folklores for a very long time now. They are known to be fine jewels which have seemingly magical properties. They seem to have an air of mystique about them. This mystique is what draws people towards them with more and more people going in for sapphire jewelry. Since they are very rare to find and precious, they are almost always on the expensive side. With intense competition prevailing these days though you can always find someone selling cheap sapphire jewelry. A simple online search will suffice in order to find someone selling cheap sapphire jewelry.
Natural healers in many parts of the world are known to use sapphires. They claim to remove unwanted thoughts from someone’s mind using sapphires and instead replace them with wealth and joy. There are many who also claim that sapphire has the power to heal blood related problems. With all these claims floating around it is no wonder that cheap sapphire jewelry is always in great demand.
Shopping around is the key to finding someone who sells cheap sapphire jewelry. There are literally hundreds of online jewelry stores that sell them these days. You should talk to most of them in order to find out the prices and then compare them. If you are shopping online for sapphire jewelry make sure that you at least some basic research first. This way you are sure to find some selling cheap sapphire jewelry. You should also try and purchase them from the main jewelry websites instead of the ones which are actually wholesale jewelry websites. Whenever you buy jewelry from the main jewelry websites avoiding the wholesale jewelry websites, you stand to gain in the form of a few hundred dollars of savings.

You should also take care to deal only with reputable online jewelry stores. This way you can be sure that what you are buying are original jewelry and not fake ones. These days with advancing technology you can also find lab-created pieces of jewelry being sold widely at jewelry shops. They have come as a boon to those who cannot afford the original ones. Whether it is synthetic or the original ones, you can rest assure that you can always find someone selling sapphire jewelry near you.

For those who want the pierced look but not the actual piercing, there are options. Many people invest in one of several forms of fake body jewelry to accomplish the look they want.
There are several reasons why a person may not want to get a piercing but want the pierced look. One may simply be the fear of the needles and pain that goes along with any form of piercing. Sometimes having a piercing is not an option due to religious or cultural beliefs. The working environment may frown on piercings, another reason why one may opt for the fake jewelry in the place of the real thing. Sometimes a person may want to try out a look with fake body jewelry before going to the trouble of having the real thing.
There are several kinds of fake body jewelry out there. One type includes a system of magnets and can be used on areas of the body such as the ears where there are two surfaces with only a thin layer of skin between to allow for proper placement of the jewelry. Another type of jewelry simply clips on and is adjustable; this can be ideal for people wanting to try out body piercings that are a bit more complicated in nature than earrings.
What should one look for when buying fake body jewelry? First, get it from a reputable source that deals in body jewelry. Fake body jewelry should be made of the same kinds of metals as regular piercing jewelry. This is due to allergy reasons more than anything, and some jewelry that is made of lesser quality materials can change the skin color. Jewelry made in gold, stainless steel, titanium, or other types of metal that are similar to regular jewelry is best. For those with super sensitive skin, gold is often the best choice for jewelry. The jeweler who sells the jewelry should also be able to provide information about how best to wear it and how to take care of it. Fake body jewelry can easily be lost, so learning how to properly wear it and attach it to the skin to make it have a realistic appearance is important.

Fake body jewelry is a bit harder to find than standard piercing jewelry. Often, places such as earring boutiques will carry the tamer versions of earrings and nose rings that are magnetic. Some tattoo and piercing shops as well as music and novelty stores also carry jewelry, but that is an independent business decision on the part of those businesses. One can also order fake body jewelry via websites on the internet. In general, the cost is similar to other jewelry of slightly above.