4Cs of diamonds explained

October 12, 2018

4Cs of diamonds explained | Pure Diamond

We want to continue producing handy infographics that you can easily access both on your phone and the computer. Understanding 4Cs of diamonds is paramount if you want to get a high-quality sparkler while spending a reasonable amount of money.

When you shop for diamonds and happen to be on a budget, and let’s face it everyone has some sort of a budget. You need to decide for yourself how much of that budget you want to allocate to “shopping experience.” Do you like the lights, the sales people and the over the top decor of a typical jewellery store? Well, be prepared, as much as a third of your hard earned dollars and possibly even more will now go towards “shopping experience.” You will sponsor the lights and or the salaries, leases, and variety of expenses of the store paid.

How does paying for retail experience helps your significant other wear a stunning diamond?

To counter that you might want to say that big stores are big because they have been at it for a while and big jewellery stores have massive buying power, and therefore you, can negotiate and get a great deal.

Nothing could be further from reality. The big jewellery stores are big because they have made BIG profit margins for a long time! In other words, the big jewellery stores found so many suckers they could bullshit to they have grown to immense proportions. These dinosaurs are now either going bankrupt or they invest heavily in search ads and social media.

Either way you as a consumer pay for it all. So why not arm yourself with some knowledge and make the life of a jewellery store salesperson or better yet owner a bit more difficult.

Below is the infographic with the 4Cs (colour, cut, carat weight and cut)

I did not include the additional Cs because I wanted to keep it simple.

COST – the higher the cost, the more you pay seems obvious. But a quick search on blunile.ca or jamesallen.ca will yield a significant number of diamond prices. Expect to pay more when you see the diamond outside of just seeing the specs of it online. The cost of a diamond can never bee to much higher than the offerings online. Its that simple.

CERTIFICATION – Its simple, if you have a shade of a trust vulnerability with your diamond purveyor. Insist on a 3rd party certification. GIA or AGS certificate is the absolute best. However, they do make mistakes as well, and I have seen it. The bottom line is that your significant other will not wear a certificate around her finger. So you still need to look at and like the diamond you are purchasing. The GIA or AGS certificate will give you an idea of what it is, but, it is best if you establish the trust with your trusted diamond dealer and he or she would be able to show you everything about the diamond such as 4Cs below visually.

CREDIBILITY – Well it’s important as to who the hell is making your ring. What are they like? Do they seem to know diamonds? Can they explain diamonds light return and how it happens in the crystallized carbon exactly and how inclusions, colour of the gem material or fluorescence can and will negatively affect the overall look of your diamond.

Happy Diamond Hunting!

Blue