The Four C's
Everything you need to know about diamonds
To establish a diamond’s quality, you must understand the Four C’s — Cut, Color, Clarity and Carat.
The overall combination of these is what determines the value and beauty of a diamond.
Shapes & Styles
From the classic round to the modern cushion cut, diamonds come in many distinct shapes.
Each one presents unique characteristics to reflect the wearer’s unique personality.
COLOR: THE LESS COLOR IN A DIAMOND, THE MORE VALUABLE IT BECOMES.
Diamonds are graded by color, starting at the colorless grade D and moving through the alphabet to the light yellow Z. While most diamonds appear white to the untrained eye, a majority display a hint of yellow or brown color.
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| SCALE | D E F | G H I J | K L M | N O P Q R | S T U V W X Y Z |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| COLOR | Colorless | Near Colorless | Faint Yellow | Very Light Yellow | Light Yellow |
| SCALE | D E F |
|---|---|
| COLOR | Colorless |
| SCALE | G H I J | K L M |
|---|---|---|
| COLOR | Near Colorless | Faint Yellow |
| SCALE | N O P Q R |
|---|---|
| COLOR | Very Light Yellow |
| SCALE | S T U V W X Y Z |
|---|---|
| COLOR | Light Yellow |
CLARITY: Clarity is a measure of a diamond's natural flaws and impurities.
The size, nature, location and amount of inclusions determine a diamond’s clarity grade and affect its cost.
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Flawless
Internally Flawless
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VVS1
VVS2
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VS1
VS2
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SI1
SI2
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I1
I2
I3
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| Very Very Slightly Included | Very Slightly Included | Slightly Included | Included |
CARAT: Carat weight is the simplest factor to determine.
A diamond’s weight, not size, is measured in carats. One carat is divided into 100 points, so a diamond of 75 points weighs .75 carats.
CUT: The cut of a diamond determines its radiance.
While nature decides a diamond’s color, clarity and carat weight, a master craftsman releases its fire, sparkle and beauty. Since a large percentage of a diamond’s value is determined by its cut, this is a very important feature to understand.
At the Forevermark Diamond Institute, experts draw on proprietary, state-of-the-art technologies and years of experience to examine each diamond, going beyond the technical Four C’s criteria to hand-select only the most beautiful to become Forevermark.
A diamond will go through, at minimum, a 17-step process being rigorously examined by diamond experts for any flaws or imperfections that will impact its beauty. The diamonds are also scanned by proprietary machines to check for their authenticity, carat weight and symmetry, and then hand examined for color categorization and inclusions, or flaws visible to the naked eye.
A Forevermark diamond must be completely natural, and must have close to a perfectly polished table, where the inscription is placed. Of all the diamonds in the world, less than 1% qualify to become Forevermark diamonds. The end result is that Forevermark diamonds are the world’s most carefully selected diamonds.
GIA – The Gemological Institute of America
Established in 1931 and recognized as one of the world’s foremost authorities in diamond grading, GIA developed the Four C’s and the International Diamond Grading System, the standard used around the globe.
GIA screens every gemstone to identify synthetics, simulants and known treatments. Expert gemologists examine each diamond under controlled lighting and viewing conditions in order to provide the most rigorous assessments of a diamond’s Four C’s.
AGS - American Gemological Society
American Gemological Society (AGS) is a US based laboratory renowned for their scientific approach and research into diamond cut grading. Smaller in scope than the GIA, they enforce the same color and clarity standards while focusing on cut craftsmanship and light performance. Instead of using an alphabetical rating system, AGS uses a numerical scale of 0-10 for rating a diamond’s characteristics, with 0 as the highest and 10 as the lowest. Since their founding in 1996, AGS has maintained an excellent reputation for offering diamond grading reports that provide consistency and accuracy based on science.
