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UNDERSTANDING THE 5C'S


1. CUT

It takes a painstaking amount of work, all by hand, to make diamonds as beautiful as you’ll see in our boutiques as they start out life as an uneven natural state called a ‘rough.’ Every other aspect of the 5C’s is an act of nature, however, the cut is the only part of diamond creation that requires human input. It’s the most important, yet misunderstood part of the process. Diamond cutting is an art which can take weeks to produce the perfect outcome. Cutting is so important because it unlocks a diamond’s beauty and sparkle. A perfectly cut diamond will be staggering thanks to its brightness - how much light is reflected, fire - the rainbow effect created when light hits the surface and scintillation - the flashes of light created when the diamond moves. These are key in producing the perfect diamond engagement ring your fiancé-to-be will treasure forever.

Diamond Cut Diagram

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2. COLOUR

Diamonds come in a vast range of natural colours and each is unique and enchanting in its own right. To grade diamond colour, there is a scale to follow to find the most beautiful diamonds in the world. The diamond colour alphabet begins at ‘D’ and runs through to ‘Z’ from completely colourless to diamonds with a warm yellow tone. The human eye is naturally more attracted to whiter diamonds, so we only select diamonds at the top of the scale to present you with a diamond engagement ring that is sublime and scintillating. Whiter diamonds are more rare and valuable.

Diamond Colour Diagram


3. CLARITY

Clarity refers to the number, location, size and type of ‘inclusions’ within a diamond. These are tiny little marks or ‘flaws’ present inside the diamond. Like nature’s birthmarks, they are also known as clarity characteristics and are completely natural in diamond formation. A truly flawless diamond is extremely rare as it’s possible to find these little freckles and birthmarks in almost every diamond in the world. The fewer or smaller the clarity characteristics, the more beautiful, rare and valuable the diamond.

 

Diamond Clarity Diagram

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4. CARAT

Carat is probably the most talked about aspect of a diamond. It refers to its weight and in turn, its overall size. Usually, the bigger the diamond, the higher the carat number. However, when comparing two diamonds, a smaller diamond may be more valuable than a larger diamond if it possesses a far superior cut, whiter colour and flawless clarity. Remember, the cut of a diamond is above all the most important, so bear that in mind when shopping for the perfect diamond engagement ring. You want the cut to be absolutely perfect or the carat becomes just another number.



Diamond Carat Diagram


5. CERTIFICATION

The majority of our diamonds are provided with a Diamond Certificate from an independent laboratory. This showcases the characteristics of the diamond like its Cut, Colour, Clarity and Carat weight and gives you extra piece of mind. It acts like a passport which tells you all about your diamond’s credentials. A Diamond Certificate certainly can’t explain why your fiancé- to-be loves one diamond engagement ring more than another so we advise not to be obsessed with the certificate, be obsessed with the diamond.



Diamond Certificate Diagram