Diamonds can have different colors, sizes and qualities. The colors may range from very clear fine whites to pinks, bright yellows, greens and even browns. The majority of diamonds used in jewelry today are white diamonds.

Depending on your age and experience, you may or may not have heard of the "4 C's of diamonds". Two diamonds that look alike at first may, in fact, be very different. Two diamonds of equal size can have very unequal values. The differences between them may be subtle indeed. To understand these differences is to understand the 4C's: Cut, Color, Clarity and Carat.

It takes years of experience to become an experienced diamond buyer. Focusing only on the 4 C’s will not make you a diamond expert in anyway, but yes it could be a useful piece of information if you are out in the market to buy one.


CUT:
The cut of a diamond includes two aspects: shape and make. Shapes vary widely for diamonds but a round brilliant cut is considered most desirable. It is made with 58 facets, giving the diamond a brilliant look. Radiant, princess, and marquise cuts are also valued higher than other shapes.
Remember! a diamond with best color and highest clarity will not have beautiful brilliance unless it is cut well. So just like the shape has it's own significance, the cut (# of facets) is what adds the brilliance by allowing light to reflect from it.

COLOR:
A colorless diamond reflects the most pure spectrum of colors. D,E and F are considered colorless. G, H and I are considered Near colorless. J, K and L are faint yellow and M, N, O are light yellow.

Color in diamonds means the body color or tint of the stone. It does not refer to the prism of colors emanating from a well-cut diamond.

With the exception of "fancy colored diamonds", the more colorless a diamond is, the more valuable it is. The Fancy colored diamonds are beyond the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) color scale. They include pink, canary yellow, blue and green, red and even black. All highly priced, extremely rare, and major showpieces!

CLARITY:
Clarity is an indication of a diamond's purity. When a rough stone is extracted from carbon, deep beneath the earth, tiny traces of natural elements are almost always trapped inside. These elements are called inclusions, though sometimes referred to as birthmarks, because they are formed naturally and are unique to each stone.

Because most inclusions are not visible to the naked eye, a jeweler will use a magnifier know as a loupe to reveal a diamond's inclusions. The less inclusions a diamond has, the more valuable it is, and the more beautiful it is.

The scale for grading diamond's clarity is:

• F Flawless - no internal or external inclusions.



• IF Internally Flawless - no internal inclusions, slight external inclusions.



• VVS1-VVS2 Very Very Slightly Included - minute inclusions that are very difficult to detect under 10x magnification, even by an experienced grader.



• VS1-VS2 Very Slightly Included - minute inclusions that are invisible to the naked eye and seen only with difficulty under 10x magnification.



• SI1-SI2 Slightly Included - invisible to the naked eye, yet easily seen by an experienced grader under 10x magnification.



• I1-I3 Included - inclusions are visible to the naked eye and affect brilliance.

Clarity is one diamond factor where you can have some flexibility. You can choose diamonds from IF to SI2, and you probably won’t be able to see any inclusions with the eye. That gives you a lot of room to play with, and can be a way to control the ultimate price you pay for a diamond.

CARAT:
This C is the most objective of all the factors; it is simply how much the diamond weighs. Carat weight is the easiest of the 4 C's to determine. But two diamonds of equal weight can carry unequal value, depending on their cut, color and clarity.
Diamonds are valuable, so they are weighed very precisely on a metric scale to the hundredth of a carat. One carat is divided into 100 parts, called "Points". A diamond that weighs .49 ct is described as 49 points, or almost 1/2 carat. Diamonds are routinely cut into standard fraction sizes of 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 3/4, 1 carat, etc.

Remember, a bigger diamond is not necessarily better! A two-carat diamond that is cut poorly is not nearly so beautiful as a smaller diamond, cut by a skilled diamond artisan.

So there it is, your 4 C's of diamonds. Ideally, all of them should be taken into account, but you may have to make compromises based on your budget. In my opinion; whether large or a small diamond, the Cut is absolutely critical since it is the sole factor in releasing a diamond's maximum potential for beauty and brilliance.

Lastly, one very important thing to remember is to ask your retailer to provide an AGS Certificate or a GIA Certificate. You'll also want them to verify that the stone is not a conflict diamond.

Here is where you will find more information on that;

AGS Certificate - http://www.agslab.com/main.php
GIA Certificate - http://www.gia.edu
Conflict diamond - http://www.un.org/peace/africa/Diamond.html