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About Diamonds
- To establish a diamond's quality, jewelers examine each of the 4Cs -- cut, clarity, carat weight and color. The combination of the 4Cs determines the value of a particular diamond. For example, a colorless diamond is at the top of the Diamond Quality Pyramid in color ... but if it lacks clarity, is small, or not well cut, it will be of a lower value. The finest stones possess the rarest quality in each of the 4Cs, and are the most valuable.
- The Better Cut a Diamond, the More Brilliant. A well cut or faceted diamond, regardless of its shape, scintillates with fire and light -- offering the greatest brilliance and value.
- Diamonds categorized as internally flawless reveal no such inclusions. Flawless stones are at the peak of the Diamond Quality Pyramid and are treasured for their rarity and beauty. Diamonds with very, very small inclusions are graded as VVS1 or VVS2. The larger the inclusion, the lower the grade and the less rare the diamond. Inclusions that can be seen with the naked eye are graded I1 or I3.
- The number, color, type, size and position of surface and internal birthmarks affect a diamond's value. Major inclusions can interfere with the path of light that travels through a diamond, diminishing its brilliance and sparkle and therefore its value.
- Virtually all natural diamonds contain identifying characteristics, yet many are invisible to the naked eye. Under the scrutiny of a jeweler's 10x-magnifying loupe or microscope, natural phenomena -- called inclusions -- may be seen. These are nature's birthmarks, and they may look like tiny crystals, clouds, or feathers.
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About Gold
- Solid gold as it is found in nature is 24 karat gold. Unfortunately, solid gold is far too soft for use in most jewelry and requires additional metals, called alloys to be mixed in to make it suitable for jewelry manufacturing. 18 karat gold has 18 parts pure gold and 6 parts alloy, 14 karat has 14 parts pure gold and 10 parts alloy and 10 karat gold has 10 parts pure gold and 14 parts alloy.
- When buying gold jewelry, always look for a Karat mark such as 14k, 18k stamped somewhere on each piece to ensure yours is real gold. Europeans sometimes stamp their gold pieces with 500 representing 14k or 750 representing 18k.
- Today, when you buy gold jewelry, you are buying enduring beauty.
- 18 karat gold is still very soft and not ideal for everyday wear, 14 karat gold is ideal for bridal jewelry as it is durable yet soft enough to allow the jeweler to create fancy settings such as channel and invisible settings.
- Gold purity is measured by karats. Karat, sometimes represented as; "K" or "Kt." should not be confused with "Carat" which is the unit of measure for diamond and gemstone weight.
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About Gemstones
- Colors in turquoise range from sky blue (most desirable color) to blue green and apple green.
- Peridot should be a lively lime green, without a brownish or olive cast.
- Emerald is one of the most highly-prized of all the gems. The name comes from the Greek "smaragdos" which means green stone. The most prized is the pure grass green.
- Most people think of topaz as a transparent golden yellow gemstone. However, this gemstone occurs colorless as well as orange-yellow, red, honey-brown (dark sherry), light green, blue and pink.
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