DIAMOND CLARITY

When a jeweler speaks of the clarity of a diamond he or she is referring to the amount and types of inclusions and/or blemishes a diamond has. Inclusions and blemishes are naturally occuring in the mineral and most diamonds will have some sort of inclusion or blemish. Inclusions are imperfections internally and blemishes are external or on the surface of the diamond. The fewer inclusions and blemishes has the "cleaner" the diamond will be. Diamonds with a very high clarity level are both rare and expensive.

Grading diamonds for clarity should be done with either a 10x (power) loupe with a triplet corrected lens or a stereo-optic gemscope. It should be noted that the final grade assessment is give with the table toward the viewer and under 10x magnification. A good direct light source should be employed during grading. At 14 Karat we have private viewing rooms with excellent light sources to accurately examine a diamonds clarity level.

Flawless or Internally flawless diamonds are both extremely rare and expensive. These diamonds will have no inclusions or blemishes (Flawless) or slight blemishes (Internally Flawless). While they may be completely clean, they are not very practical when considering the costs associated with them.

VVS1 and VVS2 (Very, Very Slightly Included) are also very clean. Most customers cannot detect the inclusions even under 10x magnification. These diamonds are best suited to the step-cut variety diamonds such as the Emerald and Asscher as those diamonds do not hide inclusions very easily due to their minimal facet work.

VS1 and VS2 (Very Slightly Included) graded diamonds are excellent stones for use in engagement rings. They have very small inclusions which under 10x maginifcation should be visible and most customers can find them with some practice and patience. They do cost more than the popular SI1 and SI2 grades but do give the customer a diamond that is virtually guaranteed to be competely "eye clean".

SI1 and SI2 (Slightly Included) diamonds are the most popular grades typically sold for engagement rings and higher quality pendants. The SI1 grade will produce a diamond that has inclusions visible under 10x that is fairly easily seen. However, most SI1 diamonds will still be clean to the naked eye therefore yielding a great "bang for the buck". SI2 graded diamonds will also generally be eye clean but can contain inclusions that will be seen with the naked eye under certain lighting conditions. It is best to buy these diamonds on a case by case basis and not assume they are definitely eye clean. They do represent tremendous value if no inclusions are visible.

I1 and lower diamonds are generally not recommended by our staff as they will have large, very noticible inclusions they can be seen readily with the naked eye.

We Recommend:

While certain customers are more particular about clarity than others. Most will agree that the goal is to buy a diamond that is clean to the naked eye. For you men out there, that means obtaining a diamond where your signifcant other cannot detect the inclusions! Buying a VS1 versus SI1 diamond will not make much sense if both diamonds look the same without a 10x loupe in your hand. A good bang for the buck is always the VS2, SI1 and SI2 graded diamonds.

Clarity "Enhanced" & Laser Drilling/Fracture Filling

14 Karat does not sell any loose diamond that has been altered from it's natural state. We do not suggest you buy any diamond that has been laser drilled/fracture filled or enhanced by any method. You should be wary of any jeweler that sells a diamond by using the term "enhanced" in a positive way or implies that the diamond is better because of these man-made methods. Specific FTC guidlines apply to the sales of these diamonds and you should educate yourself as to what these are. If you are looking for a diamond of this natural we will not be able to help you.