Executive Summary

The clarity of a diamond measures the quantity and type of impurity that is found in a diamond. Diamonds are formed deep in the earth’s surface under imperfect conditions, so most of the time, there is a possibility that there are impurities in or around the surface of the diamond.

When checking for inclusions in diamonds, the diamond is checked under a microscope with at least 10x magnification. To determine the clarity grade of a diamond, there are 5 different factors that are employed by diamond graders. These factors are size, location, number, nature, and relief of the impurity.

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The standard scale for the clarity grade of a diamond was invented by the GIA and the scale runs from Flawless (FL) to Internally Flawless (IF), Very Very Slightly Included 1st Degree (VVS1), Very Very Slightly Included 2nd Degree (VVS2), Very Slightly Included 1st Degree (VS1), Very Slightly Included 2nd Degree (VS2), Slightly Included 1st Degree (SI1), Slightly Included 2nd Degree (SI2), Included 1st Degree (I1), Included 2nd Degree (I2). Etc.

Only about 1% of all diamonds on earth are known to be flawless, the other 99% all have some degree of flaws in the diamond or on its surface. Diamond flaws can be found on different parts of the diamond and are quite numerous. Some examples are crystals, pinpoint, clouds, needles, feathers, graining, twinning wisp, cavity, chip, polishing lines, scratch, bearding, etc.

The types and amount of flaws that are found in a diamond goes a long way in determining the clarity grade of the diamond. When it comes to the clarity grade of diamonds, the best thing to do is to contact an expert gemologist to help you determine the clarity grade. This is if the diamond does not have a GIA certificate stating its clarity grade.

Diamonds are formed and found very deep in the earth’s surface at very high temperatures and pressure regimes. Although what you see around jewelry stores are perfect to behold, diamonds are not formed in such perfect conditions. In a lot of cases, they usually contain a lot of blemishes inside and around their surfaces.

Diamond clarity is a measure of the number of impurities that are found in a diamond. It has become a standard for measuring how good a diamond is based on its physical appearance. The lesser the impurities and inclusion a diamond has, the more rated the diamond is on the diamond clarity scale. The higher a diamond is on the clarity scale, the better it is and the more valuable the diamond is.

There are different degrees of inclusions which is actually what the clarity scale typifies. Diamonds are not included in the same way. There are some inclusions and blemishes that are not visible to the human eye and would require the expertise of a gemologist to point out, while there are others that are visible even to the unaided eye and does not require any expert help or knowledge.

How Are Clarity Grade Determined

One thing that experts pay attention to when determining the clarity grade of a diamond is the diamond’s appearance when the face is up and under a microscope with a magnification of at least10x. The microscope magnification used to identify inclusions in diamonds is usually more than the popular 10x magnification. This enables that the impurities in the diamond are easier to spot. It is more difficult to spot the inclusions with just 10x magnification.

There are 5 different factors used to determine the clarity grade of a diamond. These factors are size, location, number, nature, and relief of the impurity.

Size of the impurity

The size of the impurity is very important because it goes a long way in determining the clarity grade of the diamond. The bigger the impurity is, the bigger the impact that it has on the diamond.

 

Nature of the impurity

The nature of these impurities refers to the type of inclusions in the diamond. It revolves around the depth of the impurity and its characteristics within the diamond. The impurity can either be classed as a blemish or an inclusion depending on where it is on or in the diamond. If it is situated on the surface of the diamond, it is called a blemish but if it penetrates the diamond, it is called an inclusion.

Number of impurities

If a diamond has a lot of impurities in it, it definitely wouldn’t be graded as high as a diamond with little or no impurities in it or on the surface.

Location of the impurity

Where the impurity of a diamond is located goes a long way in determining the clarity grade of the diamond. If the inclusion of the diamond is found close to or around the center of the table, it will impact the grade of the diamond much more.

The inclusion can also appear far from the center table and a lot closer to the diamond’s girdle. In this case, it may be a lot more difficult task to see the impurity.

Inclusions may also appear near the diamond’s pavilion. In this case, the inclusions are reflected because the diamond’s facet acts as mirrors which reflects the impurity. If the inclusion is noticed or present past the diamond’s culet, it would not have much effect on the clarity grade of the diamond. The facet arrangement, proportion, and shape of the diamond may also obscure some clarity features.

The relief of the impurity

This refers to the ease with which the inclusion in the diamond can be noticed especially compared to the diamond that hosts it. Inclusions with high relief will have darker colors and this will affect the clarity grade of the diamond.

 

Diamond Clarity Scale

The diamond clarity scale was made by the GIA (Gemology Institute of America) and it has become the standard for measuring diamond clarity. The clarity grade runs from flawless FL, (which is the best) to included 1st degree, I1 (which is the worst available on the market). The different grades are described as follows;

  • Flawless (FL): Diamond with this grade of clarity are extremely rare. Just 1 of diamonds falls in this category. From the name, these diamonds are flawless. They do not have any impurities in them at all even when viewed under a microscope magnification of 10x.
  • Internally Flawless (IF): These diamonds do not have any flaws included in them even under microscope magnification. This doesn’t, however, mean that they are flawless. They do not have inclusions but they have blemishes along their surfaces. An example of such blemish is polishing lines.
  • Very very slightly included 1st degree(VVS1): Diamonds in this grade are not perfect but they are also close to that. They have very very small inclusions that are difficult to spot even under a microscope magnification of x10. It takes a trained professional to spot these inclusions and most of the time, what they see is just tiny pinpoints.
  • Very very slightly included 2nd degree (VVS2): They are very similar to VVS1. The major difference between them is mainly where the flaws are located. For VVS1, the flaws are located in the bottom half of the diamond. But for VVS2, the flaws are located in the top half of the diamond.
  • Very slightly included 1st degree (VS1): The inclusions in diamonds of this grade are slightly larger than those in the VVS2 grade. The inclusions may also be smaller in size but larger in number when compared to its upper-grade counterpart. These inclusions are also a little bit more visible when viewed under microscope magnification. But they are not visible to the human eye.
  • Very slightly included 2nd degree (VS2): Diamonds with this clarity grade usually do not also have inclusion that is visible to the naked eye. Although there are few of the diamonds that may contain flaws that are visible to the naked eye. This is common among VS2 diamonds that have a large size. The major difference between VS1 and VS2 is the type, size, and location of the flaws in them. VS2 diamonds will have bigger inclusions than VS1 and the inclusions are usually around the center or top of the diamond. There might also be black carbon crystals on the VS2 diamond which is usually absent in the VS1.
  • Slightly included 1st degree (SI1): Slightly included diamonds have inclusions in them that are more easily noticed under microscope magnification. It is also possible but not likely that the inclusions in them are seen by the naked eye. Diamond cuts affect the visibility of the inclusions in this grade. Only emerald and Asscher cuts (being step cuts) expose these inclusions more. With other cuts, they will most likely appear eye-clean.
  • Slightly included 2nd degree (SI2): The inclusions in diamonds with this grade are more obvious to the naked and untrained eye especially with diamond cuts like the Asscher and emerald cuts. In other diamond cuts, you might need to use the jeweler’s loupe to see the inclusions.
  • Included 1st degree (I1): In this clarity grade, the flaws in the diamond are larger and very visible to the untrained eye. These flaws affect the durability and brilliance of the diamond. From this clarity grade, there are different kinds of flaws that can be found in the diamond. There are lower clarity grades than the I1. We also have the I2 and I3 but because of their extremely poor quality, they are not found for sale in jewelry stores.

Different Types of Flaws

It is important to note that there is not just one type of flaw that affects diamonds. Only about 1 of diamonds on earth are considered to be flawless, meaning that 99 of diamonds have flaws in them. There are a different number of flaws you can likely see in a diamond. The different types of flaws are discussed below.

  • Crystals: There are two types of crystal inclusions. There’s the white crystal which is not so bad because they just blend in with the diamond. There’s also the black carbon spots which might be a problem especially if it is big. These crystal flaws are usually mineral spots present in the diamond.
  • Pinpoints: These flaws aren’t so much of a big deal since they can only be seen under magnification. They are invisible to the naked eye so aren’t much of a problem. They are extremely tiny crystals flaws that appear in the form of dots under 10x magnification.
  • Clouds: This type of flaw is formed from clusters of pinpoints and then they appear together like one big flaw. If the cloud is too dense, it may become visible to the naked eye and may give the diamond a hazy appearance.
  • Needle: This is also a white crystal flaw. But it has a rod-like appearance. It is long and thin. Hence the name, needle.
  • Feathers: These are internal cracks in the diamond. The location of these feathers is very important to the outlook of the diamond. If the cracks are located close to the edge of the diamond, the diamond may become susceptible to chipping. This feather can appear transparent or capture some light and create a white appearance depending on the angle from which you view it.
  • Graining: This is caused by natural abnormal growth in the crystal structure of the diamond. Graining can appear either appear as a blemish on the surface of the diamond or as an inclusion in the diamond itself. It looks a lot like a line on or in the diamond and it can give the diamond a hazy appearance.
  • Twining wisp: This flaw is a group of pinpoints, crystals, feathers, and clouds. It is usually caused by an irregular growth in the crystal structure of the diamond.
  • Cavity: This is a small hole in the diamond. This hole is usually created during the process of polishing by the falling out of a crystal. This cavity may be colorless or not. It depends on the type of mineral that is included in the diamond. If the inclusion is colored, the cavity would be colored and the color of this inclusion can be seen in the diamond very visible with just the naked eye.
  • Chip: This is a blemish that might appear due to wear and tear. It may also be caused by the process of cutting. It is no fluke that diamonds are the hardest substance on earth but this doesn’t mean that they can’t have chips if they suffer a sharp blow at the right place.
  • Polishing lines: These are tiny lines found on the surface of the diamond. They are usually created during the process of polishing the diamond.
  • Scratch: This is an abrasion on the diamond’s surface.
  • Bearding: This is a small fracture on the girdle. This is caused by the application of too much pressure during the making of the girdle. This causes the edge of the diamond to become rough. It may cause the diamond to have a fuzzy or slightly blurry appearance.

The types and amount of flaws that a diamond has go a long way in determining the clarity grade of the diamond. When it comes to the clarity grade of diamonds, the best thing to do is to contact an expert gemologist to help you determine the clarity grade. This is if the diamond doesn’t have a GIA certificate stating its clarity grade.

Buying tips – why clarity is not so important

When it comes to considering all the 4Cs of a diamond before making a purchase, clarity shouldn’t rank very high for consideration. It is true that when a diamond has high clarity, the diamond sparkles more. This means that the clarity of a diamond directly affects its sparkle. This has made many people overpay for diamonds, sometimes exceeding their budget simply because they want to get a very sparkling diamond.

To help you save some money, clarity should be the least factor that you consider. It is very possible for you to get a big, nice diamond with the right setting, perfectly cut, does not contain any flaws visible to the naked eye and yet you aren’t overpaying for such diamonds.

If you have gone through the clarity grade scale above, you would have noticed that until you go down the scale as far as the S1 grade, all the diamonds would appear flawless to the naked eye. Even at S1, it is under probability that you would find impurities in or on the diamond with your naked eye. That means you can have an s1 diamond that is clear to the eye too.

The question to answer is, why pay so much for something that isn’t so noticeable? Why pay so much for an FL or IF diamond when it doesn’t look any different from the VS2 diamond? Why pay so much then?

The important thing is for you to ensure that the stone is eye clean (no impurities or inclusions are visible), once you have ensured this, then it doesn’t matter what grade the diamond is listed on the clarity grade, you can and should buy it. Even if the diamond is I1, as long as it does not have visible flaws, you don’t have to waste your money on VVS2 not to mention

In some cases, you could even go ahead and buy a diamond with impurities in them. If you’re doing this, you have to be smart and systematic about it though. There are a few things you should look out for before buying such diamonds. These tips are for people working with a very tight budget and want the value for the little money they have.

  • Look out for inclusions that appear around the edge of the diamond. These inclusions are less noticeable and can be masked easily by the diamond setting. Unlike those that appear right at the center of the diamond. Yet the presence of inclusions in the diamond would drastically reduce the diamond’s price.
  • Look out for inclusions that are well spread and less visible. If the diamonds have inclusions like the white feather or white crystal inclusions, you can go ahead and buy it because those inclusions blend in and are not easily noticed when they are spread out. But when they form a cloud and it is so dense that it becomes visible, you should stay away.
  • The VS2 clarity grade gives you the best value for your money. So you should ideally lookout for that grade except you are buying the step cut diamonds then you can go a little higher.
  • The size of a diamond determines its clarity and price too. Bigger rocks tend to show impurities more because of their size. To reduce the amount you’ll be paying, go for a smaller diamond. `Smaller carat weight and easier eye clarity mean lower price tag.
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