What is a carat
how are diamonds classified
how are diamonds classified?
Color
While many diamonds appear colorless, or white, they may actually have subtle yellow or brown tones that can be detected when comparing diamonds side by side. Colorless diamonds are the rarest and most valuable of all. Color variations are a result of the natural forces at work during the formation of diamonds within the Earth. Because subtle color variations dramatically affect the value of a diamond, a color grading scale is used to categorize the shading differences from one diamond to the next.
Clarity is an indication of a diamond‘s purity. Clarity is determined by a diamond‘s naturally occurring internal characteristics. These characteristics are sometimes not visible to the naked eye and they are what make each diamond unique. The characteristics, or inclusions, may look like crystals, feathers, clouds or dark spots and the quantity, size, and location of these inclusions does have an affect on a diamond‘s value. Diamonds with fewer and smaller inclusions generally are more brilliant, assuming that the color and cut are the same.