DIAMOND CERTIFICATES

You are advised to always buy a diamond that is certified. You shouldn’t take a risk on a diamond that does not come without an official certificate. The only exceptions are when you are buying any type of jewelry that features tiny diamonds, and the centre stone is small, for example, less than 0.30 carats.

There are many different forms of diamond certification available, although the most well known is the one that is issued by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). Irrespective of the body that conducts the diamond evaluation, you can be sure that it has been undertaken by a professional and unbiased specialist who will authenticate the attributes of the diamond. They will take the exact measurements of the diamond while also assessing clarity, color, and weight. For Round Brilliant diamonds, the cut is also graded.

It is also worth noting that certified diamonds are now marked with laser inscriptions. This is a move that has been done to protect the consumer. This reassures you that you are purchasing an authentic and certified diamond. Most of the time, the inscription will be on the girdle of the diamond. It can be verified with ease by using a magnification loop.

Let’s begin by looking at clarity. GIA is stricter than the other gemmological laboratories, as you will discover below. One thing to note is that HRD has added an extra grade. This is known as ‘Loupe Clean’ and it is used to describe all stones that have invisible impurities.

When it comes to color, GIA is again the strictest, although IGI and HRD are not far off their standards. EGL often rank color by two grades higher than the other laboratories.