DIAMOND EDUCATION

BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA'S SOURCE FOR DIAMONDS AND ENGAGEMENT RINGS

CUT

This “C” is our namesake and part of our founding philosophy. By definition, cutting is the process by which a rough diamond is mined, then assessed for clarity and the best shape to cut it in to retain both maximum weight as well as optimum brilliance. This quality is often confused with “shape”, such as Princess (square) or pear (teardrop) to name a few examples. When we talk about CUT, it simply refers to the symmetry and proportions of a diamond that give it the fire and scintillation that we all envision when we picture a diamond.

At Cut Fine Jewelers, nothing excites us more than when we lay our eyes on new diamonds and one lights up with an intensity unlike any of the others sitting in front of us. Diamonds like this are so rare that less than 10% of every diamond we look at makes a strong enough impression for us to accept them into our inventory. Diamonds cut by an unskilled diamond cutter may often be observed with what we call “shadows or gray areas”. During viewing they can be very noticeable when having a proper selection to compare with.

Cut might be the least talked about of the “4 C’s” but that’s because most in the jewelry industry don’t take the time to understand how pivotal of a role a proper cut plays in both the look and final price of a diamond. Unless you can accurately compare two diamonds equally in the “4 C’s” you may see as much as a 60% price difference simply because one diamond has a far superior cut to the other it is being compared with.

At Cut Fine Jewelers, it is all about the brilliance!! Our team recognizes the importance of this element and ensure the utmost brilliance in every diamond or gemstone we offer.

COLOR

Cut Fine Jewelers only uses diamonds that have been color graded according to the standards set by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). The scale begins at D, which is colorless, and increases in color with each subsequent letter, ending in Z. The color of a diamond is determined by using a set of GIA certified “master diamonds”. Only a very small percentage of jewelers choose to purchase a set of GIA master diamonds, instead relying on the skill of the grader from where the jeweler purchased the diamond. At Cut Fine Jewelers, we use our set of master diamonds to compare against the diamonds we purchase to determine their color, regardless of any type of certification it might come with. This assures us, and ultimately you, of the consistency of our grading throughout the entire buying process.

CLARITY

Clarity might be the easiest of the “4 C’s” to understand. Nothing in nature is made entirely pure, but some things can be deemed more pure than others. The diamond’s clarity, and the scale we grade it on, is no different. The diamond’s clarity grade is based entirely on observation of the diamond under 10x magnification, or in the most ideal scenarios, under a jeweler’s microscope. The clarity grade is determined by several factors including, but not limited to, size and location of internal characteristics, frequency of internal characteristics, as well as the color of those internal characteristics.

Clarity is easily the most subjective of the “4 C’s”. When determining clarity, it takes years of hands-on training to be able to identify and confidently grade a diamond for clarity. Cut Fine Jewelers takes the time to do this with every diamond in our inventory, regardless of the type of certification it might come with. Clarity, although important, plays a very small role in the beauty of a diamond when considering the diamonds you will find at Cut Fine Jewelers.

CARAT

Carat weight might be the easiest of the “4 C’s” to explain as well as the least subjective.

A carat is a unit of measure that is equal to .20 grams. Although carat weight may be easy to understand and assign a value to, it can also be very easily tied in with the cut (shape and quality) of a diamond simply because, with exceptionally cut diamonds, there can be an “expected or desired” millimeter (mm) measurement that coincides with a particular carat weight. For example, when discussing the modern round brilliant cut, the industry expects that a diamond weighing right around 1 carat (ct.) will measure, on average, 6.4 mm – 6.5 mm across. One other example is for a princess cut diamond weighing right around 1 carat (ct.) will measure, on average, 5.5 mm across. To bring this full circle, one of the most consistent ways to begin verifying the quality of a diamond’s cut would be to see if the carat weight is in line with the average mm diameter for that particular shape diamond.

For example, if the diamond were to be cut too shallow, it would be considered “spready”, meaning that its overall diameter would be greater than the average. While this may sound appealing in the beginning, because on paper you are getting a diamond that “visually looks” like something larger than what the diamond actually weighs, you are sacrificing the brilliance and fire of the diamond to achieve that larger look.

Likewise, if the diamond were to be cut too deep, its overall diameter would be smaller than the average for its respective carat size. This does not appeal to very many since the price would reflect a diamond to weighing 1 ct. on the scale while having the visual appearance of a .75 ct- .90 ct. diamond.

Carat weight is very easy to compare and has to easily be the most constantly mentioned of the 4 C’s.