Diamonds were formed Millions of years ego, and are the hardest known substance to man, and so magical!

The word Diamond comes from the Greek word "Adamas" and it means unconquerable and indestructible.
Most diamonds found in nature are between one to three billion years old.

Diamonds form 90-120 miles beneath the surface of earth are are carried to the surface by volcanic eruptions, 
and to produce one carat diamond, 250 tons of earth will be minded.

Each diamond is very unique and has it's own "finger print". 
They are being graded and differentiated by the 4 Cs of Diamonds:

• Color,
• Carat weight,
• Cut,
• Clarity.

What is the color of the diamond? From white to yellow to brown or gray.

The acceptable scale starts at “D”; and goes through “Z”, with “D” being void of any color, and “Z” having a light yellow, brown or gray color.

The weight of a diamond is measured in carats. Carat is a unit of weight, not size.

There are 5 carats in a gram. A carat is divided into 100 parts, called points. 1 carat is 100 points and 1⁄2 a carat is 50 points and so it goes. 
You have a 7 pointer, 32 pointer and so on.

Fun Fact: 5 carat of diamond is 1 gram.

Diamonds are being weighed on special gemstone scales that are extremely accurate and can measure the diamond's points with precision. 

The optimal proportions for a diamond is to assure maximum brilliance and dispersion of
light.The quality of a diamond’s cut makes all the difference in how the stone appears.
A poorly cut “D”, Flawless stone, can look dead and lifeless,
whereas an ideally proportioned diamond of much lower color and clarity will appear radiant and dazzling.

The round diamond is the most popular shape but if you’re looking for something different, there are other shapes available.

Practically all diamonds contain some inclusions that were formed naturally.

The size, nature, location and amount of inclusions determine a stone’s clarity grade and affect its cost.
These make the stones so different than another. 
Usually these inclusions are not visible without a magnification loupe of 10 times.

A diamond graded “Flawless/Internally Flawless” means no inclusions visible by an expert at 10X magnification.

• IF is an internal flawless - no inclusions
• V represents – Very
• S represents – Slight
• I represents – Inclusion

The numbers 1, 2, 3 refer to the number of inclusions visible.

• VVS1 diamond is a diamond with one very, very slight inclusion, very difficult for an expert to find under 10X magnification.
• I1 - I3 diamond has 1 to 3 inclusions. Obvious under 10X magnification.

Correctly identifying the 4 Cs, one can now calculate the cost of a diamond.

The best way to do this is to bring it to your jeweler who can help you get in touch with a lab that can give you an accurate grading.

If you have any questions - please do not hesitate to contact us.

info@capediamondexchange.com

or by phone +27 21 422 2350 if you wish to what's app you can send a message or call +27 61 338 7544