Diamond Cut Vs Clarity – What Really Makes A Diamond Sparkle?

Q:

Hello Liz,

I think I found my stone, but I wanted to run it past you for your opinion: https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2953779.htm

My budget is approximately $2500 for a loose diamond (I already have a setting).

Carat: Anything above .5 but would prefer as large as I can get under the following criteria

Cut: Ideal for the most sparkle (round brilliant is the only style I have looked at and the only I have considered for my setting).

Color: anything G or above (I just want no cloudiness in the stone. The only thing that really matters to my soon to be fiance is its sparkle.)

Clarity: I want eye clean with no visible inclusions by the naked eye. I have been sticking to VS2 or higher, but could go to SI1 with no visible inclusion if it would give me better color and carat. I just know this is riskier if you don’t know what to look for in the proportions.

I look forward to hearing from you if you think this above stone is the best for me, or if I can find something that will have as much (or more) sparkle, and larger within my budget. I would say $2650 out the door would be my absolute max.

Thank you in advance.

Sincerely,

Jake

Diamond Cut Vs Clarity – What Really Makes A Diamond Sparkle?

A:

Hi Jake,

Thanks for contacting me and letting me know your diamond budget and specs. I just wanted to clarify a couple of things regarding diamond cut vs clarity.

.661 F SI1 A CUT ABOVE® Hearts and Arrows Diamond from Whiteflash for $2,501.00

First, you mentioned you wanted a ‘G’ or better in color with no cloudiness. A diamond’s color grade has nothing to do with ‘cloudiness’. A hazy diamond can be the result of two things, a) strong blue fluorescence or b) large clouds as part of the clarity in a diamond. As far as clarity grade goes, I agree that eye-clean is a smart consideration. Paying a premium for a top clarity grade isn’t really worth it as you can’t visually see the difference between a VVS1 vs. and an eye clean SI1. With that being said, I’m not sure what you meant by it being risky if you don’t know what to look for in the proportions. Cut proportions affect light reflection and brilliance. Clarity grade has nothing to do with a diamond’s proportions. If you wanted to learn more about the actual science of scintillation, please read my article: What Makes A Diamond Sparkle? – Understanding Scintillation

I think your suggested diamond is very nice. Overall it has a very bright ASET image with clear blue arrows showing excellent light contrast. The hearts and arrows image looks great, with each heart image perfectly proportioned to the rest of the diamond. This is of course an eye clean diamond as well. Overall a very lovely G VS2. 🙂

I did find this .661 F SI1 for $2,501.00: https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-2970581.htm

The advantage to this stone is that it is one color grade higher and also a bit cheaper.

However, I think either diamond is stunning. Please let me know what you think.

Kind Regards,

Liz

Q:

Hello Liz,

Thank you very much. I get what you are saying about diamond cut vs clarity. I decided to buy your suggested diamond from Whiteflash. It came yesterday and it is beautiful. It is being set today, so I am excited about the initial project. Your website and your personal insight were very helpful into my decision making process. Thank you very much!

Most Sincerely,

Jake

A:

You’re welcome Jeremy. I wish you all the best.

Kind Regards,

Liz