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Diamonds

Everyone loves diamonds. Long before Marilyn Monroe sang the famous “Diamonds are a girl’s best friend” countless women’s minds had been set on those precious stones. 58 times harder than any other material on Earth diamond is indeed “forever” and the brightest among all the gems.

Why diamonds are so valuable?

Diamonds are not as rare as some of color gemstones, though the supply is scarce enough to call it a rare commodity. (Some say the supply is controlled by the diamond cartel, so the rarity is artificial. Well, yes, kind of. Still the price will never decline enough for it to be cheap.) And diamonds do have exceptional physical qualities which make them so valuable. First of all, it is the hardest precious stone, so anything can actually break it - meaning it could be passed from one generation to another. The brilliance or light reflection of a diamond is also not comparable to any other gem. Even a miniature well cut diamond sparkle like anything else. It is with no doubts beautiful, durable and rare, and that is why so valuable.

Colorful diamonds

Pure diamonds are transparent, but due to some imperfections a diamond could turn colored. Thus, diamonds occur in a variety of colors including blue, pink, yellow, green, brown, purple etc. Color diamonds are generally valued more than transparent ones due to their rarity.

Non-conflict diamonds

Blood diamonds or war diamonds are used in conflict zones to support hostilities. Therefore, Kimberley process was introduced to eliminate the use of diamonds for these purposes. It is a union of countries which prohibit the trade of diamonds with certain countries such as Cote d’Ivoire or Central African Republic while they are in the state of war. OPENJART is using only approved list suppliers for diamonds and none of them are coming from the conflict countries.

Diamond certification

There are various institutes which are doing diamond certification. A certificate is a report usually including information about dimensions, clarity, color, polish, symmetry, cut and other characteristics of a stone. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and the American Gem Society Laboratories (AGSL) are the most known and therefore trusted ones. OPENJART is using GIA certificates for sizable diamonds.

How to choose a diamond?

GIA has made an informative video explaining quite a comprehensive grading system of diamonds: www.youtube.com

To choose the best diamond within your budget it is recommended to favor the highest cut grade possible as it influences the overall beauty the most. If you are buying a small diamond differences between close color grades are insignificant but the price varies. The same is true for clarity of small diamonds - plenty of imperfections could not be seen by the unaided eye. However if a cut of a diamond is asscher or emerald-cut which have long facets, clarity becomes more significant even for small size of diamonds.

How do I take care of my diamond jewelry?

Please avoid doing a rough work wearing diamond jewelry, diamonds might be damaged by a strong abrupt crack. A mix of ammonia and water or soft soap could be a suitable option for cleaning diamond jewelry.