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Clarity is a measure of the number and extent
of the flaws in the diamond. Generally speaking, the fewer
the flaws, the more valuable the diamond. Completely flawless
diamonds are extremely rare -- only a few hundred "FL"
diamonds are produced per year worldwide.
There are several grading systems used to describe
clarity. By far, the most popular is the Gemological Institute
of America's (G.I.A.) scale, which ranks diamonds as Flawless
(FL), Internally Flawless (IF), very very slightly included (VVS),
very slightly included (VS), slightly imperfect (SI), and imperfect
(I):
Although seemingly subjective, the G.I.A. scale
has specific criteria that are used to differentiate between the
different grades (what's the difference between "very very"
slight and "very" slight anyway!):
FL: Completely flawless
IF: Internally flawless;
only external flaws are present, which can be removed by further
polishing the stone
VVS1 - VVS2: Only an
expert can detect flaws with a 10X microscope. By definition,
if an expert can see a flaw from the top of the diamond, it
is a VVS2. Otherwise, if an expert can only detect flaws
when viewing the bottom of the stone, then it is a VVS1
VS1 - VS2: You can
see flaws with a 10X microscope, but it takes a long time (more
than about 10 seconds)
SI1 - SI2: You can
see flaws with a 10X microscope
I1 - I3: You can see
flaws with the naked eye. Consider avoiding I2-I3 diamonds.
There are many different types of flaws.
The best way to become acquainted with them is to look at lots
of diamonds. The more common ones are as follows:
Pinpoint: A very small
white dot on the surface of the stone. By far, the most
common flaw
Carbons: A very small
black dot on the surface of the stone. Less common than
pinpoints
Feathers: Small cracks
within the stone, similar in look to broken glass. Small
internal feathers are harmless (other than lowering the clarity
rating of the diamond), but large feathers can become a problem
because the crack can grow as the diamond ages
Clouds: Hazy areas
within the diamond, actually made up of many small crystals
that are impossible to see individually
Crystal Growth: A small
crystalline growth within the diamond. Looks like a small
diamond within the big diamond
Unfortunately, clarity is very difficult to
judge accurately by an inexperienced consumer, so your best bet
is to gain an education first by looking at lots of diamonds before
making a purchase. Any good jeweler will spend the time
you need to get comfortable judging the clarity of your stone
-- ask different jewelers to point out the flaws in several
stones until you can detect pinpoints and other flaws by yourself.
Many people make clarity the least "important"
of the 4 Cs when purchasing their diamonds. The rationale
is obvious -- when your partner shows the ring to all her friends,
the likelihood that one of them will pull out a 10X microscope
to examine the flaws on her diamond are very slim. Given
that, why spend a lot of money on a VVS1 diamond when an SI2 will
look exactly the same to the naked eye?
If you're purchasing an emerald
cut (or any other step cut), consider
purchasing a diamond with clarity greater than SI1. Clarity
flaws are much more readily visible in step cuts than in brilliant
cuts.
Cut
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