Diamond Education
Loose Diamonds and Mountings
Denig Jewelers is your trusted resource for loose diamonds and quality mountings. From our impressive selection of shapes and carat weights from the world’s most respected diamond cutters, our certified gemologists can help you select the ideal stone and mounting for your special occasion—and budget.
How to buy a diamond
Here’s What to Look for to Get the Most for Your Investment
The American Gem Society (AGS) Diamond Grading Standards evaluate three of the four value factors—cut, color and clarity—on its own 0-10 scale. The scales begin at 0 (zero), the highest grade, and goes to 10, the lowest. These three factors are expressed separately along with the fourth factor, the carat weight of the stone, for the final AGS Grade. Obviously, the lower the grade, the better the diamond.
Cut
How well a diamond manipulates light depends on the accuracy and quality of its cut. This is the first and most important factor to consider when purchasing a diamond. The AGS Cut Grading System considers not only the proportions of a diamond, but also the craftsmanship of its overall symmetry and polish.
Color
The AGS grading system for color begins with a graduated scale that ranges from “colorless”—the absolute highest standard—to light yellow. While subtle variances in color can make a significant difference in the value of a diamond, it doesn’t necessarily decrease it’s beauty, especially if a stone is well cut.
Clarity
Clarity refers to the evaluation of a diamond’s internal and external flaws. The AGS grade begins at zero for a flawless diamond and goes down from there based on the number and location of inclusions and/or surface blemishes.
Carat Weight
The fourth C is carat weight, the standard usually used to measure diamonds. A carat equals 1/5 of a gram (or 1/142 of an ounce), each carat is further divided into points, each point representing 1/100th of a carat. Remember, when it comes to size, bigger is not always better. In fact, weight may be the least important of the four C's in determining a diamond’s value.
LAB GROWN-DIAMONDS
What are lab-grown diamonds?
Lab Created Diamonds, also called Laboratory Grown
Diamonds or Synthetic Diamonds, are man-made
gemstones. They are created using sophisticated
chemical synthesis over a relatively short period of
time/weeks. The processes are known as CVD (Chemical
Vapor Deposition) or HPHT (High-Pressure High-
Temperature). Natural diamonds were formed in the Earth
over billions of years.
Lab Grown Diamonds are graded using the same 4Cs as
natural diamonds (carat, color, clarity and cut). Once cut
and polished, they are distinguished from natural
diamonds by gemologists using sophisticated instruments.
They are available in all fancy shapes including oval,
princess, cushion, emerald, heart, pear, radiant, etc.
Lab grown diamonds and lab diamond jewelry trade for
notably lower prices than comparable natural diamonds
and natural diamond jewelry.
Colored Stones
Color Your World With Style
There is far more to choosing a quality cut diamond than just the 4 Cs (color, clarity, cut and carat weight). Did you know that emeralds, sapphires and rubies are among the most popular of colored stones, but the rainbow only begins there. There is a dazzling array of precious and semi-precious colored stones that make for some of the most exquisite jewelry imaginable. Denig Jewelers features a grand selection of colored stone jewelry from some of the industry’s top names as well as loose gems for creating custom pieces.
How to buy colored stones
The Art of Choosing Well
As with diamonds, the 4Cs (color, cut, clarity and carat weight) also apply to gemstones—both precious and semiprecious. However, of the 4Cs, color is the most important factor in determining a gemstone’s value. There are four main factors used by gemologists to evaluate a gemstone's color: hue, saturation, tone, and distribution.
In addition, other considerations in choosing a colored stone include treatments used on natural stones to enhance their appearance, the hardness of the stone and whether or not the stone was created in a laboratory.