Diamond Life

Buyer's Guide

When it comes to diamonds, knowing the "four Cs" can help you buy for the right price and avoid glittering mistakes

Colour

When determining the quality of a diamond, colour is important. White diamonds can have tones of yellow or brown. As the strength of these tones increases, the stone's value drops. Diamonds can also be blue, green, pink and red. Such colours are called fancies and are extremely rare and valuable.

Carat

The weight - or size - of a diamond is expressed in carats. One carat is the same as 200 milligrams. Carats can be further broken down into points and 100 points equals one carat. The more they weigh, the more they cost.

Clarity

When diamonds are magnified their clarity can be determined. The size, colour, number, location and visibility of imperfections - known as marks and inclusions - are used to grade the diamond along a scale of perfection.

Cut

This is a diamond's most important feature. Even if a diamond has the best colour and clarity, a bad cut will make it dull. A good cut ensures light is reflected through the top of the stone, maximising its brilliance and ability to disperse light.

Source: GAA

Links

GAA: www.gem.org.au

DGA: www.diamondguild.com.au

Herald Sun
February 6, 2007
By Susan Cowen

It's the season for engagements.

SUSAN COWEN looks at a rock that has become a symbol of love ... and war.

BUYING diamonds was a tricky task long before Leonardo DiCaprio's hit movie Blood Diamond exposed the world to conflict gems that help fund rogue weapons programs.

In the lead-up to Valentine's Day, it's one many newly, or about-to-be, engaged couples set about as they search for a symbol of their union.

And like the quest for the perfect partner, don't settle for second best. A little research is all it takes to answer your questions. How much should I pay? Who should I buy diamonds from? What style should I go for? And what's the commotion about conflict diamonds?

Travis Trewarne, from Melbourne's Trewarne Fine Jewellery, sells more diamond rings than usual in the weeks before Valentine's Day.

"It tends to be a deadline for people who were already thinking about getting engaged," he says.

Trewarne recommends buyers start by familiarising themselves with the basics: colour, clarity, carat and cut. He says this will help ensure good diamonds are bought for a fair price.

"Ask questions about the exact specifications of a diamond's cut, including the type of cut that gives off the most sparkle and the trade-off between colour and cut."

Diamond rings at Trewarne Fine Jewellery range from about $2000 for a diamond band to about $20,000 for a large solitaire.

But Trewarne says that no matter where you choose to buy diamonds, their price should reflect their ranking in terms of the "four Cs". He also recommends choosing jewellery that is classic in style, rather than something that will date.

"You'll move house, you'll change cars, jobs and furniture, but your diamond will be with you forever,'' he says. "You want to wake up many years after buying your diamond and say, 'I love everything about it'."

With current fashions harking back to the romantic 1940s, it is easier to get it right.

"Art-deco is really popular at the moment, as are old-fashioned clustered designs. These are still classic designs even though they're popular at the moment," Trewarne says.

Up-and-coming jewellery designer Jasmine Fraser says classic designs are worth sticking to. They are simple and often have a single exposed diamond. She says diamonds can be fully set or claw set to achieve different looks.

"But what you pay for is the diamond itself," she says. "The stone costs the most, with the price of the ring minimal in the scheme of things.

Labour costs vary depending on the design, but for handmade jewellery - which does last longer - it's not unreasonable."

Fraser says for value for money, buy diamonds from jewellers and members of professional trade bodies such as the Gemological Association of Australia (GAA) and the Diamond Guild of Australia (DGA).

Fraser also says buying diamonds from reputable and qualified jewellers ensures purchases are conflict-free.

Conflict diamonds have fuelled civil wars and human rights violations in Africa and caused the death or displacement of millions.

During these wars, profits from the illegal trade of diamonds were used by warlords and rebels to fund weapons programs, prolonging the conflicts.

GAA Victorian president Katherine Kovacs says the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) has been developed to safeguard Australians from buying conflict diamonds.

The KPCS is designed to certify the origin of stones from conflict-free sources and all diamonds traded after January 1, 2003, have to comply with the program.

"The Kimberley Process sets rules for the import and export of rough diamonds, ensuring every shipment crossing the border is certified, numbered and sealed," Kovacs says.

The diamonds are shipped in tamper-resistant containers and have government-verified certificates that state their origin to make sure they weren't involved in funding conflict. After spending 50 million to 3.3 billion years below the Earth's crust, it's good to know your rock, to make sure which will be around for many years to come, will leave you guilt-free and your hands dazzling.