The least important diamond grade is clarity. Unfortunately, it is what most jewelers tell consumers is most important...only because it is the easiest to demonstrate. Anyone can put a diamond under a microscope and see if it has inclusions. But it takes some gemological knowledge to cut and/or color grade a diamond. So most jewelry merchants who have little or no formal gemology training settle for a quick demonstration of clarity, which has made it the most important grade to most consumers.

This could not be further from the truth.

Think about it! By definition, any diamond of a grade of SI2 and above requires that magnification be used to be able to see the inclusion. Now, how often to you have your friends look at your diamond under a loupe? Seldom? Hardly ever? How about.....NEVER? And since any diamond of SI2 clarity and up is considered 'eye clean' meaning that you have to have magnification to see any inclusion, why worry about clarity above the SI2 range. Of course, if you are told you are getting a VS1 you want to be sure that you are actually getting a VS1. But if you are just starting to buy a diamond you can save lots and lots of money by buying a diamond that is very well proportioned and with good color, but is in the SI1 or SI2 clarity range. Or...to put it another way, a perfectly cut diamond of D color and SI2 clarity will look just the same to everyone around you as a perfectly cut diamond of D color VS1. But the SI2 diamond could well save you thousands of dollars. So which would you choose? I thought so.

Here is a break down of the diamond clarity grading scale. Please be aware that these are only used to allow you to see the general level of inclusions that qualify a diamond to fall in any one grade. The study of diamond clarity is lengthy and involves many types of inclusions. Please note that when plotting inclusions in a diamond the red colors indicate internal features, while green colors indicate surface or surface breaking features.

No inclusions visible using 10x magnification. Flawless

One tiny inclusion on the very upper outer edge of the diamond.

Additional pinpoint inclusion but still on outer perimeter of diamond

Small pinpoint and small feather on outer edge of diamond

Small cloud of pinpoints and small feather, all on outer edge

Larger cloud of pinpoint inclusions and feather on outer edge

Cloud of inclusions, feather, and small feather located in the table of stone

Note that any diamond from the SI2 clarity grade and up will be considered eye clean meaning that you should not be able to see any inclusions without magnification. If you can see an inclusion without magnification it is not in the above grades.

There are three rules of thumb to go by regarding the I1-2-3 grades. Because in these grading ranges you may have trouble determining which grade a heavily included diamond should go into. Here are the rules of thumb:

• Any diamond that has an eye visible inclusion should be classified as an I1.
• If the diamond has an eye visible inclusion that significantly takes away from the beauty of the diamond or could potentially endanger the stone, it should be classified as an I2.
• If the diamond has an eye visible inclusion that takes away from the beauty of the diamond and endangers the diamond, that stone should be classified as an I3. Here are the examples:

Above features but large fissure that is visible to the naked eye across table

Large fissure that breaks surface of diamond and caused minor surface chips

Large fissure that breaks surface in multiple areas with more possible

These are the big three diamond grades of which you should be aware. In far too many jewelry stores the only grades being considered are the clarity grade and color grade...and in that order. This is not the proper approach. Diamond values are set as much on cutting and proportioning as they are on clarity and color. And since the proportioning and color are the two most important factors in determining a diamond's value, these should be considered first when buying a diamond. Leave the clarity for last. Its the one area where you can save a lot of money without giving up a lot of beauty.

And lets face it...diamonds are meant to be flashy. They are meant to show that you can afford to wear them. That's what diamonds are all about. So be smart when you shop.