The cut of a Diamond isn’t just about its shape— it’s about how expertly the stone has been crafted to maximise its ability to reflect light. A high-quality cut takes into account the Diamond’s proportions, symmetry, and polish, working together to create the captivating sparkle that catches the eye.

A Diamond's cut is graded on a scale from Excellent to Poor, with higher grades producing greater brilliance. It’s important to note that this grading applies specifically to round brilliant-cut diamonds.

For other shapes, the overall cut quality is determined by the polish and symmetry. A well-executed fancy cut (any shape other than round) is typically graded from Very Good to Excellent, while a round Diamond ideally scores Excellent in both categories.

Diamond clarity refers to the presence of unique “birthmarks” — either internal inclusions or external blemishes.

Nearly all naturally formed diamonds contain inclusions, which can be foreign materials, like carbon or other minerals, trapped during the diamond’s formation, or clear imperfections such as fractures and tiny structural flaws. The size, type, position, colour, and quantity of these clarity characteristics, as viewed under 10x magnification, directly influence a Diamond’s clarity grade and its value.

The Diamond clarity scale spans 11 grades, from FL (Flawless) to I3 (Included).

At Violet Gray, we focus on sourcing Diamonds with clarity grades of SI1 and above, and if budget allows, we recommend choosing a Diamond with no visible inclusions (eye clean) to achieve the most radiant sparkle and brilliance. For the best possible quality, we suggest considering Diamonds graded VS2 or higher.

Carat refers to the weight of the Diamond, not its size. One carat equals 200 milligrams (or .02 grams which is about he same weight as a paperclip).

Generally, the price of a Diamond rises with carat weight as larger Diamonds are rarer and more sought after. However, two Diamonds of the same carat weight can vary significantly in value and price based on the other determining factors: Colour, Clarity, and Cut. Combined, these considerations play a crucial role in determining a Diamond's overall quality and value.

Diamond colour is determined by the subtle hues that are often invisible to the naked eye. Diamonds are graded based on how closely they approach colourlessness— the less color present equals the higher the value.

*The exception to this rule is fancy colour Diamonds, such as pinks, blues, yellows or cognacs, which fall outside the standard colour scale.

The color scale begins at D, representing colourless, and progresses through the alphabet to Z, indicating Diamonds with light yellow or brown hues.

While many of these colour distinctions are so subtle they may go unnoticed by the untrained eye, they have a significant impact on both the quality and price of a Diamond.

At Violet Gray, we recommend choosing your stone from within the colourless range - which is D, E or F.