How to Tell If Your Diamond is Worth a Fortune

How to Tell If Your Diamond is Worth a Fortune
Diamonds are a girl’s best friend—so they say. But did you know that like any other best friends, you cannot possibly have them for a long time? Time will come that you might need to sell your precious diamonds— but you have to be aware and understand exactly what you have. Before going to the nearest diamond buyers in your area,  you should be able to appraise your own diamond piece because you will be dealing with people you don’t know. Therefore, it is important that you have an idea about its value.

In case it is your first time to have your diamond appraised, you can look at the general market condition. The information below will help you avoid the fuss of dealing with scam and rouge buyers, so you can get the best value of your precious jewel before handling it over to your chosen diamond buyer. Read on…

1. Identify the color of the diamond.

Do not take this one literally. This refers to knowing how colorless your diamond can get. Although diamonds come in variety of color, yellow diamonds are considered relatively affordable, the price basically depends on clarity. Although there are several other factors that needs to be considered,  but color is definitely one of the big factors that should be noted. Using naked eyes, you may have challenges identifying the real value of diamonds. But if you have a diamond ring, necklace or other piece that is impeccably colorless, you can be assured of getting higher diamond appraisal. Letters are used to grade diamonds, starting from D and ending to Z.

2. Learn about clarity.

Clarity is purity; hence, you will have to literally and painstakingly look for “spots” in your diamond. These refer to the so-called inclusions—the black, gray or white marks—that make it flawed or imperfect. Diamond buyers base their appraisal here. So the fewer inclusions your diamond has, the higher it is going to be valued.

Clarity also speaks of diamond’s great brilliance and capacity to capture light at its best.The more brilliant your diamond is, the higher its value. The darker or more blemished it is, there is a big possibility that you will sell it at lower rates.

A diamond’s clarity is graded through letters and numbers. The most expensive is “F”, which stands for flawless. The cheapest will be the LI3 or Large Inclusions Level 3. Flaws are the largest and very visible to the naked eye and it affects transparency and brilliance.

3. Understand the cut of the diamond.

A diamond’s cut is not about its shape—round, oval, heart and others. It is more about the proportion and millimeter-sized facets cut by the skillful hands of a diamond craftsman that adds more sparkle to this piece of jewelry. This is a very complex factor to analyze, but the main thing being considered when looking at the cut of a diamond is its ability to interact with light to create a desirable effect. A typical diamond has 57 or 58 facets. Imagine yourself owning a colorless but poorly cut diamond. it will reduce the value of your item.

4. Know the number of carats of your diamond.

Whether you buy it or not, you need to know how many diamond carats your piece of jewelry has. It gives you an idea how much you should receive from a diamond buyer. Just like how a precious metal is weighed by karat, a diamond is weighed by metric “carat” which is equivalent to 200 milligrams and is comprised of 100 carat points. Note that a diamond weight does not necessarily reflect its size.

As mentioned earlier, the items above will only help you estimate the value of your diamond. For the actual worth that will make you decide to your jewelry, you will have to consider going to a certified diamond appraiser. Biltmore has an expert gemologist who will evaluate it for you.