DIAMONDS, LOVE AND YOU

Every diamond is immensely old, formed long before dinosaurs roamed the earth. Our youngest diamond is 900 million years old. The oldest diamonds are more than 3 billion years old, which is older than many stars in the sky.

The carat is the unit of weight for diamonds. A carat weighs 0.20 of a gramme and is divided into 100 points, therefore a three-quarter carat diamond is 75 points, a half carat diamond is 50 points and a quarter carat diamond is 25 points and so on….
The derivation of the word carat is most interesting -
Revolutionary Indian diamond traders in the 17th century used the locally-available carob seed as a comparison when assessing the weight of the rough diamond. The carob seed on one side of the weighing scales and rough diamonds on the other. By a miraculous feat of nature the weight of a single carob seed was always 0.20 gramme. Following this the unit of weight for diamonds was established and the name ‘carob’ became ‘carat’.

The custom of wearing a diamond on the third finger of the left hand comes from the ancient Egyptians, who believed that the vena amoris (vein of love) runs directly from this finger to the heart.
The romantic tradition of giving a diamond ring as a token of love and commitment began in the 15th century when Archduke Maximilian of Austria gave Mary of Burgundy a diamond ring on their engagement.

Today this tradition continues with passion and absolute importance. Every year throughout the world there are now hundreds of thousands of diamond engagement and anniversary rings gifted with love.

It is now a unique symbol of commitment, woven into our way of life.
No other gem expresses human emotion more powerfully than a diamond.
Earth-grown, rare, precious, magical and indestructible. These essential qualities have made diamonds the perfect symbol for true love and romance.

So how do you choose your perfect diamond ?
First, you need to understand what a diamond will say about you and therefore what could be your perfect choice.
The diamond shape that you do choose is a true reflection of you.
The round brilliant says that you are understated and classic
The princess says that you are trendy and fashion-conscious
The oval says that you are influenced by opinion
The marquise says that you are adventurous

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The heart says that you are a real romantic
The emerald-cut says that you love vintage
The pear says that you are creative
Which one is you ?

Second, you need to decide what style of jewellery design you are looking for. Surf the web, do some window shopping, do some celebrity spotting. Identify some looks that you like and then go to a reputable jeweller to discuss your ideas.

Third, it helps if you have some basic knowledge of what makes up the value of a diamond.
The quality and therefore the value of every diamond is evaluated using 4 criteria – carat, clarity, colour and cut.
The weight of the diamond is fixed and precise, and the bigger the stone, the greater the rarity and therefore the higher the price per carat. The other 3 criteria are much more subjective. Flaws and imperfections within the diamond will reduce the value. The very best is internally flawless.
To the untrained observer most diamonds will appear to have no tint colour, but most are slightly coloured and are evaluated on a scale from pure white to colours of the rainbow. Pure white is rare but fancy colours are extremely rare. The highest price paid per carat at auction for a diamond is US$1 million for a 0.95 carat red diamond.
The cut of the diamond is the final key to setting the value. The finest and most exact cutting and polishing will maximise the diamond’s fire and lustre. Value is very much expressed through rarity - If you were to gather all the diamonds ever polished since the beginning of time, they would only fill one double-decker bus.

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