Empire Diamonds Blog

May 02, 2008

Enhanced Diamonds - What your jeweler never told you

"What exactly is a clarity enhanced diamond anyway?"

This question has probably been asked more times in the past decade than any other question presented to a jeweler. The answers given, however, range from pure techno - babble to pure myth. It's no wonder that people view buying diamonds as one of the hardest things to do next to actually popping the question.

It's quite simple really. And I won't get technical with you about it either. For those of you who want a technical answer please email me at info@empirediamonds.net

The Facts

Clarity enhanced diamonds are 100% natural diamonds that come from underground
The diamonds are fashioned and polished like any other natural diamonds
In their pre-enhanced form they exhibit internal characteristics known as feather type inclusions
These feathers are actually "pockets" of air within the diamond and are visible to the naked eye
The air is removed from within the pockets and replaced with a material similar to diamond
After enhancement the feathers are still there but are no longer visible to the naked eye
The process improves the apparent clarity by one to two grades with VS2 being the highest attainable clarity
The remaining 3 C's of diamonds are not affected. Color, Carat weight and Cut remain unchanged
Clarity enhanced diamonds are not necessarily Laser Drilled diamonds. (We'll cover other types of enhancements in future articles)

The Pros

Clarity enhanced diamonds can generally be purchased at 30% to 50% less than non-enhanced diamonds having the same 4 C's
Alternatively, for the same price of a given non-enhanced diamond, a larger enhanced diamond can be purchased
The enhancement is durable under normal wear and tear and generally comes with a lifetime guarantee

The Cons

The filler material cannot withstand the high heat of a jeweler's torch. If subjected, the filler material evaporates and the diamond would then require a retreatment which is covered by the guarantee
Enhanced diamonds are not available in clarities above VS2
Enhanced diamonds are not recommended for setting in bezel set mountings due to the process of unmounting in the event a retreatment is necessary

The Bottom Line

Enhanced diamonds are an economical and practical alternative for any diamond shopper. You might have the money to spend on a particular diamond engagement ring or diamond earrings but you might not necessarily want to spend it all on one piece of diamond jewelery. The savings can be used to buy other types of jewelry or other non-jewelry products. Or you might just decide to get something even bigger than you originally thought you could buy.

As for the confidence in the actual product do the following. When possible get a certificate with your purchase and make sure the company you purchase from offers the lifetime guarantee.

All the Best,

empirediamonds

April 11, 2008

To Buy or Not to Buy - An enhanced diamond that is...

What should you do? Enhanced diamonds are not for everyone but they can be a great solution for anyone! When considering a diamond purchase ask yourself the following (we'll assume it's an engagement ring purchase):

How much do you want to spend on the complete diamond engagement ring?
Do you have your heart set on a particular designer ring style? How much will it cost?
Subtract your answer in 2 above from your answer to 1 above. This tells you how much you have left for the main diamond.
Do you have your heart set on a particular diamond carat weight?
Can you buy your dream diamond carat weight for the amount you answered in #3?

If you answered NO to #5:

Enhanced diamonds offer you the ability to get a great looking diamond for much less than its non-enhanced equivalent. Enhanced diamonds also offer you the alternative to get a much larger diamond for the same amount you would otherwise spend on a smaller non-enhanced diamond.

If you answered YES to #5:

Then the only question left is "Do you want to spend it all on the diamond?"

With enhanced diamonds you have the option of getting what you want for the main diamond ring and using the savings to get something else in addition. You have the ability to put the difference into a larger diamond in the engagement ring or buy an additional piece of jewelry such as diamond earrings. You could possibly buy a different product altogether with the money you save on the diamond engagement ring or simply pocket the savings!

Now that we've simplified the thought process from a strictly financial aspect, we need to discuss the concept of enhanced diamonds in more depth.

Tune in next time for a breakdown of the pros and cons of buying clarity enhanced diamonds.

March 28, 2008

The Four Cs

So how do you find the right diamond for you? The first step is to understand the basics of diamonds commonly referred to as the 4 C's of diamonds.

Cut

Cut generally refers to the shape of the diamond. Diamonds come in many shapes illustrated here for your convenience. Sometimes cut also refers to how well the shape is actually cut. For example, a round diamond could be perfectly round or somewhat off-round.

Carat

Carat refers to the actual weight of the diamond. It is believed that the term carat came from the word "carob" which is a kind of dry fruit that contains seeds. These seeds were considered common knowledge and understood by everyone. So naturally diamonds and other precious gems were measured in relation to the equivalent weight of the carob seeds.

Technically speaking, one carat equals .20 grams which means that 5 carats equal one gram. Please take a look at our chart for a visual depiction of the relative diameters of round shaped diamonds in various carat weights.

Color

Color refers to perceived color or more precisely lack of color in a diamond. Please see our chart to understand the color grading scale. Diamonds that display a more apparent tint of yellow are more common and thus less expensive. Once the yellow tint becomes very obvious it is then considered a fancy color. Fancy color diamonds are extremely rare and thus very expensive.

Clarity

Clarity refers to the lack of or presence of internal and external imperfections as seen under 10x magnification. The less imperfections a diamond has the more rare it is and thus more expensive. Flawless diamonds are very rare and therefore very expensive. Click here to see examples.

The majority of diamonds on the market today are not flawless and have imperfections that are visible to the eye. Scientists have developed a process to make these imperfections invisible to the eye. This process is known as clarity enhancing. Using a high tech system the imperfections are filled with a material that closely resembles diamond. In other words, the material has the same characteristics as diamond. The end result is a natural diamond that looks brilliant and very appealing to the eye…at almost half the price of a non-enhanced diamond. Keep in mind that enhanced diamonds begin and end as 100% natural diamonds.

Tune in to future posts where we'll talk more about this remarkable type of natural diamond.

March 14, 2008

Diamonds are not an investment – unless…

When I started working in this industry over a decade ago I quickly learned a few key concepts that shaped my career in the world of diamonds and jewelry. This will be the first of many installments where I share with you the knowledge that I have gained over the years. The tips and advice you will read in the following paragraphs are priceless. I share them with you to educate and enlighten you about the wonders of this fascinating item. Read on and enjoy. I welcome your comments and questions.

Diamonds have intrigued people all over the world for ages. The unique material that is Diamond and its relationship with the light around it are second to none in radiating brilliance and fire. Diamonds are so rare that a special measuring unit, known as a carat, was derived in order to calculate their value. Diamonds are so rare that tons of earth have to be dug up and sifted through to get one beautiful one carat diamond worthy of being set in an engagement ring!

The common misconception is that if all of the above is true you could go out today and spend the proverbial two months’ salary on a diamond ring and at some point in time your diamond will be worth three or four months’ salary or more. The cold hard truth is that this is simply not the case. As I am sure some of you have tried to sell back your diamonds to the retailers from whom you purchased only to find that you can’t get what you paid for it. For a diamond to qualify as an “investment” it needs to be really unique in either carat weight or color. And I really mean unique as in millions of dollars worth of unique…

Most of us only dream of such diamonds, so why bother? I’ll tell you why! Here’s what I‘ve learned: The majority of diamonds sold in the US today fall in to a certain category combination of the 4 C’s of diamonds. Although no one really knows why this is the case the consensus is that it probably has to do with the price of such diamonds and their perceived beauty. And as we all know, beauty is always in the eyes of the beholder. And who, you might ask, is the beholder, if not the one you love. I know this might sound corny, but seriously, think back to the last time you bought your loved one a special gift. What reaction did he or she have? How great was the look on their face? How big was their smile? Now, imagine the gift was a brilliant dazzling diamond ring!

Diamonds are not an investment – unless the investment is in your relationship.

All the Best,

empirediamonds

February 29, 2008

empirediamonds goes platinum on eBay!

Thanks to all of our loyal customers for making Holiday 2007 a great season for us on Ebay!

We are now platinum power sellers on eBay and all of you made it possible. We look forward to continuing to offer you the biggest diamonds at the lowest prices online. Be sure to visit our website www.empirediamonds.net for more great deals. Coming Soon: Overstock.com Auctions and other online shopping comparison sites such as Yahoo Shopping and Shopzilla to name a few!