You don’t have to be a diamond expert to buy a diamond ring, but you’re likely to get frustrated if you start shopping for rings without knowing what the various names and numbers actually mean.
Clarity is fairly straightforward, but it covers a lot of territory. Not only does it refer to how transparent the stone is, but also whether there are any little flaws, cracks, or foreign objects (blemishes and inclusions) running around in the gemstone.
- The best grade for clarity is FL (Flawless). You may also see IF (Internally Flawless — the stone is FL but with a very minor surface blemish)
- Next best are the VVS grades (VVS1 is better than VVS2) for Very Very Slightly Included (yes, diamond people talk like small children)
- In the middle are the VS grades (VS1 better than VS2) for Very Slightly Included. These inclusions are almost always only visible under 10x magnification.
- Near the bottom are the SI (Slightly Included) grades. SI1 and SI2 diamonds have problems that are obvious to a trained diamond grader and may even be visible to you and me.
- Rock bottom (ha! Get it?) is the Included grades, I1 being the head of the remedial class and I2 and I3 just getting progressively worse. You basically don’t want to buy these unless the bride and groom already hate each other, because a one-eyed drunk pirate could see the flaws in these diamonds at night from his ship in the harbor.
