How do you buy the perfect diamond? With so many options, it can be difficult to know where to start. Whether you're looking for a diamond engagement ring or just want to get some information about diamonds in general, this article is here to help! We'll answer all of your questions and provide reviews on different product types so that you can make an informed decision.

Material Properties

Diamonds are the hardest natural mineral on earth. They're graded according to their hardness, with the highest grade being a perfect diamond at 100% hardness. Other minerals that have been found to be harder than diamonds include corundum, cubic zirconia, topaz and quartzite.

Crystal Structure

Diamonds are crystals with a cubic crystal system. The diamond's atoms align in an orderly, repeating pattern of tetrahedrons that stack on top of each other to form its shape. Diamonds have eight different faces: four planes and six corners; the only mineral to do this is quartzite.

Perfect Diamond

The Mineralogy Debate

Some people think diamonds formed from pressure and heat deep within the earth's mantle while others argue it was water under extreme temperatures and pressures at high depths within Earth’s crust or volcanoes erupting molten rock containing carbon which cooled into graphitic-diamond material over time after being pushed up through cracks in Earth’s surface where they were then exposed by erosion processes like wind and rain.

Why Not Buy Duty-Free!

Buying diamonds from duty-free shops is a bad idea. Duty-free stores are often the first place crooks go to sell stolen goods and they may not know what they're talking about when it comes to identifying real or fake gemstones.

The only problem with buying a diamond in a duty-free store is that you have little recourse if you find out later on that your stone was misrepresented as being worth more than it really was, because of course there's no warranty! There's also less chance for competitive pricing pressure compared to retailers like Tiffany & Co., who compete for customers by offering lower prices on their diamond jewelry items.

The White Diamond Color Scale

A colorless diamond is a very rare type of gemstone that has no impurities in it at all. To the naked eye, this kind of stone looks just like glass or ice, and they're also known as "white diamonds". It's not to be confused with pearls which are worn on necklaces! Though you can't tell by looking at them, some white diamonds have been heated or irradiated for clarity purposes - but these processes don't affect their price. White Diamonds come in many shades from light champagne-colored stones to dark blackish ones.

Gem-Grade Diamonds

After the grading process, diamonds are then put into color grades. The GIA's Gemstone Color Grading System rates them on a scale of one to ten: D (colorless), E (near-colorless), F and G (blueish or grayish). H through I also have some tint of yellow or brown in them. Js and Ks tend to be pinker than any other grade. Color quality is an important factor when it comes to diamond pricing because it determines how valuable they are as gemstones - the purer white the stone, the higher its price will be! That being said, you should know that most people actually prefer colored stones over clear ones for their personal preference.

Industrial-Grade Diamonds

There are a few different types of cut grades that you may be familiar with when it comes to diamonds. They range from poor, which is the worst grade possible in terms of cutting quality and style, all the way up to excellent for those who want everything but nothing less!

Poor-cut diamonds have a less than desirable shape, which means that they do not reflect light as well and are significantly darker. This is the lowest of all cut grades and you should stay away from these if possible!

Medium to high quality stones will typically provide more sparkle with good brilliance. Consider looking for low color inclusions on your stone so that it does not detract from the overall beauty of the diamond. These qualities can be seen through GIA grading reports or other third-party certifications such as EGL International Diamond Grading Reports.

There are two different types of industrial grade diamonds: IGI certified and natural ungradeable (NG). Natural ungraded diamonds carry a higher risk due to there being no certification process.