diamond ring clarity Archives | Schwanke Kasten

08 Feb

New Engagement Rings Website

With Valentine’s Day, the second most popular day for proposals, coming up. We redesigned our Schwanke-Kasten Jewelers engagement rings website to be more intuitive.

We created an easy-to-use web page to help you understand how to select the perfect diamond engagement ring.

Start at the diamond education page, “All About Diamonds”, where briefly highlight several questions you should ask yourself before shopping. Then dive into the 4 C’s of diamond quality. The actual diamond is the bulk of your cost; therefore, it’s very important to fully understand what you are looking for when selecting a diamond.

Once you have an idea of what kind of diamond you want, we recommend checking out our “Engagement Ring Mounting Ideas” page to see the different ways your beautiful diamond can be mounted into a ring setting. While the rings showcased here represent some of our more popular styles, we encourage you to stop in at our Whitefish Bay location to see our complete engagement collection. With an on-site GIA certified gemologist and a goldsmith we can easily make your dream ring a reality.

Have the ring? Here are some ideas on where to propose in Milwaukee.

15 Nov

Buying An Engagement Ring

Buying an engagement ring can seem like a scary experience. It doesn’t have to be! Before you go buying an engagement ring, the experts at Schwanke-Kasten Jewelers recommend considering the following:

Buying an Engagement Ring – Budget

Budget: The golden rule has always been two month’s salary. However, we believe that you should set aside a budget that won’t leave you dead broke. We recommend setting an honest budget with the forethought that engagement rings are expensive.

Learn the 4C’s:

Carat Weight – This is the size of the diamond (or another precious gemstone). If your finance wants a big stone but your budget is limited, ask for a stone with a large table. While this will affect the brilliance and fire of the stone, it will make it appear larger. If you want a beautiful stone and size isn’t the issue but the budget is. Select stone just under the nearest whole carat (i.e. 1.85 carats vs. 2 carats). There tends to be a jump in price once a diamond’s size hits the nearest whole integer.
Color – Ranging from D – Z, D being colorless and Z being a light-yellow hue. The more colorless the diamond, the more expensive. From the visible eye, it is tough to tell the difference between colorless and near-colorless.
Cut – If she is more reserved or traditional, you may want to opt for a round, brilliant cut diamond. However, for a unique look, there are a whole array of fancy cuts like Ascher, emerald, marquise, pear- and even heart-shape are used for creating engagement rings. Do keep in mind, fancy cut diamonds typically are limited in the types of mountings.
Clarity – To the naked eye, the clarity of the diamond is often impossible to judge – sometimes even to a trained professional! We recommend, while important, that this be the last of the 4C’s to consider.

Mounting

Mounting: There are numerous types of diamond mountings that can showcase the center stone, however it is important to consider the following:

Will you be purchasing a matching wedding band in the future? Some mountings and diamonds are made in a way that a matching wedding band is not feasible. There are practical solutions to this, however.
Consider her line of work, sometimes a high mounting isn’t possible. This is especially important if she works in the medical field or works with her hands frequently.
If she has skin allergies, a certain skin tone or wears a particular color of jewelry, you may need to consider a specific type of precious metal.

Ring Size

Ring Size: If you can, swipe a ring that she often wears on her ring finger, then we can help you select a size for the ring. Jewelers can size up or down most engagement ring mountings one size. Another option is to simply present a ring, and then come and choose a slightly larger ring size as it is easier to solder a ring down.

Ask your married friends, her friends, AND your parents for help and input. There is nothing wrong with being nervous or unsure as it can seem like an overwhelming experience.

We recommend checking out our diamond vocabulary list, to familiarize yourself with various diamond terms. Visit one of our Schwanke-Kasten Jewelers stores to work with our highly trained staff, including GIA certified gemologists, to discover buying an engagement ring with easy!

04 Aug

Diamond Vocab – Words and Phrases to Know

Picking out a diamond can be nerve-racking. Therefore, at Schwanke-Kasten Jewelers, our aim is to deliver the most comfortable engagement ring shopping experience as possible. In fact, we devised a quick “cheat-sheet” on diamond vocab that you should be aware of!

Diamond Vocab

“GIA” – Gemological Institute of America. In fact, this organization is one of the most well-regarded diamond grading laboratories and is responsible for developing the most widely used grading system.

“Four C’s” – Four qualities that determine the value of a diamond. They are Cut, Clarity, Color and Carat

“Cut” – The physical shape of the diamond as well as the effect of light that each shape plays on the appearance of the stone
- “Brilliance” – The combination of brightness, fire and scintillation
  - “Brightness” – The amount of white light returned back through the crown of the diamond. Both internal and external returned light
  - “Fire” – Dispersed light that appears in the color spectrum
  - “Scintillation” – Intense sparkles from light when the diamond moves. Generally, appears as black or white
- “Round Cut” – Most popular and greatest flexibility within the four C’s
- “Fancy Shape” – Any diamond shape other than round
  - “Emerald Cut” – Square or rectangular shape with cut corners. However, on the crown and pavilion there are three concentric rows cut (think stair steps)
  - “Radiant Cut” – Resembles the cut of an emerald cut but with the brilliance of a round cut.
  - “Cushion Cut” – Also referred to as a “pillow cut” are square or rectangular cut diamonds with rounded edges
  - “Princess Cut” – Resembles a square or rectangle
  - “Pear Cut” – Resembles a tear drop
  - “Oval Cut” – An elongated round cut
  - “Marquise Cut” – Similar to an oval cut but with definitive points at each end
  - “Trilliant Cut” – Resembles a triangular cut
  - “Heart Shape” – Resembles a heart
- “Clarity” –
  - “Inclusions” – Impure characteristics found within the diamond
  - “Blemishes” – External flaws on the surface of a diamond
- “Carat” – Refers to the weight or size of the diamond. All other factors equal, the more carets the more expensive
  - “Point” – Refers to 1/100 of a carat
- “Color” – Generally refers to the degree of absence of color.

Diamond Vocab – Parts of a diamond

“Crown” – The top half of a diamond
“Culet” – Protects the tip of the pavilion from being damaged
“Girdle” – The outer edge of a diamond
“Facet” – Any smooth flat surface of a diamond. Round brilliants almost always have 58 facets
“Table” – The largest facet and top part of the diamond
Pavilion – Lower half of a diamond

Diamond Ring – Diamond Vocab

“Mounting” – Is the full ring setting minus the “head” or center stone
“Semi-Mount” – A ring setting with the side stones pre-set. The main (center) stone is selected by the customer
“Shank” or “Band” – Refers to the metal of the ring that wraps around the finger
“Center Stone” – The main stone
- “Prongs” – Hold the center stone in place
“Side Stones” – Diamonds that surround the main stone
- “Halo” – Side stones that surround the main stone on all sides
“Shoulder” – Side stone diamonds that recede down from the center stone to the shank

Moreover, stop by Schwanke-Kasten Jewelers today to work with our highly trained sales employees and GIA certified gemologist to find the diamond as beautiful as your true love!

31 Jul

Diamond Clarity – 4 C’s

As we have been examining in-depth the elements that make-up the rare, natural diamond, we will take a look at the next property that gives diamonds their value – diamond clarity. According to the GIA, the clarity of a diamond refers to the “absence of inclusions and blemishes” (GIA). Due to the sheer amount of time, heat and pressure that occurs to form a diamond, irregularities may form. They may be internal (inclusions) irregularities to its carbon structure or external characteristics (blemishes) that can affect the clarity, and consequentially the value.

Diamond Clarity – Inclusions

Inclusions may occur from crystals from a foreign material, structural imperfections as well as defects arising from the cutting process. There are 10 types of inclusions that Beyond the 4 C’s, gives a great in-depth look at the various types of diamond inclusions should you be interested in learning more.

Blemishes

Blemishes on the other-hand are surface level attributes. They can occur due to structural imperfections and damages during the cutting process if handled incorrectly. There are 10 types as well.

GIA Clarity Grades

GIA certified diamonds became the standard of diamond grading in the 1950’s. Thus, most diamonds will be graded under the following scale for clarity which is based on visible inclusions and blemishes under a 10 x microscope (loupe) with a “dark field illumination”. It is as follows:

Flawless (FL) – no inclusions or blemishes visible under 10 x magnification
Internally Flawless (IF) – no visible inclusions under 10 x magnifications and small blemishes on surface
Very, Very Slightly Included (VVS1 & VVS2) – minute inclusions that are difficult to spot by a skilled grader under 10 x magnification
Very Slightly Included (VS1 and VS2) – minor inclusions that are somewhat easy to spot by a trained grader under 10 x magnification. Inclusions at this level are still likely to be invisible without magnification
Slightly Included (SI1 & SI2) – inclusions that are easy to spot when viewed under 10 x magnification
Included (I1, I2 and I3) – clearly visible to trained grader under 10 x magnification. These inclusions may threaten the durability and brilliance of the diamond.

In fact, on the GIA’s website, they have a wonderful interactive clarity chart that explains the various grades.

At Schwanke-Kasten Jewelers we use GIA certified diamonds from leading suppliers like Ritani, Forevermark and Naledi Engagement Rings. When purchasing a GIA certified diamond, you are provided a card detailing all the attributes of the diamond: cut, clarity, color and carat weight. Our goal is to provide you a confident and stress-free experience when shopping for your true love’s ring. Contact Schwanke-Kasten Jewelers today to schedule your personalized consultations with one of our GIA certified gemologists.

15 Feb

The 4 C’s of Engagement Rings: Clarity

Schwanke-Kasten encourages you to consider the third installment in our 4 C’s series, a diamond’s clarity.

In fact, the diamond clarity refers to the presence, or absence, of tiny inclusions or birthmarks which occur during the forming period of the diamond. A lot of inclusions in a diamond can result in less light passing through, which reduces sparkle.

The G.I.A. created an 11-point clarity scale to grade diamonds, meaning they take into account size, color, number, and position of every flaw that is seen under a 10 x magnified lens:

FL: Flawless – No inclusions or blemishes. Extremely rare, in fact, the G.I.A. rates less than 1 in 5,000 diamonds as FL.

IF: Internal Flawless – No inclusions; blemishes are only visible under a 10 x microscope. Shockingly, the G.I.A. rates less than 3% of diamonds as IF.

VVS1/VVS2: Very, Very Slightly Included – Inclusions are very difficult to detect, even under magnification. Their appearance to the naked eye is extremely similar to IF graded diamonds

VS1/VS2: Very Slightly Included – Inclusions are clearly visible under 10x magnifications but are very hard to detect with the naked eye.

SI1/SI2: Slightly Included – The lowest grade of flaws that are typical invisible to the naked eye.

I1/I2/I3: Included – Inclusions are almost always visible to the naked eye. They are very obvious under 10 x magnification and often affect transparency and brilliance.

Anyways, Schwanke-Kasten Jewelers encourages you to come to our Whitefish Bay location to view our full selection of diamond engagement rings.

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