Everything you need to know about diamonds
The diamond is one of our most cherished symbols of everlasting love. But the biggest diamond does not always mean the largest carat, and not all diamonds are as sparkly as you might think. We’ll guide you through everything you need to know to feel confident in your choice.
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- Everything you need to know about diamonds
Treasures from Mother Earth
When a diamond is found inside a diamond mine, it is raw and unpolished, far from the sparkling gem we are used to. Diamonds are composed of the element carbon, which was crystallized millions of years ago under high pressure and heat. This took place 200 km into the earth interior, and thanks to lava flows, the diamonds were slowly pushed upwards, through cracks, up to the earth's upper mantle.
The diamonds were stored for millions of years, before being transported to the earth's surface by volcanic magma. When the lava reached the cool crust, it cooled and turned to a rock again, but now with rough diamonds hidden inside the rock mass.
So perhaps it is not so strange that diamond jewellery is such a popular choice for pieces that symbolizes love, such as wedding rings and engagement rings. Because how dizzying is not the thought that the very stone you give away, to be carried by your loved one, was made millions of years ago?
Conflict-free diamonds
At Efva Attling Stockholm, nothing is left to chance when it comes to quality. The diamonds used in our jewellery are GIA-certified*, to ensure that they live up to our high-quality requirements.
But it is not just the quality that is under scrutiny with us at Efva Attling Stockholm, we think that it is equally important that the material we use comes from responsible sources. Therefore, we only work with diamond suppliers who are connected to the Kimberly process. This means that we can guarantee that the diamonds you buy from us are conflict-free.
The 4 C:s
Besides that, there are some things good to know when buying a piece of diamond jewellery – especially if it is a piece of jewellery with a slightly larger diamond. Diamonds are valued on the basis of the four Cs: Cut, Clarity, Colour and Carat. Of all diamonds found only 5% (approximately) are of sufficiently high quality to be used in the jewellery industry, but even among the 5% there are major differences that make them more or less valuable.
There is a lot to say about the four Cs, below you can choose whether you want to take part in the short or long versions:
Colour and Clarity
Roughly speaking, Colour and Clarity describe the quality of the diamond. The less colour a diamond has, the more exclusive it is. And the less inclusions a diamond has, the clearer and more exclusive the diamond is considered to be.
At Efva Attling Stockholm, we only use diamonds graded as Top Wesselton, which are rare white diamonds, and the second-best grade on the scale. When it comes to clarity, we use diamonds categorized with Very Small Inclusions (vs), or better. Diamonds that are 0.06ct and smaller, we use stones categorized with Small Inclusions (si).
Cut and Carat
Carat is probably the term that most people are familiar with. But in contrary to what one first might think, the carat does not describe the size of the stone, it describes its weight. Depending on the height and cut, a stone with a lower carat can be perceived as larger, compared to a stone with an actual higher carat weight. How many carats you choose for your diamond jewellery is very much a matter of taste, style, and budget. If you would like a stone with a higher carat set in our pieces of jewellery, please contact our Customer Care – it is almost always possible to arrange.
Biggest is not always the largest
Carat is probably the term that most people are familiar with. But in contrary to what one first might think, the carat does not describe the size of the stone, it describes its weight. Depending on the height and cut, a stone with a lower carat can be perceived as larger, compared to a stone with an actual higher carat weight. How many carats you choose for your diamond jewellery is very much a matter of taste, style, and budget. If you would like a stone with a higher carat set in our pieces of jewellery, please contact our Customer Care – it is almost always possible to arrange.
True love deserves real diamonds
Today, there is a large selection of lab-grown, or synthetic diamonds on the market. When creating a synthetic diamond, you artificially try to recreate what nature has created during millions of years. Not much research has been done on which method has the least climate impact. But the study that has been done shows that lab-grown diamonds actually emit more carbon dioxide than mining natural diamonds.
At Efva Attling Stockholm, we have made an active decision to only offer natural diamonds. We simply believe that true love deserves real diamonds! Read more about lab grown/synthetic diamonds here.
*At Efva Attling Stockholm, we follow industry practice. Therefore, we GIA-certify all diamonds of 0.5 ct and larger. Other stones are selected according to the same clear specifications and detailed quality requirements as during a certification, the only difference is just the actual certificate. All diamonds are checked once more in our atelier in Stockholm, to further ensure that each diamond meets our high quality requirements.
