In this world of advanced technology it is almost impossible to simply look at a diamond and determine whether it is real or not – especially if you don’t know much about diamonds. There are some steps that you can take to avoid buying a fake diamond, however. First, only deal with reputable jewelers, and when you find a reputable jeweler, stick with them. Avoid buying diamonds or other jewelry from jewelers that you haven't had the chance to check up on. Ask to see the certificate for the stone. If no certificate exists, walk away. Look at the setting that the stone is in. Fake diamonds, such as zirconias, are usually set in low quality metals. Take a close look at the stone. Fake diamonds are not durable – natural diamonds, on the other hand, are the most durable stone on the planet. Look for scratches or nicks. After purchasing a diamond, take it to another jeweler for appraisal. In fact, take it to two or three other jewelers for an appraisal to make sure that the appraisals are all fairly close. If you find that you have purchased a fake diamond, you may be accused of making a switch when you return to the store of your purchase; therefore, it is important to have a certificate for the diamond. No two stones are alike therefore the identifying properties contained in the certificate will differ from one to the other, so the more you know about spotting a fake diamond the more intelligent a diamond shopper you'll be; But, there are a few other tidbits about buying that i will share with you here.How to Buy Diamond Engagement RingsThere is much to consider when purchasing a diamond – especially diamond engagement rings! The tradition of presenting a woman with a diamond engagement ring when proposing began in 1477 when Archduke Maximilian presented a diamond ring to Mary of Burgundy – and in most cases, the woman you plan to propose to will expect a ring to accompany that proposal!First, determine how much ring you can afford. Most people use the ‘two months salary’ rule. This means that the ring should cost the equivalent of two months of your current salary. Because you have other bills to pay, saving up this amount of money may take quite a bit of time. You should consider financing. Simply go to the jeweler of your choice and tell them that you plan to buy an engagement ring, and that financing will be necessary. Go ahead and get the credit check out of the way, find out what your payments will be, and how much of a down payment is required.Now, have your mother, sister, or your girlfriends best friend take your girlfriend shopping, and make sure that they gaze at the engagement rings to get an idea of what she might like. Make sure that the jewelry store you buy the ring from will allow you to return the ring, if that is required, or allow your girlfriend to exchange it for another if she isn’t happy with it! Ultimately, you have to be able to afford it and your future wife - who will be wearing it - must like it.
Pricing most products is quite easy. Determine how much it costs to make the item, how much it costs to market that item, and then mark it up by 15 – 30% or more. Simple, right? Well, pricing diamonds isn’t quite that simple. There are many factors that are considered when diamonds are priced. Diamond prices are determined first by adding the cost of the rough diamond, the cost of cutting the diamond, and all other costs necessary to turn the rough diamond into a marketable diamond. Depending on the importance of the diamond, an independent company may be called in to certify the grade of the diamond based on color, cut, clarity, and weight.
Gemvara Engagement Diamond RingsAt this point, the diamond becomes more expensive each time it changes hands, until it finally reaches a retailer, where the price is raised a bit more. Before reaching the retailer, however, the diamond must travel from the mine, to the cutter and polisher, to the independent grading company, and then to the Primary market. Once it has reached the primary market, it will be purchased by diamond dealers and wholesalers, and from there it will be sold to retailers.As you can see, the earlier you can purchase a diamond in the process, the lower the cost of the diamond will be – but not the value. The value is based on what the diamond will sell for in the market place – through a retailer. If you own a diamond, and you have no idea how much it is worth, you can have it appraised, but the appraisal may not be accurate. You will be better off obtaining a certificate through GIA (Gemological Institute of America). With the information on this certificate, you can use a cutter’s guide to accurately determine your diamond's worth. There are also many diamond price calculators available. These can be found on the Web, and many diamond dealers use these as well. You must realize, however, that before you can accurately price a diamond, without a Diamond Grade Report, you need to know quite a bit about diamonds, such as different cuts, clarity, color, and weight – and how each of those aspects adds to the value of a diamond, or decreases the value of the diamond as the case may be. Again, you will be better off if you get a Diamond Grading Report on the diamond, and use that information to look up the price in one of the guides that the diamond cutting industry uses. This will give you the most accurate value of the diamond in your possession, or of the diamond you are considering purchasing.
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A must-see diamond!Insuring a diamond takes a bit of thought, planning, and shopping around. Diamond insurance isn’t like purchasing car insurance. It is quite different. Depending on the state that you live in, there are basically three different types of policies that will cover diamonds, and all insurance policies that cover diamonds are considered Marine type policies. High quality wedding and anniversary diamond ringsThe first type of insurance policies for diamonds is an Actual Cash Value policy. If the diamond is lost or damaged beyond repair, the insurance company will replace the diamond pursuant to current market values, no matter how much you originally paid for the diamond. This type of insurance policy for diamonds is actually not that common.Exquisite diamond selection! brilliance!The most common type of insurance for diamonds is Replacement Value insurance. The insurance company will only pay up to a fixed amount to replace the diamond that was lost or damaged beyond repair. This does not mean that they will pay that amount – it means that they will pay up to that amount. In most cases, the diamond can be replaced at a lower cost. Selective engagement ringsThe third type of insurance coverage offered for diamonds is Agreed Value. This is sometimes called ‘Valued At.’ This type of coverage is very rare. In the event that a diamond is lost or damaged beyond repair, the insurance company simply pays you the amount that you and the company agreed upon. This is the best type of insurance to have, but it is rarely offered. If you can’t get Agreed Value coverage, Actual Cash Value coverage should be your next choice.High quality three-stone diamond engagement ringsYour rates will be determined by the value of the diamond, the type of coverage that you select, and the area that you live in. If you live in an area with a high crime rate, you can expect to pay more for your diamond insurance coverage. It is important to remember that insurance agents are not qualified jewelers, and jewelers are not qualified insurance agents. It is best to get a certificate for your diamond, and to provide the insurance company with a copy of that certificate. This leaves the insurance company less room for arguments over the actual value of the diamond.Sparkling radiance and illustrious diamonds! It is important to note that separate coverage should not solely be relied upon to cover your diamond, but rather it should also be covered under your homeowner's insurance such that if it is stolen from your home, for example, your home owner’s insurance policy will provide coverage pursuant to the policy terms. Since the diamond may not always be in your home, once it leaves your home, the separate "diamond insurance" coverage should kick in.
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Diamonds are one of the few products that simply cannot be "branded". Even though there are different cuts, different grades, and different values placed on each and every diamond in existence, no diamond is any specific brand – just as gold is not a specific brand. Branding is actually based on who owns the diamond. For instance, if DeBeers owns the diamond, it is a DeBeers Diamond – but it is still just a diamond. A selection of 25,000 Diamonds to choose from!If the diamond was cut by a specific well known cutter, then it might be branded in that way as well – but it usually isn’t. It is still branded based on who owns it at the time. So basically, when it comes down to it – diamond brands mean absolutely nothing at all. Do not allow a jeweler to try to talk you into paying an exorbitant price on a diamond because it is a specific brand. This is a bit of trickery used by unscrupulous jewelers when they know that they are dealing with people who don’t know much about diamonds. Remember that diamonds are not actually branded – unless mother nature has her own brand!High quality wedding and engagement ringsDiamond CertificatesDiamonds cannot be branded, but they can be graded - certified, if you will. A diamond certificate is also known as a Diamond Grading Report. This report comes from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), and you should require this report when you are purchasing a diamond. With a diamond certificate, you can verify the color, cut, carat, weight, and clarity of the diamond.
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You don’t have to worry about a diamond dealer telling you anything less than the truth, because the certificate comes from the GIA – not the dealer. You may be required to pay for the certificate, but the cost is usually low, and in many cases, it will help you negotiate a better price on the diamond – or keep you from purchasing a lower quality diamond altogether. A Diamond Selection of the Highest QualityIf you buy a high quality diamond, and then later decide to sell the diamond, you will need to have the certificate, or you will have a hard time selling it to someone else. Furthermore, you can use the Diamond Grading Report to look up the wholesale value of the diamond in question. Use the guide that is used by the diamond cutting industry. With the Certificate, or Diamond Grading Report, there won’t be any doubts when you are trying to purchase a diamond. You can easily find out what the diamond is worth. This will prevent you from overpaying, and it can prevent a seller from under-charging as well. The Gemvara collectionA copy of the Diamond Grading Report should be given to your insurance company as well, when you insure the diamond. This provides absolute, unquestionable proof of the value of the diamond should it be stolen in the future. Insurance companies cannot argue with the report. Avoid diamond dealers who seem reluctantto provide a certificate! Also avoid sellers who tell you that a certificate diamond will cost you more – the only additional cost should be the cost of the certificate, which is low. If the dealer doesn’t want to provide a certificate, then you don’t want to do business with that dealer.Gemvara RingsDon’t accept certificates from Gemological Laboratories other than GIA. There are many fly-by-night Gemological labs these days, but in the end, GIA has been established as the most respectable and trustworthy – not to mention oldest – of the lot. So avoid dealers who don’t want to use GIA for certification purposes as well. Don’t buy an expensive diamond without paying the extra cost of the certificate. If a dealer tries to convince you to make the purchase without the certificate, or if they want to use a company other than GIA, you can be sure that the dealer has probably greatly inflated the price of the diamond – they probably have something that they are hiding from you.
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With all of the potential for scams concerning diamonds, buying diamonds online almost seems unthinkable! However, you can actually purchase diamonds online without any problems as long as you are careful. First, think about your reasons for wanting to purchase the diamond online, as opposed to making a purchase from a local jewelry store. The most common reason is price. Due to low overhead costs, online jewelers and wholesalers are able to offer lower prices. However, you must be careful because sometimes a price that is too low is a sure indication of a scam.High quality wedding and anniversary ringsOne of the best things about purchasing online is the unlimited selection. When shopping offline, you are limited to the selection offered by stores in your general area. Online, there are no limits. But again, you must use a great deal of care and consideration before handing your money over to someone that you cannot see and have never met!Before shopping, learn as much as you can about diamonds – especially cut, color, clarity and carat weights. When you are knowledgeable about diamonds, it will be harder for a con artist to rip you off. Once you know more about diamonds, you will be ready to start shopping.Take your time. Don’t purchase the first diamond you see that interests you. Instead, look for similar diamonds for sale. Do some comparison shopping to find the lowest prices. Once you have found the lowest price, start doing your investigation. You know about diamonds, you’ve found a diamond that you love, and you’ve found the lowest price – but you still haven't quite made the decision to actually purchase that diamond!Ask about the seller’s credentials, such as professional jewelry associations that they belong to. View and print the seller’s return, refund, and upgrade policies. Also inquire about additional services, such as settings and mountings, sizing, and free shipping. Do a search for customer reviews on this particular company around the Internet. Alsocheck with the BBB Online to see if there have been any complaints.Ask for a diamond grading report from an independent laboratory such as GIA, HRD, EGL or AGS. You should see this before making a purchase. Finally, use a reputable escrow service for high dollar diamonds – preferably one that will have the diamond appraised while it is in their possession. The seller sends the diamond to the escrow service, and you send the money to pay for the diamond to the escrow service. The escrow service has the diamond appraised, sends the diamond to you, and sends the money to the seller. This is the surest way to protect yourself, but the important thing here is to make sure that you use a reputable escrow service!
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