Reading a certificate in five minutes
Cut, colour, clarity, carat — and the one line most buyers skip.
A diamond certificate is a short document, but it is written for gemmologists, not for the person buying the ring. Five minutes with it, and one or two questions at the counter, are enough to know what you are holding.
Start at the top: the report number should match the tiny inscription on the stone’s girdle. Ask to see it under the loupe — any good boutique will show you without being asked twice.
The four lines everyone reads
Carat is weight, not size. Colour runs from D, the most colourless, downwards. Clarity describes what is inside the stone; anything from VS2 up looks clean to the eye. Cut grade is the one that decides how much light the stone gives back.
“Two stones with the same grades can look nothing alike. The report tells you where to look; your eye decides.”
Gemmologist, Baghdad
The line most people skip
Fluorescence sits near the bottom, and it is easy to ignore. Strong blue fluorescence can make some stones look hazy in daylight; in others it is invisible. It is worth seeing the stone by a window before you decide.
Bring any certificate to any of our boutiques and we will read it through with you, whether the stone is ours or not.