Diamond Clarity Guide

Diamond clarity is a quality of diamonds relating to the existence and visual appearance of internal defects of a diamond called inclusions, and surface defects called blemishes. Clarity is one of the four Cs of diamond grading, the others being carat, color, and cut. Inclusions may be crystals of a foreign material or another diamond crystal, or structural imperfections such as tiny cracks that can appear whitish or cloudy. The number, size, color, relative location, orientation, and visibility of inclusions can all affect the relative clarity of a diamond. A clarity grade is assigned based on the overall appearance of the stone under 10x magnification.

There are several types of inclusions and blemishes, which affect a diamond's clarity to varying degrees.

Diamond Inclusions

* Clouds
* Feathers
* Included crystals or minerals
* Knots
* Cavities
* Cleavage
* Bearding
* Internal graining

DIamond Blemishes

* Polish lines
* Grain boundaries
* Naturals
* Scratches
* Nicks
* Pits

The diamond clarity grades in common use are:

* FL - "flawless" in that no inclusions or blemishes are visible under 10 times magnification.
* IF - "internally flawless" with no inclusions visible under 10 times magnification, only small blemishes on the diamond surface.
* VVS1 and VVS2 - "very very small" inclusions that are difficult to see under 10 times magnification. VVS1 denotes a higher clarity grade than VVS2.
* VS1 and VS2 - "very small" inclusions and visible under magnification but invisible to the naked eye.
* SI1 and SI2 - "small inclusions" that may or may not be noticeable to the naked eye.
o SI3 is a grade sometimes used in the industry, it is commonly used to mean I1's which are "eye clean", that is, which have inclusions which are not readily visible to the naked eye. most reputable grading labs, do not assign this grade.
* I1, I2 and I3 - "imperfect", with inclusions clearly visible to the naked eye. For I3, the inclusions impact the brilliance of the diamond and are large and obvious.