What is a Lab Diamond Certification?
A diamond certification is a detailed report that provides an analysis of a diamond's characteristics. This includes its dimensions, clarity, color, polish, and symmetry. Lab-grown diamonds are certified identically to mined diamonds since they are chemically, physically, and optically the same. When you purchase any diamond, you should always receive a diamond certificate with it because it gives you essential details of what you’re buying.
Here is what you should keep in mind when finding certification for your lab-created diamond:
Lab-created diamonds are given a single grading for color and clarity like natural diamonds. For example, this pair of Flower Fashion Earrings have a color grading of ‘FG’ which implies that the diamonds are nearly colorless and have a clarity grade of SI1+ which suggests that they have slight impurities in them. It is also specified that the earrings have a 1.25-carat weight. All this information allows the buyer to have key details about the diamond before they choose to buy it.
- Subjective Diamond Grading
There is no central company that dictates what an ‘H’ color is and what an ‘IF’ clarity diamond looks like. For lab companies, consistency is key. If one lab consistently labels the color of a diamond as ‘H’ but another lab regularly certifies the same color as ‘I’, it is acceptable. Regardless of consistency, you should not be swayed by a pretty diamond with a weak diamond certification and high price.
When comparing two lab-grown diamonds it is important to ensure that the certifications come from the same lab entity. Since grading can be subjective, having the same third-party grading entity will ensure less discrepancy in your analysis and let you make the best decision possible.
Make sure that you have thoroughly evaluated a diamond and that it is truly worth the price that is quoted for it. The diamond should be able to reflect its price in terms of its quality, clarity, and cut in terms of its certification and to the naked eye. If you’re not sure, reach out to an expert jeweller who will have the necessary tools to guide you through the process.
What is GIA certification?
The Gemological Institute of America has been grading and valuating diamonds since 1931, making it one of the oldest diamond-grading entities in the world. It created and established the universally acknowledged 4 C’s and diamond grading system. It is the most renowned company for natural diamond certification, but it has been dabbling in grading lab-grown diamonds since 2007 too.
What is IGI certification?
The International Gemological Institute (IGI) was started in 1975 and provides certification for natural and lab-grown diamonds by analyzing their color and clarity and then giving them a certain grade. IGI started grading lab-created diamonds in 2005 and has gained lots of traction. They also use the 4 C’s grading system, evaluating color on an alphabetical scale and grading the clarity using a spectrum.
What scale do IGI and GIA use?
IGI and GIA use a concise color grading scale to certify a diamond. It ranges from D (100% clear and colorless) to Z (yellow-tinted). To certify clarity they use the universal I.F. – I3 scale.
Here are the 4 C’s that grading labs use:
- Carat - A carat is a measurement of the diamond’s weight and is 200 milligrams. Diamonds are also graded on a numeric scale from 0 to 10. Most mined diamonds weigh around one carat and it is less likely to find one above that. Generally speaking, the bigger the carat size, the higher the price of the diamond.
- Color - As aforementioned, they use a diamond color scale that ranges from D to Z. This scale is a spectrum from colorless to yellow-hued.
- Clarity - The certification includes comprehensive information about clarity since it provides a diamond with its glimmer and shine. It consists of a grade of clarity based on the I.F. – I3 scale, wherein I.F. stands for flawless and I3 stands for included; a map of where blemishes are; an assessment of how easy it is to locate blemishes under 10x magnification; and a description of any special characteristics.
- Cut - The Cut of a diamond refers to how well a diamond has been polished. They use a grading system of Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair, or Poor to rate the finish of a diamond. If a diamond is perfectly symmetrical, has no surface blemishes, and shines so bright it could almost blind you, it would fall into the ‘Excellent’ finish range.
Which is certification better? GIA or IGI?
Both grading entities are well-known for their grading and both can be used in certifying natural diamonds as well as lab-created ones.
What certification does Dream Diamonds use?
Here at Dream Diamonds, all our lab-grown diamonds are certified by IGI and GIA. All certification details are provided with the sale of our lab-created jewellery, so don’t hesitate to buy a jewel for a loved one today! To learn more about Lab Grown Diamonds visit our website!