A diamond is the hardest thing in the world, but not the toughest. Diamonds can get abrasions or even chipped through normal wear and tear. When diamonds rub together while being stored, they may get scratched or abraded (minute scratches and pits along facet edges). DIAMOND CARE Everyday tasks may hold unexpected peril for a diamond. A random sharp blow at a certain angle and force may damage a diamond. Even though a rare occurrence hitting a diamond ring on a shopping cart or against taps and pots while dishwashing could be the equivalent of hitting it with a steel hammer! Swimming in chlorinated pools is not harmful to diamonds but can be detrimental to the white gold alloy of the setting. (Not harmful to platinum) Removing diamond rings while hand washing is a good idea only if you remember not to place them where they may slide down the drain or if they might be forgotten! Detergents and soaps Often contain waxes and oils that temporarily dull a diamond s sparkle. Be careful to make sure that diamonds do not come in contact with another diamond. This means proper separate storage in a jewellery or safety deposit box. Even when a series of diamond rings are worn on the same finger there is real risk they may chip if the diamonds hit or touch each other. CHIPS AND ABRASIONS ON A DIAMOND S GIRDLE FYI: All unset Birks diamonds are individually packaged in special folding papers to prevent knocking and scratching. Ethyl alcohol and ammonia are also good for cleaning diamonds because they help avoid the problem of water spots. Don't let your jewellery come in contact with chlorine bleach which can be very damaging to the metal. Gold prongs can get pitted and actually dissolve to the point they can no longer hold the diamonds or other gemstones. Prolonged exposure to chlorine in hot tubs or swimming pools can have the same effect. Most people protect their hands from harsh chemicals, but don't think about your fine jewellery. Remove rings or wear gloves to protect them from products that contain chorine, because it can damage metal. Avoid dripping bleaches and hair dyes on fine jewellery. To get rid of encrusted dirt, it is sometimes necessary to have the diamond cleaned professionally with steamers and ultrasonic cleaners. Any diamond will look better than most diamond jewellery worn today if it is kept clean! A clean diamond will have the same sparkle and brightness as if it were new! It's hard to keep a diamond ring clean. Diamonds are natural grease attractors and can become coated with grease when they are immersed in dishwater or when they come in contact with any greasy substance including hand or body lotions and natural skin oils. Powders, hair spray and soap also cut down on a diamond's brilliance. A safe and easy way to clean a diamond ring is to soak and wash it in warm sudsy water using a mild liquid detergent. Then it can be dried with a soft, lint-free cloth. If the dirt on the diamond cannot be washed off after soaking, try using a tooth pick, a Water Pick or unwaxed dental floss to removed caked-on dirt. Brushes should be used with caution because hard bristles can scratch gold mountings. You can also buy one of the brand-name liquid jewellery cleaners, which usually include a container of cleaner, a basket to soak the ring in and a small brush to clean hard to get at areas. Read the label and follow its instructions. Don't touch your clean diamonds with your finger since that simply puts oil back on them. For frequent travelers, jewellery cleaner now is available in a foam dispenser that ensures beautiful jewellery while traveling. How do diamonds get damaged before they are sold? Improper storage either in under stock or vault. Diamond jewellery must be individually wrapped in cloths and not under great weight when packed up for night storage in our vaults. Improper packing when shipping and transferring. Careless display technique. It is only a result of carelessness when Fine Jewellery is damaged before sale. (...any Fine Jewellery: diamonds or other precious gems!)
Sometimes, small problems, like diamonds loose in their settings, worn or damaged prongs and faulty clasps, can be detected and repaired before they turn into bigger problems. Most diamonds are lost weeks and months after the damage could have been noticed, if someone had just taken a few minutes to examine the jewellery item closely. This is a valuable service that should be offered often to all our clients. INSURANCE PROTECTION After you have sold that special diamond, there is still one more important step to ensure your client s future happiness. Next to an automobile, many first time diamond buyers agree this is the first large personal property purchase of their life. DIAMOND PROTECTION The dotted lines on this diagram show the optimum prong height verses prongs that are very worn down and require retipping. Always recommend worn prongs be retipped. Be sure to check that all prongs touch the diamond closely around the crown, girdle and pavilion. A large majority of Birks Diamonds will get top rank: 1 in the new GIA cut grade system which will debut in 2006. Always inform your clients that they may have their diamond checked and cleaned at any time. Be sure to counsel your clients that insurance protection is the only measure that will truly protect their diamond. While our diamond guarantee and general jewellery warranties afford a great deal of security for two years it cannot replace the whole article if lost or if significant damage occurs. At Birks, every diamond of a carat or more has been pregraded by the Gemological Institute of America. Our own Diamond Report is fully detailed and states accurately every important aspect of the diamond s particulars. In 2006, the GIA will debut its new cut grade system, which has been the subject of intense industry research for the past several years. Before our diamonds are offered for sale, they are scrutinized by our own Gemologists to assign grade determinations, using highly sophisticated instruments and expertise. Our findings are then compared to the GIA Report: We will only market the diamond if we agree with the GIA s grade conclusion. This is to ensure that debatable grades are not presented for sale. THE BIRKS DIAMOND GUARANTEE OUR BIRKS DIAMOND CERTIFICATE GIVES ALL PROPORTIONING INFORMATION. TO A KNOWLEDGEABLE INDIVIDUAL, IT IS APPARENT THAT WE DON T TOLERATE IMPROPERLY-CUT DIAMONDS. LOSS: If examined every 6 months, the diamond will be replaced if lost due to manufacturing defect: 5 years TRADE-UP: Birks will credit at least the original purchase price toward another diamond of at least 50% greater value. Trade-ups may be done at any time. REFUND: Returnable within 90 days after purchase upon presentation of the sales receipt. MAINTENANCE: If the ring requires repairs or sizing within 5 years of purchase, this will be done free of charge upon presentation of the Diamond Guarantee. INSPECTION & CLEANING: At any time after purchase, we will inspect and clean the diamond.
SYNTHETIC DIAMONDS Most synthetic diamonds have been targeted for their potential use in technology such as semi-conductors and other industrial applications. Man Made Diamonds: Graphite to Diamonds Thousands of tons of rock are displaced each day in mines scattered around the world in hopes of uncovering a few gem-quality diamonds. In combination with other factors such as World War II, constant demand for industrial diamonds and of course profit there was plenty of incentive to develop a true synthetic diamond. In 1951 this miracle of nature was undertaken by General Electric, under their project code-named Superpressure. Its aim was to make the world's first industrial man made diamonds with the same properties as natural diamonds. The first challenge was to find a way of transforming graphite into diamond. Under sophisticated laboratory conditions and equipment, pressures of above one million pounds per square inch and intense heat were applied to graphite samples. The carbon atoms coalesced over time into a highly compact crystalline form of diamond. Man had turned graphite into man made diamond. SYNTHETIC DIAMONDS PRODUCED BY GEMESIS. THE MAJORITY OF SYNTHETIC DIAMONDS ARE YELLOW AND SMALL CARAT WEIGHTS. GEMESIS SYNTHETIC DIAMOND CRYSTAL Most synthetic diamonds mentioned above are visually indistinguishable from the naturally occurring ones. However, the producers of these synthetic diamonds have taken steps to ensure that they can be distinguished from natural diamonds. Laser inscription, trace and identifiable impurities, along with infrared and X-ray spectroscopy. We do not sell synthetic diamonds. Although there have been obscure instances of synthetics turning up in jeweller s inventories, our expertise, rigorous testing and vendor relationships prevent misrepresentation. Man made diamonds grew into a profitable business for GE. As the technology improved, so did the product. Today, nearly 90% of all diamonds used in industry are man made diamonds. But these tiny crystals would never be gems. GE was able to grow larger man made diamonds in the 1970s, but they cost more to produce than the price of natural diamonds. In post-soviet Russia, scientists and entrepreneurs desperate for a foothold in the world economy were racing to create the perfect gem-quality man made diamond. One of them, Boris Feigelson, tried repeatedly to redesign his presses to withstand higher pressures without breaking. Finally in 1995, the presses could run for the days needed to produce larger gem quality crystals. After two days of high temperature and pressure, these machines can each produce a one-carat man made diamond; large, but flawed, with telltale signs of manufacture. Much would need to be done to reduce the processing time and to improve the quality of the crystal. Boris Feigelson was not the only one trying to improve his man made diamond making method. At the start of the 21 st Century, there were many more producers of synthetic diamonds and with varying techniques. Diamonds can be produced through chemical or physical processes in a laboratory. Like naturally occurring diamond it is composed of a threedimensional carbon crystal. Manufactured diamonds are also called cultured diamonds, manmade diamonds, and synthetic diamonds. GEMESIS MACHINE Gemesis diamonds have a yellow tint which is rare in natural diamonds and therefore a valuable aesthetic trait. The yellow tint occurs when less than five out of each 100,000 carbon atoms in the diamond crystal lattice are replaced with nitrogen atoms. Technically it is a contaminant, but coloured diamonds can still be sold for more money because they can be made more quickly, they cost less to manufacture, and they are very popular. Apollo Diamond, uses the low-pressure technique of chemical vapor deposition Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) to produce larger, less expensive diamonds with greater control over impurities. This greater measure of control allows Apollo Diamond to produce diamonds of various colours including colourless, pink, blue, honey brown, and even black. The ability to control the intentional introduction of impurities, doping, is necessary for the creation of diamond semiconductor devices. Other companies that produce synthetic diamonds are Chatham and Sumitomo. What is the difference between a synthetic and a simulant? The synthetic duplicates the chemical and optical properties of its natural counterpart and the simulant is only visually similar, imitating the natural. All synthetics are manmade as are most simulants.
SIMULATED DIAMONDS Simulated diamonds or "fake" diamonds may be shiny and bright, but they are nothing like the real thing. They may be made of glass, minerals or synthetic and in recent years there has been an increase in the number of simulated diamonds marketed under a variety of different names. Moissanite: Simulated Diamond Fifty thousand years ago, a meteorite crashed into the Arizona desert creating what is now known as "Meteor Crater." Fragments of this meteorite were scattered across the desert. Hidden in these fragments was a secret waiting to be discovered. In 1893, Nobel-Prize winning scientist Henri Moissan began studying fragments of this meteorite and he discovered minute quantities of a new mineral: silicon carbide. In 1995, a US based company that manufactures silicon carbide devices developed a synthetic Moissanite from silicon carbide crystals. This company, Cree Inc., discovered a process of taking the minerals silicon and carbon, evaporating them into one compound, then growing them into a crystal. This crystal is cut into Moissanite, nearly colourless or in various shades of green and has physical properties similar to diamond. Moissanite tests positive for diamond on conventional thermal probes. Synthetic Moissanite is doubly refractive. This means that a ray of light passing through the stone is slowed, bent and split in two as it passes through it. Diamond is singly refractive. Moissanite's brilliance seems to be softer and cloudier. The sharp effects of the colour spectrum in a regular diamond are enticing and the human eye easily registers the stone's distinct nuances. On the other hand the colour spectrum effects in Moissanite are more spread out. On the hardness scale, Moissanite registers 9+ on the Mohs scale, as opposed to a diamond's 10. (don t be mislead by this: Diamond is still exponentially and comparatively much harder). Detecting Moissanite Testers: Since Moissanite tests positive on a standard electronic Diamond Tester, a special Moissanite Testers can be used to identify Moissanite Conventional diamond testers test for thermal conductivity and are useful in separating diamond from simulants such as cubic zirconia, corundum, glass, synthetic rutile, and zircon. Thermal diamond testers cannot be used to discriminate diamond from moissanite, because both are thermally conductive. Polished Girdles: The outside edge which runs around the crown of a cut stone is called the "girdle." Sometimes girdles are polished, but more than often they are faceted on diamonds. Moissanite has polished girdles, and although this method cannot be used alone, in conjunction with other methods it helps to separate Moissanite from Diamonds. Doubling: When Moissanite viewed through a 10X jeweler's loupe, it will show signs of "doubling." If you view the stone through the crown or pavilion (underside) facets, and you look to the other side of the stone, the opposite back facet edges will appear doubled, like parallel train tracks set close together. Diamond is singly refractive, and therefore does not show doubling. COMPARE THE 2 ARROW POINTS LEFT: 2 FACET LINES RIGHT: 1 FACET LINE FOR THE DIAMOND MOISSANITE: VISIBLE DOUBLING left is MOISSANITE; DIAMOND is at right. We do not sell simulated or any other imitation diamond. An electrical conductivity tester, designed specifically for testing Moissanite, will indicate Moissanite and would ideally be used after a thermal diamond tester has eliminated other simulants.
These are the gems very often seen on the Shopping Channel networks all marketed under differing diamondlike names. All are near valueless. SIMULATED DIAMONDS Cubic Zirconia Cubic Zirconia is a cubic form of zirconium oxide that is created in a laboratory, thus it is not a mineral. Because of its low cost, durability, and close visual likeness to diamond, synthetic cubic zirconia has remained an important diamond simulant since 1976. Cubic zirconia cannot be cut quite as sharply as a diamond can and tends to chip or turn yellowish over time. To the untrained eye, cubic zirconia looks identical to a good quality diamond, but CZ has slightly less brilliance or sparkle than a diamond and more fire or flashes of colour. The overall effect is so similar that it can even fool a trained gemologist on occasion. One great difference between cubic zirconia and diamond is weight; CZ is about 75% heavier than diamond. A piece of CZ the same size as a one carat diamond weighs about 1.75 carats. CZ is also more brittle than diamond and softer. A cubic zirconia can be scratched by diamond, topaz, ruby or sapphire whereas a diamond can only be scratched by another diamond. Cubic Zirconia is also flawless, whereas diamond usually contains impurities and inclusions. A colourless diamond with flawless clarity is extremely rare. On the other hand, most cubic zirconia is perfectly transparent and flawless under 10x magnification. YAG Yttrium has been used for decades in a diamond simulant called YAG or yttrium aluminum garnet which has physical properties similar to natural garnets but with a brilliance and fire more similar to diamond. Yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG) is a manmade material used in lasers that duplicates the atomic structure of garnet. Colourless YAG is used as a simulant for diamond but is not use much anymore as it has mostly been replaced by Cubic Zirconia as a simulated diamond. Strontium Titanate Strontium titanate is a simulated diamond with great fire but is relatively soft with a 5 on Mohs Scale. With its lack of double refraction (like diamond), it is easily separate it from the harder moissanite. The dispersion of Strontium titanate is significantly high producing colour and fire ten times the dispersion of diamond. It is a light show on the finger but usually is found only with a tint of yellow. GGG Gallium-Gadolinium Garnet (GGG) was used in the past as a simulated diamond by has been largely replaced by cubic zirconia. It can be detected as different from diamond by heat conductivity, density, and hardness tests. White Sapphire White Sapphire, along with its sister the Ruby, is of the mineral corundum. While coloured sapphires owe their colours to varying chemical combinations, white sapphires are pure corundum and therefore colourless. Natural white sapphire has become very scarce in the marketplace since companies that colour treat sapphire by the diffusion method have consistently outbid gem dealers for the larger sapphire rough. Synthetic white sapphire is available in great supply and easily identifiable by simple gemological tests. Not a really convincing diamond simulant. Rhinestones Rhinestones are artificial clear or coloured stones of high luster made of glass, paste or gem quartz that are intended to simulate diamonds. The best rhinestones are cut from quartz crystal. Natural crystals from the bottom of the river Rhine in Germany were early substitutes for diamonds; hence the term Rhinestone. Some people also refer to them as crystals or stones. Generally, the stone's cut combined with the overall quality determine the price. The higher the grade, the more the rhinestone will sparkle. Very often you'll see some rhinestones shining different colours. They are called Aurora Borealis (abbreviated AB) rhinestones. Aurora Borealis rhinestones are rhinestones that have a special coating (developed in 1955) which produces a rainbow of colours. It is applied to the surface of a glass stone or bead to create a rainbow-coloured sparkle. ( Swarovski crystals are classed as this type of imitation)... anyone who wears an imitation really wants the real thing...
None of these enhancements are present in Birks diamonds. Diamond clarity can be manipulated. Sales Professionals need to be aware of the techniques that are used to enhance clarity so it appears better to the eye. Many of these treatments are being sold by other jewellers. Fracture Filling Fills Cracks All diamonds have minute fractures and fissures. When the fissures are large and numerous they can detract from a diamonds beauty and value. In lower grade diamonds these fissures can give the diamond a cloudy, whitish appearance and may be visible to the naked eye. DIAMOND ENHANCEMENTS THESE TECHNIQUES IMPACT THE VALUE OF THE STONE, ESPECIALLY THOSE THAT ARE NOT PERMANENT CHANGES. NEVER ATTEMPT TO IDENTIFY THESE TREATMENTS ON A CLIENT S DIAMOND USING THE STORE MICROSCOPE OR A LOUPE. THIS IS BEST LEFT TO EXPERT GEMOLOGISTS AND INDEPENDENT LABORATORIES. THESE ENHANCEMENTS CAN BE VERY DIFFICULT TO DETECT. Some names for fracture-treated diamonds include Yehuda treated diamonds, Kosstreated diamonds, and Goldman Oved treated diamonds. Every diamond enhancement and synthesis has resulted from discoveries in other sciences. The GIA does not assign a clarity grade for any clarity enhanced diamond. However, if necessary, the Institute will identify the treatment. LASER DRILL HOLE TO INCLUSION In the late 1980s a new process was developed to hide the fissures. Known as "fracture filling" the process involves filling the fissures with a glasslike substance that is formulated to mimic the colour and optical properties of the diamond being treated. The fissures in a fractured-filled diamond become less visible. The cracks don't disappear, but the film creates an optical illusion that makes them invisible to the naked eye. Fracture filling is not a permanent treatment. Heat from repairs, cleaning, and sunlight can erode the filler or darken its colour. Some signs of fracture filling can be seen using a 10X jeweler's loupe, but others require a microscope. With magnification, you might see flashes of colour where cracks have been filled. The flashes aren't like the typical brilliant colours you see when rotating a stone. Instead, they follow the lines and shapes of the filled cracks. Trapped air bubbles are another sign of fracture filling, either singly or in groups that create a cloudy appearance. FRACTURE FILLING BEFORE AFTER FLASH EFFECTS IN FILLED DIAMOND Unfilled cracks may produce colour flashes, too. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) offers helpful advice that unfilled breaks are easiest to detect when looking at them from a perpendicular angle, while filled breaks are more obvious when looking at them from a parallel perspective. Fracture filling is not permanent. Fracture-filled diamonds should not be cleaned in solutions which are acidic or which contain ammonia since they can cloud, discolour or even remove the filling material. Laser Drilling Removes Inclusions (not really...) A tiny laser beam is used to drill into the diamond, tunneling-in to remove inclusions. A beam of high energy light is used to bore a small tunnel from the surface of the diamond to the targeted inclusion. Strong acid is then forced down the tunnel to bleach out or burn away the inclusion. Laser drilling typically leaves lines that resemble tiny jet trails, visible under side-view magnification. You'll see a tiny white dot when viewing the trails from the top of the diamond. A newer type of laser enhancement creates cracks around inclusions near a diamond's surface. The imperfection is removed, and the marks left behind sometimes look natural. Laser drilling may up the clarity grade only by one grade. The treatment does not alter the strength of a diamond. Normal cleaning and the heat produced during setting repairs won't change the appearance of the stone. Laser drilled areas that are filled-in with a clear substance are more difficult to detect. The filler should not be considered permanent. When first introduced, the use of laser drilling was not adequately disclosed to consumers, and this practice has been done since the early 1970s. A lack of candor by diamond wholesalers and manufacturers brought an out cry from jewellery retailers and consumers. Today all reputable jewellery organizations require full disclosure of laser drilling.
Colour Coating: While not as common as it was in past years, there are still some jewellery stores that put a little blue "paint" on the bottom tip of a diamond set in a ring. This is small enough that it is difficult to see but since the light passing through a diamond tends to reflect near that location, it is enough to spread that colour throughout the diamond. The result is that diamonds with some natural yellow tint will look whiter than their true colour. Simple ultrasonic cleaning will remove the paint. DIAMOND ENHANCEMENTS ENHANCED COLOUR The rarity and high prices of naturally occurring coloured diamonds is huge incentive to find a lower priced alternative. Scientific advances delivered a process which mimics the way diamonds are coloured naturally. The most common method used to induce fancy colour in diamonds irradiation. Natural diamonds with non- fancy colours are subjected to high energy particles (alpha, beta, gamma, neutrons, x-rays or microwaves) in a properly equipped laboratory. Some of these diamonds are often subjected to further colour enhancement by heating them at high temperatures of up to 1400 degree Celsius. The diamonds processed in this manner are called enhanced fancy coloured diamonds and are completely safe to the wearer. Exposing off-colour diamonds such as yellowish-or brownish-tinted stones to certain types of radiation can result in the production of fancy coloured stones. This treatment produces rich yellows, greens, and blues. Most diamond colours can be artificially induced. Proof that a stone has natural origin of colour can only be obtained from a gemological laboratory. Because of this, all natural fancy coloured diamonds are only marketed with reports from an independent laboratory, such as GIA, Not all fancy colours can be verified as natural or treated. When testing green diamonds, it s difficult to differentiate a natural from an artificially-induced colour. The process of artificially altering the colour to green involves irradiating which can also occur naturally. Thus green stones, despite their rarity, are more difficult to sell unless indisputable proof of colour origin can be found. HPHT: HIGH PRESSURE, HIGH TEMPERATURE HPHT treatment involves subjecting the diamond, polished or rough, to very high temperatures and pressures in specialized equipment. Depending on their size, only a few diamonds can be treated at one time in such equipment. As a result of this process, which in some instances takes only a very short time, the colour of the diamond can be dramatically changed. Diamonds are classified scientifically into two types with subcategories for each. Type I diamonds the most abundant in nature contain nitrogen. They usually vary from colourless to yellow or brownish yellow. Type II diamonds which are rare in nature lack all but tiny amounts of nitrogen. They are sometimes colourless, but more often brown; if they contain boron, they can be blue to gray. These two categories of diamonds display differences in some physical properties and in their absorption or luminescence spectra. The brown colouration in diamonds of both types results when they have been subjected to plastic deformation (i.e., strain ) deep in the earth during long periods of geologic time. LASER INSCRIBED ON THIS EXTREMELY THICK FACETED GIRDLE IS GE POL HTHP TREATED. As a result of HPHT processing, type II brown diamonds can be transformed to colourless or nearcolourless. The same procedure can transform a limited number of brown-pink or brown-to-gray-blue type II diamonds to pink and blue, respectively. In both cases, heating at very high pressures results in a healing of the plastic deformation mentioned above, thereby removing the cause of the brown colouration so that the type II treated diamond is colourless, pink or blue. The transformation of type II brown diamonds to colourless was the first product that GE and Lazare Kaplan introduced, and to date these diamonds represent the overwhelming majority of what they offer for sale. Colourless to near-colourless HPHT-annealed diamonds were initially a difficult identification challenge. GIA researchers have now carefully documented thousands of these diamonds and have systematically compared their properties to those of type II natural-colour diamonds, thereby allowing development of robust criteria to separate them. However, only highly sophisticated gem laboratories can identify this treatment. GE and Lazare Kaplan Int l laser engrave the treated diamonds they market with GE POL on the girdles. A very small percentage of gem diamonds can be treated using the HPHT process. None of these enhancements are present in Birks diamonds.