Glossary of Diamond Terms

When any object has swirled colors of two or more.

A fancy cut name for a diamond or gem that is basically an oval tapered at both ends. It's popularity and worth are below the round shaped diamond, however taste is completely individual. Marquise is a fancy diamond shape, while round is just your typical average Joe shape.

A chemical process that scratches the top surface of a diamond or gem to remove it's reflective properties

A diamond that weighs about or is smaller than .2ct. Usually found in ring bands or watches.

A solid inorganic substance of natural occurrence usually obtained through mining. Also minerals in commercial use are defined as a substance used by the human body to obtain health. Inorganic, just in case, means Something is chemically combined to produce something else. It's not a natural occurrence like something from a living thing such as humans.

Moh's scale is a measure of hardness and resistance to scratching. The hardest substance being Diamonds. Nothing can cut a diamond but a diamond. The softest being Talc which is rated a 1, and Diamonds being the hardest are ranked at 10. There are many gems or stones that fall in-between 1 and 10, however no gem or stone is equal to 10. It is only occupied by diamonds.

Moisannite is a very rare crystal found in nature, and is NOT man made. We say this because Moisannite is so close the properties of Diamond that only a machine could tell the difference. The problem with Moisannite, is that it's being replicated in a lab with virtually the same properties as in nature, and it's being passed off as diamonds by non scrupulous scam artists. We personally know of 7 cases in which a person bought a moisannite from another country but was told it was a diamond. When they brought it back to the states and had it appraised the horror they felt could be felt by anyone in the room. Moisannite is just about as resistant as a diamond. Only a sharp eye can actually see that Moisannite has a double back refraction, and their ability to transfer and sustain heat is pretty much the same as well. This is one crystal, either man made of nature made that can have devastating effects on the diamond community.

The action of actually putting a gem or diamond into a ring or piece of jewelry.

The metal, usually gold, that resembles stems that's hold the diamond or gem in place. Needing special tools for this so that the mountings can actually bend around the gem.