Understanding Diamond Clarity
The value of a diamond is determined, in part, by its clarity. The clearest diamonds are the most expensive. Cloudier ones cost less money.
In order to assign a value to a diamond, jewelers assign it with a clarity grade. The Gemological Institute of America developed the official grading system for diamonds.
The best grade on the system is “Flawless”, or “FL”, which means that the diamond is 100% clear, even when viewed under a microscope.
The lowest grade in the system is “Included”, which means that there are visible specks inside of the stone. Included diamonds are given one of three grades (I1, I2, or I3), depending on how much matter is visible inside.
There are several scores in between Flawless and Included, including “Slightly Included” (S1 or S2), “Very Slightly Included” (VS1 or VS2), and “Very ‘Very Slightly Included” (VVS1 or VVS2).
In this article, we’ll focus on the Slightly Included category. While these diamonds aren’t valued as highly as perfectly clear stones, they still make great jewelry.
And, they’re much more affordable than those crystal-clear rocks!
Is Si2 Clarity Good?
SI2 clarity is lower on the quality spectrum than SI1. While both types fall under the “Slightly Included” category, SI2 diamonds have slightly more visible matter inside of them.
But, that doesn’t make them bad. After all, they are still diamonds. Typically, the crystals inside of them are only visible to a jeweler.
Sometimes, even a jeweler won’t be able to see them with their naked eye. They may have to inspect the stone under a microscope to notice any imperfections.
All in all, SI2 isn’t a bad grade for the typical consumer. Unless you’re dead-set on buying a perfect diamond, you probably won’t notice the difference.
What is a SI2 H Diamond?
Diamonds come in a range of different colors. There are crystal-clear ones, cloudy white ones, and even slightly yellow ones.
In fact, most consumer-grade diamonds have a yellow tint if you look very closely. Diamonds with a slight tint are less expensive than clearer ones.
Jewelers use a letter system to identify the color of a diamond. Clear stones are given a grade between D and F. The yellowest ones are assigned a grade between S and Z.
The diamonds in between are given a grade between G and R, with R being on the yellower end of things.
Typically, the color of a diamond corresponds to its clarity grade. In other words, it’s hard to find a crystal-clear SI-grade diamond. Most SI1s and SI2s have at least a bit of cloudiness inside of them.
For an SI2 diamond, an H isn’t a bad score. Given that D is the best color score, H isn’t too far behind.