The 4Cs is an established system of diamond comparison claims to ease the selection process of a diamond and eliminate the factor of subjective opinion in favor of objective benchmarks.
Various gem labs and the Diamond Cartel clash over the concept of the ‘4 Cs’ that was introduced to consumers in 1940s as a means of squeezing more bucks from defenseless customer. The system is claimed to be a fair way to qualify the rarity of a diamond through comparison of 4 criteria: the carat, cut, clarity and color. Flawless and primitive the 4 C's dumb down charts are not the final destination; they are only the beginning of the journey that leads to your diamond. To truly understand a diamond’s unique qualities, you must look beyond the 4 Cs to the diamond’s innate Fire, Life and Brilliance.
Explore them one-by-one:
Cultural Idiocy
It takes a certified male chauvinist to state that the first thing a woman cares about is how big the diamond is. To think that most women want the biggest stone possible, one has to live in a sparsely populated area of some backward county in the middle of nowhere.
Of course the size of a stone she gets is a concern, but not an overwhelming one. Fom our experience most women are easily persuaded to trade size for quality. The most defining issues faced by prospective buyers involve the diamond shape and cut.
What Grade Reflects Beauty?
Sorting diamond properties is a tedious task. You want to make sure you don't overpay for the stone and the stone will keep it's appeal throughout your whole life. Financially you will be served well with basic comparison tools - Cut, Color, Clarity, and Carat Weight being the most prominent and comprehensive set of criteria.
A diamond is not your regular household purchase - unlike a garden hose it does not have a task associated with it. The DeBeers marketing machine created an artificial purpose in order to sell more stones: the obligatory engagement ring. But people used to enjoy wearing diamonds and gemstones millenia before DeBeers. The simple reason why they did this is because they are beautiful. Your stone could be as ideal, symmetrical and perfect as a microchip but if it lacks beauty nobody cares how valuable it is and how much money you saved by buying it.
Diamonds do not brew cappuccino or pump gas. Their supreme purpose is making it's owner happy. When divided by their intended shelf life whether it's Prosac, ice cream, Ambien or chocolate - none of them are as cost effective as diamonds.
The Fifth C - Confidence
In addition to the 4 traditional attributes used to evaluate a diamond, Leon Mege adds another one which is perhaps the most important: Confidence
Catch 22
The 4Cs will help you out of that maze to a certain degree. Unfortunately it will also mold your brain to a very convenient mindset that will help the Diamond Cartel to extract the most money out of your pocket.
Without knowing at least as much as the 4Cs you are in a danger of being prey of a typical "Diamond Education Specialist" who will fill your brain with mind numbing test results and useful minutia of information that means nothing at all. It is merely intended to confuse and disorient you. After they alter your brain with meaningless numbers, grades and angles they will make a dash for your wallet.
