Treated to perfection

Clarity-enhanced diamonds are an attractive alternative for those looking for big and brilliant on a budget.

By Diana Jarrett

The advent of synthetic stones has added to diamond collectors’ options, yet many consumers are still loyal to earth-mined diamonds. The trouble is, trying to get the desired color, size and clarity can make natural diamonds an expensive prospect. Clarity-enhanced (CE) diamonds offer a solution for shoppers who want a snazzy yet reasonably priced stone.

Enhancement technology, invented in the 1980s, can successfully treat lower-clarity diamonds so they appear higher in clarity. Stones suitable for treatment are ones with inclusions — especially of the feather type — that either reach the surface or are accessible via laser (see box below). The result is not perfection, but it can look that way.

Who buys, and why?

There is no one consumer type for CE diamonds, according to wholesaler Humie Leshem, owner and president of Leshem Color and Clarity Enhanced Diamonds.

“Our customers are privately-owned mom and pop retailers, [or independents with] two to five stores by the same owner,” he says, but CE stones “appeal to a variety of customers — budget-minded millennials wanting an impressive ring, and affluent consumers who already own pricey diamonds but want some gorgeous, showy jewels to flaunt in their social circles.”

Online retailer Best Brilliance, which specializes in CE diamond bridal jewels, reaches younger consumers who do their homework online before shopping, says president and CEO Guy Mendel. “Our customers know the prices of natural diamonds and find our CE diamonds to be perfect for getting the size and sparkle they want within their budget.”

These consumers follow social media and know the styles celebrities wear. Clarity enhancement means those on-trend styles are within the average buyer’s reach, and in bigger carat sizes — making for rings they can proudly display on social media themselves.

A basis for comparison

Shoppers may know nothing about CE diamonds when they enter a store, but the retailer can quickly discover what is most important to that customer, be it quality, size or appearance. Clients may be disappointed when they see how many carats their money can buy in untreated diamonds, but when the retailer places a CE diamond next to an unenhanced one of the same price, it gives them a choice.

“No customer should leave the store without making a purchase,” Leshem declares, calling CE “a good alternative diamond that translates into a positive shopping experience for the consumer. CE diamonds are here to stay.”

Assuaging client curiosity
Here are some FAQs your customers might have, and how you can answer them
Q: Why is diamond clarity such a vital trait?
A: A diamond’s clarity grade describes the number of naturally occurring imperfections (or lack thereof) in a diamond, both on the surface and internally. Known as inclusions, these natural blemishes might be visible to the naked eye or require magnification to see, and may or may not affect a diamond’s beauty. The fewer inclusions a diamond has, and the smaller they are, the higher the clarity grade the diamond receives.

Q: Are CE diamonds really genuine, or are they lab-created?
A: CE diamonds are natural earth-mined stones that have undergone laboratory treatment to improve their appearance. In fact, the other 3Cs in a CE diamond (cut, color and carat size) may be quite desirable, and enhancing the clarity can result in a stunning stone.

Q: What are the ideal diamonds for an enhancement procedure?
A: Faceted stones that are otherwise attractive except for a lower clarity grade are ideally suited for enhancement. The technology removes or lightens blemishes that affect the grade, so that the stone simply looks brighter and cleaner.

Q: Are these treatments permanent?
A: There are several enhancement procedures. Lasering, boiling and bleaching (via acid) are permanent techniques. Some treatments involve both lasers and fracture-filling. Stones that undergo those require special care to ensure they maintain their appearance, as the process may not be permanent — although the fractures can be refilled.

Q: Will the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) issue grading reports for treated diamonds?
A: The GIA does issue grading reports for diamonds that have undergone permanent treatments, such as laser drilling, or lasering and bleaching. However, the institute does not issue reports for diamonds with fracture-filling treatments, as they may not be permanent under certain conditions.

Types and techniques First developed in the early 1980s by Israeli inventor Zvi Yehuda, clarity enhancement procedures have evolved over time to include several methods of improving a diamond’s appearance and salability. These methods can result in convincingly high-clarity stones — though trained gemologists have ways of identifying a treated diamond, such as a “flash effect” of spectral hues along a repaired fracture, or minute air bubbles as a result of filling. The main clarity enhancement techniques in use today are:

Deep boiling — This common low-tech treatment is worth a brief mention, as it does eradicate dark inclusions. Diamonds with dark, surface-reaching inclusions get deep-boiled under pressure with an acid treatment for 10-12 hours. Rather than filling the cavity, deep boiling removes the black inclusions, leaving a whitish, almost imperceptible inclusion in its place.

Laser drilling — For dark inclusions that don’t reach the stone’s surface, a laser cuts a microscopic hole from the surface to the inclusion, making it possible to deep-boil the dark matter out of the blemish.

Special laser drilling — Similar to laser drilling, this process creates a microscopic plane through the diamond to its dark inclusion. Although the result is larger than regular laser drilling, it is more natural-looking and more easily filled.